*this date was sponsored by Lotus Vietnamese Restaurant. All opinions and wording are our own.
This past weekend my husband, Doug, and I managed to go out for a date. Other than work related night’s out, I can not remember the last time the two of us actually went out without the children. In the past we have always relied on family to babysit, but our oldest is perfectly capable to babysit now, so we decided it was time to have an evening together, out of the house, and away from the kiddos!
What did we do? Well, when you have not really done a date night in about 13 years, it is not easy to think of things to do. We went out the eat, as we were invited to try the menu at the Lotus Vietnamese Restaurant, and then…we went to Chapters! Yup, exciting night… Believe it or not, this was nice. We could look around at the books without a preschooler running off or interrupt every other minute. Next time we have a date night, we will plan to go to a show or do something else after our meal. Honestly, just coming home to our youngest already asleep was a real nice change.
The dinner was lovely, quiet and we were able to enjoy a complete conversation without interuptions.
We were greeted by Cynthia and we asked for her recommendation on our meal choices. Here is what we had that evening.
Our Menu
Our appetizers were a Spicy Vegetable Summer Roll and Coconut Shrimp
The Summer Rolls were tasty and I would say a medium heat for the spice. The blend of spice was very flavourful (definitely cinnamon in there, a nice surprise) and accompanied by the peanut dipping sauce pictured above, they were a nice paring for a filling appetizer.
The Coconut Shrimp tasted amazing with the sweetness of the coconut shining through. They were slightly crunchy and came with a sweet chili sauce.
On to the main course:
I ordered the Lemongrass Stir Fry with noodles. The serving was huge. You can see in the photos, that I received two plates. One plate contained the veggies and chicken, while the second plate contained the noodles. I loved the lemon flavour with slight heat to it. You can order this one spicy or not. The noodles were topped with caramelized onions as well.
Doug enjoyed the Crispy Pho with chicken. It was a bed of noodles sauteed so the bottom is crispy, while the top of the bed of noodles is still soft. He enjoyed the texture of this dish.
To finish off our meal we were served a sweet rice coconut cake that was not on the menu. The green colour comes from a plant and the flavours are mildly sweet, making it a great way to finish off the meal.
As we left, Cynthia treated us to a Bubble Tea. They have the largest selection of flavours around. I chose Lychee and Doug had Mango flavoured. Sorry, I didn’t get a great pic of this. The bubbles are tapioca balls in the bottom of the drink. It is a nice refreshing beverage, and very different depending on the flavour your select. We are definitely going back for Bubble Tea with the kids!
The Lotus Restaurant is located at 797 Mountain Road, Moncton. It is a nice setting, as you can see from the photos. There is another business in the other half of the building, selling flowers and gifts.
We are looking forward to going back with our whole family and letting the kids try some Vietnamese dishes.
Be sure to check out their new offerings. You can follow along on their Facebook page for news and their entire menu.
Upon checking out their facebook page, I already know what I am stopping in for later this week, a GlutenFree Vegan Maple Chai Latte!
I am looking forward to this being a new spot to stop for a specialty coffee, bubble tea, or even a glass of wine. The restaurant is the perfect size for family meals, the start of a girls night out or breakfast to start the day off. Let me know what you think, if you venture in and try out their menu.
They are open Tuesday thru Saturday each week.
Closed Sunday and Monday.
- Tues – Thurs 8am-2pm and 4pm -7pm
- Fri & Sat 8am-2pm and 4pm -8:30pm
Here is the token, unflattering selfie, to prove we were actually there!
