Guu Izakaya (3)

Another visit to Guu Izakaya. Tried many new dishes except for my usual must-orders gyu carpaccio and kinoko bibimbap. As usual, service was excellent - servers were friendly and cute and the food came very quickly. There were 3 birthdays that night so the atmosphere was even louder and livelier than usual. 

Shekwasa - gin, cointreau, lime juice, grapefruit juice ($6.3)

 Quite strong and not as much grapefruit taste as I'd expected, but not bad.

Hamachi sashimi

 Very thick and fresh.

Tuna Tataki

 Sliced thicker than the salmon version. It was good but a bit warm, and could use more garlic chips!

Deep Fried Brie Cheese

The coating was crispy but a bit too thick. The brie cheese was completely melted inside so not much bite except for the coating. It was paired with a sweet mango sauce and blueberry jam.. quite an interesting combination of sweet, salty and crispy. The sweetness cuts through the oiliness of the batter.

Gyu Carpaccio

 One of my all time favorites - but needs more garlic chips!

Amaebi

 Sweet, fresh, gooey.

Takowasabi

Very small portion. Fresh octopus marinated with a good kick of wasabi without being spicy.

Karubi - salt & pepper grilled short ribs w. scallion sauce

The only miss that night. Dry grilled, it lacked flavor and moisture.

Nasu Miso - deep fried eggplant with sweet miso sauce

The center is very hot! The skin is a bit hard but the inside is nicely cooked and good with the sweet miso glaze.

Scallop and Enoki Mushroom

Surprisingly the bacon wasn't very salty!

Kinoko Bibimbap

Always a crowd favorite. Sweet sauce + melted cheese + fragrant seaweed = perfect combo

I love Guu! Always a happy dining experience.

Previous visits: here and sakabar

2012.10.06 - tried Gomaae - spinach with black sesame sauce. really interesting combination of flavors!

Takoyaki with meaty octopus pieces. Love the wasabi mayo.

Summerlicious @ Auberge du Pommier

July 22 2012

Summerlicious $25 Lunch 

Auberge is a classy, warm and elegant French restaurant. It feels like a large cozy house when you first enter.  

Sophie 

We were seated in the Sophie dining room, a bit let down 'cause I think the main dining room with the black and white chairs looks nicer. 

Peach Gazpacho

Brandade Croquette
crispy fish croquette, arugula salad, black olive, red pepper aioli

I loved this! The crust was super crispy without being oily. The fish was soft, slightly mushy, with a distinct pickle taste which paired nicely with the tartar sauce. 

One hiccup in service - the bread came after the appetizers. It had a slight sour taste and the crust was too tough/chewy, but it was a nice combination with the smooth artichoke dip. 

Mediterranean Sea Bass
Prince Edward Island mussels, grilled zucchini, basmati rice, saffron sauce 

It wasn't the thick, fatty sea bass, but it was still nicely cooked and the skin was very crispy. 

Ratatouille
baked summer vegetables, petit basil salad, soft polenta

My entree. Points for presentation! Ribbons of eggplant and zucchini wrapped around diced eggplant, zucchini, peppers and tomatoes in a chunky tomato sauce. I like vegetables but I felt like I was eating pasta sauce after a while, so I preferred the zucchini and eggplant ribbons - very earthy. The mini basil leaves were a nice touch for taste and presentaton. My first time eating polenta - very creamy and rich, sort of like mashed potatoes but grainy.

Poppy Seed Shortcake
marinated fruits, vanilla gastrique, crème fraîche mousse

How perfect does that dollop of cream look? The shortcake tasted like a cross between a lemon poppyseed loaf and a hard scone - very strong lemon taste and quite heavy, but my mom thought it was a good pairing with the light cream.

Ice Cream Sandwich
caramel semifreddo, cocoa nib, chocolate cake

This dessert was better than expected! Cold, light semifreddo, rich chocolate cake base similar to a brownie, topped with chocolate crumbs - the perfect combination of flavors and textures! The caramelized sugar chip was a nice touch.

Verdict: Very satisfied with Summerlicious at Auberge du Pommier!

Big Daddy's Bourbon Street Bistro & Oyster Bar

Sweet Potato Fries ($6 --> $4)

Soft and mushy inside with a crispy and overly salty coating. I feel like a lot of restaurants are putting sweet potato fries on their menus now, but the best and only good ones I've had are the ones at Moxies and Joey.

Mussels in White Wine Sauce ($6 --> $4)

This was a good portion and worth it for the price (1/2 pound.. around 10+ mussels). Both the mussels and white wine sauce were good.

