kerwintoronto's Profile
Cantonese Party Trays
It is cliche but always fun ... a dim sum starter/appetizer course.
- siu mai (pork or a beef if you can find)
- har gow
- vegetarian spring rolls
- bbq pork puff pastries
--You can get them at T&T but they are definitely meh in terms of quality. However it would save you a trip if you are using T&T and might work for your group depending on their taste buds. An alternative would be buying frozen (we used to buy Ellen's) and steaming your own which would be more economical and up the quality as they would be fresher.
--An alternative at Asian Legend would be pan fried dumplings and beef rolls and scallion pancakes. They are all pasable as starter or small plate items.
You could throw together a nice asian slaw or salad (chopped or small leaf greens). This always goes as a nice side to something fried. Recipes abound online for this sort of thing ... we usually just do a maple-miso-sesame vinagrette.
Will there be table seating or are you envisioning something more casual (sofas, chairs, cafe tables)? You don't really want to be working anything to loose or saucy while holding the plate in one hand.
Scarborough To-Do List - What have I missed? What SHOULD I miss?
We moved into the area and drive by Basilico all the time ... any specific recommends/reviews on this establishment?
Honey lovers: where's your favorite honey?
We like the buckwheat honey from Bees Universe @ Brickworks Farmers' Market.
Best Pork Bun and Custard Tart in Markham/Thornhill or Toronto Area?
It's been awhile but we always liked Lucullus (we get our fix at dim sum...not the same but close enough for us).
See thread... http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/840016
Looking for: Ferro Rocher Pocket Coffee
Thank you. It was worth the drive to Vaughan. Two boxes (18s) in the pantry...well two boxes less 3 pieces lost during the drive home. I think they were $9.99 a box (that's what the price on the box was when I got home and looked)
Chinese Red Tea?
Pu Erh is one of the common 'house' teas for most Cantonese restos in Toronto.
Given the range of quality of Pu Erh I wouldn't be surprised that we are all dicsussing the same tea. There are pu erh that can run $1.99 a box to $199+ a pound.
Crawfish, I suspect the Pu Erh you were served was of a special vintage or quality. There are indeed Pu Erh that I have experienced which were indeed occassions in of themselves.
TorontoTips...one more thing. I went thru a phase where I was trying to find the right Pu Erh for my everyday drinking and it didn't work out. Many of the 'nicer' Pu Erh had to much age for my liking...didn't like a lot of the tepid flavours in the grocery store Pu Erh. The search got cut short when I got introduced to Luk On (sorry...best guess on the phoenetics from a illiterate Canto speaker). It was a softer version of Pu Erh, especially the earthiness...just my tasting notes not any food canon. If you wander across a Luk On give it a try.
Chinese Red Tea?
TT, are you referring to the 'chinese' tea served in the pot when you sit down OR the cream/milk team they serve (ordered item)?
Although it's been ages iirc since I've been to Richmond Courty, the regular 'chinese' tea they serve is a Pu Erh/Pu-Er(mandarin) or Bolay/Po-Lei (cantonese). You can google those for more info but in terms of purchasing it is going to be tougher but I am sure you will prevail.
Although widely available price is usually linked to age of the tea ... from what I gather 'aging' drives the price of most pu-er. Of course there are other variables to the pricing but age is a big one. I've had some very pricey pu-er from family and friends but it is a very earthy/musty flavour profile
Good luck..
Korean ingredients
If your path takes you north you can hit up the Yonge corridor between Finch and Sheppard. There is a Korean grocer beside St. Louis ... about 4-5 blocks up from North York City Centre.
There is also a Korean grocer closer to Finch (I believe).
Soba Tuesdays
+100 in agreement.
We may end up becoming regulars since it is just once a week. We tried (from above) #2, #5 and hot broth soba with tempura.
Cold is definitely the way I will go next week!
Has anyone tried "Bombay Hut" on Avenue Road?
We tried it out last night (15th) and it was very enjoyable. My wife is a huge fan of Banjara and we both love indian.
We were seated promptly and orders taken.
Chicken Pakora
Butter Chicken
Saag Paneer
Lamb Karahi
Roti
Garlic Naan
Rice
My personal highlight was the Saag Paneer of all things. It was a saag paneer with NO extra oil ... not even a glasten. It had the full flavour/seasoning and the paneer very good along with the prerequisite richness but you didn't get the mouthfeel of excess oil or greasiness. (as typified in the extreme by Lahore Tikka)
The butter chicken was tender, etc, etc, etc but for comparison was a tad more tomatoey than Banjara or other spots. Good seasoning and mild was quite mild (as requested).
