Location:
663 King Street West, Toronto
The Banknote is one of those work-lunch and after-work dinner/drinks places serving up burger & beer type meals in a bank setting. Yes, aptly named The Banknote, as it used to a bank, they still have the ol' vault in the back and teller booths. If that ambiance doesn't suit you, there's always their cosy patio on the King Street side.
It's a great place for post-rock-climbing eats as Rock Oasis is just around the corner! I'd choose this over The Wheatsheaf, if you were wondering. :)
Burger and fries special
Pasta of the day:
Eggplant Parm Burger:
Penne:
Chicken Burg:
Fish n' Chips:
Thai Senses
Location:
www.thaisenses.ca
How apt, we came to our senses and left Compass's Grand Opening to grab some real grub and found Thai Senses.
A wonderful hospitality and creative dishes made for a memorable meal.
The coconut ice-cream was complimentary!
Besides the creepy fish head, the meal was quite tasty and a welcome change in hospitality from Compass Lakeside Grill.
The Wine Bar
Location:
9 Church St., Toronto
So, clearly I missed the boat on Jamie Kennedy's Wine Bar, instead this place is now known simply as The Wine Bar.
And, I know I've said it before and I should've listened to me:
If a restaurant is EMPTY, go somewhere else.
The Wine Bar was eeeempty.
The Wine Bar
Aside from the wine (good thing it's called the Wine Bar), this place is a disaster!
Oh, and I still don't get "tapas" - small portions are not for me. I love food and I love seeing LOTS of it.
First the positive:
The service.
Very attentive, polite, accommodating to dietary needs.
The negative:
We ordred the grilled flatbread (with house smoked chicken, tomato and mozzarella) and requested less mozza, to which our server suggested he could do less on one half and no mozza on the other if that was preferred. Great! Perfect.
The flatbread arrives and the chicken looks a bit pink in the low-light.
Flatbread
The taste? Awful. The chicken truly is pink, is bad cuts of meat, and doesn't taste at all fresh.
The next thing we had ordered was the artic char (smoked) - with arugula. The smoked artic char arrived looking...smoked. And fishy smelling - fresh fish should never smell fishy - and overly salted. Were we ever grateful for the salad!
Smoked Artic Char
Then there was the scallops - OMG!! Both of our upset stomachs the next day verified what we'd thought all along: neither the scallops (nor the fish or chicken, for that matter!) were fresh. One bite of it was all we needed - it tasted like the bottom of the bay, like how you'd imagine a fish tank tasting.
Scallops
And the wine? Besides the fact that we thought it was $10 for a glass (turns out it's $10 for a TASTE and $22 for a glass!) they were both very good.
Menu
Needless to say we drank every last drop of the wine, mostly to rid ourselves of the terrible food flavours. Soooo gross, you guys!! And we were so sick after!
I must admit I'm glad the portions were so small!
We ended up having to go for dinner again after that meal.
We headed over to JUMP where we KNEW we'd get incredible food, wine and service.
Cafe Cinquecento
Location:
791 King St W., Toronto
www.cafecinquecento.com
Went here for a friend's birthday, one who is a trusted foodie with great taste, and she was right.
I loved the atmosphere and the service and the story behind Cafe Cinquecento.
The Fiat 500
Cafe CinquecentoThe menu left me absolutely TORN...there were many routes I wanted to go: there was pizza, pasta, the specials...and then....I saw BRICK PRESSED CORNISH HEN.
Our server explained it to me as follows: they cook the hen with a brick placed on top (exactly how you imagine) so that it cooks both sides crisply and keeps all the moistness within (like so).
I was convinced.
And pleasantly surprised.
Gallo al Mattone: Brick-pressed Cornish hen [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="576" caption="Gallo al Mattone: Brick-pressed Cornish hen $19"][/caption]9Everyone else's meals looked wonderfully put together as well, and although it all took a while to arrive, to be fair there were 20 orders made! In the meantime we enjoyed rounds of bread, bowls of mussels and anitpasto plates. Yum. There was a spicy salami on there that was very memorable.
