HBT was the spot of the summer. It didn't wow me on the first visit but I ended up going back a few times just 'cause it was convenient when I lived in the area and it's a good spot for some Korean snacks. The vibe is always good and my usual orders are the tacos and seafood soup noodle.
Came here for Summerlicious 2015 lunch. Mmm.. the Kung Pao Cauliflower was hands down the best dish – deep fried and spicy. Brussels sprout was good too, with a soft poached egg. The fish I think was trout, served with greens and thin chips.
Shake Shack
Of course we had to try the famous burger chain. It blew me away how delicious it was - so good that we had to visit twice in our short trip. Juicy patty, and the Smoke Shack, with bacon and chopped cherry pepper, had a nice sour-spicy kick. The cheese fries were amazing as well - salty, crispy, soft and cheesy! For milkshakes, I prefer the coffee over the strawberry (too sweet and artificial tasting). Definitely one of my fav burgers now, and way better than In-N-Out in terms of US burger chain.
Lady M
Another popular ig spot, the crepe cake is as good as it looks. Arriving just an hour before closing, they only had the Green Tea Mille Crepe and Checkers cake left. The Green Tea was so soft melt-in-your-mouth creamy that you cannot even distinguish the layers of crepe. The Checkers was surprisingly good - very light with prominent chocolate flavor.
The Halal Guys
When in New York, gotta try the street food like the locals! Attracted by the smell as we were walking by, we settled on this Gyro + Rice for a quick, cheap meal. It was so delicious! The white sauce is good but go easy on the red - way too spicy for me! And as I write this post, apparently this chain is coming to Toronto!
Hakata Tonkotsu
~ First time trying thin noodles, pretty good and firm
~ Relatively light yet aromatic pork broth
~ Flavorful cha siu
~ Doesn't come with egg!
~ Overall quite different taste from usual ramen & I liked it
Gyoza
~ Juicy and flavorful with thin wrapping
~ Good with soy sauce or hot sauce
Red Hot Tonkotsu
~ Tasty broth, was pretty hot for me after B added half the spoon of hot sauce
I have always been a fan of Mama Bear at NIU! but have never tried the restaurant until recently and it was pretty good! Clean and simple decor, filled with locals. Here's what we ordered (clockwise from bottom):
- Cuttlefish Balls -just as good as I remember from the night market
- Popcorn Chicken - juicy with a soft batter; personally I prefer more of a crunch but B likes it
- Mama Bear Hot & Sour Dry Noodle - thought it was cold noodle, but it was a warm, very spicy after mixing!! But still I loved the texture of the noodles
- Taiwanese Hamburger - a soft cold bun with pork belly
Minced Pork Rice Combo - comes with 3 side dishes, soup and fruit
- Very generous amount of pork & rice, lots of sauce
- All three side dishes were really good - tomato egg, veggies
- Great deal for $8.99
Supreme Burger - beef, colby, fruitwood bacon, green leaf, onion rings, chopped fries, special sauce, brioche bun
The sister restaurant of Yuzu No Hana, Japango is another good choice for quality sashimi in downtown Toronto. The chirashi is one of my favorites in GTA - great selection of albacore tuna, seabream, hamachi, salmon, tamago, and tuna (my least favorite), and good rice with bits of sesame seed. The sashimi dinner essentially has the same selection of fish with the addition of butter fish, but for a few dollars more ($28). The Japango Roll was so good - California roll topped with a slightly seared salmon, creamy sauce and roe.
The space is small and a bit cramped so I think it's best suited for a group of 2. Price is roughly $30 per person.
Chips with guac and queso fundido
Order and pay at the counter and they bring the food to you. Once I start with chips, I can't stop. Loved these fresh tortilla chips - some thin and crispy, others chewy and thick layered. Guac and cheese sauce were ok. I liked the pico de gallo and pineapple salsa from their salsa bar.
