Best Restaurants for Special Occasions in St. Catharines

I have beaten at the valley restaurant several times and I am always pleasantly pleased. They have a great variety, fantastic specials, and amazing food all around!

The service, ambience, and food is amazing! The steaks and filets are cooked to perfection. Good luck having room for dessert but you must for the Billy Miner pie!

The January 1st buffet was nicely presented, each section and each dish well identified. The food was fresh and tasty, not overly salted or spiced, a good balance. However I found the traffic from the main room to the food court a bit busy, I would suggest an entrance and a different exit, so not to block the lobby. Other than that, all was wonderful, nicely decorated.

From the moment we arrived for our reservation, we were treated as welcomed guests. Friendly staff and professional, knowledgeable service. My husband ordered the “chef’s experiment” which was a dry aged New York strip in a garlic worcestershire reduction sauce which was absolutely amazing. I ordered the bacon wrapped beef tenderloin with garlic parsnip mash and it was perfectly cooked. We had a bottle of the Unshackled Prisoner Cabernet Sauvignon which was the best we’ve had. The dessert was a beautiful panna cotta that tasted like a creamy apple crisp, and an eggnog flavoured cheesecake. The service included an amuse bouches, a palette cleanser, and a mignardise. Fantastic experience for my husband and I on our little getaway together.

What a wonderful meal and experience! Both our appetizers were delicious and beautifully presented. The Pickled Heirloom Beets & Endive Salad was bursting with flavour. My husband raved about his scallops. Our salmon and angus beef entrees were flavourful and artfully presented. We enjoyed the Ontario Cheese Plate and the Basque Cheesecake. Each of our courses was paired with the perfect selection of Niagara College wine (including icewine). Our server Anjali went above and beyond to provide exceptional service. She genuinely cared about making our experience memorable. She even brought us complimentary sparkling wine to celebrate my birthday. Benchmark is the perfect restaurant if you want to enjoy excellent food in a welcoming and attentive environment.