skip to main |
skip to sidebar
If you haven't noticed, I've been on a restaurant coupon purchasing frenzy of late. Despite some of the mediocre results, saving at least a bit of money helps with my kid's college fund. Seeing how we go out to eat after our Friday night hockey games, I figured that a Groupon to the Bismarck would be a good call since it is open late. Gordo, Lionel Hutz and Milhouse didn't mind saving a bit of money and were all in with this deal as well.
We decided to share everything starting with the Chicken & Waffles. Unfortunately, due to the large pieces of chicken and the amount of syrup, the waffles were no longer crispy. On the other hand, they were fluffy though. As for the chicken, the thick breading was peppery and firmly crunchy. The chicken meat was moist and flavourful including the white meat. We also tried the Srirracha Chicken Flatbread with banana peppers and pickled red onion. Slightly chewy while mostly pillowy soft, the flatbread was a bit thick. Yet, the ample amount of toppings and restrained amount of srirracha kept the ratio in check.
Next we sampled the Pulled Pork Sandwich with crispy onions on a brioche bun. With a few stringy pieces, the sammie was actually quite good. There was enough sweet and smoky BBQ sauce to keep things moist without being wet. Only a few onions remained crispy whereas the rest became soft. The brioche bun did not hold up well to the wet ingredients. On the side, the skinny fries were crispy and light. Next up was the Bis Burger with 7oz prime rib burger topped with cheddar cheese, butter lettuce, tomato and pickled sweet onion served on brioche. This was pretty decent as well with a moist meaty patty despite being a bit salty. The soft brioche was appealing in texture, but once again, didn't hold up that well to the ingredients.
For our sides, we had the Fried Okra with ranch dressing. These were lightly battered where it was only a touch crispy. Exhibiting that classic sliminess, the okra were not overdone. Possibly a thick breading would've provided a better textural contrast in this case. Lastly, we tried the Buttermilk Biscuits served with butter and chicken gravy. More dense than fluffy, the biscuits were flaky on the outside. I enjoyed dunking it into the mild and thick gravy as it provided some extra moisture. Seemingly a better place to grab drinks rather than having an entire meal, the Bismarck was okay for late night eats. Nothing remarkable, but definitely serviceable.
The Good:
- Hip spot with great music (that is just loud enough)
- Serviceable eats
The Bad:
- Okay eats, but not remarkable
While in the lineup at Soft Peaks, I noticed that the old Terracotta Modern Chinese had been replaced by Salida 7. With very few Spanish tapas joints around, I made a mental note to visit when possible. Coincidentally, Salida 7 was one of the participants in the Poutine Challenge, where Sean was a judge. Therefore, I ended up tagging along with him to try their entry as well as having a full meal. Trying to do his best Mijune interpretation, Sean had some Soft Peaks as a pre-dinner dessert. Actually, that crossed my mind as well...
Okay, back to the dinner, we started with the Montadito Con Atún y Jamon. Sitting atop crunchy bread, there was a generous portion of soft tuna mixed with picada, artichoke and Serrano ham finished with a piparra. Creamy and mildly salty from the Serrano ham, there were occasional interruptions from the sweet little bits and hits of acidity. The side salad was vibrant and crisp, yet far too salty. Next up, we had the Gambas al Ajillo consisting of prawns, chili, white wine, almonds, garlic, parsley and prawn toast. The nicely-sized prawns exhibited a natural essence while finishing off with a meaty snap. Although there was an appealing combination of sweet, salty and spicy with a touch of acidity, the saltiness was more dominant. I really liked the side of crunchy toast topped with a prawn-infused aioli despite being rather greasy.
Onto our next dish, we had the Tortilla con Manchego consisting of free-run eggs, Manchego cheese, Romesco sauce, roasted pepper, spinach, fingerling potatoes and walnut bread. I found the soft layered potatoes to be appealing in texture, however, the Manchego was curiously in the background. Offsetting the mild flavours, the Romesco provided an aromatic hit of nuttiness and punch of olives. The best part of the dish was the crunchy and nutty walnut bread. In somewhat of a surprise, our favourite dish of the meal was their entry into the Poutine Challenge, being the Poutine de la Bravas (a take on the classic Patatas Bravas) with smoked chorizo, charred tomato gravy, pepper aioli and cheese curds. Slightly crispy, the tender chunks of potatoes were caressed by a spicy aioli and rich smoky gravy. The melted cheese curds formed a tasty crust on the bottom of the cast iron pan. Spicy and meaty, the chorizo added body to the dish.
