We recently dined on a Saturday evening with our good friends at Belong Restaurant & Cafe owned by acclaimed Chef Brad Long located in nearby Sharbot Lake, which offers a modern take on locally sourced fare, which also partners with The Maberly Bake Shop, a well-regarded spot in Maberly known for its fresh, homemade butter tarts and other baked goods. Their modern restaurant building and two-sided outside deck overlook Sharbot Lake where we dined while watching the setting sun in the West across the lake. The weather is unseasonably warm this year and it was enjoyable for diners both inside and on the covered deck. The place was filled so reservations are in order. The high ceiling inside means that the acoustics are not the best for relaxed conversation when it is at capacity, but you could still converse easily. Inside seating for 36 with two patio outside areas seating a total of 42.
Chef Brad Long’s online Bio reads that he is s recognized as one of the top chefs in Canada. His talents are highly acclaimed by some of the country’s toughest food critics – VQA Restaurant Awards of Excellence, and Globe and Mail Top 10 restaurants of the year. An active advocate for sustainable farming and ethical treatment of livestock, balancing work and family is vital to Long. When he isn’t creating menus, speaking with farmers or checking the freshness of new produce, he relishes family time with his wife Sheryl and their five children. He is familiar with the Frontenac region having a place there and that is partly why he opened the dining room in 2023 after COVID and left Toronto. The crowd I canvassed came from Chicago and other US locations cottaging in the area and one couple has been there several times over the Summer. Others, like ourselves, come from towns in Eastern Ontario and one lady was from Ottawa.
The menu varies and you can also order cocktails and drinks that may not be on their printed menus! The evening we were there featured a supper menu consisting of:
- Fried Buttermilk chicken on mashed potatoes with honey glazed carrots
- Grilled pork loin on garlic mashed potatoes and braised red cabbage with pan jus
- Pan seared Steelhead trout on shaved cucumber & carrot slaw, buttered baby potatoes
- Short pasta tossed in garlic & wine with grilled shrimp, sweet corn & red onion
- The Carnivore: 80z grilled beef patty, shaved parmigiana, extra virgin olive oil, topped with two fried egg
- Also on offer as a side was Water blanched & tallow fried chips.
There were a range of local beers and cocktails listed. You can also ask for cocktails that may not be featured on the drinks menu. I had a lovely London Fog Martini (1.5oz Earl Grey Gin, 1oz Gretzky cream liquor & vanilla simple syrup). You could tell the quality because there were bits of the vanilla pod on the last sip that gave it that extra vanilla quality taste! One in our party had a Harrowsmith Frosty Mugginz beer which was only 4.6% abv and refreshing. For the meal, we shared a bottle of Angove Organic Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 from South Australia. It was bold but the tannins and fruit acidity were in perfect balance making the wine mouth-filling and smooth on the palate, going well with our selected meals.
The Chef certainly knows his craft. He knows all his suppliers and gets fresh, quality products which often vary as the menus change as do the seasons. Some of us had the Buttermilk chicken and one of us had the Grilled pork loin. All were excellent. The meats were moist and flavourful and the buttermilk coating on the chicken was crunchy chewable but not hard, allowing you to savour the depth of flavour in the quality chicken as well as the complementary spices in the buttermilk coating. All was a harmonious blend in the mouth. Same for the grilled pork loin – tender, moist and flavourful with a tasty char roasted coating, diced apple chunks with soft spice undertones. The meal portion sizes were very good and a few take-out boxes were seen going out the door. Price to quality and quantity here is very good. Next time we go, I am hoping that they have the trout because it looked fabulous, with eye-pleasing presentation on the plate with the other ingredients. Several other diners had the fish. Another sign of a Chef that takes the care to prepare and plate properly. The staff do it all justice too as they know the meals to describe them and the service is quick to keep the food hot/warm for your full enjoyment. If anything, I would have liked to see a bit more jus on the buttermilk chicken as it was so good.
One diner that arrived after 6:15 pm mentioned that the kitchen had run out of red cabbage and the apple sauce, and was served regular cabbage. Best to reserve between 5 and 6 PM to be assured the menu items are all available.
At first glance the desserts appeared pricey but we saw the large cookies and huge blueberry scones that come with Crème Anglais. People came in for take-out at the front counter during dining hours. When we left we were pleasingly full and totally enjoyed the ambience of the place too. This is definitely a place that I recommend if you want to go to a place on the lake and take in not only the sunset, but the great food and service.
While we dined for supper, they have lunch menus and serve a special Sunday Brunch menu. Check out their website for details: 1004 Medical Centre Rd., Sharbot Lake reservations at 613-279-8646; info@belongsharbotlake.ca
Monday to Wednesday CLOSED
Thursday to Saturday Lunch from 11:00-2:00
Thursday to Saturday Dinner from 5:00-8:00
Sunday Brunch from 11:00-2:00
Column by Brian Preston
Let’s Eat for Local Foodies column is a regular feature in our print/digital edition.
