Tuesday 31 October 2017

Burritos in Toronto

Chipotle vs. Burrito Boyz vs. Burrito Bandidos

October 31, 2017 - Chipotle @ Shops at Don Mills
I love that Chipotle has a Halloween promotion called Boorito where if you dress up, you can get a burrito for $3 after 3pm.  
Burrito bowl and burrito
The lineup was kind of long, but to make up for it - they really loaded the toppings! I think the bowl was better than the actual burrito wrap - but the burrito wrap was gigantic. The ingredients were fresh as always - but it didn't seem like we got a lot of meat (but we got a lot of corn, beans and rice).  

June 27, 2014 Chipotle @ Yonge and Dundas

Chicken burrito bowl
Despite the appearance, there was actually a lot of food in this burrito bowl.  They gave me a lot of corn and salsa (but not as much rice as I would have liked).  The chicken was seasoned well and very flavourful and moist.  It would have been even better with free guacamole. :)
Also, I found that the burrito bowls here are better than the actual burritos.

Oct 15, 2014 Chipotle @ Yonge and Dundas
Chicken Burrito (although you can't see the chicken)
A huge Chipotle burrito consisting of mostly rice and beans as you can tell. It's super filling because there's so many carbs, but flavour wise - I felt like it got lost a bit with all the rice and beans.  I'm also not a big fan of their burrito preparation - they only warm up the tortilla instead of warming/toasting the entire burrito the way they do at Burrito Bandidos.

June 27, 2016  - Burrito Boyz @ Adelaide & University


The view from the window...mmm
Burrito bowl with mix of chicken and steak
A few things just about this burrito bowl: there was a lot more rice in the bowl than burrito (my friend got the burrito and I got the bowl). The cheese was very melty, beans were good, veggies were crisp, tangy and fresh and the chicken and beef were not too dry and seasoned well. However, I found that the burritos here are better than the bowls - something about how it's all laid out in the container rather than being smushed together into a portable wrap just doesn't taste the same. 
Overall though, I would prefer a burrito bowl at Burrito Boyz over Burrito Bandidos and Chipotle (the portion is bigger and the ingredients when all tossed together are just tastier - probably mostly because of the guacamole that comes for free!). 

February 25, 2016 - Burrito Bandidos @ Grosvenor

Shrimp and Steak Burrito Bowl
I've become a huge fan of burrito bowls - less messy and cumbersome to hold and you can eat it at your own pace (and save the rest for later). 
The delicate and tiny sweet shrimp and tougher steak strips served as good contrast and they both had a lot of flavour.  Add that with the sauces, rice, guacamole and everything else and you've got a recipe for success since it tasted delicious all together. 

March 15, 2014 - Burrito Bandidos @ Grosvenor

Mixed Pork and Chicken burrito bowl
I actually wasn't a huge fan of the chicken and steak mix - I found both were a little dry and despite all the sauce, the burrito bowl just felt like it was missing something.

 
Halibut burrito bowl
I loved the gigantic piece of fried halibut on top of the burrito bowl, but it didn't really seem like it fit in with the rest of the bowl's Mexican flavours. 

Overall: I think Burrito Bandidos is much better than Chipotle for actual burritos (and you get free guacamole which is very important in the burrito decision), but Chipotle has more convenient locations and they have pretty good burrito bowls.

Saturday 28 October 2017

Ten Ren's Tea

October 28, 2017
I wasn't feeling very well, but my friends wanted to go for bubbletea, so I got this instead:
Ginseng Chicken Soup
It wasn't quite like the Korean version with chicken stuffed with ginseng and rice. However, it was very tasty and it's nice that they serve it here at Ten Ren's. 

June 4, 2017
 Taro Coconut Slush $7.29
Taro and coconut milk tea with grass jelly and soft-serve green tea ice cream. It was really good! I usually don't like green tea ice cream or grass jelly and I loved this! The taro coconut slush was really good, but the jelly texture and ice cream made it really interesting. 

Loui's Kouzina

For me, Markham is usually a haven for Asian food - not really Greek. However, my friends recommended this place in a strip mall in Markham. 
Greek Fries $6.56
I'm not sure if you put feta cheese and drizzle some olive oil if this could be considered a dish worth about $7. I was pretty disappointed. 

