Sakawa Coffee

The name of this place is a bit misleading, well at least I thought so.  Because theres the name "Coffee", I originally assumed that it was just a cafe (that serves coffees and cakes).  They do serve coffee and cakes, but they also do meals, including traditional Japanese breakfasts, lunches and dinner.  We popped in for dinner.

When we arrived, the restaurant was empty except for one table (the place is pretty small, as with most places downtown).  As soon as we got in the door, we were greeted by an older Japanese man, very friendly, and told us to sit down, while he brought us the menus.  One was laminated (their regular dishes I assume), another was on a regular piece of paper, their specials, and their drink menu.  The hubby ordered off of their special menu, the curry tsukemen.  And I ordered off their regular menu.  I wish I remembered to take a picture of the menu, because now I can't remember then name of the dish I ordered!  All I remember is that its the last dish on their regular menu.

The curry sauce for the tsukemen was very good and flavourful.  And the noodles, were different than the ramen noodles that I was used to eating.  These looked flat, almost like a linguine.  The chasiu was a bit dry, but once it was warmed with the curry, it got better.  And the best part, there were veggies in the dish!  Again, never seen choy sum in Japanese dishes, but I love my veggies, so I won't complain.

Curry Tsukemen

My dish, reminded me of Fukien style fried rice, without the fried rice part.  There was shrimp, chicken, ham, chasiu, onions, eggplant, peppers and choy sum in sauce of some sort served over plain Japanese rice.  Wasn't what I was expecting, but was quite good.

Last Dish on Regular Menu

Overall, I liked this place quite a bit.  For the price that you pay and the food that you get, I think it's worth checking out for sure.  And by the time we left, the restaurant was full.

Sakawa Coffee
867 Danforth Ave.,
Toronto, ON
M4J 1L8

Phone: (647) 347-4932

Hours:  Monday CLOSED
             Tuesday - Sunday 900a-400p, 500p-900p

Stack Restaurant

It's pretty hard to find some good BBQ in Toronto or anywhere in the GTA in my opinion.  I have yet to try out the new joints that opened up though.  So maybe those new places will hopeful.  But because they're a bit farther downtown, it will definitely take some time before I will be able to check them out.  One night while browsing through Yelp, I noticed Stack Restaurant's BBQ Platter.  It looked awesome!  So I scheduled something with a few of my friends to go and check it out.  I reminded them that they need to make sure their stomachs were empty since the platter in the picture looked pretty big.

We arrived, the restaurant was pretty empty.  I have to mention that it was a weeknight though.  What I noticed even more was the lack of BBQ smells.  Who knows, maybe they have a great ventilation system unlike Korean BBQ places.  So we ordered the platter and the food arrived shortly.  There was a good amount of food that arrived.  Whats included:  baby back ribs, quarter chicken, pulled pork, brisket, smoked meat, fries, mac & cheese, beans, slaw and buns.  This platter feeds 3-5 people, and we had 4 people.  I wish I could say the food was so good, because everything looked good, but it wasn't.  Nothing here was particularly memorable.  What I do remember is the chicken being super dry (so dry to the point that my friend really didn't want to finish it, but because he didn't want to waste food, he ate it while drinking A LOT of water), the brisket having no smoke flavour, smoked meat being super salty, and mac & cheese being cold.  And for a platter that is supposed to serve 3-5 people, why are there only 2 buns?  Pretty disappointing.

BBQ Platter

Stack Restaurant
3625 Yonge St.,
Toronto, ON
M4N 2L5

Phone:  (647) 346-1416

Hours:  Monday - Friday 11:30a - 10:00p
             Saturday 11:30a - 11:00p
             Sunday 11:30a - 9:00p

http://www.stackrestaurant.ca

Market 707: NomNomNom, Gushi, Petit Nuage

The idea of Market 707 is pretty cool.  Its like a normal small restaurant crossed with a food truck, resulting in food being served out of a shipping container.  I would assume since it's a place with actual running water and fixed gas/electricity, food prep and storage wise would be safer than a food truck as well.  The only downside is that you end up eating the food at a picnic table with busy road traffic running down Bathurst St.

NomNomNom
Known for their poutine and crepes.  I wasn't feeling for crepes that day, so was looking at their poutines.  They have lots of options on their menu, but because of the purist that I am, I ordered the plain or regular poutine.  Portion was quite big!  The fries, cut in house, and fried fresh, topped with real squeaky cheese curds and gravy that wasn't overly salty.  Love their poutine.  Probably one of my faves in the city now.

