nummanumma's Profile
Best Buffet- is there any such thing? And rec for special 40th-
Hi guys, I'm a Toronto Hound coming to Vegas for my sister's 40th. we are looking at Alize for a chef's tasting menu for her birthday dinner- thoughts? I hear the view is awesome.
Also wondering about these famed buffets. Buffets would never occur to me as a dining option at any other time but people keep saying that they are just ridik in Vegas and we really should go. What are your thoughts and what would you recommend (if any?)
TIA
numma
Buca - Overrated and comically pretentious
Please tell me you are exaggerating for a good story? I cannot imagine a serve making a remark even approaching this and if one did, I would probably lose my cool. Give us more details, I am rapt.
Acadia -- who else has been?
i felt there was something strange about this place. Something funny about the menu, how it is laid out and the pricing. For instance, my husband had a fish dish, listed and priced as a main, that was by no means a main. some of the plates are quite small and seem they need accompaniments in order to comprise a main, but the menu doesn't 'say' that (directly or indirectly through layout etc...)
For us, there was a disconnect between the sparse room and the style of food. I can't quite put my finger on it. I'd be interested to see if anyone shares my thoughts or can articulate them more clearly?
Origin Question
I like Origin, nice vibe, great room, good food for the most part- I vote for the burrata and the ceviche :)
Healthy/vegan/veg options, Yonge/St Clair?
I work in the area.
Don't know how healthful it is as they refuse to post NI ( bad sign?), but the Thai Express on St. Clair (east of yonge) does all their curries and stirfrys as veggie options (good veggies) or with Tofu. harvey's is new to the area and does a veggie burger as well. (same style)
Retro Burger (south of st. clair, west side of yonge) has a veggie burger which is actually pretty good, but it depends on what you like for a veggie burgers (this is meat-style, done on the same grill as the meat I think judging from the taste).
Andy does veggie dogs on a corner east of Yonge. I can't say they are great but sometimes its fun to go to the hot dog cart in the summer.
The Salad Selection at Druxy's (basement of St. Clair center) is a more affordable, reasonably sized and fresher option than the stuff at Freshii (south of Heath, west side of Yonge), although both are possibilities for veggie lovers.
PIzzaiolo has veg pizza options (south side of St. Clair, west of yonge)
not a lot of superhealthy choices in this area....I end up bringing my lunch most days, but these are some options i've found.
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Retro Burger
1450 Yonge St, Toronto, ON M4T 1Y5, CA
Canceling Reservations
i occassionally hostess at the restaurant my husband is chef at, and use Open Table. Canceling /rebooking weeks in advance is a none issue. calling if you can't make your reservation makes you seem like you give a fig about other people, canceling repeatedly on the evening of is noted and makes you look bad.
Where can I get a vegetarian burger?
I haven't had it in a while but the veggie burger from Hair of the Dog was awesome.
Salt Wine Bar a real find! tapas for canivores. We will be back!
we were there last night as well- had:
the quenelles
the cantaloupe salad
the oxtail
the duck confit
the breem
the beef crudo
the sardines
and fries.
the cantaloupe salad was meh, the dice doesn't work for me and changes the flavor, the sardines were a little ho hum and the preserved lemon didn't come through (although my friend thought it really hit her, so I presume it depended on which bit you got) mine needed some acid.
duck confit, the breem and the oxtail were big hits with all four of us at the table. perfectly seasoned (for me), simply presented, like your mom made but way better (sorry mom). the oxtail in paticular felt like a sunday supper.
Service was great- unobtrusive, efficient and welcoming. my friend is gluten intolerant and the waitress was informed and helpful without making a big fuss.
we had about 9 glasses of wine, two desserts and a coffee- the bill came in just over $300 with tip. I thought it was great and would definitely return. I really liked the room, it feels so cozy like you are in a library or a wine cellar.
Stockyards BBQ
If your partner is Celiac, you might want to call the resto, rather than taking someone's word for it here- just a suggestion.
Davisville/Mt. Pleasant Delivery & Sushi
Debu's is excellent Indian and will deliver- http://www.debusaha.com/
We do Satay on the Road (Bayview) for Thai- its pretty good.
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Satay on the Road
2003 Avenue Rd, Toronto, ON M5M, CA
Looking for an authentic Spanish restaurant with authentic Spanish dishes
second cava!!
Is it ok to complain to the manager that the food portions are too small for the money?
If you think it, it is a fact. How does that work?
Would you say something to the management about this?
I find it odd that you complain about your money being there where people can see it. You are in a restaurant. Everyone knows what the items cost. Everyone is paying. I think this is incredibly persnickity and complaining to the manager will likely get you mocked, though hopefully not to your face.
Sweet breads at Black Hoof
this is making laugh, mcsweetbreads has become a joke in our house, the nickname for this style of sweetbread- fried and battered and nowhere near as amazing as they can be. I haven't had the hoof ones, but I feel i had the type you are describing- too many times!