Small Chicken Souvlaki plate $12.45
The small plate was pretty big with two skewers of chicken souvlaki which was really tender and juicy. The salad and rice also took up substantial room on the plate. 

Overall: Decent Greek food at Loui's Kouzina, but definitely on the pricier side. 

Thursday 26 October 2017

B.Good

My friend suggested this healthy spot at King and Yonge for lunch. There were some really good salad options, but I wasn't sure if they were going to be filling. Turns out that their plates are pretty huge! 
Mediterranean chicken $13.99
This was a great salad! Lots of chicken, cheese, fresh veggies and some green beans (which were novel and delicious). 

The service was a little crazy today since their computer system died and they had to manually do orders. However, they really didn't seem like they had their stuff together, especially since the lineup was so long. 

Saturday 21 October 2017

Pho Hung

My friend and I were going to a Raptors game and went to Pho Hung to grab a quick dinner.
Beef nướng and Pork nướng
I really wanted a Vietnamese spring roll since I haven't had one in so long! Plus Vietnamese spring rolls are the best! Crispy crust, yummy filling and it works so well with the cold noodles, grilled pork, pickled carrots and radishes, cool cucumbers and delicious fish sauce! Yummy! I liked the pork more than the beef (especially in Vietnamese cooking). 

High Street Fish & Chips

High Street Fish and Chips was profiled on BlogTo as one of the top fish and chip places in Toronto. I was craving fish and chips since Friday, so I decided to try it out. 


Bread, Coleslaw and Tea
Lunch specials $10.95: minced steak pie and halibut and chips and coleslaw
The minced steak pie was okay. The fish and chips were really good - crispy and crunchy on the outside. I liked the thick cut fries too. 

Overall: Good fish and chips at High Street and nice friendly service. 

Friday 20 October 2017

Via Cibo

Small Cesare salad
Pancetta with caesar salad - pretty good! 

Prosciutto E Arugula pizza
I like the balsamic drizzle on the pizza! It was a nice touch to tie it all together. 

Chicken Parmigiana
That was a huge piece of chicken covered and baked with cheese with more sauce and cheese on top. The pasta on the side was okay, but I wish there was more sauce since it tasted dry without it. 

Overall: Interesting quick service meal concept at Via Cibo - you order at the counter and someone delivers your food which is rather different than other Italian restaurants. 

Wednesday 18 October 2017

Hoki Poke

I always wanted to try poke, but I just never got around to it - until now. 
Veggie bowl and Classic Bowl
The fish was really yummy and I loved the sauces on top. It also looked too pretty to eat at first and I didn't want to toss it, but it tasted even better once it was all mixed in. 

Website: https://www.hokipoketoronto.com/

Sunday 15 October 2017

Mickael Déjeuner-Dîner - Lasalle, Quebec

The bus tour had 4 different stops in Quebec City - depending on the package chosen, you could stay in a few different places: Fairmont Château Frontenac, another hotel in downtown Quebec City, a hotel a little outside Quebec City or a hotel outside of town. After we picked up the last group, the bus dropped us off at this plaza with a Chinese buffet for breakfast/dinner. We opted out of the buffet and went to Mickael Déjeuner-Dîner instead. 
 

Casserole Mickael
Scrambled egg strips - that's one way to serve a casserole or skillet. The stuff under the scrambled egg strips was okay - there wasn't a lot of hollandaise sauce though, which I found disappointing. There was also a LOT of fruit on the plate - which is kind of nice. I got this omelette because I felt that I hadn't been eating a lot of veggies and fruit and this totally satisfied my requirements. 

Crepe

Casserole Delight
This looked a lot more normal with the eggs over easy. There was also a lot of food under the eggs - mostly a lot of potatoes and sausage.  It's also nice that it came with a mountain of fruit. 

Viande Fumee sandwich with salad (Smoked meat sandwich with salad). 
We didn't really get to eat a lot of smoked meat on this trip, so my friend tried to make up for it here. 

Overall: I think this was definitely a better choice than the Chinese buffet, but I probably wouldn't make the trip out here even if I was in Quebec. 

Paillard - Quebec City

We did a little more exploring of Quebec City and passed by Paillard, where I decided to pick this up for tomorrow's breakfast:  
Fougasse with bacon and cheddar 
The bread was pretty hard the next day - but it was really tasty with the bacon and cheese. 

