Ontario Archives - Page 2 of 4

In Toronto

UP Express: Pearson International Airport to Union Station

June 2, 2016

What is the best way to get to Downtown Toronto from Pearson International Airport? If you have a group of 4, it’s easier to take a bus, Taxi or Uber. If it’s just you and a friend, the new UP Express is a great alternative that is also cheap and fast. Since we had a long layover for about 6 hours, we thought it was the best way for only $12 to go to and from the Airport.

It gets travellers to and from the airport in 25 minutes, with trains departing every 15 minutes.

UP Express tickets can be purchased online, on your mobile device and at the vending machines or service counters at UP Express stations. I was a bit confused on what tickets to get since the names of the tickets aren’t intuitive.

Long Layover Return $12

You just need to return back to the Up Express within 7 hours.

Between Pearson and Union, UP Express stops at Weston and Bloor stations as well.

We just followed the signs and eventually get there. It was a bit of a walk from the Domestic arrivals, but the signs are pretty clear.

They have automatic doors that open when the train arrives. A cool feature that reminds me of the MTR in Hong Kong.

Trains are equipped with convenient amenities including:

WiFi
Flight disruption information
Overhead luggage storage
Luggage racks at access doors
Space for oversize baggage
Power outlets
Tray table on seat backs
Toronto events information

Once the train starts, one of their staff comes through the train checking tickets. When they make stops at Weston and Bloor stations, it’s very seamless and doesn’t stop for too long.

At every seat, there is a guide to the city. There might be some useful information to those new to the city, but since I knew where I was going, I didn’t have to read it.

Photo Credit: UP Express

Once we were at Union Station, everything is within walking distance. We didn’t have any luggage with us, so we didn’t feel weighed down.

Since we did arrive really early at 9am, we headed off to St. Lawrence Market for a snack before meeting up with a few friends.

Website: https://www.upexpress.com/

In Airplane Meals

Air Canada: Vancouver to Toronto Red Eye

June 1, 2016

Air Canada Flight 1172 from Vancouver (YVR) to Toronto (YYZ) departs from YVR International Airport at 12:25am and arrives at 7:55am at Pearson international Airport. Total time of about 4 hours and 30 minutes.

As this is a domestic flight even though we were on our way to Orlando, Florida. There are a lot of connecting flights that go through Pearson International. Air Canada didn’t have a direct flight to Orlando.

We check-in online 24 hours ahead of time, checked our seats, and got our tickets loaded onto our phones. We also had to check a bag in, so it cost us $25USD. Pretty annoying how it’s in USD, but we didn’t have a choice.

Since it was late at night, going through security was seamless. Staff were very friendly and if you are Canadian, you can show your passport, Drivers License or Government issued ID.

None of the shops or stores are open, so you won’t have anything to do to kill time waiting for boarding. There is Wifi, so as long as you have a device of some sort, you can browse the internet.

It was a packed flight, so they asked that anyone with a carry on that wanted it checked in for no additional price can do so.

The row configuration is 2 -2 in Business class with 14 seats and then in Economy class, a 3-3 configuration with 169 seats. They use their Airbus A321-200 fleet.

The seats have a USB outlet, touchscreen entertainment system and an outlet for charging other devices like laptops.

They have pretty recent movies like Star Wars: The Force Awaken.

Once the plane lifts off, they offer passengers a complementary beverage and the option to buy any snacks or meals off their menu. I went with water because I always get so thirsty on flights.

Most of the flight, everyone is sleeping. There was a bit of turbulence, so there was announcements once in a while to make sure people have their seat belts on .

Once we get closer to Toronto, they offer another complimentary beverage.

This time I went with tomato juice since it tastes a lot better in the air. There were studies done where loud noises suppress sweet flavours and enhance savoury ones.

The flight wasn’t eventful, which it shouldn’t be. We were able to sleep through the plane ride with no issues. I can fall asleep even with the loud engine noises as it is a consistent noise.

We got to Toronto and had a long layover, so we explored the city for a little bit a met up with a few friends before heading off to Orlando.

