CLOSED: Chung King Garden Restaurant 北來順京川飯店 (Markham)

Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2013 by
Location: Markham, Canada
Address: 4394 Steeles Avenue East (at Market Village)
Type of Meal: Dinner 

 Having had a lot of Peking duck in my lifetime, I was skeptical when I heard Chung King serves an amazing version of it. But, I stand corrected - it is one of the best the city has to offer. 

We ordered the two course Peking duck dish ($38.96).  The first course is Peking duck skin with wraps.


  • The duck itself is very crispy, it must have been fried after roasting to get it to that texture.  For me, I found the duck a bit dry since the one we were served was very lean.  I prefer there to be a thin sliver of fat under the skin to really bring out the duck flavour and keep the meat moist. On a second visit it was better, albeit still leaner than most, so really depends on the duck being served.  But, with a generous amount of hoisin sauce and adding cucumber to the wrap, the dryness can be masked.
  • The crepes which the duck is wrapped in was the highlight for me.  Too often the wraps are too small (leading to a messy dining experience), too thick (makes you think you're having a duck bun) or too floury (causing the wrapper to break).  At Chung King the wrappers are perfect - paper thin, slightly bigger in size than a side plate and a chewy texture that doesn't break when pulled and wrapped.  The chef who makes the wrap is talented.

For the second course, the duck meat is removed, chopped and stir fried with vegetables and small pieces of deep fried rice noodles.  The mixture is served with pieces of lettuce for the patron to make wraps.  Surprisingly, the duck meat was moist in this dish and all the meat and vegetables chopped into small pieces to provide a taste of everything with each bite.  The vegetables and crispy lettuce were refreshing after having the heavy Peking duck wrap.


Our waitress also suggested we try the Sichuan shredded beef ($10.96) which are lightly coated pieces of deep fried beef stir fried in a spicy sweet sauce.  The dish was a hit with our table and very flavourful; the sauce wasn't overly thick and there was just enough of it to add some heat and sweetness.  



 Thankfully, this complemented well with the bland pork fried rice ($7.96), the chef must have forgotten to add salt, which was not memorable and won't be reordered on our next visit. On another visit we tried the house special fried noodles (I believe was $10.96) and the flavour was better but the noodles were much too mushy.




To balance the meat and carbs we had an order of garlic stir fried snow pea shoots ($14.96).  Note, the picture below is actually from Sam Woo BBQ restaurant and not Chung King, but they all basically look the same wherever you go.  If you've never tried snow pea shoots you have should definitely order it next time you're in a Chinese restaurant.  It's generally not found on the menu as historically the vegetable has been seasonal.  But, with greater imports and greenhouse production, you can now find it year round. 

 The leaves are delicate and soft while the vines itself add a crispy refreshing texture.  The vegetable has a very subtle pea taste and lends itself to pair well with whatever's added to flavour it.
Garlic fried snow pea shoot (1)

 To end, the restaurant offered complementary bowls of sweet red bean soup for dessert, which was unfortunately disappointing - too watery and not sweet enough. 

Overall, compared to most Chinese restaurants the service was polite and helpful.  We will definitely be coming back for the great meat dishes.


Overall mark - 8 out of 10

____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!
Photo Sources:
  1. Garlic fried snow pea shoots pictured is actually from Sam Woo BBQ - Yelp (http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/sam-woo-barbecue-restaurant-san-gabriel-2?start=100#-o6vVYlU_-RjRxCUUrhNkQ)

Ad Hoc (Rome)

Posted on Tuesday, January 08, 2013 by
Location: Rome, Italty
Address: Via di Ripetta, 43
Website: http://www.ristoranteadhoc.com/inglese/home.htm
Type of Meal: Dinner
 Interior of Ad Hoc (1)

Due to the restaurant’s popularity on TripAdvisor, I suggest you make reservations as we heard many people being turned away as we visited that night. Ad Hoc is a quaint restaurant filled with bottles and crates of wine on every wall which is befitting of an Italian restaurant - if you're a wine connoisseur I'm sure you'll love it!