Website: https://www.paillard.ca/

Saturday 14 October 2017

Restaurant Aux Anciens Canadiens - Quebec City

With the bus tour, I wasn't sure what time we were going to make it to Quebec City - and I was pleasantly surprised we made it before 6. I was really excited to get to eat the $19.95 menu. However, they said they didn't have any tables open when we got there at 5:30 and that we had to come back at 6:15. So I had the $49.95 menu instead. 

 Bread to share

Wild caribou and bison rilletes
I was super excited to try this since you don't usually see caribou on menus. The rilletes paste was really good and came with two pieces of toast and some carrots. 

Soupe

Beef Wellington with bordelaise and mushroom sauce
The presentation was a little lacking, but the beef wellington was really good even if the pastry wasn't super flaky. 

Grandma's treat with meatball ragout, Quebec meat pie, salt pork grillades and baked beans
I loved the variety of traditional and classic Quebec dishes on the plate! It was a lot of food - the best part was definitely the Tourtière (Quebec meat pie). It was really flavourful and tasty. The rest of the food on the plate was okay. 

Bison Bourguignon with blueberry wine sauce
Interesting spin on the normal bourguignon, but I think I like the classic beef version better.

\
Sugar Pie! 
So delicious and a great way to end the meal! 

Overall: I felt like I got the Quebecois experience with my meal from the wild game to the tourtière to the sugar pie. It was great and the restaurant was in a pretty quaint house - and we sat in a room with a fire place. It had a lot of rustic charm to it.

Friday 13 October 2017

Ma Poule Mouillée - Montreal

Our original plan was to go eat at La Banquise. However, since there was a huge line, we decided to grab takeout instead (the line was just as long, but it moved slightly faster). When we were lined up, we couldn't help noticing the long line up across the street at Ma Poule Mouillée. We split up and half the group went to line up for Portuguese chicken. 


 

Huge portions! 
#2 Le Louis Cyr and #8 Bon, les Portugais font de la poutine (the two styrofoam boxes of poutine were from La Banquise)
The Portuguese chicken was AMAZING! The chicken was perfectly seasoned - flavourful and juicy and it came with a huge box of fries and separate box of tasty salad. Le Louis Cyr was a great deal! I also LOVED the Portuguese chicken poutine - the gravy was delicious, there was a ton of tasty delicious chicken and the cheese curds were squeaky and so great. The poutine at Ma Poule Mouillée was way better than the takeout boxes of poutine we got at La Banquise. 

Overall: La Banquise may be super popular with tourists and poutine-lovers, but clearly, this was the local favourite in Montreal! The lineup here is well worth it for the great chicken, huge portions and delicious food. 

Le Banquise - Montreal

October 13, 2017

La Banquise and the line up...


La Panoramix poutine with smoked meat, mushrooms and sour cream and La Mart poutine with hot dog, bacon and mushrooms (white containers - the other food came from Ma Poule Mouillée).
After trying these two poutines, I came to the conclusion that I really don't like mushrooms, mushroom gravy or sour cream in my poutine. I didn't really enjoy these poutines especially since we could also compare it to Ma Poule Mouillee's Portuguese chicken poutine.

July 23 2017
La Banquise is a super popular Montreal poutinerie. Luckily it's open 24/7 so you have your choice of when to go but there's always lineups no matter what time of day (but especially at night after people go drinking and partying). 
La T-Rex with hot dog sausage, ground beef, bacon and pepperoni
It looked so good! All the meats were delicious and the fries were nice and crispy. The cheese curds were amazing! Any poutine here is great! Definitely worth the trip here. 

Premiere Moisson - Montreal

Even after stopping for a while to see some of the sights in Ottawa, we made it to Montreal in time for a late night dinner.
We passed by Première Moisson on our way to dinner and I couldn't resist stopping in to check out the pastries and bread. 

 


Clafouti!
They looked so good, but not really dinner. We thought it might also be a good idea to pick up breakfast in case we didn't get breakfast tomorrow.


The bread options looked amazing.

Next day

Mushroom bread and a raspberry croissant
Both were delicious even the day after - the mushroom bread still had that aromatic bread smell and the juices from the mushrooms were absorbed into the bread. So good! The raspberry croissant was pretty unique too.