Mexican Street Corn
Didn't love this, tasted like boiled corn I can make at home.
Enjoyed all 3 tacos:
Carne Asada - beef cubes with crispy onions, pico de gallo, queso fundido
(Pulled) Pork - so juicy and flavorful!
Baja Fish - beef battered mahi-mahi, no taste but nicely cooked! Good with the cabbage, pico de gallo and chipotle crema.
çŸ³é”…ç«‹éš - Stone-pot Tilapia
La pièce de résistance ~ tastes better than it looks! Choice of fish (Tilapia or Catfish), spice level and add-ins. We ordered mild, which was just the right amount of spice for me, although I did feel the "麻"after eating some of the peppercorns (?). The tilapia was suprisingly really good, nice texture and flavorful. There are also tons of mung bean sprouts at the bottom!
Order add-ins for ~$1 or ~$2 each. We had napa cabbage, tofu, home made noodles and kelp. The first three were good and soaked in the soup flavor, but I didn't like the kelp.
金沙玉米 - Corn
Looks creepy in the picture but it tastes good. Skeptical at first as to why my friend would order corn, I ended up really liking it - sweet kernels coated in salted egg yolk and sugar for a sweet treat to cut through the spice of the fish.
Chocolate fondue (~$30?) - gelato, macarons, fruit, nuts. Shared this set with 4 people.
My favorite gelato flavor was the mint chocolate chip. Dip in chocolate, roll in nuts - pretty interesting! Macarons were too sweet and I found the combination of grapes and chocolate to be odd.
Waffle with strawberry, banana, chocolate sauce, coffee gelato
In the picture it's a nice flower waffle, but we just got a plain round one. Not bad, but feel like it's more expensive than other places.
The newest sushi addition to the Unionville area. Upon seating, I immediately noticed many similarities to Inatei in the tableware and menu. (Noticed a few familiar faces too but server said they are not affiliated...) Quality and presentation is nice, similar to Inatei style.
Sashimi Set ($15.99) - pretty good variety
Sister's Tempura Udon Set - fresh tempura batter
Mackerel - a bit underseasoned, could use more salt and charred taste. Our favorite is Ichiban's at Leslie/16th.
Ginger & Green Tea Icecream - perhaps my fav/most surprise of the meal. The color is darker than the typical restaurant gt icecream, and I love the pairing with the red bean.
Dessert is choice of icecream, coffee pudding (or special dessert of the moment), or coffee. Coffee was good too.
Visited the Yonge
& Lawrence location on a Saturday morning. The place is pretty, girly and French. I like the chandelier :)
We had:
Almond croissant - ok, nothing that memorable
Blueberry scone - buttery and soft
Sticky Toffee Pudding - moist and not too heavy
Almond croissant - ok, nothing that memorable
Blueberry scone - buttery and soft
Sticky Toffee Pudding - moist and not too heavy
Cappucino - good, nice balance of espresso and milk
Macarons - I've had better. Filling was very light and flavors were not strong. Pistachio had no pistachio taste at all. Salted caramel was slightly better. Passionfruit had just the slightest hint of passionfruit zing.
Overall: 4 stars for decor, 3 stars for food.
By far the most plainly decorated ramen restaurant I've been to, but the food was good. Easy to miss the storefront - on College just before Bathurst if you are coming from the east.
Karaage - 3 large pieces of crispy, juicy chicken. I really liked this even without the mayo!
Hint of spice & black sesame in the breading
White Sesame Shio
- grind your own sesame provides a bit of fun, a bit of flavor in the first bite but otherwise not much sesame flavor
- thin, firm noodles - good. to me, they taste the same as the thick ones in the Black Sesame Tan Tan
- half a soft-boiled egg was okay, could be softer with more flavor
- cha siu - thin and tender, good mix of fat
- broth was relatively light, creamy, smooth, like a lighter version of tonkotsu. Despite it being sea salt, I didn't find it salty