A small space with seven or so tables, packed on Sunday night. There is free parking available at 500 Doris Ave! Found this out too late :(
Shared the Sesame Crepe - 2 scoops black sesame icecream (made in-house), whipped cream, cereal, sponge cake. Ice cream is great - love the strong sesame flavor and dense/hard texture, unlike some watered down versions. Crepe is good too. However I just strongly dislike the vanilla sponge cake!! Was not aware it would be vanilla flavored.... too strong and artificial tasting.
The Strawberry Banana Sundae was cute - but just one small scoop of strawberry icecream while the rest is just whipped cream.
A warm, cozy, dim lit space. Kind of has an "underground" feel. Came here for F's birthday last week.
I ordered the Smoked Beetroot Risotto with Scallops. Two large scallops, a little charred taste, medium rare inside. The risotto is a bright red from the beet, but doesn't taste like beets. Creamy but not heavy, with bits of tomato, hazelnut and dark chocolate (couldn't taste/see?). I liked it but wish it was warmer.
Came here for B's birthday - somehow ended up at another tapas place. A very minimalist, no-frills decor - bare walls, wood floors, light wood tables, black chairs. Food was light with Philipino influences. The broccoli salad and tuna ceviche were the most unique. Plating choices were interesting as well.
Started with anchovies toast - 2 tiny toasts for $6! But it was good, very flavorful anchovies & red pepper spread on a too-crispy toast.
Albacore Tuna - a ceviche in coconut mik, served with cassava chips. Surprised that the tuna chunks were quite big enough for a good bite, and worked well with the coconut milk - a different take than the usual lime juice.
Broccoli Salad - blanched and fried broccoli (couldn't see or taste the fried part?), with serrano ham (my fav) and crispy fried shallots in a mustard seed dressing. Very refreshing take on broccoli.
Brussels Sprouts - a warm dish, I like how it was cooked so that you couldn't taste the usual bitterness from brussels sprouts.
Adobo Chicken - my least favorite; the fried chicken, while juicy, wasn't crispy as i expected and it was served as 3 mini burgers in a lunch box. Brioche bun was a bit dry.
Dessert - poached pear. Great ginger icecream with a dry cake. Thank you Hudson Kitchen for this complementary dessert for my boyfriend's birthday!
Dinner with Sis at Portland Variety. I really enjoyed this place! Expensive but good tapas.
House-made ricotta with crostini, honey and pear - great combination, probably my favorite
Beef Carpaccio - good, thin slices with shaved cheese, arugula and some green sauce
Shrimp Pil Pil - marinated and cooked in chili oil, large and meaty pieces of shrimp, just a bit spicy for me. Served with bread.
Patatas Bravas - what a large plate of potatoes! Fresh and hot, may have burned my tongue but couldn't resist. Near the end it got too salty though. Could use more sauce.
Beignets - warm, soft vanilla custard filling.. (I thought these were donuts and was expecting timbits texture, but these are not dense!), dipped in dark chocolate sauce
Good attentive service and nice, dim-light interior for a modern yet cozy feel.
Overall was ~$35+ pp!
This weekend, we had a mini getaway to Montreal with one main mission - eat! We enjoyed the sunny weather on Saturday as we ventured to Mont Royal and Old Montreal to seek out the city's specialties - from bagels to poutine.
1. St. Viateur Bagel & Cafe Mont Royal - Montreal's famous bagels made in-house. I had the Poulet Sesame Bagel - love the toasted bagel with hint of sweetness. Chicken was bland; the Moo-Moo (roast beef) and MTL smoked meat with mustard were better. The beef & barley soup of the day was great. A cute little cafe and love how you can see the production of the bagels.
2. Point G Macarons - Pretty, affordable macarons and many unique flavors to choose from. The texture is so delicate and soft without falling apart in your mouth, with just a slight crunch in the shell. My favorite was the Tire D'Erable (maple) - didn't think I'd like this one but it had a strong maple flavor without being overly sweet.