Antipasto Grande: Cured Italian meats, grilled vegetables, grilled seafood and spiced olives [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="576" caption="Antipasto Grande: Cured Italian meats, grilled vegetables, grilled seafood and spiced olives $18"][/caption]8
Calamari con Salsa di pepperoni: Grilled calamari with roasted red pepper sauce on a bed of arugula [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="576" caption="Calamari con Salsa di pepperoni: Grilled calamari with roasted red pepper sauce on a bed of arugula $13"][/caption]3
Salmone al Ferri: Grilled salmon fillet with a side of orzo [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="576" caption="Salmone al Ferri: Grilled salmon fillet with a side of orzo $17"][/caption]7
Costoletta de Vitello: Veal chop grilled with fresh herbs [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="576" caption="Costoletta de Vitello: Veal chop grilled with fresh herbs $18"][/caption]8
The only dish that didn't stand out was one of the specials: The tilapia on a bed of risotto with sausage. Which, at least, four of us agreed, was bland and the sausage tasted like Oscar Myer weiners. 
Tilapia risotto special
But, the wine was flowing and it was simply a lovely evening of celebration. There also suddenly appeared a lovely vase of red roses for the centre of the table!
Roses for the birthday girl!
And, I'm still astounded that the birthday girl picked up the whole tab!!
TV, the next one's on me!
Fynn's of Temple Bar
Location:
489 King Street West, Toronto
www.fynnstemplebar.com
It used to be a Fionn MacCool's and now the name isn't all that different but the menu certainly is. For one, they have these God-awful photographs that don't really look related to anything ON the menu. Things like three scoops of vanilla ice-cream that looks as if a bite were taken out of one of the scoops. And tomatoes. Just you know, random tomatoes.
Regardless, Fynn's is always a staple lunch time spot for us 'cause it serves what we really want for lunch on Fridays: beer. In my case, Guinness.
The food is still yummy and plentiful in portion-size.
Can't ever go wrong with the Fish n chips.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="fish n chips $14 (one piece $9)"]
[/caption]
Unfortunately my fave Jerk Tilapia has now been changed to tilapia with pesto and tomatoes (ah, I see where the image of tomatoes comes in useful now). It's not bad, but I miss the Jerk Tilapia 'cause it had a delicious pineapple salsa on top. Bring it back, please!
- pesto tilapia and roasted tomatoes on quinoa and basmati rice, with veggies, $16
Overall, no complaints though, this is definitely the best pub on King street near Spadina.
Moxie’s, Yorkdale Mall
Location:
Yorkdale Mall, 1 Yorkdale Road, Toronto
Moxie's has the lowest lighting possible, which is really no excuse for bad photos, and these really are the worst pics ever, so I'll just leave you to them whilst I turn away.
Harbour Sports Grille
Location:
10 Yonge St., Toronto
www.harboursportsgrille.com
Fish n' Chips..............check.
Fish n chips
Beer....................check.
mmmmmmmmm....beer
TVs....................check.
Over 50 TVs and 2 big screens
Random pasta dish.............check.
Pasta
Can't ask for more from Harbour Sports Grille.
TRAVEL: Banff: The Maple Leaf
Location:
137 Banff Avenue
Banff, AB
www.banffmapleleaf.com
After a two hour trek across Lake Louise and back to the Chateau and by the time we reached Banff, we were riddled with cravings for salmon (or really, anything other than sandwiches and soups), so we headed straight to The Maple Leaf, number one on my list of Banff eateries.
Also, after not finding a single fireplace (working) at the Chateau, we were tempted to ask if there was a fireplace at the Maple Leaf, to which we got the response, "one moment please", and then, voila! A table RIGHT beside the fireplace! Mind you, not only a fireplace, but a giant moose head to go with it, right above us. 
GIANT moose head!
I love Banff. Everything's so rugged, so earthy, so natural. If it isn't wood, it's leather or stone. The Maple Leaf ambiance was beyond cosy.
