This Asian dessert spot just hit the heart of Markham, right at Highway 7 and Warden, the menu consists of modernized traditional Chinese desserts. The desserts we got were the green tea brûlée, steamed egg custard, Mango Fever (mangos, coconut ho fun, sago and mango sauce) and baked taro sago.
My favourite was probably the baked taro sago, rich and cream but really heavy. Dessert Kitchen is a nice change from bubble tea or your traditional Chinese dessert places but also a little pricey.
Urbanspoon invited some of Toronto’s top bloggers to Urbanhour, an event they created to thank their top bloggers and contributors for their contribution of content to their site. It still amazing me that my love for food is noticed by big companies and everyday people. Anyway, the event was to be at Osteria Dei Ganzi which I was super excited about because it’d be my first time visiting.
We started off with cocktails and fresh focaccia bread which was made in house.
The first cocktail was called the Tommys Blue with tequila, agave nectar, lavender and fresh pressed lime juice. The one in the silver glass was the Rosalinda made with tequila plata, falernum syrup, grapefruit and lime juice. The last one was a special concoction by the mixologist with the base of amaretto. All the cocktails were fantastic!
As bloggers settled in we started off with a fantastic looking and tasting charcuterie platter filled with imported meats and cheeses from Italy. It was so beautifully plated like everything was placed effortlessly on the wooden platter. Arancini stuffed with cheese and deep fried olives was next served with two sauces, tomato marinara and a parmesan sauce.
Mini eggplant parmesans, so cute and so delicious.
As for entrees, we were able to pick whatever our heart desired off their regular menu. They had a couple of specials that night, Desi and I got the lamb shank and a seafood soup served with olive oil toasted crostini. I had a bit of Anne Gagno’s, of Food Trippin’ blog, osso bucco. Both meats were super tender and flavourful.
My favourite entree was probably the seafood soup with perfectly cooked seafood, the broth was rich and light at the same time and the crostini was a perfect accompaniment to soak up the left over broth.
If all that wasn’t enough they came out with a dessert trio of classic tiramisu, a cannoli and an orange cream cheesecake mousse. My favourite was the tiramisu!
They also invited a professional cigar roller fromFrank Correnti Cigar, Canada’s only manufacturer of Cuban hand-made cigar. I’m not a smoker but it was was a pleasure to watch.
A big thank you goes out to Urbanspoon for hosting such an amazing foodie dream and Osteria Dei Ganzi for kindly opening your doors to us and preparing such phenomenal food and having such friendly and funny servers.
*This meal was complimentary. The opinions and views expressed on this post are my own*
Canada’s original gourmet doughnut bakery café, first opened in Calgary and now opened shopped in Toronto near Kensington Market. I didn’t even know JMD existed until some of my coworkers mentioned it. If anyone knows me then you’ll know I have a crazy abnormal obsession with doughnuts so I just had to visit myself.
Super slick and minimalistic with white everything and just a pop of fuchsia pink here and there.
One thing about JMD I love is that they serve regular sized doughnuts as well as mini three-bite ones, there’s only a 50 cent difference between the sizes.
I got a box of six. Starting from top left going clockwise: s’mores, jelly filled, maple bacon, lemon curd, chocolate peanut butter and custard (flavour of the month) in the middle.
I’m really picky about my doughnuts, they have to be light and fluffy yeast doughnuts, and JMD serves up a nice array of yeast doughnuts and cake-style doughnuts. There were mix reviews about the doughnuts, one of my coworkers said the doughnuts were dry and stale but I found mine to be soft and fluffy. We came to the conclusions that the mini doughnuts taste much more fresh opposed to the regular sized ones.
Jelly Modern Doughnut is a great doughnut bakery serving delicious combinations of flavours. JMD also has a better location than Glory Hole Doughnuts which is all the way in the West end. I’ve already been back twice since my first visit.
