The Blunt Bartender
A laid-back pub and eatery with a splash of sass.

563 Prince Street
Truro, Nova Scotia
(902) 843-3843

“So, I’m very blunt,” Marie McDow says with a smile when talking about her restaurant, The Blunt Bartender at 563 Prince Street in Truro. “I say it like it is, any of my friends can tell you, I’ve been like that my whole life.”

The Blunt Bartender has a lot more to offer than just the playfully sassy attitude from the servers and staff. After spending the majority of her career in the restaurant industry, Marie decided to open her own pub and eatery downtown Truro, which will celebrate its second anniversary on July 22. The menu leans heavily toward delicious comfort food dishes, there are plenty of great beers on tap, live music on select evenings, and a summer patio that all work together to create a fun, relaxed environment to enjoy time with friends or family.

“People work hard for their money, and when they come here for a date night, or a night out, it’s really important to me that they’re enjoying themselves, and they feel like they’re getting the value from a great atmosphere and great food,” Marie explains. “I want our customers to know that we appreciate them. We really, truly appreciate every person that comes in here.”

Blunt Bartender Washroom

If you’ve never had the opportunity to use the bathrooms at The Blunt Bartender, check them out immediately. The waiting area has a 360 painting of the interior of a restaurant with a bar, dancefloor and live band. Inspired by graffiti art Marie admired in Nashville, Tennesse, the mural really adds to the atmosphere of the restaurant.

“I wanted to make a place where everyone can do selfies,” says Marie. “You can actually stand in there and make it look like you’re a part of the bar scene in the painting. The artists who painted it for us were these amazing young girls who did a fabulous job, people love it.”

Marie designed the interior of The Blunt Bartender herself. From incorporating the beautiful stone fireplace that was there when they moved in, to the bright orange chairs and the windows that pop out to create a sense of continuity between the patio and the interior in the summer, she carefully planned out every detail.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to be able to do this,” Marie says with a smile. “We had no idea what it was going to cost; honestly I probably wouldn’t have moved ahead with it if I knew at the time, but I’m so glad we did it and that we did it right. When we rented the place, I thought we could just do some fresh paint, throw up some signs, and put some beer in the fridge. It didn’t quite go like that,” she laughs. “Every time I turned around I saw something else I wanted done. I had to do it right.”

“When she said we were going to paint it purple, I said, ‘we’re not painting it purple’,” says Marie’s husband Dave. “So anyway, a week later I was in here painting it purple!”

Although Marie and Dave joke about their decorating discussions, the hard work they’ve put in really shines. The Blunt Bartender is immaculately clean and well-maintained, which Marie says is a part of her long-term strategy for success.

“Being in the restaurant industry for years, I’ve seen some businesses just let things go until they suddenly realize they have 40 or 50 thousand dollars of repairs to do,” she explains. “We keep on top of things weekly, whether it’s just touching up the paint or fixing anything that needs maintenance. Sometimes I think my staff get annoyed with me being here because I have such a high standard for cleanliness. I’m sure they’re thinking, ‘stop making us clean everything and get out!'”

Marie McDow Blunt Bartender

When The Blunt Bartender first opened and Marie tried out a few sassy comebacks with her customers, she was worried they might not take them as intended. “I thought, ‘they’re probably not coming back!’,” she says with a smile. But since then, customers have come to look forward to the quick-witted banner they enjoy with the staff in the pub.

“I never say anything to hurt people’s feelings, but I’m honest,” Marie says. “I remember when I was about 20 years old, I had just had a baby, and I went to the store to buy some clothes. I went into this hop store and I put a shirt on that I thought looked nice, but this young girl, maybe 17 years old, came over and said, ‘oh my god, take that off, it does NOTHING for you’.”

“I was blown away initially, but then I thought, I love her!” Marie says. “I love her because I thought it looked nice, but she really told me straight up that it was awful. It was shocking, but I loved her honesty, I wish there were more people like her. So I sort of ended up becoming like her!”

Marie is originally from Cole Harbour, and moved to Truro 7 years ago to be with her husband, Dave. “I absolutely love the coziness of Truro, and you know everyone who comes in here. People are just really great customers, they love our staff, and it’s a fun place to be.”

When choosing suppliers for the bar, Marie draws on the years of experience she’s spent in the industry. She says she opened her own restaurant to create a job for herself. “I’m 53 years old, and in this industry, at this age, people tend to pass you by. They tend to want younger workers, and sometimes they don’t see all of your experience. So I created myself a job.”

Marie is proud to serve Molson products based on the years of great interactions she’s had with the company. She also carries some local options like Two Islands Brewing from Parrsboro, Coldstream Clear Distilling from Stewiacke, and Nine Locks Brewing from Dartmouth. “I’m loyal to people who are loyal to me,” Marie says while explains how she carefully curates her selection of drink offerings.

