back in action: origin

after a long and unanticipated hiatus, a culinary cabaret is back! it has been a wonderful and joyous year. between planning and executing my wedding (!!) and teaching full time, a culinary cabaret fell by the wayside. now that we are a month in to married life, this blog is back in action!

we recently dined at chef and owner claudio aprile's origin north, of the origin empire. we were happily surprised to see chef aprile himself there, on a friday night, overseeing the new season-inspired items added to their menu. 

the decor is trendy and open, the space much larger than their two downtown locations. patrons were well-dressed: mixtures of friends meeting after work and romantic dinners, with some business diners scattered among them. 

we have dined at origin north a few times and the service was quite poor. this week, however, our waiter was friendly and happy to go above and beyond to answer any questions we had, explaining the style of ordering (tapas/family style), and affirming our ordering choices were good ones! 

without further ado...

we started our with some beverages (Carlsberg and  a glass of Chianti)

origin's famous beet salad: goat cheese, pickled red onion, sherry dressing, yogurt, walnuts
this salad is not to be missed. it is remarkably fresh and always leaves you wanting more.

from the mozzarella bar: bufala with pear, rosemary oil, pine nuts and honey
such a fresh and tasty appetizer. the way these flavours come together is beautiful.

origin beef burger: smoked mayonnaise, avocado, arugula.
cooked to a perfect medium, this was one tasty piece of meat, and a menu
item they are well-known for.

origin's fries: don't miss out on these. perfectly cut and evenly-salted.
convince yourself that they go well with anything. you won't be disappointed.

the dessert menu looked incredible but we were beyond full....maybe next time.
we will definitely be back to origin soon. i'm already craving that beet salad!

five doors north

i have driven by five doors north about five thousand times, always meaning to 'give it a try sometime'. i have totally been missing out. located in the yonge-eglinton-davisville corridor, this restaurant, with 5 multi-coloured doors hanging outside, is a quirky hotspot for locals. casual but cool, five doors north is a spot to return to again and again.

a small group of us went for dinner, and were all more-than-pleased with the atmosphere and delicious food. it is a great place to go with a group, as there are lots of plates worth sharing. the hand-written menu is complete with interesting choices, while the chalkboard boasts their succulent specials. can't go wrong here!

bear with me, as i try to remember what we all ate!!

2088 yonge street
midtown toronto

i had the lovely roasted beet salad
with scallion aioli and lotus chips
meant to share. did not happen.

rk enjoyed the grilled calamari with
tomato chili jam and pesto (off the secondi menu)

ay ate the BBQ baby back ribs with crispy matchstick potatoes 

their gorgonzola gnocchi is a infamous dish! rich and savoury, you can't go wrong!
ms ordered it as an app and i had it as my main

jd ordered the sardines

 grilled lamb chops with roasted garlic and caramalized onion juice

spicy seafood stew with mussels, calamari, shrimp and stripe bass

rk ordered one of the daily pastas

great atmosphere. upside down lamps all around, funky feel.

i definitely plan on returning to five doors north. strongly recommend this wonderful place!

sidecar

who knew loving and adoring a puppy took up so much time? i have been absent from a culinary cabaret, but i am back. i have so many reviews lined up you'll be blown away.
about a month ago, af and i headed out to see joshua radin in concert (again) at an intimate venue on college street. before the show, we headed to sidecar for some pre-show dinner. i have heard a lot of hype about sidecar and was happy to finally make it there. we enjoyed a quick, delicious meal with fresh ingredients that were palette-pleasing. i would definitely head back, and perhaps dine on the back patio which seemed to have a great atmosphere.

we each ordered a glass of the 2010 angel's gate reisling

delicious bread, great texture and flavours

incredible salad (that they split into two bowls for us)
chopped jicama, red onion, cucumber, tomato, radish, feta, creamy oregano dressing

i ordered the tasty steak frites: AAA 8oz centre cut top sirloin, hand cut fries,
tangy roasted garlic aioli

af indulged in the papardelle:
braised short ribs, aged cheddar, king oyster mushrooms
with san marzano tomato sauce with spanish onion 

overall, we were both very pleased with our whole evening (especially because we had great seats to the concert and even got to meet joshua radin afterwars)! thanks sidecar for starting it off on the right note, we will be back!

joy bistro

saturday morning, i headed down to leslieville for a lovely brunch with the one and only bj.

it had been far too long since we had been to 'our spot'. we hadn't seen one another since december!

as always, joy bistro served a lovely breakfast. ever the hotspot,  i was lucky 'b' arrived a few minutes early to secure the best seat in the house: one of the cozy half booths. yummy food, hot drinks and a great vibe means i will definitely be back soon.

joy bistro is located in the leslieville area of toronto, right at booth and queen east.

always essential to start the morning with a latte

....or a cappucino

the restaurant was busy but our food was perfection.
we each ordered the 'leslieville eggs benedict' 

slow roast peameal bacon (regular crispy bacon for me, please), spinach, sauteed tomato,
Yukon gold rosti potato (yum!) and green onion hollandaise

we will absolutely be back to joy bistro! definite recommendation! with so many excellent leslieville choices, make sure you don't miss this one!