Poutine

http://nnncrepes.com

Gushi
This is a place I knew the hubby would be interested in checking out.  One of their best sellers is the chicken kaarage.  We got a large order of Original Gushi Chicken on Rice.  We probably shouldn't have ordered the large, but the hubby always has an issue with thinking we can eat more than our stomachs can handle.  So in the end, he stuffed his stomach.  I loved how the rice was a purple rice rather than a white rice.  Just something different, and I think purple rice is supposed to be healthier right?  The kaarage was good, a piece or two was a little fatty for me, but the hubby didn't notice, i'm probably just pickier about food having hunks of fat on it.  I have to say that there quite a few pieces of kaarage in the order.  Worth the price paid for sure.

Original Gushi Chicken on Rice

https://www.facebook.com/gushitoronto

Petit Nuage
Last but not least, saved some room for dessert.  I got 2 macarons, and a cream puff.  To be honest, I don't remember which macarons I bought, and I don't remember if they were good or not.  But, I LOVED the cream puff.  I've never had a cream puff like this before.  The outside, pastry, was like the normal pastry crossed with the top of a pineapple bun.  Amazing!  The inside cream filling was a matcha filling, that filled the pastry to the brim!

Daily Selection

Matcha Cream Puff

http://www.petitnuage.ca

Market 707
707 Dundas St. W.,
Toronto, ON
M5T 2W6

Hours:  Spring & Summer (April to September) Tuesday - Saturday 11:30a - 7:00p*
             Fall (October to December) Tuesday - Saurday 11:30a - 5:00p*
             Winter (January - March) Hours vary depending on the vendor
* Hours of individual vendors may vary

Bake Code

An Asian bakery with a twist.  I know they’ve been open a while, but I never found a big enough reason to drop by.  Parking near Yonge St. isn’t easy when you want free.  Finally after dinner along Yonge St. one night, we stopped by Bake Code.  It was busy in there, and the shelves were pretty empty.  But I was here only for one thing, a croissant that has this liquidy yolky inside.  I think I saw the croissant I came here to buy, but before I touched anything, I wanted to ask someone that worked there to confirm.  So I asked the girl at the cash.  I said “Excuse me”, and responded “Just wait!”.  Wow……treating a customer like that.  She wasn’t even really doing anything.  Not a good start.  In the end I just took a guess and bought the croissant hoping that it was what I came here for. 

The croissant was quite dry, and the liquidy interior wasn’t as liquidy/lava like as in those deep fried sesame balls from dimsum.  The croissant part wasn’t very buttery like what I would be looking for in a crossant.  It was more bready than I would would like.  And the price, I don’t remember what it was, but it was quite high for a croissant.  With crappy staff attitude, medicore product, and high prices, not sure I will be coming back.

Egg Yolk Croissant

Bake Code

4910 Yonge St. Unit B1,

Toronto, ON,

M2N 5N5

Phone:  (647) 346-3888

Hours:  Monday - Friday 8:00a - 12:00a

             Saturday - Sunday 10:00a - 12:00a

http://bakecode.com

Propeller Coffee Co.

Propeller Coffee Co. I would consider being off the beaten path.  Kinda hard to get to by public transit (not on the subway line), and kinda hidden on a small side street in a somewhat industrial area.  But because of this, there's ample free parking, and a giant comfortable space for you to work in, meet with huge group of friends, and perhaps rent their venue for an event.  The reason why I checked out Propeller Coffee Co. even though it was hard to get to, was for my friend's birthday celebration.  He celebrates his birthday a bit differently, he does a whole day of celebrations starting off with breakfast/brunch, coffee, dinner and drinks.  He invites all of his friends, and his friends show up whenever they want to.  Kinda interesting, also makes for easier conversation with everyone in smaller groups.

As I mentioned, Propeller's space is quite large, and can fit quite a few people.  A lot of people were there working on their laptops.  There's enough power plugs it seemed.  Their coffee was great.  I got a latte, and the hubby got a drip coffee.  The latte was great, with great aftertaste that lingers in your mouth.  I don't know what roast they used that day, but they do roast their own beans.  Another plus in my books.  My only complaint is that they served my latte in a mug that was chipped at the rim.  Two chips if you look at my picture.