Blunt Bartender

When it comes to the food, The Blunt Bartender has a beautiful menu of dishes created by Marie. “Let’s just say I’m not the person you want to take out to eat as your date,” Marie jokes when explaining her cooking inspiration. “I’m famous for ordering everything on the menu, just to have a couple of bites of everything and take the rest home. I can’t decide what I want, and everything sounds good, so I try it all!”

“So I’ll be trying all of these dishes and thinking, ‘this one is really good, but it could use this’, and then I’ll go home and play with it, come up with my own spin and create something new.”

Almost everything served in The Blunt Bartender is homemade from scratch, except for a few of the standard condiments like ketchup and mayo, Marie and her staff make most of the sauces as well.

“We try to do everything from scratch, because it’s nice for people to get a homecooked meal,” Marie says. “I also love the presentation part of it. I love making everything look nice on the plate.”

In addition to working hard in her restaurant, Marie works had to give back to the local community as well. The first COVID-19 lockdown came a couple of days after she put in a huge food order for St. Paddy’s day, one of her busiest days of the year, so Marie quickly went into action delivering the food to people in need. “I didn’t want to waste it, I’m glad we were able to donate it,” she says. “We also made sure our staff were taken care of, and that they knew they could call us anytime if they needed us.”

The Blunt Bartender also has a box at the Rath Eastlink Community Centre that they frequently donate to fundraising events or community groups. “Giving back is really important to us,” Dave says.

“Sometimes I’ll just be sitting by myself and start to giggle, because I’m happy; I still can’t believe I own my own restaurant,” says Marie.

Please note: her husband Dave is also very cool.

APPETIZERS

“I’m not that hungry.”

SESAME HONEY CHICKEN BITES

Panko breaded chicken bites, tossed in house-made honey pad thai sauce on a bed of Asian crispy noodles with fresh cucumbers.

BLUNT NACHOS

Kettle chips smothered in a tex-mex cheese blend, topped with green peppers, red onion, green onions, diced tomato, jalapenos, and black olives. Served with sour cream and salsa. *Add chicken, beef or bacon.

BUFFALO CHICKEN DIP

A creamy spicy blend of mozzarella, pub mix cheese and cream cheese, blended with our signature buffalo sauce. Loaded with chicken and served with lightly toasted baguettes.

HOT CREAMY CRAB DIP

Our blend of cheeses, with onion and green peppers. Our chef’s secret spice blend, and loaded with crab. Served with tortilla chips.

PAN-SEARED SCALLOPS

Fresh Digby scallops pan-seared in your choice of garlic butter or a spicy pepper blend.

SHRIMP AU GRATIN

Tiger shrimp baked in a white wine garlic butter sauce, topped off with a smokey aged cheddar.

VEGGIE HUMMUS PLATE

Roasted red pepper hummus, served with carrot sticks, celery sticks, sliced cucumber, tomatoes, and radishes. Accompanied by warm baguette slices.

GIANT BEEFY MEATBALLS

Baked beefy meatballs spiced with axe’s secret spice blend. Topped off with our signature marinara sauce.

SOUPS

Are made in-house daily, asked your server for details.

SALADS

“Lettuce know what you want.”

GARDEN SALAD

Romaine lettuce topped with cucumber, tomatoes, shredded carrots, mushrooms, and red onion. Dressed in a strawberry balsamic dressing.

GREEK SALAD

Romaine lettuce, with cucumber, tomato, green pepper, red onion, black olives, and feta cheese. Dressed in a house-made red wine vinaigrette.

CAESAR SALAD

Lettuce, bacon, shredded parmesan cheese, with garlicky coutons. Dressed with the Blunt Bartender’s secret homemade caesar dressing.

HOT CHICKEN CAESAR SALAD

Our caesar salad served with Cajun blackened chicken, sauteed mushrooms, green peppers, and onion.

BREAD

“Are you Bready for this?”

GARLIC BREAD

Lightly baked garlic bread, loaded with housemade garlic butter.

BRUSCHETTA

Flatbread coated with our housemade mixture of tomatoes, basil, red onion, garlic, and herbs. Lightly toasted flat bread, topped off with a balsamic glaze.

WE DO THE DIP

Flavoured oils and vinegars, served with warm baguettes.

POUTINE BOWLS

“Spudtacular”

TRADITIONAL

Skillet potatoes with cheese curds, and housemade gravy.

BUFFALO CHICKEN

Sliced blackened Cajun chicken breast, skillet potatoes, green onion, topped with our cheesy buffalo sauce & gravy on the side.

DONAIR

Skillet potatoes, seasoned donair meat, onions & diced tomatoes, served with cheese curds, gravy and donair sauce on the side.