Owner and Executive Chef Fernando Garcia has years of experience under his belt, he started working at his family restaurant at the age of 12 and then going on to working, managing and opening high end restaurants all over Mexico, United States and Vancouver before settling in Mississauga Ontario. La Vinia is serving up amazing authentic Spanish affair. The atmosphere is warm and inviting with the deep red walls, medium wood furnitures and the inviting personalities of the servers.
As soon as we sat down we were greeted with a basket of bread and a trio of condiments: roasted yellow beets, pimento mascarpone cheese dip and marinated artichoke.
For 5 people we definitely ordered way too much food but no complaints from me because I love trying a lot of different dishes, we ordered 4 different appetizers to share and we started off with the Pan Tumaca, toasted bread spread with tomatoe and Serrano ham, $10.75.
The ham was sliced ultra thin and it had the perfect amount of saltiness.
Next came the Mejillones al Vapor, fresh mussels steamed in Spanish beer, $10.75. Perfectly cooked mussels with a garlicy sauce.
How could we not order the Pulpo a la Gallega?Poached Octopus Marinated in Olive Oil and Pimentón, $10.75. My dad and I absolutely love octopus and this dish didn’t disappoint. Tender octopus tentacles cooked with potatoes that soak up all the delicious flavours.
The Chorizo al Vino con Almejas, Spanish Chorizo sautéed with clams and white beans for $11.75 was kind of hard to resist.
We got two paellas which were basically the same just with different toppings. One was the Paella Valenciana (chorizo, chicken and seafood), $23.75 and the other one was Paella de Marisco – (shrimp, calamari, mussels, scallops, monkfish and clams), $25.75.
They cook the the paella is cooked to order so it might take at least 25 minutes but it was worth the wait, it was phenomenal but a little too salty for me. At this point I was already stuffed but I couldn’t stop eating it.
Why did we also get meat entrees? Probably because my family and I are fatties. The Lomo alto de Ternera con Salsa de Cabrales (grilled Canadian AAA striploin steak with Cabrales cheese-Brandy sauce, $27.95)arrived first.
Then it was the Chuletas de Cordero a la Parrilla, roasted Australian lamb chops with Rioja, and rosemary sauce, $24.75. Everything was amazing, both meats are cooked perfectly. The lamb wasn’t too gamey which I love.
As for dessert we shared the Cream Brulée and Tiramisu both were $9.00. The desserts were just mediocre but the cream brûlée was the better of was two.
La Vinia is a tiny bit far but I would highly recommend this restaurant.
I’ve heard many good things about Yuzu so I was incredibly excited when I finally had the time to go try first hand. We started off with two appetizers, Tuna Avocado Tartare, $12, tuna, avocado, Japanese herbs, garlic oil.
I really enjoyed this one, big chunks of tuna paired with the creamy, perfectly ripe avocado. The savoury sauce mixed into the tartare was delicious.
The second appetizer was the ika ring squid served withtartare sauce, $9. This was not a favourite of mine, it seemed very mediocre and the tartar sauce was very liquidy not like your average tartar sauce.
My dad got the Seafood Bowl with shrimp tempura, tobiko, scallops, seasoned vegetables, quail egg, rice, in hot stone bowl, $19. I stole a scallop from him and it was overcooked, I not sure about any of the other seafood but my dad didn’t really have a comment about the dish.
We also got the Sushi regular, $21, 8 pieces of nigiri, 6 pieces of maki. The fish was fresh but nothing special.
Both my mom and I got the Chirashizushi (chef’s selection of sashimi on sushi rice, $25) unaware that my dad was going to order a sushi plate. Again the fish was fresh but the selection was quite average with cooked shrimp, tuna, salmon, white tuna or butter fish, torched tuna and sea bream (I think).
The atmosphere was Yuzu is sleek and modern but also very warm at the same time.
We were completely stuffed to the brim when we left for obvious reasons, everything was good but nothing was outstanding. The prices are average for sushi downtown especially near the club district. Yuzu is good but definitely not my favourite. If you asked me to recommend an amazing sushi restaurant downtown it would hands down be Japango at Elizabeth Street right on Dundas.
