Izabel's - Hamilton

We were in Hamilton and decided to visit this restaurant as it was on "You've Got To Eat Here". Well save your money. It is expensive for what you get. Borscht was big chunks of carrots, beets and other vegetables just thrown in hot water. That is how I tasted it at least. Perogies tasted like they were from frozen grocery store brands. Hard dough and hard to cut. I ordered the pork Schnitzel. It was good but some people got a mushroom gravy on there dish and mine came with nothing but mashed potatoes. They are not consistent at all. For 3 people our meal was $80.00 with tip. We did not have and booze so for me I will never go back for all the reasons above. I will add that the staff was great but don't waste your money.

I'm embarrassed to say, but for the first 8 years we lived in Waterdown, we never went to Izabel's. In the 2 years since trying the restaurant, it has quickly become our favourite restaurant in town. The biggest issue with the restaurant is the size: there are only 6 or so tables so getting a seat can be an issue on busy nights. But the food is worth waiting or taking home. Before Izabel's, I was not familiar with traditional Eastern European cuisine. Now, I can't wait to visit and try something new. I especially enjoy all the varieties of schnitzel and the spaetzle. The homemade quality of the food and the neighbourly feel of this restaurant make it a must visit.

Had the great fortune to have lunch at Izabels today.Our first time but will not be our last.We drove in from Kitchener after seeing an episode of You Gotta Eat Here.....My hubby did not tell me where we were going.....a surprise he said .Our server Joanne was fantastic and very informative....between us we tried the beef barley soup....dill pickle soup and and white borscht soup as well as the mulligatawny and wow.....the soups are to die for and homemade .......stock from scratch ....I had the best cabbage rolls I have ever eaten and I love cabbage rolls...my hubby had the chicken schnitzel and loved it...We also tried the red cabbage salad and the beet salad....I wanted to try everything on The menu. I felt compelled to tell the cook that they were the best cabbage rolls and the man in the kitchen happened to be the owner Ken.he was a joy to talk to.Made us feel right at home as if we were regulars.I had to roll myself out of there after lunch but what a great find.I saved the plane fare and got the European food experience 40 minutes from my home in Kitchener...was it worth the drive?.Let's just say I asked hubby if we could go back for dinner. I do not normally write reviews but I believe in giving credit where it is due........Thanks Ken and Joanna

Good for take out. Good European food. Lunch specials are great include soup and salad. Service can be abrupt at times.

I wouldn't be choosing this place for special occasions - mostly because of the ambiance. Very casual setting and small, it reminds you more of a fast food place than a destination location. But don't be fooled! The food was plentiful and delicious. I've rarely had rouladen so tastily prepared and appreciated being able to choose the potato dumplings (yum) rather than mashed potatoes. My partner had very tasty cabbage rolls with mashed and enjoyed both very much. (She's a great cabbage roll fan, so hard to impress.) We took the menu's suggestion to partner our food with beer to have a "real" European experience and felt full, satisfied and delighted to have found this place to add to our repetoire. Our only concern was that the website menu needs to be updated - as the prices have been raised and soup or salad are not included in the dinner menu any more. When we mentioned this to our server, she offered us free dessert (which we declined). Nonetheless, we were grateful she was willing to honour the discrepancy somehow. All in all - a nice place to go, tasty food and delightful service. We'll be back!