We were started off with a complimentary amuse bouche and basket of assorted bread. The amuse bouche consisted of bread topped with smoked salmon and cream cheese mixture, it tasted much like what you’d receive on finger food platters.  I liked the bread basket more; there were so many small bites to try flavoured with paprika, olives, walnut, pesto or nothing at all. The best ones were sticks of pesto bread with a crispy and salty top and bottom with a fluffy centre.

Bread basket (1)
My warning is do not fill up on bread as the portions are big!


When I saw they had pumpkin blossoms as an appetizer I was excited – I love these delicate flowers that are wonderfully crispy and light when done right.  Ad hoc’s version of the Pumpkin Blossoms (14.90€) were fried and then stuffed with three ricotta cheese fillings - black truffle, asparagus and honey mushrooms.  As you can already see in the picture of the dish below, the blossoms were anything but light and crispy.  The blossoms were enormous and overly battered and stuffed.  The ricotta fillings were bland, the only one which had even a hint of flavour was the black truffle.  All the delicateness of what could have been a crispy blossom was gone. Instead, I felt I was eating an unseasoned pumpkin burrito.

Pumpkin blossoms (1)

My husband had the Tasting of Salami (14.90€) which consisted of generous portions of salami done four ways – whole cured (?), spicy, blood (?), and the typical fashion. Accompanying the salami were two crostinis topped with a thin slices of melted fat.  Personally, I’m not a fan of salami as the fattiness tends to be over powering but, the spicy and whole cured ones were good.  I would have liked the spicy one to incorporate more heat.  My husband, a cured meat lover, really enjoyed the dish.

 Tasting of salami (1)

My main, not pictured as unfortunately it’s a seasonal dish, was gnocchi with prawns and black truffle.  This dish redeemed the restaurant as the gnocchi was cooked perfectly (not too soft with a hint of chewiness) and well-seasoned with the black truffle butter sauce.  It’s really hard to go wrong when you’re mixing butter and truffles!  The prawns were cooked well; the prawns were a good size, fresh and had a hint of sweetness. The gnocchi was topped with a generous helping of freshly shaved black truffle which added to its decadence.


My husband's main of sea bass (24.00€) was beautifully presented with two fare sized portions of sea bass were wrapped with zucchini ribbons. The honey mushrooms accompanying the dish were delights – tasting like straw mushrooms with hint of sweetness and complimented the light sea bass fittingly. The dish also came with average mashed potatoes which by itself were bland but with the honey mushrooms were great.

 Sea bass (1)
We were too full for dessert but they presented us with some petite fours – licorice candy and soft almond, orange and gingerbread cookies. The gingerbread cookie topped with a drizzle of chocolate was the highlight, in my opinion.

The service was good, but they could have been more attentive with the wine.  Since the wine was not left at the table on ice, there were times our glass was empty and we wouldn’t be served more until the following course. The bill took a long time to arrive, but this could have been due to us receiving a 10% discount for booking online (a pleasant surprise I didn’t know about).

The bill totaled 114€ with a bottle of wine and still water after receiving the discount, but before service charges.


Overall mark - 7 out of 10

____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!
For further general discussions about this blog please refer to http://gastroworldblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome-to-gastro-world.html
Photo Sources:

  1. All pictures - Trip Advisor (http://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurant_Review-g187791-d1381800-Reviews-Ad_Hoc-Rome_Lazio.html)

Sushi Lunches in the Financial District (Toronto)

Posted on Sunday, January 06, 2013 by
Darn! You've stumbled upon a post at Gastro World that has outdated information and hence has been removed.

Some posts that you may find useful would include my experiences with the following restaurants, which offer sushi in Toronto's downtown core: Japango, Ja Bistro, Miku, and Yuzu No Hana.

For further information, please refer to the menu or go to the main page for other posts that may suit your needs.


Christmas Cookies

Posted on Thursday, December 13, 2012 by

 


Given the popularity of the Thanksgiving baked goods post, here is a similar article on Christmas cookies. Inspired by my friend who invited a group of ladies over for a bake-fest on Sunday, you should give them a try.  Whether you plan to eat them yourself or share with others the smell of freshly baked cookies add to the holiday spirits!