Website:
http://www.aircanada.com/

In Italian

Buca Osteria & Enoteca: Pasta, Pizza and Pig Ears

November 7, 2014

After touching down in Toronto, Flo and I went to Buca on King Street for dinner. It’s been a few years since I’ve been here but I will remember they had some pretty damn good Italian food. They have 2 more locations Buca Bar and Buca Yorkville.

Like always, remember to make reservations or else you will be out of luck. We managed to snag a reservation on Open Table at 6pm a day before due to cancellations.

We were seated in their wine room and it was really beautiful seeing all their varieties of wine.

There are lots of tables and seats in the area. It’s much more calm and relaxing here compared to their main dining area.

Peroni is served in a large wine glass. I never felt more sophisticated drinking beer out of this glass. I like Peroni because it’s light with a hint of citrus.

We chose two types of their Salumi Di Buca, which are their daily meat.

Prosciuttini, which is a cured leg of pork with colonata spice.
Coppa, cured pork shoulder with ciociare spice

Then we got 2 of their formaggi, which are their cheeses:

Ricotta Di Bufala, is their whipped water buffalo milk whey cheese
Pecorino Toscano, Tuscan DOP Sheeps milk cheese, aged 8 years

All the the choices were great and they came with their daily preserves. It’s a fun item to pick a few meats and cheeses and enjoy a good chat with friends while picking at the plate.

Gnocco Fritto ($7) are Tuscan spiced crisp dumpling. It is basically a big dumpling that is hollow. It is served with lardo, which is basically fat.

I thought it was an average dish. It looks beautiful, but I didn’t like the idea of eating fat and deep fried hollow dumplings.

Orecchio Di Maiale ($8) is a great dish to share. It is crisp pig’s ears with wild fennel and sale di cervia. It is so crispy and is music to my ears. It was good for the first few pieces, but it did get quite salty after a while.

Fungi Pizza ($24) has sauteed seasonal mushrooms, marscarpone, gorgonzola and marjoram. This pizza was quite rich and heavy. The mushrooms didn’t shine through as it was overpowered by the various cheeses.

Bigoli ($18) has torchio-cranked duck egg pasta, duck offal ragu, venetian spices, mascarpone, and basil . The portion was small for the price, but it tasted good.

Their food is pretty good but you have to choose the dishes carefully. Here is my last visit from 2012. I do like the atmosphere of Buca and it is quite lively.

We Rate Buca:

Address:
602 King Street W.
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://buca.ca/

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In Chinese

Lee: Private Dining Experience

November 5, 2014

Lee offers private dining experiences for group of 10 – 30 people. It’s a cozy space for special occasions for friends and family…or even an office party. I was here for my friend’s rehearsal dinner for her wedding and gathered in the room to celebrate.

Photo by Lee

The space has a long table to seat all your guests and cozy up to the fireplace.The room over looks their narrow private garden.

The room is located past their kitchen and has their own washroom away from the rest of the restaurant.

Saketini has moonstone Plum Saké, Tozai Living Jewel Junmai Saké, Belvedere Vodka, Yuzu, and Flower Petals.

Singaporean-style Slaw has green onions, taro root, rice vermicelli, cucumber, carrots, jicama, daikon, tomatoes, sesame seeds, ginger, peanuts, edible flowers, purple, basil, coriander, daikon sprouts, shallots, pickled red onion, with their salted plum dressing and onion oil. This is an amazing dish! Everyone must order this.

Some people love this so much that they just order one of these to themselves.

Top Chef Green Curry Chicken has crispy multi-grain rice cake, pine nuts, spiced tomato jam, oven dried pineapple, and chili mint. This was the Top Chef award winning dish when Susur Lee was on the show. I always find this dish ok and not as jaw dropping as what some other people say.

Warm Molten Chocolate Cake has caramelized jackfruit & banana with vanilla bean ice cream. Oh man, this dish was a surprise. It seems pretty normal, but once you cut into the cake, it oooooozzzzeeessss with the chocolate inside. So good! I ate most of this and I kept craving more.

