Biff's Bistro

4 Front St E, Toronto, ON M5E 1B2                                                          RATING: Good

"The French know their quiche"

Owned and operated by Oliver & Bonacini, this upscale French bistro was surprisingly quiet for a Friday lunch with my coworkers. It was my first visit to this restaurant that borders the Toronto financial district and the Front Street entertainment venues. The three of us bypassed the busy patio and headed in to the mostly empty restaurant. It's formal, caters to business folks and is air conditioned for suits and ties.

This restaurant has numerous seafood and fish offerings that looked truly delicious. But my eyes zeroed in on the Quiche Du Jour with mixed greens. I hadn’t had quiche in months and my mouth was watering in anticipation. My co-worker Nick is a club house sandwich guy and he immediately went for the Chicken Club with bacon & barissa mayo while Kelsey and I ordered the quiche. It wasn’t just your average ham & egg quiche. It was made with pork sausage that had a bit of a kick and topped with a slice of brie. The pastry was firm but literally melted in my mouth when I bit into it. I ignored the voice at the back of my mind that was counting the calories. Any time a pastry melts in your mouth, add a few zeros to the calorie count. But this quiche was worth it. The brie was young and firm, and the quiche filling was something to write home about: perfectly cooked egg and a smattering of vegetables with bite sized pieces of zingy pork sausage. It was accompanied by a side of salad greens. The dressing was a Champagne vinaigrette, but I’m not a fan of vinegar so I opted for straight olive oil. Unfortunately the salad consisted of whole lettuce leaves and nothing else, and I had to do a lot of carving and folding to make bite-able pieces. It may look nice when plated, but salad served this way is a royal pain to eat. I soon gave up trying after a few pieces unfolded just as the fork reached my mouth.

My colleagues devoured their meals.  Nick had his plate clean in a matter of minutes.  Kelsey and I were neck and neck until she took a break to answer some questions and fell behind. When the waiter cleared our plates, there was only lettuce left behind.

All in all this meal was good.  It wasn’t cheap because a wedge of quiche and some lettuce leaves were $17 plus tax and tip. 

If you’re a seafood fan and a lover of French food, I would recommend giving this restaurant a try. 

Restaurant Website:  http://oliverbonacini.com/biffs-bistro.aspx

Mitzi's Cafe

100 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario                                                   RATING: Good

"Neighbourhood Delight"

This restaurant sits smack dab in the middle of a vibrant bedroom community in upper Parkdale. Built into the main floor of an old house, the huge front windows let in a lot of light and the surrounding trees gives it a homey yet still urban atmosphere. We arrived shortly after their 9 am opening which was fortunate because it filled to capacity quickly, including the eight or so tables on their covered patio. Clearly their baked goods were well sought after because I watched a steady stream of customers arriving for take-out  muffins, bagels and pastries. The table beside us ordered the french toast with banana and whipped cream which had me shamelessly ogling. 

Within seconds of being seated we were served delicious bottomless coffees and left to peruse the chalkboard menu. I didn’t want anything elaborate because I’m watching my calories so I chose a basic Mitzy’s breakfast consisting of poached eggs, bacon and rye toast. The meal came with a side of mini-potatoes that were tossed in a dark sauce which I can’t comment on because I didn’t try it. A complete no-no for a food blogger but I just plum forgot about my duty to try everything on my plate. The poached eggs were served in a tiny bowl set in the middle of the plate. They were perfectly cooked because the yolk was soft and runny, although they didn’t ask my preference so it’s a good thing I like them cooked that way. The only downside to a runny poached egg served in a bowl, is the likelihood that they were cooked in a pot of boiling water with vinegar added to keep the white attached to the yolk. You guessed it, runny yolk and vinegar is not appetizing but I come across this unfortunate combination fairly frequently.  Mitzy, please I beg of you, invest in a proper egg poacher because not everyone likes eggs that taste like vinegar.  

The bacon was well cooked and delicious, and the rye bread was either homemade or purchased fresh from a local bakery. It was finger smacking good to the last crumb.  My breakfast mate ordered the same meal as me, except her eggs were in an omelette. They must have used 8 eggs in her dish because it could have fed three people. She barely got half way through before requesting a doggy bag. It seemed like there was a teenage boy behind the grill who was anticipating his own breakfast, but I will quote my husband and say "never complain about there being too much food".  Fair enough.

We sat for 2 hours and watched as a line formed and then disappeared. Never were we encouraged to hurry up and finish so they could seat someone else. 