PASTA

“Pasta La Vista Baby”

YELLOW CURRY PENNE

Hot Italian sausage and chicken breast slices with a mixture of mushroom, peppers & onions served in a creamy curry sauce.

MAC & CHEESE

Macaroni noodles smothered in a creamy white cheddar sauce topped with bacon, green onion & onion crips. Garnished with shaved gouda.

LASAGNA

Layers of noodles smothered in our homemade meat sauce, with layers of mozzarella cheese.

SPAGHETTI & MEATBALLS

Spaghetti noodles, served with our signature beef meatballs and our homemade pasta sauce. Sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

ALFREDO

Fettuccine noodles, smothered in our 3 cheese blend alfredo sauce, garnished with green onions.

STIR FRY

“Wok this way”

VEGGIE STIR FRY

Sauteed mixed peppers, onions, muchrooms, carrots. Dressed in a ginger garlic sauce. Served on a bed of rice.

CHICKEN STIR FRY

Sauteed carrots, onions, mushroom, and chunks of chicken. Dressed in a honey sesame sauce, served on a bed of rice.

BEEF STIR FRY

Beef strip sauteed with mixed peppers and onions. Served in a spicy teriyaki sauce, served on a bed of rice.

MAIN DISHES

“Eat it or starve”

FAJITAS

Your choice of chicken, beef or vegetables. Sauteed mixed peppers and onions, served on a hot skillet with side topping of cheddar cheese, tomato, romaine lettuce, sals, sour cream and tortilla wraps.

HOT CHICKEN SANDWICH

Chicken meat served on white or whole wheat bread smothered in our homemade turkey gravy with a side of skillet potatoes and carrots.

HOT HAMBURGER SANDWICH

Fresh ground beef patty with sauteed onions, served on white or whole wheat bread, smothered in our homemade beef gravy with a side of skillet potatoes and peas.

PHILLY BEEF MELT

Salted tender beef with mixed peppers and onions, topped with mozzarella cheese. Lightly toasted on a sesame bun with a side of skillet potatoes.

SMOKEY BURGER

Fresh ground beef patty served with bacon, smoked cheddar, lettuce, and tomato. Served with chipotle mayo on a sesame seed bun.

SWEET SMOKEY BOURBON SALMON

Cooked in our signature sweet Tennessee sauce with rice pilaf and carrots.

SHEPHERDS PIE

Seasoned ground beef, mixed with onions, peas, carrots and corn. Topped with mashed potatoes and cheddar cheese. Smothered in a brown gravy.

DONAIR GRILLED CHEESE

Seasoned donair meat grilled with fresh tomatoes, white onions and mozzarella cheese between your choice of white or whole wheat bread.

FLATBREAD PIZZA

“You wanna pizza me?”

PEPPERONI

Loaded pepperoni, mixed cheese blend, tomato sauce, topped with parmesan cheese and oregano.

VEGGIE

Green pepper, red onion, mushrooms, black olives, mozzarella, and tomato pizza sauce.

BEEF STIR FRY

Beef strip sauteed with mixed peppers and onions. Served in a spicy teriyaki sauce, served on a bed of rice.

BBQ CHICKEN

Spicy chicken, mozzarella, red onion and BBQ sauce.

GREEK

Green pepper, tomato, red onion, black olives, feta with herb and garlic olive oil.

DILL PICKLE

Chicken, dill pickles with an olive oil sauce, then drizzled with a chipotle mayo.

BRUNCH MENU

Sundays from 10am – 3pm

THE BLUNT BREAKFAST

2 eggs cooked to your liking, your choice of bacon, sausage or ham, toast and skillet potatoes.

THIRD WHEEL PANCAKE BOARD

Shareable! 12 pancakes, with sides of chocolate chips, bananas, fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, 6 slices of ham, 3 sausages, and 3 strips of bacon.

HUNGRY MAN

3 eggs cooked to your liking, 3 strips of bacon, 2 sausage links, 3 slices of back bacon, 2 slices of toast, and skillet potatoes.

EGG IN A HOLE

2 slices of bread with a hole cut out and an egg cooked over medium in the middle, served with a side of skillet potatoes.

CLASSIC BENNY

Two eggs, poached to your liking, on an English muffin with ham, and hollandaise sauce, with skillet potatoes on the side.

CALI BENNY

Two poached eggs, on an English muffin, with smashed avocado and a tomato slice, topped with hollandaise sauce, skillet potatoes on the side.

CANADIAN SKILLET

Scrambled eggs with peppers, onions, cheese, bacon, ham and sausage on top of our signature skillet potatoes.

YOGURT & FRUIT

Vanilla yogurt served with fresh fruit, sprinkled with honey oats.