The vanilla ice cream with the blue berry sauce and chocolate decoration paired nicely too.

Overall, I was pretty satisfied with the meal. We had a lot of dishes, but I kinda enjoyed the meal a little too much. I usually don’t forget to take photos. For more dishes, you can view my previous review of Lee. When in doubt, always order the slaw.

We Rate Lee:

Address:
603 King St W
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.susur.com/lee/

In Brunch

Le Neuf Cafe: Brunch in Toronto

November 4, 2014

Le Neuf Cafe is located near Spadina and King by Clarence Square Dog Park. This cafe is cute because it’s located among a row of cozy town houses. The cafe is founded and staffed by lifelong Parisians, so you may get a bit of some attitude when ordering.

Flo took us here when we were in Toronto and it was a delight to try some authentic French brunch.

It was very busy when we came here at 10:30am, but barely managed to get a table for 5.

Cappuccino ($3.75) is large and topped with a good amount of foam.

Benedicto ($12.90) has prosciutto, basil, tomato, and hollandaise. You can choose it to be served on top of brioche or english muffin. There are sides of homefries and salad. The egg was poached perfectly and oozed all over the brioche bread.

Mediterranean Galettes ($13.95) is a savoury crepe with prosciutto, fresh tomato, basil and mozzarella. The galette was really good!

French Toast ($11.50) is served with fruit, cinnamon butter, housemade caramel and topped with powdered sugar.

Overall, the food is pretty decent and the cafe has a really nice charm. Service is ok, but if you ask for customizations, the staff might get feisty.

We Rate Le Neuf Cafe:

Address:
9 Clarence Sq
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://leneufcafe.com/

In Deli

Caplansky’s Delicatessen at Pearson International Airport in Toronto

November 3, 2014

Caplansky’s Delicatessen has been pitched on Dragons Den in 2011 to expand his business by opening food trucks, but was unsuccessful. He went on again to pitch a second time, but still unsuccessful due to their evaluation.

When I was in Toronto, I saw them at special events, but didn’t have time to stop by their truck. They have claimed to have Downtown Toronto’s best smoked meat, so when I was at the airport, I knew it was my last chance to give it a try.

In August 2014, they opened their first franchise at Toronto Pearson Airport in Terminal 3 after the security check. They bring their famous BBQ beef brisket and deli classics like blintzes and kniches to people traveling out of Toronto. I had dinner here before my flight back to Toronto.

They have a dining area and also a take out area for people in a rush. It was really busy during dinner time, but I had to give it a try before my flight. You will find them near gate B39.

Coke ($3) is what I ordered to quench my thirst and add a little kick of caffeine without drinking coffee.

Smoked Meat Deli Sandwich ($9.95) comes with a slice of pickle.

The quality of meat was ok, but wasn’t as succulent as they portrayed on tv. The smoked meat with pretty lean, but did need their signature mustard to add more flavour. This item was featured on Diners, Dive-ins and Dives, but it doesn’t look the same, but perhaps its because it’s a franchise.

We Rate Caplansky’s Delicatessen:

Address:
Terminal 3
6301 Silver Dart Dr Mississauga, ON

Website:
http://www.caplanskys.com/

In Canadian

Sassafraz: Lunch in Yorkville

September 10, 2014

Sassafraz is located right in Yorkville and the serve up French inspired Canadian cuisine. I came here for lunch with Flo when I was visiting Toronto for a few days. We thought it would be a great place to catch up as they have a patio area outside.

As we waited for our order, some bread and butter arrived. We took a few bites of the bread and it was good and simple.

Cucumberland Detox ($8) is a cold-pressed juice with cucumber, apple, kale, spinach, lime, and coconut water. It was good to see a variety of drinks on their menu. For a traveller, it’s always hard to get a good dose of fruits or vegetables.