3. Les Delices D'Erables - All maple errything at Maple Delights - maple body cream, maple dressing, etc. Happy to have found tire d'erable sur neige - rolled my own maple taffy on snow along with some maple cappucinos.
4. Ferreira - Amazing Portugese seafood in a romantic setting. Mom's go-to place. The best seafood rice - rice was a bit hard for my liking but the sauce was amazing. Scallops and shrimp were perfectly cooked and meaty. We also enjoyed the Bouillabaisse and grilled seafood in a garlic-parsley sauce (fresh octopus, fish, lobster) Dessert was warm fig cake and sweet potato icecream - delicious. Not much sweet potato flavor but instead gingerbread-cinnamon notes.
5. Cacao 70 - Mom's favorite dark chocolate fondue with fruit, fluffy waffles, and rich dense brownies. Long wait!! but worth to try since Toronto doesn't have a good fondue.
Day 2:
6. Humble Lion - A nice cappucino and breakfast granola bar at an independent coffee shop.
7. La Banquise - A 24h poutine heaven. Suprisingly not too heavy, I enjoyed La B.O.M (bacon, onion, merguez sausage - love the sausage!) and B liked his hamburger steak. We then ordered a second poutine - La Miam (ground beef, Swiss cheese, onion, tomato, sausage). The only bad thing is they charge mandatory 15% tips. Also, there was a long line up outside but it was for take-out so better to ask!
All in all, a wonderful satisfying getaway to MTL! Everything was delicious and enjoyed with great company :)
1. St. Viateur Bagel & Cafe Mont Royal - Montreal's famous bagels made in-house. I had the Poulet Sesame Bagel - love the toasted bagel with hint of sweetness. Chicken was bland; the Moo-Moo (roast beef) and MTL smoked meat with mustard were better. The beef & barley soup of the day was great. A cute little cafe and love how you can see the production of the bagels.
2. Point G Macarons - Pretty, affordable macarons and many unique flavors to choose from. The texture is so delicate and soft without falling apart in your mouth, with just a slight crunch in the shell. My favorite was the Tire D'Erable (maple) - didn't think I'd like this one but it had a strong maple flavor without being overly sweet.
3. Les Delices D'Erables - All maple errything at Maple Delights - maple body cream, maple dressing, etc. Happy to have found tire d'erable sur neige - rolled my own maple taffy on snow along with some maple cappucinos.
4. Ferreira - Amazing Portugese seafood in a romantic setting. Mom's go-to place. The best seafood rice - rice was a bit hard for my liking but the sauce was amazing. Scallops and shrimp were perfectly cooked and meaty. We also enjoyed the Bouillabaisse and grilled seafood in a garlic-parsley sauce (fresh octopus, fish, lobster) Dessert was warm fig cake and sweet potato icecream - delicious. Not much sweet potato flavor but instead gingerbread-cinnamon notes.
5. Cacao 70 - Mom's favorite dark chocolate fondue with fruit, fluffy waffles, and rich dense brownies. Long wait!! but worth to try since Toronto doesn't have a good fondue.
Day 2:
6. Humble Lion - A nice cappucino and breakfast granola bar at an independent coffee shop.
7. La Banquise - A 24h poutine heaven. Suprisingly not too heavy, I enjoyed La B.O.M (bacon, onion, merguez sausage - love the sausage!) and B liked his hamburger steak. We then ordered a second poutine - La Miam (ground beef, Swiss cheese, onion, tomato, sausage). The only bad thing is they charge mandatory 15% tips. Also, there was a long line up outside but it was for take-out so better to ask!
All in all, a wonderful satisfying getaway to MTL! Everything was delicious and enjoyed with great company :)
Straight-Up Meatball - baseball-sized meatball, nicely seasoned and densely packed, topped with cheese and foccacia at the bottom
Burrata - very strong smell and taste from the cheese itself and truffle cream. Couldn't taste the honey. Crostini very hard & crunchy.
Charity bread - soaked in garlic, yum
Butternut squash ravioli - fully stuffed with squash and cheese, al dente pasta, but wayyy too heavy for my liking with the rich cream sauce.