 Although I wasn't involved with baking all the cookies, I've ordered the recipes by difficulty and/or amount of time required to prepare. I've also included some tips from the chefs and my thoughts on the finished products.  The photos are our actual creations, not bad for a first attempt.
Holiday Toffee Bars

 Recipe: http://lifemadedelicious.ca/en/recipes/h/holiday-toffee-bars




I chose this simple recipe and it was certainly quick and easy, and is great for those who want to whip up something without too much preparation. 

I was puzzled that the recipe had "Toffee" in the title, but the ingredients didn't sound like the finished product would be toffee tasting at all.  Accordingly, I used a 50/50 mixture of butterscotch and semi-sweet chocolate chips in my version.  Additionally, I suggest increasing the amount of chocolate chips. In the end, I used about 75% more than the recipe called for, as when I placed the amount suggested in the recipe on the cookie crust, there didn't seem to be enough coverage to allow for even spreading.

My thoughts on its taste:  The bar reminds me of a crunchier brookie (brownie cookie).  I put the cookie crust in for the suggested 30 minutes; it was too much as the cookie layer ended up crunchy and flakey.  If you like a softer cookie like me, bake it closer to the 25 minute mark.
Triple Chip Cookies

 Recipe: http://www.bakerella.com/triple-chip-cookies/



If you like chewy chocolate chip cookies, this recipe is for you!  White chocolate, milk chocolate and butterscotch all mixed together in one creation.  These are definitely not your regular chocolate chip cookies.

 My thoughts on its taste:  Firstly, I do not love chocolate.  Don't get me wrong, I don't hate it, but I just don't drool over it like most.  Perhaps it's because of this that I found the cookie overpowering - it was extremely sweet, to the the point that I was craving a tall glass of milk after having half a cookie.  You likely should lower the 1.75 cups of sugar or 4.5 cups of chocolate chips that the recipe requires - with that much chocolate, you really don't need that much sugar. 


Toblerone Shortbread Cookies

Recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/toblerone-shortbread-cookies-122675



As a warning, this is not for those watching their weight, shortbread takes alot of butter!  But, the outcome is a melt-in-your-mouth cookie.  Imagine an unassuming looking shortbread and when you bite into it there's a surprising Toblerone filling. 

The chef advises that step #3 of using a teaspoon of cookie dough is not enough; you will likely need more than that in order to fully cover a whole triangle of Toblerone.  In the end, each recipe only made a dozen cookies.

 My thoughts on its taste:  I was surprised they were so enjoyable as I normally find shortbread too dense and plain tasting.  These cookies were fluffier and tasted delicate even though they were so rich.  I liked that the dough itself was not overly sweet and complemented the Toblerone well.  


Stained Glass Tree Cookies

Recipe: http://www.marthastewart.com/313505/stained-glass-trees



These cookies are so festive and pretty you simply don't want to eat them!  You really could customize the cookies into any shape you want - stars, Santa or snowmen the choice is yours. 

The recipe calls for about 30 Jolly Rancher candies.  The chef advises this is way too much, as there was so much left over.  So, I'd say lower the count to about 15 candies.  Within the instructions it states "sprinkle candy ... avoid edges", you should follow the guidance otherwise, the candies start melting into the cookie edge and won't look as crisp. Also, don't crush the candies too finely as the ones that turned out best seem to have large chunks of candies so that it would formed a thicker "stained glass".

My thoughts on its taste:  The actual sugar cookie part is good and tastes like any other recipe.  Whereas, the candy part is a bit chewy and not something you'd want to munch on.  But, who cares!  They look so great that really you don't want to eat them anyways.
Gingerbread Cookies

 Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/gingerbread-cookies-101-recipe/index.html



It will take some time to prepare, chill, roll, decorate and dry the cookies but nothing says Christmas more than colourful gingerbread cookies.  These are perfect for getting a group of people together to help decorate.

 My thoughts on its taste:  The finished product was very good, much moister than a recipe I had tried previously.  I like my gingerbread crispy on the outside but chewier in the middle.  It could be due to my friend substituting the ground ginger with freshly grated ginger - it adds some stringy looking bits in the dough but made for a moister product.
Have fun baking and most of all enjoy the holiday season!