The last time I visited Annona was probably around 4 years ago with my family for Summerlicious, I really enjoyed the food at the time so I figured I would take them back to Annona this year. For their Summerlicious menu they were serving up $20 lunches and $35 dinners. We started off with a plate of bread, mix grain flat bread and feta & olive bread served with olive oil.
It took a while for the food to arrive so we just nibbled on the bread till it was all gone, My favourite was the olive and feta bread!
I started off with the Charred Cream of Corn Soup served with Crème Fraiche, Sweet Corn and Pepper Salsa Lemon Oil. For some reason I thought the soup was going to be served chilled so needless to say I was taken back when I shoved a spoonful of hot soup into my mouth. Full of corn flavour, it was light and delicate.
Everyone else at the table got the Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with Chipotle Cilantro Vinaigrette, Avocado Salsa Mango & Cucumber Slaw. I had a bite of my mom’s shrimp and it was sweet and sour and the shrimp was plump and perfectly cooked.
Half the table got the Grilled 8oz Angus Ribeye Steak with Chimichurri Sauce, Merlot Demi-glace, Crispy Smashed Red Skin Potatoes, Grilled King Oyster Mushrooms, Roasted Pearl Onions Steamed Asparagus. The steak was tender and cooked nicely, my dad is incredibly picky and not a lot of things impress him but he was pretty impressed with Annona’s steak.
My sister and I got the Seared Halibut with Dungeness Crab Crust with Lemongrass, Kaffir Lime & Coconut Sauce, Fried New Potatoes, Sautéed Kale, Steamed Baby Beets & Fava Beans. I really enjoyed my entree. The thai flavours in the sauce were really light and refreshing. I didn’t think there was going to be so much crab either, I would definitely order this again.
For our desserts you had a choice of two; Raspberry Lemon Tart Fresh Raspberries or Frozen Apricot White Chocolate Parfait Grilled Apricot or Sorbet of the day served with Shortbread or Mini Warm Molten Chocolate Lava Cake.
This is the Raspberry Lemon Tart with Fresh Raspberries, Lemon Curd, Whipped Cream, Mint Chiffonade & Red Berry Coulis and the sorbet of the day was mango.
Chris got two Mini Warm Molten Chocolate Lava Cake served with Caramelized Hazelnut Ice Cream, Dark Chocolate Sauce.
Overall the meal was good and definitely worth $35. The service was slow and the food took longer to come out then expected, through the night we only had one hiccup and it was about the dessert but nothing major. The servers were attentive and the food was above average for the price we paid.
My life’s been crazy and I haven’t had time to blog so the next few posts will be a few weeks old. I’ve been dying to go to Bent so I dragged Jess, Angela and Philip to go with me. Bent is Susur Lee’s newest restaurant serving up Japanese style tapas, focusing on hot and cold items.
The space is open and airy with the floor to ceiling windows, open concept raw bar and the wood furniture.
On the opposite side of the restaurant is a whole wall of collectables from Pokemon to mini dolls to religious items. Our server let us know that Brenda really liked to collect sets of things and instead of throwing them out they dedicated a wall for all her mini collectables. I thought it was very fitting since the restaurant is named after her.
As soon as we sat down we were greeted by a bowl of homemade pickled vegetables.
Our waitress highly recommended the Oyster Sake Shooter $6, Shallots, Ponzu Marinated Salmon Roe, I’m so glad she did cause it was fantastic. The salty oyster liquor and salmon roe was exceptional with the sweet raw oyster. One of my favourites of the night.
Pressed Octopus $14 Lentil, Tomato, Black Garlic, Perilla, Herbed Olive Oil, Pomegranate Vinaigrette. After seeing this on various blogs I knew it was a dish we had to try. The octopus was tender, the whole dish was complex yet very simple.
Tuna and Watermelon $16 Shaved Red Onion, Cilantro, Crispy Shallots, Fresh Citrus Juice, Rocoto Chill Chinese Doughnut Fritter. I absolutely loved this dish, it was super refreshing and perfect for hot summer days. The tuna was perfect with the cold sweet watermelon and the dough fritter gave the dish some much needed crunch and texture.
