The Lower Deck Bar & Grill

Went for their brunch with my better half. The place is cavernous but manages to offset this with lots of touches of wood at the bar and tables and friendly service. There were very few other customers so we had our pick of table. It has a very neighborhood bar, Cheers type feel, with shady edges.
We both got the smoked salmon eggs benedict. Mine with the breakfast potatoes and her the citrus salad. Our plates soon arrived. We could tell right away the smoked salmon had been cooked or something as it was a light pink colour and not red smoked salmon should be. The smoked salmon was dry. And, whatever flavour it had had probably been previously frozen out of it anyway. The buttermilk biscuit was dry and fluffy– it didn’t go with the rest of the dish. The hollandaise was passable but I doubt it was homemade. The breakfast potatoes were the highlight of the meal– nicely seasoned and cooked chunks.
With the VLTs, this place seems to have a lot of regular barflies. The wait staff are pretty casual and will have conversations with the «regs» half way across the restaurant about how hard they partied last night. I probably wouldn’t take my kids here.
I had a bloody mary which was probably the best part of the visit. Nice and spicy with a well-​salted rim and pickled green bean as a garnish. I asked about local beers and they don’t have any NS microbrews in stock; just Coors/​Molson/​AK garbage.
They have a rewards program which is free to join. You get so many points every time you spend money at a LD location. I would never go here enough to get enough points for a glass of water but they do send you a gift certificate on your birthday, and joining anniversary, for $ 12.99. I am all over free anything. Even getting a entrée basically free, I will stick to the wings or try their nachos next time. Their wings are jumbo and more like an order of fried chicken. Sauce selection is extremely limited. They wings are excellent but close to $ 2.50 a wing they freakin’ should be.
Food is mediocre. Ambiance is not family friendly. No local beer. Wish my local watering hole was worthy of more stars. If you are in the Clayton Park area, want a drink and don’t want to go downtown check out Good Robot’s taproom.

Decent food and generally the servers are great. The issue with this place is the door staff. Major chip on their shoulders, way too self important for a door staff at a quiet bar. Have given this place a few chances but the door staff can’t seem to get over themselves. Once I came out to pay the cover for some friends that decided to stay and attempted to joke around, light heartedly, with the door staff while paying… the rolled their eyes at each other. Another time we arrived to have a beer at 12:30 SHARP and were told that we couldn’t come in because «the doors closed at 12:30». We stated that it was still 12:30, but the door staff wouldn’t allow us in (we were all sober). This place could be great, but it suffers from having too many door staff with God complexes. Go get real jobs if you want to feel important guys.

Service was good and the food was adequate. The most unfortunate thing was our burgers did not have the items as promised by the menu. The promised back bacon was replaced with plain bacon and the promised roasted tomatoes were raw tomatoes. Not what we ordered and it would have elevated the flavour from the standard un-​remarkable burgers that they were.

Food was standard pub fare… not really that special considering the options available. Atmosphere was nice, they’ve done a good job of creating a downtown feeling in suburbia. Waiter was terribly pushy about the booze. Made us feel uncomfortable when he wouldn’t take no for an answer. BUT… the real kicker? The waiter added a 20% tip to the bill before handing me the visa machine and informed me just to press OK. A definite violation of trust. Then they stand over you and make you feel terribly uncomfortable so all you want to do it leave. I felt it was a complete ruination of a good night out with friends and we won’t be back. If this is their business model, then don’t get too attached to the place because it won’t be there long, today’s consumers don’t want to be coerced into giving money away undeservedly.

Good atmosphere, good food, good drinks!
No complaints, but nothing to take it from 4 to 5 out of 5.

Tried it four times; won’t be back.
First time was bangers and mashed. Mashed potatoes at room temperature, swimming in a puddle of cold sauerkraut juice. Fail.
Second time was pork medallions in mushroom gravy with German noodles. Room temperature mashed potatoes again. Room temperature gravy. And Parmesan cheese on German noodles is just not a good idea at all. Fail.
Tried the same dish, hold the Parmesan. Room temperature gravy and potatoes again. Fail.
OK, fourth time tried the steak. Maybe it was too thin to be done medium rare as ordered. Mashed potatoes weren’t even warm enough to melt the little dab of butter. Fail.

OK atmosphere, OK food, OK service.
Had a steak sandwich with wedges. Steak was ordered medium rare and came medium. The whole thing ended up being (rather than a sandwich) a low-​quality steak on a piece of garlic bread covered entirely in thin, crispy onion things.
Wedges were salty and a bit chalky.
Might go again, but certainly won’t order the same thing.

