Emma’s fishcake heaven

I have a vested interest in fishcakes, having written a book
on them a few years back; the collection of recipes required extensive
testing and tasting, and I know fishcakes about as well as anybody can.
So when word of an Eastern Passage eatery that starred fabulous
fishcakes came wafting along, I knew I had to get a taste.

Emma’s is the baby of former marketing professional Kim Stacey (she
chose her middle name Emma to headline the moniker). Unable to find a
local gathering breakfast-lunch spot, she opened one herself.

Emma’s interior is an interesting blend of modern and traditional,
right down to the customers. For a dining room with less than 30 seats,
the demographic spread here today is broad: over there, a table of four
hip youngsters, tattoos and piercings all the way; over here, a family
of four with two small tots; against the far wall, two silver-haired
gentlemen, faces lined with lives long lived.

On the walls are strikingly stark, modern photos of food-related
things—a single fork, a row of jars. A hand-painted daisy on the
facing of the bright green cash counter reflects the cheerfully warm
atmosphere, heightened by the friendly faces of our server and of the
proprietor herself, who comes from the kitchen to chat with the
regulars and see how we’re all doing.

The small menu is also diverse, with the favourites of French toast,
bologna, and fishcakes sharing the breakfast spotlight with egg-white
omelets. Lunch offerings include fried haddock and a chicken and
avocado grilled sandwich and veggie lovers wrap.

The coffee burner with the constantly brewing pot holds fair trade
coffee, and there is a nice selection of healthy tea blends available.
All in all, a remarkable balancing act.

Of course, we order the fishcakes; sadly, they are sold out of salt
cod cakes today and only have haddock (usually, there’s a choice). When
it comes to traditional fishcakes, I’m firmly in the salt cod camp. The
taste is unbeatable, quintessentially east coast, and haddock is a pale
imitation. In this case, the haddock holds up admirably, tossed with
potato and onions—very “down home,” unrefined and rustic. And the
green tomato chow (.99) from Pat’s Preserve’s (another Eastern Passage
business) is the perfect complement.

Fishcakes and eggs ($8.99) will give you two fishcakes, two eggs,
home fries and toast. The eggs are cooked perfectly easy over, as
ordered; the home fries are just that: chunks of real potato (not
frozen), fried ’til golden brown. A hearty breakfast, but not the
biggest one on the menu—that belongs to the Fisherman’s Breakfast
with three eggs, three meats (bologna, ham, bacon or sausage), hash
browns and toast.

Like the fishcakes, the leek and potato soup ($5.50/bowl) is rustic.
Although it’s pureed, it’s not the silky smooth-textured broth of fine
dining locales; instead, it’s a thick, lumpy, bumpy, and altogether
marvelously flavourful “meal in a bowl.” The leek is boisterously,
beautifully loud, joined by a tang of sour cream drizzle on top and
only slightly muted by the potato. With the soup comes a rough-hewn,
heavy homemade biscuit that’s oh-so-good.

The made-to-order smoothie ($3.99) is tart, as one might expect from
a lime-kiwi combo, and just thick enough to slurp through the
straw.

We really enjoy our time at Emma’s, I think that by perfecting this
balancing act, Stacey has created a diner that can appeal to just about
everyone.

This article appears in Mar 26 – Apr 1, 2009.