Kale and Tofu Salad $10 Kale, Marinated Miso Tofu, Grated Asian Pear, Gobo, Crispy Seaweed, Sesame Dressing.
Duck Confit Spring Rolls $13, Braised onion Sweet Tamarind Sauce with neighbourhood farmed Bok Choi. I wasn’t a big fan of this one, it was good but I was expecting more maybe because everything else blew me away!
Tartare 2 Ways $12 Spicy Tuna with Avocado Salmon with Shallots, Capers, Gherkins and Dill served with Sushi Style on a Crispy Rice Cake, Candied Nori. Basically a sushi pizza with the deep-fried rice base. My favourite was the tuna with avocado, I thought the salmon was too dilly.
Roasted Scallop with Sundried Tomato Crust $22 Capers, Raisin, Roasted Olive, Sweet Pea and Carrot Puree, Tarragon Butter Sauce. Perfectly cooked scallops, plump and juicy with an unusual but delicious tomato crust.
Braised Spiced Short Ribs $22 Truffled Parsnip Puree, Fava Bean, Roasted Rosemary Duck Fat Potato, Sour Cream, Chives, Black Garlic. Hands down one of the best braised short ribs I’ve ever had and the parsnip puree was to die for. The hint of truffle in the puree was subtle, I could have eaten buckets of it.
We ended off the meal with complimentary desserts. We had an incredibly light Banana Bread with Maple Sauce, Mango Panna Cotta topped with tapioca and a Strawberry Rhubarb & Lemon Curd Parfait and I don’t remember the last one.
Walking into Bent I knew I was going to have a good meal but I walked out having a phenomenal meal, one of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. I don’t know how Susur does it but he had the right amount of complexity and simplicity in each dish, the perfect combination where you ohh-ed and ahh-ed but weren’t confused. The flavours of everything were exceptional and refreshing. Our server was attentive, friendly and she let us know the ingredients of each dish, which I loved. I would highly recommend coming here and I look forward to coming again.
A couple of weeks ago I was invited to Paese Ristorante for their Messy Meatball launch party, the night was designed to promote their new late night meatball menu. The party took place at their King Street West location. Chef Palik and his team designed a fun and out of the box menu all about meatballs.
Everyone got a Paese messy meatball bib, ultra cute. We took our seats and they started us off with a glass of prosecco and then the meatballs just kept coming!
Cute little menu with all the different meatballs.
Falalfel Balls Chick Pea and fava bean falalel’s, pickled cucumber, cured tomatoes, and green goddess crema.
Pepperoni Arancini Balls House smoked mozzarella, salsa verde and chili mayo.
Close up of the melty cheesy goodness.
Meatball Caesar a.k.a The Duce Caesar made with San Marzano tomato sauce and top with a meatball.
This one was probably one of my favourites of the night! This is just crazy ridiculous and you must be a mad genius to come up with a cocktail like this. Moses McIntee, the bartender, claims it to be the best hangover cure.
PAESE Meatballs House Ground beef short rib, sirloin brisket and pecorino, braised in tomato sugo.
Polenta Fries
It was a consensus at the table that these were too salty and crispy.
Balls on Buns Smashed ball, tomato sugo, dill pickles, potato chips and provolone on a brioche mini bun.
Meatball Margherita Mozzarella, basil, tomato sauce, and one giant meatball in the middle.
The purpose of the single meatball is supposed to make it interactive with the customers and servers, the servers break it up table side for you. But honestly the star of this was the pizza crust; the perfect combination of thin & crispy to chewy & doughy.
Parmesan & Black Pepper Cashews
These are the perfect beer nuts! If I wasn’t stuffed to the brim I would have devoured the whole bowl myself.
At the end of the tasting we all got complimentary first cold pressed olive oil courtesy of Paese Ristorante, a lovely parting gift. I’ve never been so full from a tasting menu, everything was great and a huge thank you to Chef Christopher Palik and his amazing staff for putting together such an amazing party. I will definitely be back for their regular menu, fantastic pizza and meatballs.
