Twenty five years ago, Milestones opened its first restaurant on Denman St. in Vancouver, and today, it opens its 53rd location in Guildford Town Centre in Surrey.

The new restaurant has partnered up with The Surrey Food Bank and will be donating soft-open proceeds to the organization. Proceeds donated by the restaurant were raised during a soft-open program where members of the Surrey community were invited for a complimentary meal and asked to leave a charitable donation.

The new location is unlike any other Milestones. It features a circular bar, lounge and dining room sitting, and a selection of 14 draught beers. The lounge offers beautiful mountain views during clear days.

The cocktail list is truly inspired. The new Milestones Caesar for example, uses Walter Caesar Mix  – made with vine-ripened tomatoes, grated horseradish, select spices & clam juice from the North Atlantic.

The Milestones menu is a mix of old classics and trend-setting dishes. Chef Jason Rosso specialty in eclectic and international flavours was the inspiration in creating a diverse and unique set of menu offerings.

During our media preview we had a chance to sample some of the dishes available on the Milestones menu, like the Ahi Tuna Tataki Salad – perfectly seared tuna with an arugula and fennel salad drizzled in a mandarin orange vinaigrette.

Each course was expertly paired with wines from Constellation Wines.

If craving a bit of Asian fare, the Spicy Thai Basil Noodles are what you want. Beautiful prawns with juicy bits of chicken tossed with a coconut milk and basil infused chilli sauce. Yeah, this was good.

Next we have my favourite dish of the night: The Tomato Sugo Halibut  – served with quinoa pilaf. It was a the little surprises that made this dish for me: the hint of Serrano chilli on the cream. The spice on the tomato sauce. The crispiness of the seared fish. It was truly delicious.

The halibut was paired with a Mark West California Pinot Noir. I know what you’re thinking: red wine? with fish? It was a bold pairing, I know, but one that paid off. The wine brought the smokiness of the tomato sauce and gave the fish a new dimension. It was heavenly.

The Filet Mignon was seasoned with Milestones’ signature spices  and served medium rare. The steak is served with cheddar mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables. What a perfect piece of beef.

Dessert lovers will have to wait until February to order this dessert: Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Pudding. Bread pudding layered with coconut cream and topped with toasted coconut.

This was a fantastic meal. Milestones Guildford is a welcome addition to the neighbourhood.