Such a cosy interior
Oh so comfortable leather chairs
The many celebs who have visited
We'd scoured the outdoor menu to make sure that there was salmon and I knew what I was going to have:
The Atlantic Wasabi Salmon...sesame-scented Asian noodles, nori, pickled ginger.
The other item we ordered was the Mahi Mahi sandwich (I know I said enough with the sandwiches, but it sounded so good!) with potato and leek soup (okay, I take it back).
Yummeh x 2!
Our only - and very slight - qualm was that the "Coke" tasted more like Cola and then we figured out it was DIET Coke. Er, no thanks. Not on vacation (or any other time, for that matter). Our server was very accomodating and made no fuss. Our adjoining table of seven or eight however, complained about their regular burgers being too pink and found out that the regular burgers also had a mix of bison in them (the server said something about bison burgers being more on the pink side). They voiced that the menu made no mention of the bison mix in the regular burg and they'd have loved to have known beforehand...etc.etc.
If I hadn't overdone the whole burger thing having had two in the last four days, I would have ordered the regular burg as well, but the salmon and mahi mahi sandwich was exactly what we needed. 
Wasabi Salmon
The salmon dish was amazingly good. Surprisingly, the noodles were chilled, but together with the crispy (breadcrumbed and fried) salmon and the fresh ginger slices, the dish was refreshing and satisfying. 
Mahi Mahi Sandwich
The fish sandwich was tasty as well; we tried to pinpoint the "indian" flavour in it. At first I accredited it to the chilly yogurt mentioned in the menu, but then it dawned on me as being CILANTRO (to the joy of N and to my dismay). If you know me, you know I am not a fan of the green stuff and its overpoweringly horrid scent. That said, it was still a good sandwich. Washed down with a cold glass of real Coke, that is.
Potato and Leek soup
The potato and leek soup was the perfect antidote to an active Winters day, while the Maple Leaf was the perfect end to an active Winters vacation.
TRAVEL: Palm Beach, Charley’s Crab
Location:
456 S Ocean Blvd, Palm Beach, FL
www.muer.com
Our first place to dine in PB was Charley's Crab...a highly recommended restaurant along the beach.
Apart from the Guinness that was poured out of a bottle (egh)...
the sandwiches we ordered were amazing and I'm not a huge sandwich person! (We quickly realized that most of the lunch fare in PB was sandwiches and/or burgers.)
Our server suggested the Bistro Chicken Sandwich with goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, field greens & balsamic vinaigrette, which looked like this:
and tasted great although it was a bit heavy on the goat cheese (for me, but then I don't do cheeses well). The second sandwich, the Chili Dusted Ahi Sandwich - chargrilled with bacon & pepperjack cheese, and honey mustard aioli, served with French Fries and coleslaw was kick-ass!
Juicy and very filling!
We got it with green beans instead of fries, and I could have done without the slaw entirely. Still a very satisfying lunch for a day at the beach.
TRAVEL: Palm Beach, Hamburger Heaven
Location:
314 South Country Road, Palm Beach, Florida
Cost: $25 for two
Hamburger Heaven is a cute little diner in Palm Beach and one of two places suggested to us to get breakfast in the area - I'm sure there are more joints to grab freshly squeezed OJ, but HH was super close to our hotel and the beach which made it perfect.
We didn't make it in time for breakfast the first day...missed it by more than a few hours (breakfast is served until 11am and we were there around 3!), but our lunch consisted of what we considered to be makeshift breakfast dishes...ie. quiche (eggs and spinach) and fruits!
It was gloooooooooorious!!!! Ta DA!
And we thought we'd try the special of the day - Blackened tilapia on salad....my oh my was it ever delush! SO glad we missed breakfast! It was the perfect 3pm meal!
We did make it in time for french toast and eggs the next day though! And they remembered us and sat us in the same booth - so sweet! The service was amazing, they didn't make any fuss seating us in a booth even though there were just two of us and even though they had a lineup later for lunch with groups of four waiting. It just reminded me of horrible Mildred's Temple Kitchen and their huge a** fuss of seating us!
We had freshly squeezed OJ (how could you not?). Omg you guys, soooo good!
