A Taste of This and That

I was going through my cell phone and found a number of pictures from places I had been to and never blogged about.  I had thought about making a blog post of some good summer drinks around town but obviously didn't do that either.  So here is a collection of those things and what I can remember about them.

	This is a strawberry rhubarb julep from Fionn MacCool's. I really liked it and went back to have it again but they had some other drink with rhubarb in it and got it by mistake.  I certainly hope it's still on the menu the next time I go so I can have it again.
	This is the fresca from the now closed Alice Fazooli's on Adelaide.  The only ingredient I can remember is cucumber.  It was a refreshing drink.  Perfect for enjoying in the summer on their hidden patio in the back.  I'll have to find out how to make it since I won't be able to get it anymore or at least not without a bit of a commute. Man coming out of drink not included ;)
	I do believe that this was a bellini.  Maybe the peach one.  It is also from Fazooli's. I only had it once because I liked the fresca better.
	This was the "Nothing special there either" drink from Bloor Street Diner.
	This was from Oliver and Bonacini (O&B) at Front and Yonge.  This may have been a seasonal drink as I can't find anything on their online menu that looks like this that I would have ordered.  The one thing that they apparently thought was cool was to use a mason jar (canning jar) as a glass.  This might be an interesting novelty for many city folk but not for me.  This thing should contain my mother's jam not my drink.  Aside for the glass I think the drink was pretty good.  I had it at least one more time last summer.
	This was my dinner to go along with the drink at O&B.  Rock Shrimp Linguine.  It was very good.
	This is a drink at Kiwe.  I think it may have been a mojito with a slight twist.  It didn't quite agree with my taste buds.  I also wasn't too impressed with the service and it seems to me the cushions on the patio were rather dirty.  I haven't been back since and I have no plans to go again.
	This drink was from Luma (an O&B restaurant) at King and John.  It's called Beetlejuiced and has gin, cucumber, lime, pink peppercorns and soda.  I wasn't as delighted with it as I had hoped but I think it was still pretty good.
	This is from the Bowery.  I can't remember what my thoughts were on this. I must have been too busy savouring my food.  It definitely looks like something I would enjoy.  Based on their online menu it's the Bowery No.1 Cup.
	This is from Origin.  Again I can't remember what my thoughts were on this.  I was distracted by the food.  I don't see a drink menu on their web site so I'm not sure what this is.
	This is the Australian lamb chops and housemade sausage from O&B.  I decided to splurge that night. I remember it being very filling.
	This is the 10oz New York Striploin from O&B.  It looked good but it wasn't my dish.
	This is the chestnut flour pancakes with caramelized apples and mulled apple syrup from One Restaurant at the Hazelton.  I was disappointed that there wasn't more chestnut flavour.  I definitely expected more from these pancakes than what I got.

The following collection of pictures is from La Mexicana near Yonge and Bloor.  I had the sopa de lima (lime soup) and the chicken chimichangas.  I really liked the soup.  The chimichanga was pretty good but doesn't match my favourite of all time.   Still searching...


This collection of pictures is from e11even.  The bread seemed to have been just baked and was delicious.  The chicken was pretty good but I think there are better things on the menu to try.  And finally the bill or the damage or whatever you want to call it. 

A Taste of Italy: Queen Margherita's Pizza

(I actually wrote most of this blog earlier this week but am only getting around to finishing and posting it now.)

Yesterday evening I headed out to a burger joint on the East end with a friend that wanted to try it. The place was called the Burger Priest. When we arrived we discovered the hours for Sunday were "Church", as in they were closed. Neither one of us had bothered to check the hours but we still wanted to eat out. There was a pizza joint in the neighbourhood that had been on my list of places to go for a while. I checked the hours (thanks to my handy iPhone), confirmed they were open and took a stroll down the street to Queen Margherita's Pizza.

When we got there we stepped into a small bar area full of a lot of dark rich wood and was greeted by one of the staff. Since we didn't have a reservation we were told we would need to wait for the maitre d'. In a few moments she appeared at the top of the staircase to the right side of the bar, came down to glace at the reservation list, disappeared back up the stairs then returned and motioned us up.

The exterior walls of the dinning area were architected with very large windows that would provide a significant amount of natural light. Although the sun had already set they gave a unique feel to the space. The back of the dinning space contained an open kitchen with the pizza oven in plain view. The front of the counter seemed to have been decorated with chopped firewood.

A prefix menu was available but we each opted to order our own pizza. I don't eat a lot of dessert so I typically stay away from prefix since I'd be getting something I didn't want or need. There would have to be something spectacular looking or unique on the dessert menu to get me to order it. Of course peer pressure sometimes works too. ;)

Within no time our pizzas were being served. It was shocking how fast it was. The waitress said it takes about 90 seconds to cook the pizza thanks to the oven they have.

I had ordered the mushroom pizza called Matteo. It had a nice thin crust, just the way I like it. Although the pizza did suffer from tip sag (a phrase I've only just heard of) it was still a good pizza and filling. The prefix would have been too much food for me.

There is a debate going on as to what the best pizza is in Toronto. The contenders are Queen Margherita's and Libretto. I haven't been to Libretto yet but I hope to get there soon. The one pizza that sticks in my mind is Vesuvio's over in the junction but it's been so long I can't remember if it was the pizza I liked or the hype that came with it by eating it with my friends. I may have to do a pizza night or weekend trying all three to properly compare.

Either way I would like to go back to Queen Margherita's, but, now I'm not sure if it is for the pizza or the unique space. Hmm. I better start paying more attention to these things.