My breakfast came to just shy of $14 for a basic bacon and egg breakfast with coffee (the latter is separate).  That’s not cheap, but the quality of the food is good and the atmosphere is pleasant. 

I would definitely give this establishment my repeat business.

Restaurant website:  http://www.mitziscafe.com/

Oliver & Bonacini Cafe Grill

33 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ontario                                                RATING: Good

"Salmon fillet, arm & leg"

I patronized this restaurant with 3 co-workers on a summer Friday afternoon in Toronto’s financial district. We chose to sit inside the restaurant in order to avoid the endless construction sounds and smells that are a Toronto epidemic this summer of 2014. 

We sat in a comfortable booth, away from the din and clatter by the swinging kitchen door.  Our server was polite, pleasant and incredibly efficient, which is exactly what we wanted and needed.

My attempt to watch calories had me ordering the grilled Atlantic salmon ($24). The menu said that it was accompanied by roasted heirloom carrots and mini Yukon Gold potatoes. The salmon was cooked to perfection, crispy on the outside and mouth wateringly tender on the inside. There was a smattering of horseradish pesto on the top that was nicely understated because it added a hint of flavour but didn’t overtake the natural flavour of the salmon. The two small potatoes, and I mean SMALL as in the size of a walnut, looked appetizing but they could have used another minute of cooking because they were too firm for my liking. What are heirloom carrots?  The two small 2-inch long root vegetables that were on the plate didn’t resemble any carrot I’ve tasted, and looked more like parsnips. They were bland and crunchy so I pushed them to the side of my plate. 

One of my colleagues ordered the Turk Pizza ($16) which was spiced ground lamb, hummus and feta on a fairly thick crusted pizza. He said there was no sauce or cheese on it, although the menu stated ‘feta’ so there must have been very little.  He enjoyed the pizza and ate every crumb on his plate.  My other colleague had the Tandoori Chicken Burger served with a mint & onion marmalade along with sweet potato fries ($16). He said it was good which was evidenced by the fact that he also ate every crumb on his plate.  Lastly, my other colleague ordered the Friday special which was shrimp & salmon cake on a nicoise salad with olive tapenade vinaigrette & caper remoulade ($17).  She wasn’t impressed with this because the ‘cake’ was actually ‘cakes’, about four seemingly walnut sized cakes (again with the walnut analogy) that were heavily deep fried so they were mostly crust.  Not much flavour and the salad that was underneath it looked fairly unappetizing (did they use iceberg lettuce?). My co-worker barely touched the salad. 

Ironically my meal was less than half the size of everyone else’s and was significantly more money.  I walked back to work feeling hungry and shocked that my lunch was $35 all-in including my soft drink. Unfortunately that delicious salmon wasn’t the last taste in my mouth; it was the bitter taste of disappointment for having spent far too much on a lunch that wasn’t worth it.  But, I would give this a Good rating because three of us devoured our food, and only one said the food was ‘okay’

Restaurant website: http://oliverbonacini.com/Jump.aspx

Jump Cafe and Bar

18 Wellington Street West, Toronto, Ontario                                       RATING: Average to Good

"A dollop of Ricotta won't do"

I arrived at Jump with my two regular lunch pals on a busy Thursday in the Toronto financial district. We were initially led to a table that was almost laughable. It was a non-starter because my friend couldn't have sat in her chair without being constantly jostled. Having none of that, we asked for a table change. Straight away we were led into the main dining area and greeted by the happiest waiter I've ever had. Farhad Bulsa. This guy is happy. He introduced his `shadow' co-worker, David, another happy guy. From start to finish this pair was a pleasure.

Comfortably seated with menu in hand, I looked at the array of options and let loose an audible sigh of relief. They had the exact item that I'd ordered on my previous visit, the organic chicken breast, with mushroom and quinoa salad.  My mouth was watering in anticipation of biting into that tender chicken. But I gave my head a shake and thought of this blog and admonished myself because I knew that I should probably sample a different menu item. Farhad walked us through the specials of the day and we all paused at the pasta entrée which was prepared with garlic, olive oil, tomato, spinach, proscuitto and goat cheese. Bingo! This sounded good. Farhad corrected himself and pointed out that the cheese was actually ricotta, not goat.  Ricotta?  That seemed odd, but we were all game to give it a try.

My pregnant colleague was having a bit of a moment and zeroed in on the rosemary fries with tomato mayo dip. Never deny a pregnant woman her fries, so we acquiesced and ordered a basket of to-die-for fries that were sprinkled with rosemary and accompanied with a bowl of tomato mayo that I could have licked clean if I'd been alone in a room with it.

