MUIR's ~ Burford ON

RIP - MUIR's is NOW CLOSED

Huzzah! I was finally done work for 2010 and was traveling back home with my father who picked me up and we finished sine last minute shopping. On the way home we stopped in the little town of Burford, home to many members of my family.

On the main street is a restaurant called Muir`s. It`s a storefront that opens up into what looks to be a house. Their catch line is "Eat. Drink. Chill" and I have heard that they do some pretty good grub.

The main reason for that is my cousin Steve (pictured above from Muir's Facebook page) is the head chef there. I don't get to spend a lot of time with my family, so I haven't had a chance to try his cooking, but this was the perfect chance for me to stop in and try his wings.

Now some are going to accuse me of playing favourites. It's my cousin, so I am going to write positive things about his cooking and the pub. But I approached this review like any other - analyzing all the details and removing any bias I could.

Inside the place was busy with a couple of end of year parties. The place has a very warm feeling, like a Cheers pub, where everybody knows your name. In fact, we ran into more family while there! I didn't catch our waitress's name, but she was very friendly and helpful. We looked over the menu which was full of  tasty looking dishes. A lot of Buffalo themed dishes, appetizers and pub grub in general. They even have a food challenge - The Belly Buster: 24oz Black Angus Beef with Cheddar & Swiss, Smoked Bacon, Peameal Bacon & Ham, veggies, fries, gravey, no cutlery in 25 minutes and its free. But if you don't finish, it's $25!

Dad and I both got wings, but we split an order of Coney Island Poutine. Crispy seasoned fries with cheese sauce, bacon, green onions. So good.

While it may not have been traditional poutine, the cheese sauce and bacon really made the dish. This monster dish was more than we could handle on our own. Actually we had to take most of it home and ate it over two more meals. It was a lot to eat, especially once our wings arrived.

Muir's is clearly a place where wings are important, not just an afterthought thrown on a menu. They are "Fresh . . . Never Frozen" which is very important in good wings. They also say they are the "Best Wings in Brant County!"

The wings come in an order of 1lb, or about 8 wings, with a side of dip (blue cheese in our case) and lots of celery and carrot sticks.

These wings were big. Very big. Not super meaty, but just right. The wings are dusted before deep frying, and were very crispy. But the meat remained tender inside. Aces in my book. There are 15 sauces on the menu, so it was hard to pick. I asked many questions to our waitress and she was helpful in navigating my wing selection.

CAJUN

Not too long ago my Dad was introduced to dry Cajun wings and really liked them. So he decided to try them here. I don't think he was disappointed.

The crispy skin was coated in Cajun seasoning giving a nice texture that lent itself to a crunchy bite. The taste of the chicken was highlighted to the seasoning on the wings, which was a nice blend of spices. Not too spicy, but a nice fried piece of chicken with the hint of chili and garlic that is the signature of Cajun cuisine.

BUFFALO

I debated between getting Hot and Buffalo, but something said go with Buffalo. Boy did I make the right choice.

The Buffalo sauce was rich and buttery but had a nice spicy tang from the hot sauce. This was a medium level of heat and was really a great wing. And they were nice and saucy too!

RIDICULOUS

I also wanted to sample their hottest sauce, ridiculous, so I got it as a side.

This sauce was ridiculous. It really burned my mouth. I'm pretty sure its a spice extract mixed in some sauce. My lips and tongue were definitely stinging. Sharp pins and needles that packed a wallop. Not a lot of flavour, but a lot of pain!

STEVIE B's

We also brought an order of wings back for my mother and grandmother. Steve's own signature sauce, Stevie B's seemed to be the way to go. A mix of Sweet Thai and Honey Garlic, they were, well sweet and spicy. I'm not a honey garlic fan, but I could eat these. Grandma and mom liked them too.

FINAL SCORE: I swear without bias that these were some of the best wings I've had in a long time. Big, crispy, saucy, fresh. Simply, kick-ass wings. The sauces are not just bottled sauces but made in house. Steve clearly puts a lot of effort into his wings and it shows. The Coney Island Poutine was also really good and I can imagine how the rest of the menu taste. I didn't get a chance to talk to him and tell him that I thought they were excellent. Clearly I need to visit family more often. 9.5/10

Muir's: Eat. Drink. Chill.

131 King Street, Burford ON