Latte

Propeller Coffee Co.
50 Wade Ave.,
Toronto, ON
M6H 2Z3

Phone:  (416) 479-3771

Hours:  Monday - Sunday 8a - 5p

https://propellercoffee.com/public/

Merchants of Green Coffee

Each time we drive along the DVP, I keep seeing The Merchants of Green Coffee, and I keep saying to my husband that we should check it out.  It’s been years since I’ve started saying that.  This time I had the perfect reason, we needed a spot to do some Europe trip 2016 planning.  We could have done it at our house, as we normally do, but I personally wanted a change of scenery, plus, it was my excuse for a good coffee as opposed to using the Nespresso machine at home.  Since it was a Saturday I knew my usual favorite coffee shops would be packed to the brim because they’re usually pretty small and cozy.  So while searching for good coffee, it had to also be big enough, and not that far deep into the downtown core.  So that’s how we ended up at the Merchants of Green Coffee. 

The space at Merchants of Green Coffee is pretty big, but yet very comfy cozy feeling.  I love the look of mismatched tables and chairs.  I ordered my usual latte and the hubby ordered a 2 cup drip coffee to share with the cousins.  The beans they chose was their own sustainable blend café solar.  I found my latte a bit on the weak side, but the hubby enjoyed his drip coffee very much.  The cousin, well he had no opinion as he likes or doesn’t mind the crap, I mean inconsistency, served at Tim Hortons.  So if you need a break from working at home, drop by Merchants of Green coffee for some coffee and quiet time.

Latte & Drip Coffee

Merchants of Green Coffee

2 Matilda St.,

Toronto, ON

M4M 1L9

Phone:  (416) 749-5369

Hours:  Monday - Friday 8a -6p

             Saturday 9a - 6p

             Sunday 10a - 6p

http://www.merchantsofgreencoffee.com

Boar Sandwiches

Sandwiches, sometimes you just have a craving for a really good sandwich.  I’m not talking about a cold deli sandwich.  I’m talking about a piping hot sandwich.  I looked my trusty Yelp app, and initially all I could find was the Black Camel.  I know a lot of people who love the sandwiches at Black Camel, but I don’t know, I wasn’t a huge fan of it.  I then saw Boar.  Don't be fooled and think that Boar only offers pork options!  They have chicken, beef, pork and veggie options.  Pick your meat (or veggies) and your toppings to make your own sandwich, done.  

The decor is a bit lacking, concrete everything.  Kind of makes you feel like you're in an unfinished basement, or jail cell.  But the smells of barbeque made everything all better.  I chose chicken topped with tomato sauce and arugula.  The hubby got steak (I don't see steak as an option on their website, but I'm pretty sure he didn't order the veal) topped with arugula aioli and mushrooms.  We had to wait around 10 minutes for the sandwiches to be prepared, a sign the meat is only cooked after you order.  The bun was like a ciabatta bun, so it was crispy on the outside, and slightly chewy on the inside, which I loved.  The meats were grilled really well, had good char, and juicy on the inside.  I liked the beef over the chicken, just by a slight margin.  We also got a side order of the roasted potatoes.  They were AMAZING!  Super crispy on the outside and super soft and fluffy on the inside.  The only downside was that the portion size was a bit small for the price we paid.

Sandwiches and Roasted Potatoes

Boar Sandwiches

3 Glebe Rd. East,

Toronto, ON

M4S 1N7

Phone:  (416) 482-1616

Hours:  Monday - Sunday 11a - 8p

http://www.boarsandwiches.ca

Boxcar Social

Found another coffee spot!!!  Actually it was quite hard to find.  The first time I tried to come to Boxcar Social, we drove past it without finding it.  The second time, I made sure to Google Map it and street view it to make sure we don’t drive by it again.  The inside of Boxcar Social looks more like a bar than a coffee shop.  Along the wall, behind their bar is a huge display of liquor.  I think they do have a liquor license.   I ordered my usual flat white, and the hubby got a cappuccino.  We headed upstairs to grab a seat.  For a Saturday morning it was quite busy, all the tables were filled except for one.  Coffee was very good smooth, felt a bit on the weaker side at first, but left your mouth with a great coffee aftertaste. 

Cappuccino & Flat white

As I was about to post this blog post, I went on their website and just learned that Boxcar Social has 2 locations, one on Yonge St. (the one I went to) and a location in Riverdale.  Delicious coffee, with a comfy cozy surrounding, and an amazing concept:  Do what we love, do it with our friends, and do it really well.  This is something that we should all apply in our lives.  I can almost feel their passion and love behind Boxcar Social.

Boxcar Social Summerhill

1208 Yonge St.,

Toronto, ON

M4T 1W1

Phone: (416) 792-5873

Hours:  Monday 8a - 5p

             Tuesday - Thursday 8a - 12a

             Friday - Saturday 8a - 2a

             Sunday 8a - 8p

http://www.boxcarsocial.ca/home.html