Crab Cakes ($12 --> $10)

I'd expected something fried and crispy, but this turned out to be a soggy mess (of bread crumbs and crab?) Like my friend said, "It could be anything", since we couldn't taste the crab. The most expensive item, not worth it.

Cheap voodoo prices - $2 off appetizers before 6pm. The food wasn't that great, but it was cheap ($10~ per person) and quite a popular place for happy hour. 

Summerlicious @ Archeo

Italian

$15 Summerlicious lunch

I had only planned one Summerlicious this year, but my co-worker organized a Summerlicious lunch at Archeo on Thursday. It was my first time at the Distillery District. The interior of Archeo is like a big, open concept urban cabin. 

To start, we enjoyed complementary bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. For the appetizer, I had the Daily Soup - pear and ginger puree - warm, slightly creamy and slightly sour, sort of like a squash soup. 

Entree: Mushroom and Roasted Red Pepper Pizza with Arugula and Truffle Oil

The thin crust was really good - soft inside, crisp around the edges. I liked the combination of sea salt, cheese and truffle oil -  very flavorful and fragrant - but may be overwhelming after a while. Quite a large portion.

Dessert: Maple Whiskey Bourbon Panna Cotta

The whiskey/bourbon flavor was definitely present, but I expected the texture to be more smooth and creamy. As much as I like dark chocolate, the shell was a bit too much for me. I didn't eat the caramel sauce either.

Dessert: Sorbet (Raspberry, Mango, Lime)

Fresh and light to end the meal. Sour and tangy raspberry, sweet mango.

Don Don Izakaya

Seafood Doria (~$8)

Looks like mashed potatoes, doesn't it? It's rice with cream sauce covered in a hard layer of cheese. The taste is good at first bite - creamy and cheesy, however the execution was poor. The cheese was too hard so it did not blend with the sauce and the rice, which was also a bit hard.

Salmon Neck

Not the best angle, but this was the best dish of the night (it would be sad to mess this up). The fish was cooked perfectly and fatty; the skin was salty. The fried ball in the background is cold radish.

Skewers combo ($3 each or $6 for 5)

L-R: Pork Belly - definitely not as juicy as Fin's. It was salty and looked/tasted like Chinese roast pork (a bit on the hard side)
Bacon wrapped prince mushroom, Bacon wrapped asparagus- Bacon was salty (naturally), but the mushroom was fine. 
Beef - overcooked! :(
Chicken - the best out of the five because it wasn't overcooked, but it was too salty! (I know, I ordered salt, but still... maybe teriyaki is better?) The taste was rounded out better with a squirt of lemon juice.

Pork Kimchi Udon (~$8)

One word - SPICY. Couldn't finish this; was quite full after eating the 3 dishes above.

Having read not-so-good reviews on Don Don, I was hesitant to eat here, but it was close to where I was at the time so I decided to give it a try. My mom and I sat at the bar area so we got a close-up view of the chefs preparing the food. The interior is a traditional style izakaya with wood decor; the staff greet you when you enter and leave, but it's not as loud as Guu. Total bill came to $40 for the 4 dishes and a sake sampler. While it wasn't horrible, it definitely does not compare to Fin or Guu - if you're in the area, better off going to Guu Izakaya, which is not too far from this location.

Night It Up! 2012

July 13-15, 2012 @ Markham Civic Centre

Set up - transforming a parking lot into a land of tents, food and people

Aside from lamb/beef skewers, grilled squid, takoyaki, fried squid balls and popcorn chicken, these were some of the new foods I tried: 

大腸包小腸

Taiwanese sausage and sticky rice sausage - $2 each or $4 for both (sausage inside the sticky rice sausage). I only had a bite of this - slightly sweet and much better texture than regular hot dog. Is TW sausage available at the supermarket?

Chocolate covered frozen strawberries

I freeze strawberries at home, but for some reason it tastes much better covered in chocolate on a stick after a hot and tiring day.

Seafood udon with cheese

 This was pretty good... can try making at home some time but with chewier/more al dente udon.

Coconut juice

I've always been a fan of coconut and coconut-scented products but never actually tried coconut juice. This is actually quite good, very light and fresh taste. Is the coconut water sold in stores the same as this? I'm always reluctant to try the coconut water/juice sold in tetra paks/cans b/c I don't know what to expect.

Watermelon juice in watermelon

The name of this booth was so cute ~ 那些年我們一起喝的西瓜汁. Seems like watermelon juice became the new pineapple juice this year.

Grilled clam + scallop

The clam was large and retained its natural seawater taste. The scallop was nicely cooked with a mayo type sauce (but it had bits of sand). This was the only booth that sold grilled seafood (conch and mussels also on the menu)

... Until next year !