 Gastroworldblog








CLOSED: Blowfish (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, November 24, 2012 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 333 Bay Street
Type of Meal: Dinner

 Blowfish’s roasted miso-marinated black cod with sautéed seasonal greens ($28) is certainly why I keep going back.  It’s simply one of the tastiest miso black cods I've had in Toronto. Cooked perfectly that it flakes apart with the slight touch and yet still soft and moist. Undeniably, what I love most is the sweet caramel consistency miso sauce smeared on the plate beside the cod.  It’s so flavourful and acts as a dip for the patron to add as much or as little as they feel appropriate. If you’d like to try this without the $28 price tag, go at lunch – you’ll receive the same dish but with one piece instead of two while the price decreases to $14.

Off of the seasonal menu we ordered the binnaga-maguro ceviche.  Diced pieces of albacore tuna, avocado, veggies and pine nuts are marinated with a jalapeño yuzu sauce then served on a Tostito sized crispy taro chip ($18).  I didn’t hate it, but it wouldn’t be something I’d order again.  The tuna was marinated for so long that the texture was sort of chewy.  Additionally, something about the marinade made it taste with salted dried cod fish, not exactly what you look for in a ceviche.

Another highlight for Blowfish is their interesting non-traditional makimono rolls.  The brown-eyed pea ($9) is one of my favourites.  It’s pretty simple - crispy thin spears of asparagus and thinly sliced snow peas all wrapped in dark brown rice rolled in sesame seeds.  The contrast of the chewy rice and crispy asparagus is great.  The brown rice’s texture is also my preferred consistency as I find the white rice rolls can be a little gluey sometimes. Spicy sauce sits on the plate for you to add as you wish.

What we ordered: A simple spicy salmon roll ($10).  Unlike most restaurants the salmon isn’t chopped up into little pieces then mixed with tempura bits and sauce.  I like that each roll incorporates a whole piece of salmon and that the tempura bits aren’t overwhelming.  Nonetheless, the sauce is too mild to truly be considered spicy and would prefer if they kicked it up a bit.

An alternative I’d recommend from past meals: Spicy tuna on crispy sushi rice ($17).  The soft tuna paired with domino sized crispy rice cakes is a great combination.  Also, they top each piece with a thin slice of jalapeño providing the heat I like when you order a spicy roll.

What we ordered: Spicy rock shrimp tempura style ($20).  It was disappointing; the shrimp although looking quite large was really a large piece of batter and ends up feeling like you’re eating a chicken ball.  The spicy sauce is essentially the same as all the other dishes so wasn’t flavourful enough.  The only dish we ordered that had leftover pieces.

An alternative I’d recommend from past meals: If you really want to try the spicy rock shrimp, order their spicy tuna with rock shrimp roll instead ($18).  It’s essentially a spicy tuna roll with a rock shrimp on top.  Perhaps it’s because they have to make the spicy rock shrimp smaller so that it sits on the roll or maybe it’s due to them not being stacked on each other and getting soggy, but the spicy rock shrimp doesn’t taste as bad. 
During dinner, you are also treated with a complimentary dish of edamame for the table which is wonderfully warm and sea salt coated.
I also tried their watermelon mint sake sangria ($16) made with prosecco, watermelon and passion fruit juice and tons of fresh mint.  It was a tasty but mild drink – since you couldn’t taste the alcohol, in the end, the drink tasted like you’re having fruit juice with mint leaves.  With the hefty price tag, I’d rather skip the sangria and stick with wine next time.
Normally, I go to Blowfish for lunch.  This time we went after work and found the service, although friendly and attentive, to be too much.  After all our dishes were served, a waiter would come by every 10 minutes to ask if we were okay.  If that weren’t enough, each time they would try to clear away a plate – most of the time the dish still had a piece of food on it!  This left us either scrambling to take the last piece or just asking them to leave it.  Restaurants should take note, if a table has a dish that still has food on it and looks like they are still eating - don’t clear the plate.  I guess during lunch hours the duration of the meal is limited so we appreciate the fast service, but during dinner I find this element slightly annoying.

Overall mark - 8* out of 10
However, the roasted miso-marinated black cod itself would get a 9!

