TASTE SASKATOON
Rugby clubhouse restaurant that serves man-sized portions worth the drive.
I didn’t know Saskatoon had a rugby clubhouse, let alone a rugby clubhouse restaurant serving man-sized portions of good-as-homemade food.
If not for some persistence, I might still not know it, as Natasha’s Bar & Grill is located off an out-of-the way crescent in the city’s industrial north end. We drove by twice before catching sight of the sign in the distance. It was worth the drive. The clubhouse ranks up there with curling rinks for comfort and charm. In other words, it’s pretty basic, with plywood floors, hard chairs and sports memorabilia on the walls.
But it’s chock full of personality, from the tabletops embedded with rugby photos to the Cordon Blue chicken burger with shaved ham, Swiss cheese and delicious hand-cut fries.
Natasha’s opened at the rugby club in 2008. Since then, it’s developed a loyal clientele among rugby fans and those who work in the north end who appreciate the $5 breakfast special and the filling lunches.
“We’re feeding the industrial men, you know, mostly guys that are really hungry. They need something homemade and hardy,” owner Natasha Whyte says.
We arrived for lunch well after the noon rush and had the server to ourselves. She explained that just about everything on the menu is scratch made, right down to the salad dressings.
We started with a wacky salad, a generous mound of lettuce, tomato, turkey, cheese and, according to the menu, “whatever other kinda veggies we have on hand.”
The dressing was served on the side: Thousand Island for my husband and blue cheese for me. It was very blue-cheesy and the salad could qualify as a meal in itself.
Next, my husband went for a Swiss mushroom burger, a half pound of ground beef, mushrooms and vegetables on a huge bun. The bun couldn’t quite stand up to the ample filling, so he employed a fork to finish off the good bits inside.
I chose the rodeo chicken wrap, which was stuffed full of crunchy vegetables and chicken with a spicy BBQ sauce. Ever notice that some restaurants serve wraps that are so lacking in flavour you want to ask for the mayo jar? Not this one! It was delicious and so filling I took half of it home.
As a side, I chose the broccoli cheddar soup with, bonus, real cheddar shredded on top. John took the french fries.
My soup was freshly made and really good, but John’s fries were smashing. Best restaurant fries I’ve had in a while. Whyte says they’re cut fresh every morning.
“It took us almost three years of experimentation to find the perfect potato and cooking technique so we could have the most perfect french fries,” she says. “It’s the side that people get with 90 per cent of the meals so it has to be perfect.”
Recently, a second Natasha’s Bar and Grill opened on the other side of Saskatoon in the Nutana Curling Club where, she says, the menu is much the same but the portions are smaller, given that the clientele includes many seniors who live and curl in the area.
Natasha’s Bar & Grill at 134 English Cres. (the Kinsmen Rugby Centre) is open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday. In rugby season, the kitchen stays open with a more limited menu until 10 p.m.-ish, depending on the crowd.
The $5 breakfast is from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Burgers and wraps are under $10; full dinners $13 to $14.
We’ll be back in rugby season, but probably much sooner. I hear the breakfast natwich is worth the drive.