Our mains arrived promptly and we dug in. But oh dear, ricotta cheese?  So disappointing. Goat cheese would have been the perfect dollop. Not this flavourless ricotta that I ended up pushing to the side of my plate. Sorry, Chef, wasted calories. 

Overall, that pasta special was a disappointment. One friend said too salty, the other said the pasta was undercooked. I'm all for al dente, but come on, you have to cook the pasta.  Lastly, the proscuitto was dry and overly chewy.

The organic chicken entrée was oh so close, yet so far away.  Nice try, Jump, but today wasn't a home run. Lastly, the final nail in the coffin of this particular meal, was seeing a slice of chocolate cake being walked by our table, only to discover that it was only a mousse.  

A poor experience, but we'll give it an Average rating because of the above average wait staff and those yummy fries. 

Restaurant website: http://www.oliverbonacini.com/jump.aspx

Spoon & Fork, Japanese and Thai Cuisine

1233 the Queensway, Toronto, Ontario M8Z 1S1                                                            Rating: Average to Good

"Overeaters' Delight!"

I’ve never been a sushi lover, but having spent six months in Thailand in the 1980’s, I love Thai food and always enjoy seeking out new Thai restaurants. My husband and I had achieved a life milestone and chose The Spoon & Fork on the Queensway for our celebratory dinner. It was an opportunity for him to enjoy some sushi and for me to indulge my love of Thai food. 

We made reservations for 7:30 pm and given that it was the eve of a long weekend we fully expected the restaurant to be busy. Upon arrival we reminded the harried hostess of our request for a booth and promptly received a sarcastic wise crack in response. Not a great first impression. We were eventually seated on the mezzanine level of the restaurant that overlooked the main floor. The ceilings are very high and the room somewhat cavernous, which unfortunately resulted in an unholy din that became even more alarming as the restaurant filled to capacity around 8pm.

There are two dining options at Spoon & Fork. The usual a la carte menu, or an all-you-can-eat tasting menu for a flat rate of $27.99. A word of warning! Read the fine print on the menu, because if you choose the all-you-can-eat option and don’t end up eating what you order, a bill will be presented at the end of the evening for the uneaten dishes. The obvious negative result of the flat rate is that it’s very difficult to avoid falling into the trap of overeating. We definitely dove head first into that particular trap.

We ordered several appetizers including vegetable and shrimp tempura, won ton soup, Thai dumplings and coconut shrimp. My husband ordered a variety of sushi while I tucked into an 8 piece avocado cucumber roll. I was completely stuffed after the appetizers, which had me in a bit of a panic because we had teriyaki beef, green curry chicken, pad Thai, pineapple fried rice with chicken, beef and shrimp still on the way! The beef teriyaki was cooked to perfection and melted in my mouth. The pad Thai was a beautiful blend of lemon, peanut and garlic flavours with tender shrimps over rice noodles. We enjoyed the tempura which was nicely cooked although a bit more oily than it needed to be. The coconut shrimps were slightly overcooked making the shrimp too chewy and the deep fried coconut coating a bit tough to get through. My husband quite enjoyed his green curry chicken and found the sushi to be fairly good. Not fantastic, not horrible, but good. The Thai dumplings were lovely, although the peanut sauce was too plentiful and too sharp a flavour for such a mild dish.   

After the appetizers, I began eating like a machine in order to clear the plates and avoid an extra bill at the end of the evening. I wasn’t sure how seriously they took that threat, but I wasn’t about to test the waters. At the end of the meal I practically waddled out of the restaurant and even a late evening march around the neighbourhood with our dogs didn’t liberate my overstuffed stomach. I freely admit that it was a discomfort of my own making.

The food at Spoon & Fork was good; there was no doubt about that. But the experience was overshadowed by the clack and clatter of dishes and people shouting to be heard over the noise. Plus we had the added stress of having to eat everything we ordered. At $27.99 per person, I’m sure the restaurant is doing well, because we noticed that the more expensive food, such as the beef and shrimp, were presented in small portions whereas the rice and noodle dishes were plentiful. Our bill for one drink each plus the all-you-can-eat rate was $90 including tip. Yes, those drinks were pricey.

I gave this an Average to Good rating; however we agreed that we would not choose this restaurant a second time because the food wasn`t good enough to compensate for the awful atmosphere. Well done on the food front, Spoon & Fork, but some noise cancelling headphones should be handed out with the menus upon arrival.

