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Downtown Hamilton: A culinary diamond in the rough


By Marie Pavone, Guest Writer

I was walking along King William this morning and I thought, with all the noise of construction, the frustration of one-way street driving, and the shortage of parking spots available, I can see how downtown Hamilton may seem intimidating for out-of-towners and local residents alike. Many of who have turned to Burlington, Niagara, and Toronto restaurants for an out-of-the-ordinary dining experience. It’s hard to believe that downtown Hamilton used to be the hot spot for shopping, dining and entertainment some 50 years ago when a stroll along King Street was considered a treat on a Sunday afternoon.

If you are looking to take a break from the usual chain restaurants that dominate the Hamilton Mountain, it’s worth taking the short trip downtown to indulge in the vast array of culinary delights. Why not swap the blooming onion for the award winning Chorizo & Seafood Gumbo at Acclamation Bar & Grill or the half chicken dinner for the Malaysian Chicken at Boo’s Bistro?

You don’t have to travel far for a fabulous night out either. Did you know that Brownies Downtown turns into an after hours jazz lounge on the weekends, or that Bread & Roses Café offers an Open Mike night Thursday nights?

But how would you know these gems even exist? One can probably drive by 20 different restaurants on King Street in the blink of an eye. And who has time to surf 50 different restaurant websites? Well, there are a couple neat places to help you find these gems - the first is www.MenusOnly.com, site that helps put all of Hamilton’s restaurant menus in one place online. Browse restaurant menus, print restaurant coupons, and view daily specials anytime. The second is WhatsUp.ca Hamilton, a site with a directory of local restaurants and links to their websites, most of which are built by the WhatsUp team. The site also has addresses and phone numbers to help narrow down your choices. Finally, be sure to check out MacInsider's own Reviews section, recently launched and slowly growing with personal student-written reviews of eatery hotspots nearby, among other things.

With all this at your fingertips, you will soon discover that Hamilton is truly a culinary diamond in the rough!

[kokosas]

Good article, very helpful!