sarnya's Profile
Best burrito in the city...
Is there any difference between Burrito Banditos and Burrito Boyz? I don't understand how somebody could rate one higher than the other...they're the same thing.
Since the two owners split, I've eaten at the Boyz location at Adelaide and the Banditos location on Peter St. numerous times and can't notice any different. I know the Peter St. location has a few extra options like steak/chicken mix but that's the only difference I've seen.
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Burrito Boyz
218 Adelaide St W, Toronto, ON M5H1W7, CA
southern style bbq
Last time I went to the Stockyards (5 days ago), I took the subway to St. Clair West station and walked over to Christie and St. Clair. I had no transit issues and I doubt many others do either. You're more likely to have trouble on St. Clair from driving because of the construction.
I don't have a car and I live downtown so I can't make it out to these other places in the suburbs. The Stockyards has delicious food and extremely friendly service. I've been there four times, all when the owners are working and they're so patient with the craziness. I've sat at the bar each time and seen a lot of other customers complimenting the cooks so clearly people love this place. It may not be 100% southern BBQ but what the BBQ menu items they do offer hold their own.
Where to buy Coca-cola (without high fructose corn syrup)?
I know this an old post but I saw the thread resurrected and the above post is wrong. Canadian Coke does not have real sugar... none of our pops/sodas here use sugar. We get our cane sugar in pop the same way you guys do - Boylan, Latin American pop or other small pop companies
2010 closings
Montana at Richmond and John closed recently.
I can't say I'm surprised... I tried it once and it was pretty average. I'm surprised it lasted as long next to Jack Astors as it did considering the food wasn't very different. Not that Jack Astors is a go-to place but it's familiar and a lot of people like it.
Let it be known that Montana's closure was not Restaurant Makeover related... it's makeover happened years ago so the two are unrelated.
Saturday breakfast on King btwn Bathurst and Spadina
Zoe's Bakery Cafe has excellent gourmet sandwiches... they do breakfast on Saturdays as well. I love it there, the breakfast sandwich and frittata are amazing. Zoe's is at Brant & King.
Brassaii is really good too. I prefer going there in the summer to sit on their patio.
Sadie's at Adelaide & Portland also has a great vegetarian breakfast.
Personally, I wouldn't bother with Aunties & Uncles... it's true that it's very good but I don't like lining up for breakfast. I walked by last weekend and there was a good 15 people in line.
ISO: Passover Coke
Thanks for the heads up about Perola's, I grabbed some Mexican Coke and Sprite today.
If anyone's curious, the best pop I ever had was in Iceland as they make their Coke with glacial water and cane sugar. You can order it off www.nammi.is but the cost of shipping it here isn't really worth it when we have easy access to Boylan or Mexican Coke.
Weddings at the Berkeley Church
My fiance and I booked our wedding for later this year at the Berkeley Church. I obviously can't give you any feedback yet but they have been great to deal with so far.
I believe my fiance read the same bad reviews you had and we chose to ignore them. You never know who those people are writing bad reviews... some people have an axe to grind over a minor issue or have unrealistic expectations. Also remember that people aren't usually motivated to come online and write raving, positive reviews. When you have a bad experience, you want others to know and you want payback. You've seen yourself that anyone can write a bad review about a place and it gets you second guessing your decision.
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The Berkeley Church does a lot of weddings and considering you've come across 3 bad reviews, I'd say that's pretty good. Go with your gut... if the bad reviews scare you then don't book there.
Caplanskys Deli: New Review
It's not weird... they make a good breakfast, which impresses me that they do more than one thing very well. I've had four excellent smoked meat sandwiches as well. It's true their desserts are delicious too. I've had the cheesecake and apple crumble, both of which were fantastic. I loved that their ice cream is supplied from Dutch Dreams and all their desserts are made in house. For a while back in September they had black and white cookies, which was great. Where else can find one of those in Toronto? It's one of the few restaurants in Toronto where I really want to try everything on the menu.
I'm not gloating about the place for the sake of gloating. I really believe it genuinely deserves the praise it receives. I know people have different views on what restaurants are good, that's why this website exists.