Restaurant link:  http://www.spoonandfork.ca/queensway.php

Easy Restaurant

1645 Queen Street West, Toronto                                                       Rating: Fair to Average

“Overwhelmingly underwhelming”

This little west-end hole-in-the-wall offers typical brunch fare and serves up a delicious cup of coffee. It’s a trendy Queen Street West diner so the prices are on the higher side. I’ve patronized this establishment numerous times and I’ve always ordered the Easy Rider Breakfast ($10.95) which is a typical meal of bacon, eggs and toast. Despite the fact that I'd never been disappointed with this choice at Easy, I decided to branch out and ordered the Eggs Benedict ($11.95). What could go wrong? Two poached eggs with grilled peameal bacon on an English muffin and accompanied with either salad or homefries. I’m not a salad-for-breakfast type person so I opted for the homefries.  With ordering safely under our belts, we did some catching up while sipping our delicious coffees. There's real pleasure in sitting in a cozy warm diner on a cold winter Sunday morning.

Our food arrived fairly quickly and we dug in with relish. That it arrived quickly was the good part; the bad part was the food. I don’t know what happened on this particular morning at Easy, but the chef must have dozed off while tending the grill because the slice of peameal bacon was a dried up piece of charred wood. It was cut too thin which meant there was a greater margin for error and unfortunately the chef wasn’t up to the challenge of pulling the bacon off the grill before it was charred. The overcooked bacon was accompanied by undercooked home fried potatoes. They were so unpalatable that I couldn’t eat more than a few bites. I kept hoping to spear into a tender spud, but each bite was a crunchy experience so I eventually gave up.  Cooking school 101: chefs must test the food to ensure that it’s properly cooked before sending it out to unsuspecting patrons. Fortunately the eggs were cooked to perfection, but unfortunately there was an overwhelming sour flavour that detracted from the taste. I couldn’t tell if it was the hollandaise sauce or if the chef added vinegar to the water when poaching the eggs.  It’s an amateur approach to poaching and ruins the flavour of eggs.

It was an underwhelming food experience that I doubt I’ll repeat.  I do like the place, so I’ll switch back to the Easy Rider Breakfast next time and avoid this particular menu item.  This establishment gets a Fair to Average rating because it only takes one bad experience to ruin an otherwise Good experience. Better luck next time, Easy Restaurant.

www.easyrestaurant.ca/

Taste of Thailand

5310 Dundas Street West, Etobicoke ON                                                     Rating: Fair

"Shrinking Portions and Expanding Prices"

On a bitterly cold February evening, my husband and I decided to order in to avoid heading outside in search of food. We had frequently ordered from Taste of Thailand in the past, but stopped a few years ago and for the life of me I couldn't recall why. I wish we'd remembered because it would have saved us from a big disappointment. Our order for two people came to $52 dollars for three dishes plus some steamed rice. If either of us had been really hungry there would have been no leftovers. And what happened to the complimentary shrimp chips with accompanying peanut sauce?  

I wouldn’t mind the price if the food was as good as it used to be and as plentiful as it used to be. No and no. The food isn’t fresh, and it can’t be blamed on the delivery time because it arrived quickly. The steamed rice had clearly been sitting in a pot for hours, and the pad thai was a lump of congealed rice noodles with a tired orange slice. But my biggest beef was with the Chinese Broccoli and Shitake Mushrooms, because the container had very little in it and it was $11.95!  I usually need my arm twisted to choose anything containing broccoli so the fact that I used to like this dish speaks volumes. But this order was a bunch of stems floating in a watery liquid. No thanks.

Taste of Thailand, you've cheaped out and we won’t be ordering again. “Fool me once shame on you...”

http://www.tasteofthailandcuisine.com/

Bier Markt

199 N Queen St, Toronto, ON M9C 4Y1                                                                           Rating: Fair

"Schnitzel Special isn't so special"

We met a couple of friends for dinner at the new Bier Markt across from Sherway Gardens. It was in the old East Side Mario’s location where we had dined several times so the place was nicely familiar. It was fairly busy for a Tuesday night, but we didn’t have to wait for a table. The server warned us that if it had been a Saturday night, we might have waited for hours. All I can say is that I am grateful that I didn’t have to wait for this particular meal.

Who would go to a specialty beer establishment and order wine? I would. What can I say except that it was a lovely chardonnay and I was in the mood for wine. My co-diners all ordered beer and had no complaints. A couple of them tried some complimentary tasters in cute little glasses, which was a nice touch. The wide variety of beers is definitely a draw, and the wait staff know their beer. 