A Great First (& Second) Impresssion at L.A.B.
Maybe I'm being hard on it, but I felt this place just didn't deliver. We had the bison two ways and the root veg calamari. The tartar bison was great but the shaved bison was boring. THe root veg calamari was fine, but it is fried veg, I mean I didn't find it that exciting?
Then we had the perogies- hard to eat and really just not very good. The 8-hour steak was overcooked, the 'cakes' that came with were FANTASTIC. The lamb was overcooked...the gnocchi, which fell flat from the description provided, I felt like they really enticed me with the interesting description but it just didn't come through on the plate.
How much do you tip when at a buffet?
working a buffet can be much harder than waiting tables in terms of sheer hustle required. clearing mutliple plates, keeping the table clean, keeping everyone watered and so on can be a challenging task. The hardest shift I worked at the resto I used to work at was the Friday Night Seafood Buffet. Holy cow!
Also, people who tip really poorly on a breakfast buffet-that's just mean! Just because the bill may be quite low, that person did the same amount of work as someone on a lunch/dinner buffet (yes this applies to eating off the menu as well, I don't see why you would ever tip someone who gave you competent service less than $5). Breakfast buffets are hard! People are cranky!
what do you think are deceptively difficult dishes? easy to take for granted if you're not knowledgable?
I had the funniest experience recently.
I went to the restaurant where my husband is the sous. I do this from time-to-time and eat at the bar alone, just to check it out and enjoy the food, see what is up with the staff gossip, etc...
There was a table of four behind me on a fairly quiet night, so i heard a lot of what they were saying. I often zone in on people talking about the food because it is pretty hard to get unbaised, honest opinions out of people.
They had the cold pea soup with a sour cream garnish- I know what goes into this soup and how hard it is to make a soup that is absolutely delicious-
First, I hear a diner say, "well this is just gazpacho, isn't it? No big deal. This is a gazpacho!"
and i hear one of his tablemates try it and reprimand him that it is far more than gazpacho, not a gazpacho at all, etc...
Then he says, "well, it certainly wouldn't be hard to make- jeez, you just toss peas in a food processor- no biggie!" and he proceeds to hold forth about how anyone could make that soup at home and why would you be paying $7 for it and so on...
It was killing me. I wanted to take him back to the kitchen and show him how the soup was made, or at least see him try to create what he was eating by simply putting peas in a food processor! At least somebody at the table seemed to know enough to know what went into it, and to discern the difference between it and a poor version, but it was pretty funny.
Luminato - PC '1000 Tastes of Toronto'
Went down today, I think the best of what we tried was easily Amuse Bouche's fish sandwich. Awesome bread, fish and condiment. YUM!
The Truth On Colborne Lane
agree totally that the tasting menu was more focused- not 50,000 things on the plate. I enjoyed that more than ordering and trying a few dishes. I also find the word 'truth' in the post title pretty condescending. It's your opinion (and clearly a strong one)- but defining yourself as the arbiter of the truth is a bit much!
Gourmet Groceries Miami Beach
Staying at the Gansevoort and wondering if there are any gourmet food shops in the area?
restaurant picks for brunch with someone you don't know well- danforth
oh no haggis- that's the thing I fear the most. I'd really like to win her over- I suspect she may have heard a tale or two about my younger-day dealings with said friend- ack! wish me luck.
restaurant picks for brunch with someone you don't know well- danforth
Now this is interesting to me- perhaps you will think so too.
An old friend from university days (I'm now 33)- asked if we could connect (haven't seen him in years, don't know how he lives) so that he could speak to my husband about my husband's move from the front to the back-of-the-house, the friend may be interested in doing the same.
I said 'sure' and we decided to get together this Sunday for brunch. I suggested Globe as they live on the Danforth. He wrote back saying that was a 'bit rich for their blood' and perhaps something like Christina's would be good?
My question is two-fold:
1) Did I err in suggesting Globe? Do I now look like a jerk to this guy? How would you handle a similar situation?
2) What is Christina's? Obviously, I'll eat at Wendy's if it is necessary, but I always try to make eating out as good an experience as possible. Anyone have good suggestions for reasonable prices?
ISO Tiny Brioche Hamburger Buns
Lesley, at OMG Baked Goodness does great mini brioche buns, she does not have a retail store, but you can contact her through her website.
www.omgbakedgoodness.com
Winter-not-so-licious at 5 Doors North
have you typically had good experiences at 5 doors?
Rude guests bringing wine - should I have served it?
ah- that sheds some light on the matter. Just be thankful she's moving, I guess - :)
Rude guests bringing wine - should I have served it?
knowing and choosing what you like is your right- dictating what others should/can enjoy starts you into a grey zone, some would argue there's nothing grey about it. I agree with others, you should have just served her the wine that she wanted, to not do so after she asked for it is quite pointed and probably hurt her feelings.