I know you are not a fan of Caplansky's as I've seen you challenge positive reviews here and on other message boards. I can't sit here and debate what restaurants are good or bad... we all have very different tastes and expectations based on how we were raised and past experiences. To myself and many others, Caplansky's is great and if people like it, there's no reason to be suspicious. I really hope this place becomes a Toronto institution over the years to come.
Caplanskys Deli: New Review
I think this review is bang on. I actually had breakfast with my girlfriend at Caplansky's today. We had The Leo (onions, shmaltz, and lox) and the Smoked Meat Hash and it was honestly one of the best breakfasts I've had in the city. What made it so good was the eggs... I find eggs are always mediocre in breakfast joints. They're rubbery or liquidy and just plain bad. That wasn't the case at Caplansky's.
It was my 5th time eating at Caplansky's since September (almost once a month) and I haven't experienced any consistency issues other complain about.
There's a funny attitude on here... people love the negative reviews and question the positive reviews. I guess people just prefer to read a horror story than a genuinely good experience. It is possible for a restaurant to be great in Toronto.
Local Soda Company
It's only available in the restaurant but Mill St. makes their own root beer. I've drank a lot of the birch beers and root beers from the North East US and Mill St. root beer is quite good.
Boylan is still my favourite though. I can't get enough of that stuff.
Pepsi Throwback
Many flavours of Boylan are available at Sobey's for $1.50 a bottle.
New Aji Sai on Queen - AYCE
I'm really shocked to read negative reviews about this place. I've eaten at the Queen St Aji Sai location at least 20 times since it opened. I find the service to be be great. It's prompt and the waiters are very friendly. My green tea is always refilled instantly, empty plates are cleared from the table immediately and I've rarely waited more than 3 minutes to order more food once I'm finished my previous order.
I don't know what people expect around here but Aji Sai on Queen has some of the better service I've ever encountered in the city. The place is rammed most nights and there's usually a small line up on weekends after 7pm so I imagine other people have also experienced the great service I have many times. I hope this place sticks around for a while.
I will admit that the food isn't the best but for an AYCE place, it's not bad. I don't go there expecting to be blown away... I go there to eat a bunch of fairly decent sushi.
Icelandic Cuisine in Toronto
McDonalds was one of many, many, many American restaurants in Reykjavik. There's no shortage of burgers and fries in Iceland. There were big line ups when it closed but it was just to get one last Big Mac.
The whole idea of Icelandic cuisine being something people seek out to eat is really funny. The traditional food they have eaten for a thousand years was based on what was available. Sheep's head is a very traditional Icelandic meal but now when you have the option of nachos, burgers, pizza vs a sheep's head ... what would you pick? You literally have to pick gravel out of your mouth when you eat a sheep's head. Have fun digging around the nasal cavities, that's where a lot of the gravel is found.
Burying bread in the ground and baking it from the heat of the Earth is another traditional Icelandic food. I had some of it and I'm not going to lie - it was absolutely awful. I also tried the Hakarl (putrid whale meat) and Lump Fish, both of which are disgusting as well.
Baking bread in the ground, eating a sheep's head and fermenting shark meat was done out of necessity, not because it tasted good.
Like I said above, I never encountered an Icelander eating Icelandic food. It's the only country I've been to where the traditional food was for tourists. Most popular/high end restaurants in Reykjavik were Icelandic fusion restaurants... mixing tapas with Icelandic fish dishes or putting a French spin on Icelandic foods. I see this type of thing working well in Toronto... there's definitely an untapped market in Toronto for Scandinavian food.
All the Icelander's I met didn't eat whale or agree with eating whales either. Whale watching (and puffin spotting) is a big source of tourist money. Husavik in Northern Iceland has some of the best whale watching in Europe. What brings in more money - a $10 whale burger or $120 for a whale watching tour?
I joked a lot there that Iceland is actually a picky eater's dream... everywhere I went had 3 staples - hot dogs, ham sandwiches and burgers.
Iceland's food culture is fascinating. Unfortunately, I don't think it's possible to find their traditional food in Toronto. They have an emigration problem right now but their people aren't coming to Toronto. They go to Minnesota, Manitoba and other parts of Scandinavia. You may find an Icelandic restaurant in rural Manitoba as strange as it sounds.