Nova Scotia Digby scallops ($24) has a sweet soy glaze, citrus roasted cauliflower, forbidden rice, samphire, with a dashi broth. It was quite a small dish for $24. It barely had any rice in it. Also, the scallops looked super seared.

Ontario artisan flank steak salad ($19) is served medium with mixed greens, caramelized onion, pickled honey mushroom, and Dijon vinaigrette. This was a nice healthy lunch and it was good.

Overall, the lunch was quite pricey and the portions are a tad small.

We Rate Sassafraz:

Address:
100 Cumberland St
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.sassafraz.ca/

In Cafe

Balzacs Coffee Roasters: Featured on Dragons Den

August 28, 2014

While in Toronto, Balzacs Coffee Roasters caught my eye when walking around Yorkville. They were on Dragons Den looking for funding to expand their shop into 2 Downtown Toronto. They got their deal with Bruce Croxon and Arlene Dickinson.

This location at the Reference Library in Yorkville was one of the two that needed funding to expand.

The coffee shop is European inspired and you have the signature framed posters on the walls and the chairs.

It is connected right beside the library, so you can go borrow some books and then come to Balzacs for coffee.

You can purchase an array of baked goods and get your usual coffee, tea or cold drinks.

Latte was what I ordered. They had some issues frothing the milk, so they couldn’t do much latte art on it, but if you look closely, it could resemble a woman with long hair? Either way, the latte tasted great and had a strong shot of espresso inside.

If you are in the area for good coffee, give Balzacs a try!

We Rate Balzacs Coffee Roasters:

Address:
789 Yonge St
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.balzacs.com/

In Downtown/Ryerson University

Chipotle Mexican Grill: Toronto

August 25, 2014

No matter where I go in the world, there’s always time to stop at a Chipotle for a quick meal. There are currently only 4 locations in Toronto and the one I went to was just right near Eaton’s Centre. I’ve had Chipotle’s in New York, Seattle and in Vancouver…. and now Toronto.

They serve up Mexican fast food and you can find things like tacos, burritos, salad or a burrito bowl. All their ingredients are local and organic, so it is not 100% the same as the other Chipotle locations around the world.

You start by ordering from one end to the other creating your meal. The staff are always nice and friendly. They will try to go out of your way to make sure you have a great meal.

We ordered a variety of Soft Tacos and the Bowl. My favourite meats are the Barbacoa and the carnitas. I always ask half 2 kinds of meat instead of one. Then I add everything on top. Yummy!

If you want to get the most bang for your buck, definitely get the bowl as you can fit more ingredients inside.

We Rate Chipotle:

Address:
323 Yonge St
Toronto ON

Website:
http://www.chipotle.com/

In Canadian

Cows: Ice Cream at Niagara on the Lake

August 24, 2014

Cow’s originated from Prince Edward Island on the East Coast of Canada. They have 10 locations across Canada, but mostly in Tourist areas. When I was at Niagara on the Lake, a small town close to Niagara Falls our tour guide suggested we check out Cow’s as it is quite popular.

There is also a Cow’s in Whistler, BC…but I have no idea why I never go to Whistler when it’s so close to Vancouver. They are best know for their ice cream and their hilarious merchandise like t-shirts and keychains. Readers Digest even calls them the Best Ice Cream in Canada.

Who doesn’t love shirt with puns and cows that make lots of references to pop culture?

When we came here, there wasn’t a long line up, which was great! But then again, not that many people get ice cream before lunch.

Their board with the cow shows you what flavours they currently have. There’s around 20 flavours to choose from.

If you get yours in a cone, you have 4 kinds to select:

Plain
Chocolate
Chocolate + Sprinkles
Chocolate + Nuts

Peanut Butter Cup Cup with a plain waffle cone ($4.25) was what I ordered. I love peanut butter, so this was the perfect flavour for me. It was decent ice cream but it wasn’t the best I’ve ever had.

If you are at Niagara on the Lake and need a tasty treat, definitely check out Cows.