Fugu Truck is one of the best food trucks I’ve ever tried, conjuring up delicious Asian street food. It was all luck that Satya and I would stubble upon Fugu, we were walking around the Prudential and I felt a little peckish but it wasn’t quite dinner time yet but I really wanted a snack. Satya spotted some food trucks across the street so I just had to head over and take a look. Three trucks were parked and our choices were Chicken and Rice, the Taco Truck and Fugu.
The Braised Pork Belly Buns really stood out to us and we got an order, $6 for 2. We took our first bites and we both fell in love. The buns were steamy hot, the pork belly was incredibly tender and the pork fat literally melted in our mouths.
They were honestly so good that we just had to get another order. We just sat there in awe of how good these little buns were, I could’ve eaten 10 in a sitting.
If we didn’t have dinner waiting for us at home we would have ordered the whole menu but we sadly departed and went home. The pork buns were on our minds all night and we decided to follow the Fugu Truck to their lunch destination the next day, die-hard fans. This time we got two orders of the Pork Belly Buns and a Cold Noodle Salad (noodles, cucumbers, carrots, cilantro, your choice of sesame or peanut sauce, chicken, pork or tofu and how spicy you like your noodles) to share.
The noodles were also very good but the pork buns were still the favourite. Sometimes I wish I could fit more food in my stomach but we were absolutely stuffed after all the food and didn’t have enough room for anything else.
The Fugu Truck is a definite must try if you’re in the Boston area and I’ll be missing this truck while I’m in Toronto.
I’m just going to do a quick post before I catch my plane! Last weekend Jess and Cherry decided on going to Gusto 101 for dinner before my trip. Gusto 101 opened their doors early 2012, there was so much hype about it but I never got a chance to visit until now.
We were situated on their roof top patio which was absolutely perfect for the weather. Pops of red, black and white is gorgeous against some of the wood furniture. There is also bar style seating around each skylight window and one important thing I must mention is that their roof top patio is now open all year around.
We started with the Polipo,char-grilled octopus, with olive tapenade, organic micro salad, basil citrus emulsion, $14.50. I love octopus, I probably take after my father, and whenever I see it on a menu I tend to order it. The octopus was tender, with a little char on the outside to give it some smokiness.
I loved the Carpaccio,beef tenderloin with truffled cannellini beans, arugula, pecorino, $13.95. The beef was paper thin and delicious but my favourite part of the dish was probably the truffled cannellini beans, so good!
Jess ordered the Spinaci Pizza, loaded with spinach, buffalo mozzarella, pecorino, fresh ricotta and sliced garlic, $15.50. The crust was paper thin and crispy, it was loaded with lots of spinach but the fresh ricotta was probably the star of the pizza.
Cherry Spaghetti Chitarra allo Scogliomanila clams, shrimps, mussels, baby scallops, white wine, tomato sauce 17.95.
I got the Fettuccine ai Funghi,portobello, porcini, oyster mushrooms, truffle paste, light cream sauce, $17.50.
We all agreed that my pasta was the favourite entree of the night, it was rich and full of mushroom-y goodness, somewhat resembling cream of mushroom soup but in a good way. The pasta was way too much and heavy for me to finish by myself though but good thing Kevin finished it off for me (not like he would complain though).
Kevin finally decided to get the Rigatoni Lucani, after jumping back and forth from different entrees. It wasrigatoni pasta with shredded braised lamb shank, tomato, fresh herbs, green olives and shaved pecorino, $16.95. He said it was too salty but I think it was okay, It wasn’t anything special in my opinion though and he would probably agree with me.
If you go to Gusto, you must sit on the patio and that’s coming from a girl that hates sitting on the patio. They have four different seating areas: roof top patio, inside the restaurant, the basement and the ground level patio. Note that the stairs that go from the roof top to the basement are incredibly dark so watch you’re step.
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