If you really, really want to try some Icelandic food in Toronto, it can be ordered online here at Nammi. I'd recommend getting some Coca-Cola made with cane sugar and Nizza chocolate bars. Icelanders make a mean chocolate bar.
http://nammi.is/
Icelandic Cuisine in Toronto
I was in Iceland about a year ago and have searched around for some Icelandic food in Toronto to no avail. The thing with Icelandic cuisine is that Icelander's don't even eat it too often. Iceland was an isolated country for a long time. It wasn't until the past century that the entire country was connected by the Ring Road. Parts of Iceland remained isolated until 1960's.
The US military had a strong presence at Keflavik International Airport until recently, which had a strong influence on their eating habits. American food is fairly new for them. Reykjavik is full of Tex-Mex places for a reason...they're crazy for it. Everywhere I went in Iceland, locals were always eating nachos, burgers, pizza and hot dogs. The Icelandic restaurants were full of tourists eating puffin and lobster soup. Really, you shouldn't be eating puffins or whales to begin with but that's a whole other debate.
Unfortunately, our Whole Foods doesn't carry skyr.
You could make meat soup easily enough yourself... I highly doubt anywhere in Toronto serves it.
You probably won't find puffin or whale to dine on in Toronto either.
If you want some classic Icelandic food, boil a hot dog, get some Wonder Bread buns and cover your hot dog in ketchup, mustard, mayo and crunchy onions. Now that is a delicious Icelandic hot dog!
Corktown loses Pete's Cajun Pizza on Parliment
I sure hope they don't close for good... their pizza is great and I always loved the wings served in doughnut boxes. This was the first place I discovered after moving to Toronto almost 4 years ago. It'd be a shame to see it go.
Seems like there's been a lot of closures this year already. It's too bad to see some places go.
Le Gourmand at Y & E closed down--due to non-payment of rent!!!!
It's exactly the same at the Richmond/Spadina LG location. They're open until 7pm... by the time 5pm rolls around, there's nothing left in there.
I live and work in the area and love their cookies. In the past, they've replenished their baked goods around 2pm but lately they haven't been doing that. I used to be able to go in later 5pm and still get baked goods but now if you don't go in the morning, you don't get them at all.
phil's bbq....
I've never had a problem with getting a seat or the BBQ menu items at the Stockyards, be it lunch, dinner, weekends or weekdays, there's always plenty to order.
It is basically a take out place but because I don't live in the neighbourhood or own a car, I have to eat inside. I've found the employees and other customers to be talkative and friendly so eating in there is actually a great experience.
Regardless, this thread is about Phil's, which is actually a really good restaurant. I'm still shocked to see this hate-on people have for Phil's. With less people going there now, maybe I can finally get in there again without the huge line up.
phil's bbq....
This is news to me that people think Phil's sucked... I always thought it was pretty good and it's considered to be one of the more successful restaurant makeovers.
I've eaten there before and enjoyed it. There's been times I haven't been able to get in there because it's been so busy. I suppose Phil does have a lot more competition for southern BBQ now than he did a few years ago. Though the Stockyards is my go-to place for BBQ in the city, I wouldn't hesitate going back to Phil's.
Do you find Winterlicious a rip-off?? Or is it just me.
What's wrong with that when I'm paying for a scaled down version? I don't go into North 44 expecting to get the most amazing meal ever when I'm paying $45 for 3 courses. I go there expecting to get a sample of the atmosphere and quality of food they offer knowing I'll be in and out in 1 hour...it's not a night out at Jacobs & Co. dropping $300 on steaks, wine and valet parking.
The thing with Winter or Summerlicious is that you should go into it with proper expectations and you won't be disappointed.
Do you find Winterlicious a rip-off?? Or is it just me.
I completely agree... In the past, I've had positive experiences with this event. I guess it's hit or miss or most people but either way, I like 'licious events. It's a great excuse to try some places I've been meaning to go to.
Lynn Crawford buys The Citizen
They're renovating the restaurant so there's no longer a front patio...the interior of the restaurant will extend to the sidewalk. It may be a while before it opens.