We Rate Cows:

Address:
44 Queen
Niagara-on-the-Lake

Website:
http://www.cows.ca/

In American

Canyon Creek Chophouse: Lunch at Niagara Falls

August 23, 2014

The main reason for our trip to Toronto was to see the Niagara Falls with my in-laws. So funny how they thought it was close to Vancouver. After the 4.5 hour flight, they realized it’s quite a distance away. Plus, not even close to downtown Toronto. They sure are silly, but since I knew this ahead of time, I made sure we still got here to cross one more item off their bucket list.

We even rode on the Maid of the Mist, which has now been renamed to The Hornblower. It’s still the same great experience.

After looking around the Niagara Falls area, it was time to hunt for lunch before heading back to the bus for Toronto. Somehow we ended up at Canyon Creek Chophouse as it supposedly has a nice view of the falls. Unfortunately, the view was obstructed by trees. We didn’t mind since we already got a great view of the falls on the boat.

Canyon Creek Chophouse is inside the Fallsview Casino and they are a steakhouse, but they also has a variety of items like burgers, salads, pasta and seafood. We came in the late afternoon, so this place was empty.

We started with bread, which was nice and warm and came with a side of butter.

Grilled Chicken Caesar ($16.95) has chicken breast, applewood smoked bacon, chopped romaine, sourdough croutons, shaved Parmesan, with house made garlic dressing. The salad was pretty plain for the price you pay. The chicken was also quite dry.

BBQ Baby Back Ribs (Half: $21.95) has the slow braised ribs, grilled and brushed in a smoky glaze, with skinny fries and slaw on the side. The ribs were very tender and about to fall off the bones. Each portion was quite meaty. The fries were extra crispy, which made them really enjoyable.

Kimchi Quesadilla comes cut into 4 pieces and served with sour cream and a pico de gallo salsa, but the server dropped it on the floor. The kimchi quesadilla was very good and had the perfect combinations of flavours inside.

Overall, the food was alright, but you are definitely paying more since you are in a tourist destination. I would definitely prefer to go to The Keg instead. I also found the service quite poor and it was very hard to get anyone’s attention when we wanted to order and getting the bill. Perhaps it was because we were one of two people dining here that there were not a lot of servers around.

We Rate Canyon Creek Chophouse:

Address:
6380 Fallsview Boulevard
Niagara Falls, ON

Website:
http://canyoncreekrestaurant.ca/

In Chinese

Banh Mi Boys: Asian Fusion Sandwiches in Toronto

August 21, 2014

Banh Mi Boys is located on Younge Street close to Ryerson University and a few blocks away from Eaton Centre. They also have another location on Queen Street West. As this was right across from my hotel, I had to come to one of Toronto’s most talked about restaurants.

It’s been on my list forever and I finally made it here! They serve up Vietnamese subs – Banh Mi and a few other fusion items like tacos and steamed baos.

We came here during dinner time and this place was packed! There were barely any seats left and tons of people were taking their food to-go.

Their menu items are quite cheap and perfect for students on a budget. Plus, the food is good.

Once you put in your order, you wait on the side for you order to be called. When they call your name, they also ask you if you want any spice on your items. To be on the safe side, I chose everything I ordered not to be very spicy.

Five Spice Pork Belly Steamed Bao ($3.49) looked amazing and I couldn’t resist anything that has pork belly in it. The steamed bao also has cucumber, pickled carrots, picked radish, and cilantro.

I really liked the pork belly, but then again, who doesn’t?

Braised Beef Steamed Bao ($3.49) is what my aunt ordered. She thought this was ok, but it seemed strange to her as she’s never tried anything like this in Asia.

Kalbi Beef Taco ($3.99) has purple cabbage slaw, kimchi, pickled carrots, cilantro and the kalbi beef on top of the taco.

Kimchi Fries ($5.99) has pulled pork, mayo, kimchi, and green onion on top of the fries. My Korean relatives thought this dish was disgusting and weird. It was hard for them to grasp the concept that kimchi and fries go together. I thought this was a delicious dish! The hot and sour taste from the kimchi blend beautifully with the pulled pork.

