Bite-sized: M.T. Bellies, Welland, Ontario

So I used to work at this restaurant called M.T. Bellies (get it?). I started when I was in high school and it was my first serving job. I worked at the Port Colborne, Ontario location and though it is closed now, they are still going strong at their original location in nearby Welland. M.T. Bellies is a fun, easy-going restaurant with a lot of options on the menu. One side of the restaurant is catered more towards families (including white paper on the tables with some crayons and games) and the other is more for adults, with a few booths and high tables around a bar. While the food would definitely be considered standard restaurant fare (apps, salads, burgers, pastas, etc...) M.T's adds a few unique twists that make it stand apart from places offering a similar menu. One such example is this:

Da Boss

This burger  is called Da Boss and it kind of blew me away. Picture a big homemade beef and cheddar pattie, topped with jack cheese, crispy bacon AND tempura-battered jalapeno peppers! If that wasn't enough, they serve it up on a fresh kaiser bun. I've definitely seen a lot of fried onion rings on burgers but having the spicy yet muted crispy battered jalapenos was a real treat and a perfect burger topping (which I will most certainly be trying to replicate in the near future).

Crispy fried jalapeno on top of Da Boss
(with a side of poutine, obvi)

While on this particular occasion I only ordered the burger, I have tried nearly everything on the menu at one point or another and it is pretty much all good. They aren't doing anything terribly fancy or out of this world, but they are taking classic food items and doing them well and in some cases (such as the case of Da Boss) they are seriously raising the bar! If you are driving through Welland and looking for a casual, good eat, I would definitely recommend M.T's (especially if you are driving through on a Friday in the summer when they are serving up delicious Lake Erie perch!)