Lastly, we shared the Paella Tradicional Valenciana made with arborio rice, saffron, mussels, white tiger prawns, sausage and chicken. Since this was a smaller portion, the thin layer of rice was not texturally consistent. There was somewhat of a crust on the outside edges, yet overall, the rice was pretty wet. Although not as briny as I would've liked, the aromatic saffron really came through. The small amount of seafood was cooked properly with buttery mussels and meaty prawns. Overall, our meal at Salida 7 was pleasant enough. With the lack of Spanish tapas in town, Salida 7 does the job. Prices are on the higher side though.
*Poutine was comped as part of the challenge*
The Good:
- Decent eats
- Cozy room
The Bad:
- Like any tapas joint, bill can get up there
You would think that the last place I'd end up on my birthday for dinner would be Denny's, well you guessed wrong. Okay, I didn't suddenly hit my head where Knight & Day can now be considered gourmet food... Rather, the Asian in me took over any common sense and we found ourselves at Denny's for my free birthday dinner. Okay, cue the haters - even Viv was dissing my choice. Whatever the case, I made up my mind and nothing was going to change it. Alright, I understand blogging about Denny's is as exciting as standing in the lineup at Costco, but it's still food.
Seeing how the kiddies enjoy almost anything fried, I tried them with the Appy Platter which included fried cheese sticks, chicken strips and fried jalapenos (the last one was for us of course). Well, everything on the plate was kissed by the deep fryer (I swear the menu at Denny's is in various shades of golden brown...) where crunchy was the name of the game. To be fair, the chicken strips were not dry while the cheese was melty. I didn't like the peppers much though, it wasn't my thing. For my main, I tried the Pot Roast and you know what? It was pretty decent. The chunks of beef were fork tender while the gravy was on the saltier side. Nothing exciting, but decent nonetheless.
Viv decided on the Prime Rib Melt which was served on a somewhat dense roll. The pieces of prime rib were sufficiently tender, yet not remarkably moist. There was a good amount of melting cheese along with grilled onions. The sandwich was a bit messy to eat as it fell apart with things falling out all over the place. It was okay, but not something memorable. For my son, he had the kid's Cheeseburger and fries. For many years now, Denny's had been hand forming burger patties with fresh beef. It looks like they have continued doing so which in turns results in a juicier and meatier-tasting patty. The side of fries were pretty thick which ensured some potato texture beyond the crispy exterior.
My daughter had the Spaghetti with tomato sauce and garlic bread. As you can clearly see in the picture, the pasta was a typical kid's version with not much to rave about. The pasta was past al dente while the sauce was tart and a touch sweet. Wished there was meat in this one. As if one visit to Denny's wasn't enough, I returned with Milhouse and Lionel Hutz after Friday hockey. Yah, I think we fulfilled the Denny's quota for the next 5 years! We ended up sharing the Nachos which was topped with some chili-like concoction along with diced tomatoes and far too many raw onions. This ended up to be quite wet and not really all-that-appetizing. The flavours were too pungent.
To keep things simple and safe, I had the Clubhouse on whole wheat bread. Other than the fatty bacon (which was crispy btw), the rest of the ingredients were fresh and well-portioned. Can't go wrong with a clubhouse right? Well, not really, but this one did the job. In actuality, we had even more items including a few breakfast plates. But I'm not going to talked about them because I'm getting bored writing this post. I'm sure it is not lost upon everyone that Denny's serves a purpose. It's still in business because it offers up eats (as questionable as some of it may be) at a reasonable price 24 hours a day. Breaky is still a decent choice as well.
The Good:
- Open 24 hours
- Okay pricing
- Free meal on birthday?
The Bad:
- Some things are very generic (probably the whole point of it all)
- It is what it is (in the words of the great Bertuzzi)
As much as I'm tickled pink that there is a fabulous array of Indian food available in and around Scott Road, it gets kinda repetitive. It's like having too much of a good thing such as a pantry full of snacks, a bank account full of money or Crystal Mall full of luxury SUVs - wait, scratch that one... Hmmm, maybe scratch is the wrong word to use in this case. Anyways, with the small selection of other ethnic food around, I decided to re-visit Tokyo Sushi Express since the last time was 4 years ago. Due to the fact I can only eat so much, I ended making 2 separate visits within the same week (picture is from 4 years ago!).