Overall, Banh Mi Boys is a fun place for fusion food if you taste buds are up to the challenge.

We Rate Banh Mi Boys:

Address:
392 Queen St. W.
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.banhmiboys.com/

In Brunch

Cora: Early Morning Breakfast in Toronto

August 20, 2014

When travelling, sometimes its hard to get your daily fill of veggies or fruit because all the places I want to go have lots of meat and carbs. We were heading off to a Niagara Falls tour and we needed a restaurant that was open early in the morning and that served good breakfast.

Cora was 2 blocks away from our hotel, so I decided to take my relatives here. I thought it would be a good place to go since we could get lots and lots of fruit. Cora first opened in Montreal, but has since expanded across Canada with over 130 locations.

Coffee is what we got to go with our meal. Since it was 6am, it was definitely needed.

Buckwheat Blessing has 3 sausages and cheese wrapped in buckwheat crepes with a large amount of fruit. I thought the sausages wrapped in the crepes were really good! Yummm meat! There was plenty of fruit! It’s a good touch that they have a few unique fruits like star fruit and gooseberries.

This is probably my favourite item to order as it has the savoury crepes with the sweet fruit.

1990′s Harvest with scrambled egg has a large cinnamon-raisin brioche dipped in french toast batter with an egg and bacon strips on one side and a mountain of fresh fruit on the other. The brioche seemed a bit burnt, but it was still enjoyable.

Samara Wake Up is a plate of freshly cut fruit. There was pineapples, strawberries, grapes, kiwis, green apple, red apple, orange, cantaloupe, star fruit, banana, grapefruit, honey dew, watermelon, and mango.

This dish was a hit! We actually came back here twice just to have this dish. It’s a great place to take tourists! For my relatives, where they come from, fruit isn’t cheap and you would never see this abundance in a meal. They were very impressed by the amount of fruit.

Sunshine Panini comes with a side of fruit, but it’s not as large as the other dishes. Inside the panini is cheese, ham and egg.

You can also tell these fruits are not as fresh as the other plates too.

There’s also toast too. You barely touched the toast since our dishes were so big.

A good morning breakfast! If you love fruit, definitely take a visit to Cora’s.

We Rate Cora:

Address:
27 Carlton Street
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.chezcora.com/home

In American

Holy Chuck: Best Burger in Toronto

August 17, 2014

During my visit to Toronto, there was one place I was dying to try out – Holy Chuck Burgers. I tried going on my trip to Toronto earlier in the year but it was closed due to the long weekend.

This time, I made it a mission to come here and I am glad I did. They opened in 2011 and have been serving quality burgers ever since. They hand roll their patties every hour, which are made of aged high quality steak. Their most popular burger – Holy Chuck burger was named the best burger in Toronto by a few celebrity chefs. Plus, have been rated one of the Top 100 restaurants in Toronto for 2014.

Looking at the menu, there are a lot of choices and everything looks pretty good. You’ll be staring at this board for a while trying to figure out what to get.

Holy Chuck Burger ($9.99) is a double cheese burger with bacon and caramelized onions. Everyone at the table ordered this and you can get it cooked to any wellness level. Fabo got her burger patty done to Medium.

Everyone loved this burger and you can tell the patties were so juicy and full of flavour!

Mmmm everyone was so addicted to this burger. Yum! I would highly recommend this. It’s quite a simple burger with a few ingredients, but it all works together really well.

Grind n’ Shine Burger ($10.99) with hand cut crispy fries ($3.49).

The Grind n’ Shine Burger is a double cheeseburger with bacon, caramelized onions, topped with crispy potato chips and a fried egg. Oh boy, was this delicious!

The fries were ok, but it wasn’t all the crispy. Some were limp and some were crispy.

Just take a look, it look amazzzzing! The differing textures works well, especially the egg, potato ships and the onions.

Overall, this place does have delicious burgers and oh man, the patties are juicy and dripping with flavour! I’ll definitely be back for more.

