Cornerstone Bar, Just Average

At the end of medical school, prospective applicants must go through a process called CaRMS (Canadian Resident Matching Service). To summarize, the process takes applicants and matches them with programs in specific specialties of their choice. For medical students this means you travel across Canada interviewing in a span of three weeks. For programs this means you have to host a number of interviewees and showcase your program. As part of this process, the pediatrics residents arranged a number of socials to give applicants the ability to meet current residents, explore Winnipeg a bit and most importantly, fill their bellies with some of Winnipeg's tasty eats.

To find a location capable of handling upwards of 20 people was difficult but we were able to arrange for the Cornerstone Bar & Restaurant. A large bright restaurant at the corner of Osborne & River Avenue, the Cornerstone is a popular bar in Winnipeg and the eclectic Osborne Street.

The menu is nicely arranged and has is fairly extensive. It is obvious there is a number of Asian influences which adds uniqueness and creativity on top of the standard pub fair. Cornerstone also has a number of daily specials that range from Vietnamese sandwiches to fresh oysters.

We started off with a Cheese Platter. Parmesan, Brie and Mozzarella were paired with a variety of crackers and crostinis and served with bacon jam and a tomato jam. The bacon jam was the highlight with a smoky fatty flavour that went very well with the smooth creamy cheeses. Well presented and tasty.

Chicken Wings are a pub favourite and the Honey Garlic version here were solid. Nicely breaded chicken wings with a tasty honey garlic sauce. Overall nothing spectacular or special but as you would expect from a pub.

The Dip Platter features an artichoke dip with crackers, crostinis and fresh vegetables. The dip itself was warm, creamy and smooth. Again this is as you would expect and nothing exceptional or extra-ordinary.

The Steak Bites were a disappointment. To start, the portions of beef were tough and difficult to chew. Furthermore, the breading was soggy and tasteless. Finally the mayo on top of the bites did not mix well with the sriracha aioli. Altogether this made the dish basically inedible. Very disappointing.

I also wanted to order a main to round out my meal. After discussing with the waitress I went with the Chicken Cacciatore. Billed as a braised chicken leg with a litany of vegetables on a white corn polenta, this dish was poorly executed. The presentation sloppy, the chicken poorly seasoned, the polenta bland. The best part was the mixture of vegetables with the sauce but that should be a compliment, not the standout of this dish.

Overall The Cornerstone was a major disappointment. Despite their large bright display and well thought out decor, the food was ultimately not on par. In a city where there is a litany of food options, you can get much better elsewhere and therefore I simply cannot recommend The Cornerstone.