Both times, the restaurant wasn't exactly ready to go on opening, but the food still came out quick. Presented neatly, the Assorted Sashimi appeared to be prepared decently with just-thick-enough slices of fish. Consisting of hokkigai, tai, salmon, tuna and ika, the highlights on the plate were the buttery salmon and not-overly-mushy and properly defrosted tuna. I wasn't a huge fan of the tai though as it was squishy and full of excess moisture. But really, for the price, I was satisfied with the plate. Next up, I tried the Tokyo Roll consisting of fried tofu, unagi, avocado and imitation crab. I found the rice to be on the drier side while missing that glutinous sticky texture. Granted, I was the first customer of the day and that may have been a contributing factor. Flavourwise, it was very mild. I did like the fried tofu though as it was silky with a light crispiness.
To complete the meal, I tried the small Assorted Tempura. This was not bad as the batter was lightly applied and fried until crispy. The pieces were properly drained of excess grease so that there wasn't a pool of oil at the bottom of the basket. As for the ingredients, the ebi had a meaty snap while the sweet potato was soft. On the next visit, I began things with the Pork Gyoza. These featured a fluffy and light dumpling skin which was still a touch toothsome. Inside, the meat filling was succulent and well-seasoned. I wasn't a huge fan of all the veggies including carrot and green onion since it muddled up the classic flavours normally found in Japanese gyoza. With that being said, these were still enjoyable to eat.
For my main, I went for the Unagi Don which was topped with a good amount of buttery soft unagi. It wasn't over-sauced while still being able to flavour most of the rice underneath. The rice itself was slightly chewy, yet it was more on the fluffier soft side. I would've like more oshinko to add even more tartness. For the heck of it, I tried the Delicious Roll just to get another taste of their sushi. Turns out it was a good decision as it consisted of tart and sweet mango that brightened up the flavours. The avocado was nicely ripe while the ebi on top had a meaty snap. Again, the rice was a bit bland, but texturally, it was better than the last time. In short, Tokyo Sushi Express provides serviceable eats for locals who may not necessarily be all that picky.
The Good:
- Serviceable food
- Friendly people
- Okay pricing
The Bad:
- Obviously not exactly authentic (if that matters to you)
- Not really ready to serve at opening time
For awhile there, it seemed like we were doing Dim Sum at least a couple of times a week. It was so frequent that my kids began to complain about the repetitiveness. #firstworldproblems anyone? Honestly, I can do Dim Sum daily without much complaint. Well, after a 2-month hiatus, we finally decided to go back to the well. Seeing how I had to be out on Main Street, we headed to Golden Harvest (over Sun Sui Wah and King's since one doesn't provide good value while the other isn't that great).
After a short wait, we were seated in a cluster of small tables which were packed really close together. Like our last visit, the table arrangement in the small restaurant was not done for comfort. The first dish to hit the table was the Ja Leun (Salty Donut Rice Noodle Roll). Topped with some dried pork floss and riddled with green onion, this was a modestly-sized portion. We found the rice noodle to be on the thicker side, but not overly dense. The donut was not really all that crispy while still light. My son was not happy with all the green onion though. He was also not happy with the next dish as it was the Pea Shoots with bean curd sheets. Served in a mild broth, the pea shoots retained a crunch while the bean curd sheets were tender without losing their chewy texture.
After a little wait, the steamed dishes arrived all at once including the Phoenix Talons (Chicken Feet). Large in size and plump, the chicken feet were well-executed. We found the skin to be soft with a gentle resistance. With softened cartilage underneath, the textures were appealing since there was little effort needed to clean off the bones (doesn't that sound delicious to you?). To top things off, seasoning was on point with a savoury garlickiness. Onto another dish the kiddies wouldn't touch was the Tripe and Tendon. Hey, they were missing out as the tripe was tender with a nice residual chew. Soft while not melting, the tendon were also appealing texturally. Like the chicken feet, the dish was garlicky with a touch of spice.
Onto something the kiddies would eat, we got an order of the Mini Lo Mei Gai (Sticky Rice). These were filled with a good amount of ground pork, salted egg yolk and starch-thickened sauce. Hence, there was enough moisture and ingredients to flavour the soft, chewy rice. These were stuffed pretty much to the brim hence we didn't end up finishing the rest. My son was pretty much ignoring us while he was busy with his 3DS-XL until the Shrimp Spring Rolls showed up. Yes, he finally looked up and helped himself to almost the whole plate. I was able to wrestle one piece away and figured out why he liked them so much. They were hot, crispy and easy on the grease. The shrimp were buttery with a mild snap while dressed in a whole lot of garlic.