The Big Smoke Barbecue - Oakville
I ate here at the end of December 2009 and was actually really impressed. It wasn't the best BBQ I've ever had but it was definitely really good.
It is a little on the expensive side but I felt the large portions made the extra cost worth it. My girlfriend and I each had a pulled pork sandwich, fries and shared pit beans... this came to a little over $30 with tip. I don't like to get into every minor detail about the meat and so on but I was impressed. The owner was very friendly, service was prompt but the place was dead. Granted it was 3pm on a Monday during the holidays so what can you expect? I wouldn't go out of my way to go back there but if I were in the area and craving BBQ, I would definitely hit this place up again.
Anyone tried the Sweet Flour Bake Shop?
I think Le Gourmand is still than Sweet Flour. They're both good cookies but I prefer any LG baked good to anywhere else in city.
It all comes down to taste and preference. If you want a thin, crunchy cookie then you're not going to like either of them. Personally, I strongly dislike thin crust pizza so no matter much someone tells how great Terroni or Pizzeria Libretto are, I still don't like it. That's what makes debating food quality so difficult. I have a friend from Jamaica who swears 7-11 Jamaican beef patties are the best... but I highly doubt that they are. Who's to say your favourite food isn't the best if it's the best to you?
Anyone tried the Sweet Flour Bake Shop?
They're not that expensive. Le Gourmand is known to have one of the best cookies in the city and they cost $2.36. I know this because I am terribly addicted to their cookies. LG runs out of cookies twice a day...they usually have a fresh batch in the morning and mid afternoon. Is it obvious how often I go?
Sweet Flour charges $2.50 and considering they are comparable in size, it's customizable and baked fresh, the extra 14 cents, it's not that bad. Chalk me up as somebody who doesn't mind paying that for a nice, warm, chewy cookie. I think it's reasonable given the size of the cookie.
I've been to Sweet Flour a couple times. I like their cookies but I'm rarely in that neighbourhood. I've found the owner to be very friendly and talkative with her customers.
Bulldog Coffee Toronto - A lot of bull, not a lot to write home about
I feel exactly the same way. Like I've mentioned in previous posts, I worked on Restaurant Makeover and thought the owner seemed like a nice guy. I remember this episode well since I thought it was interesting to makeover a coffee shop. Though he didn't stick with the panini suggestions the chef gave him, I've found his drinks to be delicious.
I've never experience any attitude or negative experiences here.
Oh Boy Burger, Queen and Portland
I had the same experience when I went the week after they opened (see my posts above) but I tried to be understanding about the chaos and confusion.
I walk by everyday and notice it's always full of people so I was hoping the service had really improved. I guess it hasn't so I'm not missing out on anything. Thanks for the reports.
At the end of the day, this sounds like a mediocre restaurant with poor service. I'm willing to tolerate bad service if the food is amazing and bad food isn't so bad when you have a nice server. This place seems to have nothing going for it other than a good location.
Buster Rhino's Southern BBQ Tasting Menu
My girlfriend and I are headed to this... we live downtown and we're renting a car just to get there so I hope it delivers.
Review with Pics: Tiny Tom Donuts Storefront
Sounds delicious and it's nice to hear that the price is more reasonable than the CNE ($5) or Wonderland ($5.50). It was a little shocked when I saw that the donuts were $5 this year... that was the same price to go see Bill Clinton at the CNE. Donuts or Clinton...?
I wish they had opened this store downtown (partly because I live downtown without a car). I always thought if Tiny Tom opened a location they might do it at Yonge and Dundas where there's a heavy amount of foot traffic from locals and tourists. It would be great to grab a little bag of donuts before heading into a movie at AMC. That will have to remain a dream for now.
Nadege Patisserie is Bad
I just thought I'd add that I tried a chocolate filled croissant from Nadege today, which is the first time I've eaten from there. I really enjoyed it...I thought it was better than Le Gourmand's croissants and I'm a big Le Gourmand fan. I know my cookies, brownies and cupcakes better when it comes to bakeries but I wouldn't kick a Nadege croissant out of bed for eating crackers.