We Rate Holy Chuck Burgers:

Address:
1450 Yonge St,
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://holychuckburgers.com/

In Brunch

The Drake Hotel: Amazing Scones in Toronto

May 31, 2014

I was meeting up with BaguetteGirl and her other half in Toronto and they took me to The Drake Hotel to eat some brunch.

The brunch menu is available on Saturdays and Sundays from 9am till 4pm. Whether you are an early riser or wake up past 12, you will make it on time for brunch.

Coffee ($2.95) is a must in the morning.

Warm Scone Plate ($9.50) has the scones, fresh berries, preserves, and cream. These were some awesome scones! It was crispy on the outside and a bit warm and fluffy on the inside. Probably the best scones I’ve ever had.

Southern Fried Chicken + Waffle ($15.95) has an herb waffle, Niagara cherry jam, crème fraîche and maple syrup. I found the cherry jam to be quit sour so it didn’t compliment the chicken or the waffles. The waffle was soggy but the chicken was really delicious and moist.

Caleb Eggs Benny ($15.95) has house smoked salmon, 2 poached eggs, hollandaise sauce on arugula and a poppy-seed bagel. It is also served with home fries.

Drake Rancheros ($13.95) has 2 poached eggs under the tomato braised beans, arugula and feta. It’s served with crispy tostada, salsa and sour cream.

Overall, it’s a pretty cool place to just hang out for brunch. The hotel has a young vibe and the food is pretty good especially their scones.

We Rate The Drake Hotel:

Address:
1150 Queen St W
Toronto ON

Website:
http://www.thedrakehotel.ca/

In Chinese

Lee: Restaurant of Internationally Acclaimed Super-Chef Susur Lee

May 30, 2014

Lee was created by Susur Lee. He has appeared on a few Food Network shows such as – Chopped Canada, Top Chef Canada, Top Chef Masters, Iron Chef America, and Restaurant Makeover to name a few.

The dishes served here have modern Asian & French influences. I came here to dine with Flo, Fabo, and M. I tried coming here a few years ago, but it wasn’t open on Sundays, so we went elsewhere. This time, I was determined to dine here.

When asking for hot water, it comes in such a cute tea pot with some lemon slices on the side.

Flo wanted a non-alcoholic fruity drink, so she asked the server for a nice suggestion. He basically just surprised here with this beautiful creation.

Singaporean-style Slaw ($20) states that it serves two, but its pretty big. We shared it with a group of 4 and it was no problem. It has green onions, taro root, rice vermicelli, cucumber, carrots, jicama, daikon, tomatoes, sesame seeds, ginger, peanuts, edible flowers, purple, basil, coriander, daikon sprouts, shallots, pickled red onion, with their salted plum dressing and onion oil. It was like a garden! The dish actually looked more impressive when it arrived at the table, but the server helped us mix it, so I missed getting the shot. If you are dining here, this is a must have dish. It’s refreshing and has a ton of flavour.

Top Chef Green Curry Chicken ($28) has crispy multi-grain rice cake, pine nuts, spiced tomato jam, oven dried pineapple, and chili mint. This was the Top Chef Award Winning Dish. The dish was ok, it was definitely creative but it lacked depth in the sauce.

Korean Style Marinated Beef Striploin ($35) has garlic mushrooms, roasted pear, blue cheese & dill sauce, topped with arugula. The beef is 8oz, so it a good size. The striploin was tender and flavourful. It didn’t taste very Korean at all.

Spice Crusted Diver Scallop ($28) has crispy bacon, squash purée, pomelo, and spiced Chinese sweet bean pesto. The scallops were seared perfectly, but we didn’t like the combination of squash and pomelo.

Assam Thai Satay ($25) comes with 2 skewers of chicken, shrimp, and beef. The sauces that comes with it are chili mint, peanut sauce, and spicy mango salsa. It was pricey for those 6 skewers.

Black Pepper Charred Tuna Sashimi & Spicy Tartare ($28) has soya bean, tonnato sauce, and lotus root crisps.