Moving onto some more kiddie favourites, we had the Chicken Congee with dried scallops, ginger and green onion. Even from the first spoonful, it was pretty evident that the congee base was far too thin and watery. Despite this, it was not over-seasoned, so we didn't get much of an MSG aftertaste. We liked the aromatic flavour of the dried scallops as well as the sweet slices of tender chicken. Next, they dug into the BBQ Pork Buns which featured a modest amount of lean BBQ pork within a light and sweet bun. The flavours were more savoury than sweet. We would've liked to see more pork though.
Nearing the end of the meal, we got the most important dishes of all - Haw Gow and Sui Mai. We found the dumpling skin on the haw gow to be of an acceptable thickness while being slightly chewy. Inside, the filling was too soft where it was lacking any form of snap. It was a direct result of more binding ingredients rather than actual big pieces of shrimp. It was rather bland too with not much in the way of sesame oil nor sweetness. On the other hand, the sui mai were much better being really large and plump. Inside, there was a mix of whole chunks of pork and shrimp. There was very little filler as it fell apart after a few bites. The texture of the pork was more meaty than bouncy while the shrimp did have a nice snap. We liked the balance of sweet and savoury elements.
Lastly, we had the Steamed Pork Spareribs with black bean and peppers. Similarly textured like the pork in the sui mai, there was a meaty chew. With that being said, it wasn't hard to eat though, yet the pieces were a bit too big. We thought there was a good mix of rib and cartilage pieces. In terms of seasoning, it could've used more garlic and salt. Much like the last time we visited Golden Harvest, the food was pretty decent overall. Prices were fair and the service was acceptable.
The Good:
- Decent eats
- Okay pricing
The Bad:
- Seating is not the most comfortable
If you love chicken wings, you might be familiar with the chain Buffalo Wild Wings that is found primarily in the US (it is available at some Fatburger locations in Canada too). So when I noticed a new place in Newton named "Wild Wing", I had to do a double-take. No, they didn't suddenly open locations North of the border, rather, it is another one of those "similar" restaurants such as Jugo Juice (Jamba Juice). Well, I do love chicken wings, hence, I made a note to visit it one day. In fact, I made several visits because they boast 101 flavours!
Luckily I was here without Miss Y since she would insist on ordering something other than wings (in a place named Wild Wing). Therefore, with only myself making the decisions, I had 2 order of wings including the Lemon Pepper (without batter) and Hot (with batter). When they arrived, I was impressed with their size as even the non-breaded wings were fairly large. Crispy, well-seasoned and relatively moist inside, the lemon pepper wings also sported well-rendered skin which didn't have a bunch of fatty portions. There was a noticeable zing accented by only a bit of pepperiness. As for the Hot Wings, they were doused in the typical vinegary sauce that was only mildly spicy. Since they were breaded, the wings were larger where the meat was more succulent. On the side, there was a nicely chunky blue cheese dip.
For my main, I decided to try the Cheeseburger with fries. It looked legit, but sadly, there were some issues. First of all, the brioche bun was too light which meant it didn't survive the entire meal without everything sliding and falling out. Secondly, the patty was over-processed and seasoned where it lacked natural meat texture and flavour. With all this being said, the burger wasn't bad - it just wasn't memorable. As for the fries, they were lightly crispy and prepared properly.
Returning with Zamboni Guy, since he loves chicken wings and beer, we decided to go for 2 orders including the Applewood and MyThai & Pineapple. To change things up, we had the dry wings with batter and the sauced wings without (opposite of the last time). Personally, I much preferred the dry wings without batter since the skin rendered down more. However, with the batter, the applewood wings were quite juicy and spiced with a slight smokiness and tang. On the saucier side, the Thai & pineapple was also quite moist, but far too sweet for our liking. Despite this flavour, the 3 other ones I've tried were decent considering that the wings were not overdone. In terms of value, it is moderately-priced, but can get up there if you want to be full on wings alone.
The Good:
- 101 flavours to choose from
- Wings are not overdone
- Pretty spacious
The Bad:
- Can get pricey if you order enough to be full
Posts