The eggs, toast, side of potatoes and....bacon....
I always get french toast for breakfast...and these were tasty (I have to admit Testa's was better, though especially with their serving of fruit on the top) but I was loving the giant Texas style toast.
The breakfast was all very good but I think it's called hamburger heaven for a reason and we really wanted to come back for one of their burgers but they were closed on Sunday, our last day there! Oh well, next time for the hamburger! We ended up jokingly calling this place Hamburger Helper but it truly is a little taste of heaven.
The Jason George
Location:
100 Front Street East, Toronto
I've been to the Jason George twice. Both times I had the fish n' chips. Hey, why change a good thing?
It's crispy, flaky, tender, tasty. And the yam frites are scrumptious.
Whether indoors or out, the ambiance is fun and friendly.
A great local pub.
Martha's Exchange
Location:
185 Main Street, Nashua, NH
Cost: approx $9-15 per lunch entree (after 5pm, approx $15-19)
www.marthas-exchange.com
I've been to Nashua a slew of times but never dined at Martha's Exchange on Main Street. Martha's Exchange has no relation or connection to Martha's Vineyard or Martha Stewart. It actually began as a sweet shop which simply grew and grew. More of it's history can be read here.
We made it there for lunch one day and found it quite busy. We only had about 45 minutes for a quick bite so we had to order quickly, although I would have liked to have perused the menu better and also enjoyed a beer with my meal considering it's brewed on the premises. 
Our dishes took a fair bit of time to arrive; turned out the delay was due to a large party of 30 on the other side of our booth.
However, when our dishes did arrive, we were very pleased.
My Mum ordered the Jambalaya ($12).
The Jambalaya was better than I've tasted in New Orleans! It's ingredients being: blackened chicken, andouille sausage, shrimp and fresh veggies sauteed in a spicy marinara sauce. It had a good kick to it (you know how I like it hot!) and was very fresh.
I'd ordered the Almond Maple Salmon ($15)
Fresh Atlantic salmon topped with sliced almonds and baked in a maple butter sauce. Baked IN a maple butter sauce INDEED! My salmon was having a long hot soak in a jucuzzi of butter!!! I'd have preferred it not having quite so much R&R. It was, however, quite tasty but the rice it came with was nothing special.
At one point during our meal the elderly lady in the booth behind us spilled her drink creating quite a commotion (someone may have been enjoying the beer afterall!). It seemed it was her birthday and she was treating her daughter and a couple of other friends to lunch. They all left before she did and the lady told us as she was leaving that she was alright and we nodded and sympathised with her. The next moment my Mum spilled her drink all over the seat as well! Very strange. Perhaps Martha's is haunted by a playful ghost? The website doesn't say but you never know......
I'd love to go back to Martha's and try out the beers and more of the dishes...the menu was quite extensive. I'm also sorry now that I didn't try any of the sweets from the still existing sweet "shoppe" in the corner of the restaurant! Argh! I hate metered parking!!
Harbord Fish & Chips
Location:
147 Harbord Street, Toronto
Cost:
$8.99 for the Halibut ($11.99 at Chippy's)
As far as I'm concerned, you can't go wrong with eating a good meal of fish n' chips once in a while. And it's pretty hard to mess up deep fried fish and strips of potato. The real issue is how much you are paying for eating the deep fried goodness. At Chippy's you pay an arm and a leg and are lucky if you get to rest the other arm and leg on a stool inside the tiny compound (especially if it's raining outside!); it's also pretty hard to eat battered fish from a chinese take-out container.....okay, so I guess it's not that hard to mess up deep fried fish and fries, but don't get me wrong, I'll still eat at Chippy's if I'm ever craving some fish n'chips in the west-end. For the East-enders, the ultimate fish and chips place used to be mom n' pops' Woodgreen Fish n' Chips, which I believe has shut down (can anyone confirm this?). I'd love to try British Style Fish & Chips on Dundas/Coxwell which I've heard is superbly authentic.