Have eaten here several times and there’s nothing special about the place, but it’s the only true pub/​restaurant in the immediate neighborhood. So if you feel like that type of thing, this is where you go. I still overhear people calling it the Copper Penny (former ownership from years ago, even though it was Winston’s for a few years after that). For those who’ve never been there, the overall size of the place is giant. When you walk into the front entranceway, you can go left towards the stage area where bands play, or you can go right, but it all wraps around into a big circle. Capacity is probably 200 but I could be off.
Food is okay. the Bruschetta Napoli ($ 9.99 Toasted Greek pita topped with a blend of plum tomatoes, red onions, basil, marinated in balsamic vinegar, garlic and olive oil. Topped with mozzarella.) made into a personal pizza style. Not bad. The Harvest Vegetable burger ($ 12.99 House made with our unique blend of herbs and spices, chickpeas, lentils, black beans and rolled oats. Topped with crumbled goat cheese, oven roasted tomatoes, and spring lettuce.) The patty was a bit heavy weight-​wise, but normal-​sized, a bit dry, but decent flavor. Served with side garden salad. My partner liked the Pale Ale Battered Fish & Chips enough (2 pc $ 12.99 Fresh haddock dipped in our Alexander Keith’s beer batter. Served with coleslaw and chipotle tartar sauce, which he gave a ⁷⁄₁₀ for average. The nachos (wseet and banana peppers, red and caramelized onions, tomatoes, mixed cheeses and a drizzling of basil oil. Served with salsa and sour cream. $ 2.49 for guac, which I always get) are good, VERY plentiful, semi-​greasy (which is okay), not the best I’ve ever had, but decent or better than average slightly. Their quesadillas aren’t bad, with a hint of heat. My mother enjoyed their donair rolls and although just an appetizer, filled her enough for supper on its own. For brunch, I’ve tried the spinach eggs benny on a buttermilk biscuit instead of English muffin. It was decent, nothing great. My partner had the regular eggs benny but wasn’t a fan of the biscuit. I couldn’t finish the home fries, was too full.
A group of us did go here for New Year’s Eve once and had an okay time. As long as you get a table, it’s a relaxing, NON-​pretentious environment. I’ve also been here for two St. Patrick’s Days in a row, both with my parents-​in-​law, and both late afternoon/​early evening. We were disappointed both years that the normal bands were playing their normal music, and only a few Irish tunes for the 2 – 3 hrs we stayed for food and drink. This year I was only able to arrive after the $ 8 cover fee started too, which makes the lack of Irish music that much worse. The reason I even came back a 2^nd year is due to the lack of other pubs in the neighborhood. To stay downtown would mean firstly, a line-​up to get into the better places, and secondly, a $ 30+ cab ride home. Neither of those things are worth it on a work night in my opinion.
Friendly, straight-​forward service.
I’m sure I’ll be back here in the future. Although I’d never really pick it for a meal out, it’s still the main Clayton Park watering hole with reasonably priced beer & full bar.

Doesn’t have the atmosphere of the one downtown but that can be a good thing, especially on a Friday night where the one downtown can be very crowded and too full of drunk yahoos.

Great! I usually the get nachos which is more than enough food for 2 but is delicious and inexpensive especially with shrimp! The staff are generally friendly and I love the outdoor seating!

Lower Deck on Lacewood is ok but don’t order a club house as it will be a disappointment because it isn’t one! A chicken Brest, a piece of lettuce placed between a roll. NOT a traditional club or even close. Three others orders different thinks and all said «Just ok». Fries, beer and service were good

I’m not a fan of the downtown location, popular though it may be. Our first attempt to visit this location was very short; apparently live music starts very early on Fridays (unbeknownst to us) and the place was packed. When there is a live band playing? There is nowhere to sit where you can hear yourself think, let alone what your companion is saying. We decided to come back another time.
So we tried again when we were sure there was no live music. Much quieter this time, lots of booth selection and the clientele skewed much older than us. Even though technically it was still morning, the bar was lined with rummies who looked like they had been there since the Copper Penny days.
Our server was nice if not the most attentive. The menu has good selection and prices are reasonable. I tried to order the Calypso burger, which comes with grilled pineapple and a spicy pepper sauce. The server discouraged that choice as the sauce is really, really hot and they plan on removing it from the menu. So I settled for their regular («Premium») burger with wedges. Mike had the chicken burger with seafood chowder.
I’m giving three stars rather than two because Mike really liked everything he tried. I didn’t care for my burger; it was well done, large and seasoned, but the texture was a bit odd. It was a very heavy, dense burger and took some jaw power to chew. Mike liked it though. The wedges were a bit too seasoned for my liking, but tasty nonetheless.
Our server disappeared after dropping off our bill, so we had to approach the bar to pay. Overall I wouldn’t mind going back to try some other items on their menu.