Lamb Karahi ... good. Lamb pieces were good sized and tender but not pulled meat style.
Breads ... good.
Rice ... it was rice.
Gulab jamun ... comp dessert. I normally don't like GJ but warm was nice and the inside almost had a custard/cream taste to it. Very good.
Definitely on our Indian go to list. Atmosphere is a little more contemporary than Banjara and still has the nice clean feel of a new establishment.
Scarborough To-Do List - What have I missed? What SHOULD I miss?
They have a couple tables of seating. You can get combos but you are at the mercy of the steam table rather than cook to order. We've eaten there on a weeknight and it was ok but on the weekend there is a lot more turnover of the food and the quality is much better.
Scarborough Gems
scarborough ... you had me REALLY scared but after digging ... just really annoyed at CHOW.
To be honest the biggest use I had for the restaurant pages were as a consolidation point for reviews. I didn't use it at first and just used a search and clicked thru.
Looking for a good dim sum place that seats large groups (16 people)
That's a BIG table. Hence the inquiry I would suppose.
Premiere Ballroom & Convention Centre
9019 Leslie Street
- they should be able to set a table this size given the venue and banquet services
Ambassador
Hwy 7 / W. Beaver Creek
-recall a couple jumbo tables
Casa Victoria (and the other Casa I am guessing)
8601 Warden Avenue
- just guessing (never actually been)
Shangri-la
50 Esna Park Drive, Markham
- they should be able to set a table this size given the venue and banquet services
I am sure the more forum dim sum masters can contribute more but this is a start.
I was also going to recommend calling ahead or getting a reservation.
Kopi Luwak coffee in GTA ?
Thank you for the full review/write-up.
It's been ages since my experience of this coffee. My experience was similar but less eloquent in the telling.
May splurge and try it one more time.
Cheers.
Churrasco Portugril moving from Birchmount & Danforth to Eglinton & Bermondsey
Just more of a bump.
Did you get a chance Googs (we've been out of town)? And I also also pleasantly and gradually working my way thru the Scarb list.
Downtown restaurants with toddler -- recommendations?
Thanks for the suggestion Terrier.
My wife has been on parent duty while I was working at the WSCTC this week. We did Palace Kitchen with the little one and it worked out. We also went to Seatown and they were accomodating (albeit at 830 pm on a tues or wed night ... presumably slower).
Thanks for the tips on goods and not-goods there. My wife stopped by for lunch with the little one and they had a blast.
Downtown restaurants with toddler -- recommendations?
Kattie ... how did it go? We are visiting Seattle and looking for recommendations along you lines. We've hit the ID already for the Japanese and Chinese family friendlier restos.
Calling Chinese seafood lovers in Markham/Richmond Hill
A question answered with another question ... not for me but more data for the experts to formulate their answer.
Do you have a budget in mind?
Good eating to you.
Bella's Lechon
Bella's Lechon
1135 Morningside Avenue Toronto, ON (East side tucked behind gas station just south of Sheppard)
(416) 282-3288
www.bellaslechon.com
We've been a couple times and we thought the lechon was amazing. Our first visit was near the end of day (8pm) and they were out so we settled with food from the steam table (we aren't filipino and have forgotten the choices). Joycee (sp?) ended up bring out a pound of lechon that he made complimentary as it was end pieces and he didn't feel comforable charging for it. Moist, tender, sweet (as pork can be) and crispy skin ... and that was what he didn't want to sell.
Subsequently we've had the lechon again and it was as good as the first try. His sauce is a thicker sauce than described in initial reviews (prob the new recipe). The pata is drier than the other two places we've had it but very flavourful and crispy. The pata came with the vinegar sauce (hmmmm...good).
We also ordered one of his ham's for a holiday pot-luck. A very nice sweet, smoky, briny ham (with bone in).
It has joined the rotation of take-away spots for a dinner protein.
Cheers!
Cava Wineries to Visit?
Not strictly speaking a Cava experience but I highly recommend doing a tour at Pares Balta. It is a little family winery that I lucked upon when taking a day off on a business trip to Barca.