However, around the Spadina/College area and at Harbord FnC, you can get deep fried goodness for less and a place to rest your whole being (on the picnic tables outside). The joint also feels very sea-shore-ish; with the mom n' pop serving you piping hot fish atop fresh fries (on paper), which you get to douse with vinegar and salt the way you please, but be cautioned, the tarter sauce comes in wee lil' packets.
The fish sits fresh and tender inside a wonderful deep golden interior of golden crust, whilst soft, yellow, starchy pods of potato poke out of the breaks in the crispy, skin-covered edges of the chips.
With the right amount of malt vinegar, salt, ketchup and tartar sauce (and a beer if you can manage to sneak it in as we did this time) you're all set for a trip to fish n' chip heaven.
Québec City: D'Orsay Pub
Location:
65 rue de Buade, Québec City
Cost: $60 for two
www.restaurantpubdorsay.com
Bonjour tout le monde!
I must admit, my French is atrocious, but by the end of our Quebec City trip I was readily throwing out "bonjours" and "mercis", not to mention fully formed-sentences, at my husband, at least.
But enough of the French lessons, let's go back to the beginning.
By the time I landed in Quebec City it was past 9pm and then past 10:30 by the time we got to our hotel and were ready to go out to eat. We then realized that almost all the kitchens around the Chateau Frontenac were closed.
Finally, we were directed down a side street and then just around the corner we saw it. The D'Orsay Pub. Which was one of the restaurants on my list to try!
We were quickly seated at a beautiful folding window in the very charming, rustic interior, with its checker-board-floors and cobble-stone fireplace. Their terrace is a terrific people-watching spot as well as a great place to catch some sun. Unfortunately the weather was too chilly for us to enjoy the outdoors that night.
Seeing Leffe beer on the menu got me excited as it's not easy to find in Toronto, so we got a Leffe Blonde, $8.50 and a Belle Gueule Rousse (from Quebec), at $7.50 (which was mighty tasty!)
My husband had already had dinner, so this, in LOTR form, was second dinner for him. We knew poutine was a definite and I was feeling fishy, but almost all the seafood was in a cream sauce and while the wall-eyed pike sounded good, the salmon fillet with balsamic vinegar and orange sounded better. At $18.50 though, I assumed the salmon would be stuffed with oranges or orange chutney or something....again, too unusual to be true and sadly the dish was again what we conjure up at home. I was ravenous, so it didn't matter, but I wouldn't order that again.
The poutine on the other hand.....
MMMm......my mouth waters now just thinking about it!
I am no poutine expert, in fact, I'm lactose-intolerant and can't really stand cheese and this was only my second time eating poutine, but I must say, those cheese curds were something else. So spongy, so succulent, so very filling! Lookit how big that cheese curd is!!
Mmm.....is it correct to say it was tout le gout???
I could have eaten that all night!
The next day, D'Orsay's kitchen must have been an assembly line of poutine 'cause the terrace was packed with hungry patrons scarfing down the cheesy goodness, but alas we had other sites to see and a variety of other places to eat!!!
D'Orsay is a definite don't-miss!
Recipe: Tilapia Curry
This is one of my favourite recipes. You can use frozen tilapia, but I prefer fresh tilapia fillets.
Ingredients
- 1 lb tilapia fillet cut into 8 pieces
- salt (to taste)
- 1 tsp tumeric
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 2 tsp garlic
- 2 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp corriander
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
- 4-6 green chillies
- optional 1 green bell pepper (or any bell pepper)
- water (enough to make some gravy)
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
Preparation
- wash fish with water and then with lemon juice
- coat with salt, turmeric, chilli powder and set aside so that it can marinate for a bit
- chop ingredients in the meantime
- heat oil, saute fish and set aside
- fry onions, add garlic, ginger, a bit more red chilli powder, turmeric, cumin, corriander and stir fry
- add tomatoes and stir fry
- add salt
- add fish
- add green chillies, green pepper (optional) and water
- cover and cook 5-10 minutes
- add lemon juice
- simmer
Serve over brown (or white) rice -I prefer brown rice (Brown Basmati rice is great!)
Mmm..yummy!