The new LD resembles Winstons, the establishment that was previously in this location. The table and chairs have changed, there is a bit more lighting but that’s where the «renos» ended.
On our last visit we ventured in at 8:45pm to find that they were already charging cover for the band that was playing there that night… I thought that was pretty early for cover and we were only going in for a meal. We paid, we were hungry.
We ordered our food; we all opted for burgers and nachos to share to start… 45 mins had passed before our server returned with food. But alas, no nacho’s … He forgot. He offered us desert instead. OK… He was friendly and apologetic. Burgers were good. No fries, but wedges.
The food is all your standard pub grub, which was good. As this was our second visit we knew that the food is tasty.
I had signed up for the Lower Deck’s loyalty program during our first visit, so with this visit I had a coupon; buy 1 entrée and get another free… Sweet. What’s even better though, was that after this dining experience I received an email to participate in a survey. While doing this survey I relayed all of this information that I just described to you; cover charges, no nachos… Within only a few hours I had received a follow-​up email from the LD manager. She explained in her email that we could have been refunded at the door if we were only eating and that the server should have told us that, she also offered additional loyalty points to redeem for our next visit. This was very much appreciated.
So, sign up for these loyalty programs. They recognize you! Since the LD is quite close to my place, I will go again… Food will satisfy, the price is right and the loyalty program makes it all worth while.

Alright… so you live in Clayton Park and want a decent place to go? Well, the Lower Deck is attempting to give you this.
It’s large, and has that usual pub feel, and it does offer live music! the downside is that the crowd is somewhere stuck between sloppy drinker meets after work diner. However, this isn’t as bad as it sounds as it’s large enough to entertain both.
We decided to head over for a few beers and some grub. The food is standard pub fare so it’ll taste great after your 3^rd beer, and the service isn’t too bad either. They seemed to be attentive, and sort of knowledgeable about the food and beer.
We closed the bar down and had a great time listening to the band Wreckhouse. The downside was/​is it closed at 12:30. but I guess it saved us some money and dance moves!

Ah, Lower Deck! You’ve spread out over our city, but to good news or bad? Right now, I think it’s somewhere in the middle.
My group headed out to experience some local music, but my boyfriend and I were feeling rather hungry. After trying out some of their beers (in two of the dirtiest glasses we’ve ever touched, but the insides are at least cleaned if the outsides aren’t), we decided to sit down in the front of the bar where it was quieter, and take a look at the menus.
We tried their chicken nacho plate, which was really good. A great amount of toppings meant that every bite was different, and they didn’t skimp on the size of their sour cream. My man tried their fancy cheeseburger with potato wedges, and I had the liver and onions. Why? Liver is delicious, that’s why! Who is with me? Nobody? Ok, moving on.
This was a lot of food, and I couldn’t finish it. The liver was tender and there were three very large pieces of it on my plate. The gravy that came with them was delicious, but my mashed potatoes were cold. Too bad, they were really good and could have been fantastic. The veggies were standard, but cooked well. The burger looked great, also massive. The potato wedges were way too good, we could not stop eating them, even though we should have.
Overall, I had a decent meal at a decent price. If only those glasses were cleaner!

Couldn’t wait to try this place! Full 5 stars for the food. We went here before seeing Iron Man 3, and the food was fantastic. We ordered burgers and fries, and they did offer sweet potato fries which were worth the extra 2 $. The service we got was a bit below par (I had to change tables to get service, no one came to my table to take my order) but perhaps that was because it was busier in one section than the other.
The only complaint I have is when you enter it’s not really clear off the bat where to go, you just see two doors. No person to seat you, no greeter, just two doors. One goes to a slot machine place and the other to a restaurant. They might want to put signs up or something.
All in all, fantastic food so we will be back.

Good Nachos, Good selection of beer on tap and I no longer have to cab downtown to go to the Lower Deck.
It’s a welcome addition to the Clayton Park Area.