in other news....this little girl is the culprit for my absence! meet izzie, my new goldendoodle  puppy!

sweetest face around

joey's yorkdale

a few weeks back, the gals and i went out to celebrate the birthday of our dear mrs jw. since none of the ladies had been to the newest joeys to hit toronto, i thought it was a good choice.
the yorkdale location, while still busy, does not have the absurd wait-times experienced at other locations. for us, it was a good choice for a thursday eve. as usual, the atmosphere was trendy and the wait staff were dressed to the nines. i found our waitress to be more attentive than usual, which was a welcomed-treat. we were seated in a comfy booth on the main level, in the middle of all the action. by the time we left, the place was packed and there was a line out the door. there is definitely something to be said for early resos. food was on point, service was good and atmosphere was great. overall, a great eve filled with laughs and good eats.

none of us could resist these delicious yam fries topped with parmesan cheese, with truffle lemon aoili dipping sauce. thanks to mc for sharing.

can't go to joeys without ordering the chinatown lettuce wraps. the appetizer comes with toasted peanuts, fresh veggies and crsipy noodles. well worth jeopardizing your meal by filling up on them.
(special thanks to na of where the locals go for sharing her pic)

super-stoked voda on special 

 meal time

i couldn't resist the blue cheese sirloin, with the fully-loaded crispy mashed potato and seasonal veggies.
those mashed potatoes, in a spring-roll like outer layer, melt in your mouth.

dh ordered the grilled salmon, complete with maple beurre blanc,
crispy mashed potato and seasonal vegetables. she was also a fan of the mashed potato.

the ever-healthy mc ordered the beach salad. strawberries, goat cheese, quinoa, candied pecans,
lemon poppy seed dressing and chicken.

birthday girl jw ordered the florentine raviolo: seared scallops and prosciutto with spinach and artichocke filled ravioli, hold the tomato caper salad. delicious!

highlights of the evening (hey, we were celebrating a bday. desserts are a must!)

my personal fave, the italian donuts. lemon curd and vanilla marscapone cream. the zesty lemon flavour provides excellent balance to the sweet donuts

for jw, the molten lava chocolate souffle. wow.
the lava was piping hot and devoured within seconds. 

last but certainly not least, the 'happy ending'. chocolate decadence with dulce de leche and maldon salt.
very much capturing the 'salty-sweet' combo trend.

we had a great night, and will certainly be back to joeys!

vi pei, oh my

no question about it, this girl loves brunch. and discovering a delicious brunch spot within walking distance from home is quite the finding! the whole (quite critical) group was in agreement: we will definitely return to vi pei bistro (formerly vi vetha)

EC, BC, JW, CS, RK and i went to vi pei in the yonge and lawrence area, on a beautiful sunny march day (a tease by mother nature). there was lots of cousin-chatter and smiles all around. the service was great and the food was fantastic. the menu offered creative options for typical brunch food, plus some interesting specials. the menu was extensive, making it difficult to choose what to eat. all in all, everything was plentiful! the restaurant itself has a plain decor, but what vi pei lacks in atmosphere, they more than make up for with lick-your-plate brunch.  

brunch:

eggs nova 
poached eggs on english muffin over smoked salmon with hollandaise.
served with salad & home fries

salmon omelet
fruit smoked salmon, capers & green onion
with salad & home fries  

3 cheese omeletprepared with asiago, cheddar & mozzarella cheeses
with salad & home fries

eggs benny special
two poached eggs, smoked salmon, brie and hollendaise
served with side salad and homefries

french toast special
brie-stuffed french toast with caramelized
peaches, strawberries and bananas (WOW)
bacon and sausage

note: get there early... the place was buzzing and full by 11.
looking forward to next time!

the stockyards

after listening to all the hype, ap and i checked out the latest bbq joint, the stockyards, for a rare weekday-lunch that could only be scheduled during march break.
inconspicuously nestled between random shops on st clair west, we weren't prepared for a nearly-full house on a tuesday at noon. bar-seating only, we quickly grabbed seats where we had a view of where the magic happens, right in front of the grill. the atmosphere is very comfortable, with a relaxed-country feel and lots of toronto old-time memorabilia. the staff were friendly, accommodating and helpful when it came to decision time. they definitely steered us in the right direction.

notable items:
the meat is so good, definitely due to their 18-hour smoking process
you can order for pick up
they only sell their bbq ribs and whole bbq chickens on tuesdays, fridays and sundays after 5pm

699 st clair west

best ginger-ale in town, hard to find, easy to drink.

ap ordered the slow-smoked BBQ pork with slaw on the side. it was enough for 3 people
add: delicious fries

i ordered the the oak and hickory bbq beef brisket with stockyards bbq sauce,
garlic mayo and carmalized onions.
i barely ate half, but RK enjoyed it for dinner

some of the great memoribila that adds to the country-feel

 the stockyards has a legendary brunch menu that is, unfortunately, only offered on weekends. due to limited seating (only 18 counter seats in the whole joint), i am not sure where all these weekend-dwellers eat, but i am positive they devour every last bite, especially of the much-touted chicken and waffles. oh well, there is always next time!

highly recommend. but get there early to grab a seat!