It was a delicious dish! The quality of the tuna can really be tasted. Good mix of ingredients.

Peking & Char Sui Duck ($29) has Beijing duck garnish, steamed pancake, and foie gras pâté. This was one of the last dishes to come and we thought it could have come earlier in the meal. By this point, we were already stuffed.

It is a fun dish to put together as you have everything to make the wraps. Just mix a little bit of everything in the steamed pancake and you are set. It was a nice twist on the original duck wraps. I really loved the fried bean curd because it adds a nice crunch.

Overall, the one dish that blew our minds was the Singaporean-style slaw. Every dish that came out after that wasn’t as exciting. They tasted good, but not as much excitement.

We Rate Lee:

Address:
603 King St W
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.susur.com/lee/

In Brunch

Lola’s Kitchen: Brunch in Toronto

May 24, 2014

I came to Lola’s Kitchen about two years ago during my last visit to Toronto. I remember it being good and super busy during the weekends. Fabo, M and I came here on the Easter Long Weekend and they were closed on the Friday and Monday. But, it was good they were open on the Saturday and Sunday. I needed a brunch-fix.

Blackberry-Cherry Ginger Lime Soda (Small $3) they suggested we can top it off with some soda to make it a large. We didn’t mind and she highly recommended it.

Cranberry- Raspberry Limeade (Small $3) I did the same for this drink too. It didn’t dilute any of the drinks at all.

It was good and there are a few other daily juices on their special menu. The other one was orange juice.

Eggs Benny ($13) includes english muffin, grilled peameal bacon, two poached organic eggs, house made hollandaise and your choice of salad, frites or Lola’s home fries. Fabo chose the frites. She enjoyed this dish but she did enjoy the Mushroom benny more than the regular benny.

Brunch Burger ($16) has Ontario all beef burger, grilled peameal bacon, caramelized onions, Lola’s cheese blend, sweet pickles, housemade ketchup, garlic aioli, challah bun and a sunny organic egg with your choice of salad, frites or Lola’s home fries. M chose the homefries.

The burger looked so much better than the one I had last time. M really enjoyed the burger.

When you put the top of the bun on top, it looks huge! The patty is monstrous and all the extra meat was delicious.

Brunch Bowl ($13.50) is gluten-free. It has Lola’s home fries, baby spinach, caramelized onions, mushrooms, chorizo sausage, cheese curds and two organic eggs any style. I got my egg sunny side up.

It was good. A good size for brunch and I was very happy with it.

Overall, the brunch was pretty good and always get sunny side up eggs because the gooey yolk is so good! The downside of going to Lola’s is that the wait for your meal can be quite long. We waited for a long time before getting our food.
We Rate Lola’s Kitchen:

Address:
634 Church Street,
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.lolaskitchen.ca/

In Cafe

Aroma Espresso Bar: Coffee Time

May 23, 2014

M, Fabo and I were taking a very long stroll to the movie theatres near Eglinton. It took us a while to figure out its a long walk from Bloor and Younge. We took a break half way and went to Aroma Espresso Bar to have a drink.

We have seen several Aroma Espresso Bars around town. Aroma Espresso Bar actually first opened in Jerusalem in 1994, but it wasn’t until 2007 when the first Canadian store opened in Toronto in the Annex area.

It was a Sunday afternoon and this place was busy. They serve coffee, sandwiches, pastries, salads, and even breakfast.

Brewed coffee ($1.70) is made with their own house-blend of beans. It comes with a piece of milk chocolate.

Cappuccino ($3.95) is made with a short shot of espresso, blended with steamed milk, and topped with froth. It also comes with a piece of chocolate.

Mango Smoothie ($4.85) is apparently made with 100% real fruit. M thought it was ok, pretty average. But it was nice that it came with a piece of chocolate too.

Overall, it a nice place to stop by for a drink. We saw some people study and some other people catching up over drinks.

We Rate Aroma Espresso Bar:

Address:
1407 Yonge St
Toronto ON

Website:
http://www.aroma.ca/