Koganei Sushi
3901 Highway 7 West, BDC Building, Woodbridge
905-265-2288
Dinner for two (app and mains only) with all taxes, tip and water: $40

“Table for two?” It took me a minute to answer because I had just stepped through the door. That’s right, service at Koganei Sushi is blindingly fast. We were seated in a beautiful booth and given our menus. Normally I don’t pay much attention to the paper the menu is written on, but this menu was like receiving an art book. Before I even opened it I noticed the beautiful spring green-coloured hardcover bound with a silky ribbon. Once I opened the front cover I was taken aback by the amount of colour, pictures and menu options. I was so taken by the beauty of the menu that it took me a long time to figure out what I wanted. There is no way I can describe the selections offered, but their website does a great job of it! Suffice to say they have sushi, tempura, teriyaki and miso soup. Some of the more different items include raw oysters on the half shell, and a whole fish prepared for sashimi (must be ordered a week in advance).

Continue reading Super Service at Koganei »

Rancho Relaxo
300 College Street
416-920-0366
Dinner for two (mains only) with all taxes, tip, and beer: $45

The venue was Rancho Relaxo and we were there for a show; the second in a trilogy of fundraisers to send York University playwright Melissa Major to the IDEA festival in Hong Kong. We hadn’t had Mexican food in a long time, so my companion and I decided to have a bite. The waiter told us we weren’t allowed to order food upstairs where the event was being held. Strangely enough, later on we saw other people being allowed to order food at the show when served by a different staff member. When I think about it, this was the moment that foreshadowed an evening of bad service.

Continue reading Staying Past the Chips »

Patisserie Royale
1801 Lawrence Avenue East, Unit 9
416-755-6323

Growing up in an Armenian family with Syrian roots, I’ve eaten lots of baklawa and other Middle Eastern pastries. Some of my experiences have been good, and others quite bad. I recall the time my aunt attempted to make nammoura, a semolina mixture that is baked and covered in syrup. Normally nammoura is soft and melts in your mouth. My aunt’s nammoura almost broke my teeth.

Many Middle Eastern pastries, like nammoura, are semolina based, and usually feature nuts, syrup, and rose water or orange blossom essences. Other desserts, such as baklawa, feature similar ingredients but have a phyllo pastry base. Phyllo dough, as those of us who have baked with it are aware of, is quite difficult to work with. This paper-thin dough is brushed with clarified butter and layered to create the desired thickness for a pastry dish. On the surface such desserts seem simple, but are actually quite tricky to make “just right”, as evidenced by my aunt’s nammoura.

Continue reading Found! The Ultimate Baklawa! »

College Street Bar
574 College Street
416-533-2417
Dinner for two (apps and mains only) with all taxes tip and beer - $75

In 2005 College Street Bar was revamped and showcased on “Restaurant Makeover”. I must say the new look seemed very stylish and sleek, but when we arrived for dinner I realized they must have run out of money when it came to the lighting. It was so dimly lit that both my dinner companion and I struggled to read our menus. Trying to focus on the menu was also made difficult due to the noise of the birthday party table we had been seated right next to. When I say “right next to” I mean we were so close that the waitress had to squeeze past every single time she went by. Even though I’m a fairly small person, I had to keep leaning closer to the wall to let her pass, at which point I banged my head into the low hanging mirror, sending it rocking. After making sure I wasn’t about to receive a concussion from the mirror toppling over I managed to focus enough to place an order.

Continue reading A Night to Remember… To Bring a Flashlight »

Lime
170 Eglinton Avenue East
416-322-LIME (5463)
Dinner for two, including a bottle of wine, taxes and tip: $90

What’s this sitting in front of me with its spiny legs and beady little eyes? My sister and I stared at our appetizer wondering how in the world we were supposed to eat it. When we read “lightly breaded soft shelled crab” ($8.95) we assumed, like the pub fare seafood we’re used to, that it would be served in pieces and covered in crunchy grease. My sister, being more of a seafood person than I, tore off a leg. The verdict? “Mmm, this is good.” Though I was a little put off by a whole crab staring at me, I dove in as well and enjoyed most of it until I hit the soft mushy inside part. Not being the biggest crab fan, I stopped there, but I must say that the rest was quite enjoyable. I especially appreciated the salty dipping sauce the crab was served with.

Continue reading Lime - a Foray into Flavour »

Café La Gaffe
24 Baldwin Street (at McCaul)
416-596-2397
Lunch for two with wine, including taxes and tip - $55

It’s hard to believe that just two weeks ago we had a gorgeous sunny day with patios hastily opening at various eateries. It took the staff at Café La Gaffe a moment to adjust when we sat ourselves at one of their patio tables. Being a little early for lunch was probably another reason why it took some time for them to notice us there. Considering how fast this small café fills up during lunch, we thought it best to arrive a little early.

Café La Gaffe is located near the University of Toronto on Baldwin Street. Baldwin features a neat strip of varied restaurants, ranging from vegetarian to sushi, and small grocery shops. The café itself has an eclectic feel to it with its purple and black furniture complete with worn edges.

Continue reading Café La Gaffe - A Mixed Review »

St. Urbain Bagel
7077 Bathurst Street, Thornhill
905-731-8305

It started about a year ago with the mysterious arrival of some bagels on my mother’s kitchen counter. I helped myself to one, and then to another as I prayed she wasn’t saving them for someone else. That was it. I was hooked! Where did these amazing bagels come from I wondered? Somewhere from Bathurst and Steeles I was told. The shop? No one remembered. I hunted around the bagel shops in the area and was lucky enough to find the one I was looking for — St. Urbain Bagel.

I had the opportunity to speak to owner Eric Bailis about St. Urbain Bagel’s history. Around twenty years ago Eric and his partner Bernie Good started this Montreal style bagel shop. The name of the store may conjure connections to existing bagel shops in Montreal, but St. Urbain Bagel is in fact an independent store with three locations in Toronto; including one in the St. Lawrence market where bagels are also made onsite.

Continue reading Becoming a Bagel Addict »

Dark City Coffee
Scarborough, ON
416-282-6100 (new customers)
416-282-2307 (repeat orders)

As usual, I’m sitting at my computer with a cup of coffee in hand. Unlike my university years of burnt stomach wrenching stuff I liked to call coffee, it’s actually fresh and tasty! Yesterday I received a freshly roasted pound of Costa Rican Tarrazu from Dark City Coffee.

Though not a coffee shop in the traditional sense, Dark City Coffee provides home delivery service to all us coffee lovers in the Greater Toronto Area. Ordering from Dark City Coffee gets you high quality beans, or so my taste buds tell me, and they custom roast them for you right before sending it out. Placing an order before noon on Monday through Thursday will have it arrive at your door the next workday.

Continue reading Coffee At Your Doorstep »