Happy travels and drinking.
kaji vs hashimoto
Well SAP, your closing comment is truest. I would def recommend eating at Hashimoto.
It is all pretty much covered in the other posts regarding the topic but they are very different cuisines. Kaji is definitely a chef's tasting menu with contemporary.nouveau flair (credite/footnote to CY's description) and global sensibilities/techniques applied to classic Japanese dishes/foods versus Hashimoto presenting a very 'traditional' menu based on seasonality and a very refined/subtle esthetic.
I would take Hashimoto over Kaji but Hashimoto has always been more of an occasion restaurant and Kaji almost a drop by sort of place (if I could afford it on a more regular basis).
Happy eating!
ISO Toorshi pickels
They have a table at the Brickworks Market on Saturdays. Strictly speaking not a retailer but they have the product and it is in area to your OP.
Cheers.
Cafe Belong at The Brickworks
Cafe Belong does belong in the firmament of Toronto dining.
I had the opportunity to dine there (Sept 7) for a light dinner with the wife and little girl. It was indeed very light in terms of patrons but I think the word just needs to spread as to the quality of the food. I concur with currycue on the quality of the food. The prices and atmosphere lend me to think of something less refined in execution.
We had the:
- Milk braised lamb
- Crab cake
This was a special and was one large crab cake with a bit of frisse on top.
Good fresh crab without much filler and a nice crust...almost a croquette.
- Small Fry (Piccolo Fritti)
aka tempura vegetable (green beans, zucchini slices, zuchinn flowers, mushroom (fresh shitake and not veg but a cheese stick)
- Frittata
- Cheesecake.
I personally like the atmosphere but it is a personal thing (reminds me of a place I used to hang out 2-3 times a week when I was in the US). I love it being quiet in terms of traffic BUT I hope they get more seats filled to keep the business around.
The server indicated that the 'communal' service is currently a pre-order item.
Cheers.
ISO - Crema Gianduja alle Nocciole
I was at a colleague's for breakfast and he had us try this. I much prefer over Nutella as it isn't as cloying. He brings it over from Rome x2 a year (and he is in DC) so no joy using his channel.
I haven't had a chance to scour the GTA but I thought I would ask.
...from the web...
Product Description
Baratti & Milano have been making chocolate in Torino, Piemonte, since 1858. This master chocolatier continues to operate in its famously elegant pasticceria in the landmark Piazza Castello as founded by Ferdinando Baratti in 1858. While the city of Torino has changed in the meantime, the companys motto Our quality makes history rings as true today as ever.
Generations of Piemontese children have been raised on this silky, smooth hazelnut cream, made naturally with regions famously smoky-sweet Tonda Gentile hazelnuts and low-in-fat cocoa. Perhaps its because everything this cream touches falls under the seductive spell of its creamy texture and irrestibly rich flavors. Or perhaps its because nearly everything in your pantry can be combined with Barattis cream: amaretto cookies, biscuits, fruit or ice cream, as well as cakes and pies.
Looking for: Ferro Rocher Pocket Coffee
Hmmmm...I just had a hankering for one of these and thought the search/Google is my friend and found this thread.
Any recent sightings in T.O.?
Niagra Falls Question
We were just in Niagara Falls before New Years. One of the search results was:
Koutouki Greek Cuisine
5745 Ferry Street, Niagara Falls - (905) 354-6776
The food seemed pretty good but the whole family was sick so the taste buds were off. Service was good and the menu had a full choice of greek dishes beyond souvlaki and saganaki.
RIP Cuisine of India
Yikes...our tastebuds must be shot. LOL.
I think you must have had the same batch of vindaloo that I did but just with more cooking/heating added to it.
RIP Cuisine of India
It is indeed open. I didn't realize the affiliation until I went to their website (http://www.peacockexpress.com/). We live in the area and my wife had spotted it when out for a walk.
We went to take a look and the prices were very reasonable we thought. So much so we went grabbed two takeouts. One was a meat thali (with butter chicken) and I had a beef vindaloo w. rice. We both enjoyed the food but found both the meats a touch sweeter than we expected. Of the 3 veg in the thali I liked the chana masala the most ... good texture and heat. The spinach (no cheese) was a little flat but texture was the expected smoothness...I love Palak Paneer in general too.
Worth a try for takeout. We'll be back!