With drinks safely ordered, we spent several minutes staring at the menu before admitting to each other that we were at a loss as to what to order. We were distracted by the possibility of ordering a whole roast pig at $58 a person and wondered how it would arrive at the table, but this item needs 48 hours notice. I guess you’d have to be a repeat customer to know that it’s even on the menu. Fine by me, because I wouldn't want to be looking at a pig's face while digging into a slice of pork. 

My one friend ordered oysters and mussels. The oysters arrived in a large bowl of ice. Six oysters at $3 each so it was $18 for six bites of seafood. Each oyster was covered with a large dollop of horseradish, an act that has always puzzled me when it comes to slugs and such. Take my opinion with a grain of salt because I am obviously biased, but I don’t like slimy bits of rubber-like raw creatures covered in a searing hot sauce sliding down my throat. However my friend, like many people, loves seafood and quite enjoyed the oysters and mussels at Bier Markt. Fair enough.

Three of us ordered the Schnitzel special which was a serving each of pork, veal and chicken schnitzel on a bed of fingerling potatoes with a side of asparagus. Having been told that it was a substantial portion, I decided to forgo the appetizer. It was one of the rare times that I have not finished a restaurant meal when I was still somewhat hungry. The schnitzels were all overcooked, dry and flavourless. It was surprisingly difficult to tell which was the chicken, pork or veal. Unfortunately, each piece of meat was covered with a different flavoured jam. That's right folks, JAM. Blackberry jam on the pork schnitzel, tomato jam on the veal, and lingonberry jam on the chicken. You would think that jam would have given those dried out bits of meat some flavour and that might have been the case if the jam had actually tasted good. It did not. I scraped it to the side of the plate and attempted to continue sawing away at the meat but eventually gave up. The fingerling potatoes were not memorable, perhaps because there were so few of them.  

Not a satisfying meal, which was surprising because everything about the place smacked of a ‘you want it, we got it’ attitude. But they don’t got it, and I don’t want it. I doubt I’ll visit a second time. This restaurant was rated Fair because only one out of four of us enjoyed our meal.

http://www.thebiermarkt.com/

Butler's Pantry

591 Markham Street, Toronto, ON                                                                   RATING: Excellent

"New favourite brunch locale in the Annex"

I have visited this location of Butler’s Pantry twice for brunch in the past month with a fellow foodie. We meet regularly to have a good meal and do a lot of catching up.  ‘Catching up’ venues need to be comfortable, not too loud, with seating spaced out sufficiently to avoid people overhearing personal girl-stuff gabbing.  Butler’s Pantry gets a gold star on all counts. 

We came upon this restaurant by accident when we couldn’t get into our first choice.  My friend, local to the area, remembered Butler’s so we popped in out of the cold to check it out.  The menu looked promising, although there wasn’t a soul in the place which can be a serious red flag.  We were famished and decided to take a chance.  The waitress sat us in a cushioned booth at the front of the restaurant beside floor to ceiling windows.  The wait staff is very pleasant and have attained a wonderful balance of neither hovering, nor ignoring. 

Mugs of aromatic freshly brewed coffees were set in front of us.  I added cream and took a sip of Java-heaven.  Was this coffee really that good, or was I in some kind of withdrawal needing a fix?  

They have a full brunch menu that I would like to have sampled in its entirety but I settled on the Eggs Benedict ($11) which was accompanied by three (probably from frozen) hash browns.  But so what if they were frozen?  They were crispy and not super greasy and didn’t even need ketchup.  The eggs were beautifully prepared because they were cooked with a soft yoke and well cooked whites.  Just the right amount of hollandaise sauce was spooned over the top.  The eggs were set upon a layer of crispy bacon atop the usual English muffin.  It was a delicious breakfast. 

My ‘catch-up’ friend ordered the Benny Gone Veggie which replaced bacon with spinach and the hash brown with a salad.  But she asked for smoked salmon which she thought was going to be inserted where the bacon would have been.  Apparently the waitress thought the same thing because she apologized for the placement of the salmon - a blob on one side of the plate -  explaining that she didn’t want to ask the cook to move the salmon after the dish had been plated.  Fair enough – it would have been a messy looking Benny.  But the only nit was that there was a charge of $3.50 for the salmon and it would have been nice to have been given a heads up about this. 

Happily that was the only nit that we had in our two visits and I’m really just being picky. This place is a ‘must-visit’ location for brunchers in the Annex area (university district) of Toronto; however, one word of warning is that this venue is not for the student budget because our bill before tip was $31.00. 

My ‘catch-up’ friend and I will definitely be back to sample more of that delicious menu. 

Restaurant website:  http://www.butlerspantry.ca/