I personally find pubs to be hit or miss, and while I thought the food, service and atmosphere at the Lower Deck in Clayton Park were pretty good, I have to admit that I was a little let down by the selection of beer and the prices.
The dining room itself is massive, clean and attractive! The booths in the dining room are huge — lots of room on the table for your plates and elbow room if you’re sharing a seat.
The wait staff are fabulous — the only thing I wasn’t a fan of was the ringing of a bell every time someone got a «good» tip.
The fish and chips are absolutely to die for, but a huge portion! The ciabatta club is probably my favourite item on the menu though! I haven’t had the opportunity to fit dessert in yet because I’m always too full from my meal, but I look forward to testing out some of the sweeter selections sometime soon.

OK, so this surprised me.
I am not a huge fan of dirty old pubs with their greasy food. I tend to stick to Old Triangle for my go to pub. But living out In CP, our choices are limited for food, drinks, and dancing.
A quiet Sunday evening, after a long road trip… we were starving and in need of some alcohol. Having visited the other 3 restos in CP that we enjoy, we decided it was time to give LD a try.
Walking in, this place is huge! very clean and offers many places to sit– I like that. Very open concept with high ceilings, but I feel that on Friday and Saturday nights with live music and people dancing, this might be a blessing.
Wait staff are very nice, and offered a lot of advice on drinks– very knowledgeable.
Menu was huge, and it all looked super tasty! Not just your typical pub grub. The prices were a tad high but I think that is balanced by the large portions.
I really wanted the hummus, since it is homemade, but I settled for the spinach and portobello salad, figuring it may be a little more filling. My partner got the fish and chips.
The salad was DELICIOUS. Amazing citrus dressing, sunflower seeds, mushroom, red onion, and there was no skimping on the goat cheese– fantastic! Ryan’s fish and chips were great. Typical heavy batter, but with very moist and white fish inside and delicious potato wedges instead of fries– that was a nice change. We were very happy with our meal.
The only down side was that their beer selection lacked. It was within the confines of Labbatt-​Molson-​Coors conglomerate… but marketed as «local» as always. No craft brews or even Sam Addams… something outside of the cheap huge company beers would be nice. The wine selection, on the other hand, did look great. I had a couple mixed drinks that the bartender had kindly just whipped up– without me giving her anything to go on… I like a place that is so accommodating.
And my other down was the extra $ 2.00 one has to pay to get salad instead of fries… like a plain old garden salad. I know some restos still do that, but not a lot. In this day it really shouldn’t cost that much more for lettuce. Opting for this, it would make some meals $ 16-​$ 20, which is a lot for a pub.
But anyway it was a great experience. Wish I could give it a 3.5 stars. I am excited to have a new spot in CP, especially with music on the weekends… makes for more drunken nights and cheap cab rides home. Thank you Lower deck!
ps. they have a homemade blueberry grunt on the menu– I haven’t tried it yet, but very excited to do so!

I was excited to hear a new pub would be moving into my neighbourhood. No offense to Winston’s (I never actually visited it) but from what I know it wasn’t exactly fancy, judging by the common occurrence of fights, stabbings, etc, in the area after dark. Not exactly somewhere I would run to visit! Given the much-​needed injection of something clean and new into this little strip mall, and because I am a fan of the original LD, I had high expectations when I stepped in here the week of the opening.
I can’t compare the interior to the old incarnations since this was the first time I set foot in the space, but I liked it. Typical pub with wood-​paneling everywhere and the wood benches and booths that you will find at the original. Honestly, I’m not big on the super high ceilings and open concept — it’s ok but I feel the space lacks a lot of the warmth and coziness of the original location, and it disappointed me a little. It felt more «industrial» to me. I LIKE the space and I’m all for ‘new space, new vibe’ but I personally was looking for that LD «feel» and I personally did get it. And I mean it literally about the warmth — I felt a draft in our booth during the whole meal and kept my coat on.
However, the good thing is the service and food were what we expected and we enjoyed both. I had the Lower Decker burger which was delish — the patty was huge and juicy, well-​cooked, and a highlight for the toppings were the house-​made pickles (appreciate that they make their own rather than just open a jar). Great meal! They have lots of choices on their menu and the prices are reasonable for the amount of food you get.
In addition to the regular menu, waitresses were coming around with trays of complimentary apps for people to try, which was great (opening week, and all). We tried a quesadilla and a crostata-​thingy that were both really tasty. It was a nice added treat. It’s also nice that they have the same musical entertainment here that is the hallmark of the original location — keeps the boisterous atmosphere there. I honestly can’t remember the name of the guy playing guitar while we were there but he was awesome!
All in all, I liked our experience and will be back. I just hope they can keep the class level UP in this notoriously dangerous Clayton Park corner.