____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!
For further general discussions about this blog please refer to http://gastroworldblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome-to-gastro-world.html

CLOSED: Momofuku Noodle Bar (Toronto)

Posted on Sunday, November 18, 2012 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 190 University Avenue
Type of Meal: Dinner
The Momofuku ramen ($15) was good contrary to most reviews - chewy noodles and flavourful salty broth. Indeed it didn't taste that much better than what you can purchase at other ramen restaurants, but certainly wasn't bad. The egg was different, poached rather than hard boiled, however somewhat ruins the broth as it quickly mixes into it and I’d prefer the broth clear.
Momofuku ramen
I wish the Toronto location would have the spicy chicken ramen being offered in NYC; I found the pork belly accompanying the noodles to be too similar to what you get with the pork bao. Perhaps, Momofuku should consider offering a plain version (no proteins) and allowing customers to customize their ramen by paying for additional "side" choices - essentially using the pork belly, chicken, chicken wings, kimchi, etc. that they already serve.

What I miss most is the shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice powder) that you normally get at Toronto and Japan restaurants that you can sprinkle into your bowl.  Something about that bright orange MSG powder screams ramen to me!

In my opinion, the pork bao ($10) is more original although not recommended to health obsessed individuals. Two slices of fatty pork belly wrapped in a soft sweet white bread smeared with sweet hoisin sauce, boiled cucumber slices and fresh scallions, undeniably a decadent bun. I’d like to see how the bao would taste if the pork belly skin was crispy - I think it'd provide a nice contrast to all the soft ingredients and also set the bao apart from the Momofuku ramen's pork belly. If you like Peking duck from Shanghainese restaurants you will likely enjoy these.




Pork bao

I didn’t have it myself, but my husband advises the chicken bao ($9) was good.  Made with shredded chicken with pieces of crispy skin, likely what’s used in the chicken and rice dish, it’s similarly wrapped in the soft white bun and flavour with hoisin sauce. 

Chicken bao

The chicken and egg rice ($15) sounds uninspiring but is still decent.  Sticky Japanese rice with teriyaki sauce and the same soft poached egg in the ramen, it’s a relatively safe option for those who may not like the fattiness of the other dishes.  I did like the poached egg in this dish as it breaks and mixes in to coat the rice. The chicken was tender and had a great flavourful crispy skin.

Chicken and rice

Two items that was not on their website’s menu being offered that night included:
  • Very spicy noodles ($12) – unlike their chilled spicy noodles this is warm and vegetarian.  I had a bite and it was very spicy!  Luckily, it comes with cucumbers and scallions which help to calm down the heat.

  • Clams with vermicelli ($18) – very different from other dishes which is nice after having so many similar items.  The the vermicelli is pan fried so that the top part is crispy and becomes a noodle cake – similar to the crispy yellow Cantonese chow mein.  Compared to the ramen, the dish is a bit bland as the sauce covering the noodles isn’t flavourful enough.  If there was a bit more clam juices to soak into the vermicelli it should taste better.  But, there was a fair portion of clams that were cooked perfectly.

For sides we tried the smoked chicken wings ($12), glazed with teriyaki sauce, then baked (?) and finished off with a sprinkling of scallions. I like the freshness of scallion but other than that it’s nothing you couldn't make yourself quite easily.  The kimchi ($6) arrived in a mini mason jar and was actually a pretty decent sized portion.  The kimchi is fresh and crispy, not overly fermented, nonetheless not spicy enough for my taste.

Chicken wings

To end the meal we tried their rice pudding ($6) which is very thick and not too sweet.  I love when you mix in the watery caramel sauce in the bottom of the jar into the mixture.  We also had the chocolate mousse ($7) with crispy rice; rich tasting and certainly meant to be shared. 

Overall, Momofuku is good and I'd say serves tasty Westernized versions of Japanese, Korean and Chinese dishes. There wasn't a dish I didn't like that meal.  At the same time, I didn't experience a excuse me while I close my eyes and drool moment, so if there's a line-up I'd go somewhere else.  One day will try the other two Momofuku restaurants; hopefully, these will be more inspiring.

Overall mark - 7 out of 10

____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!
For further general discussions about this blog please refer to http://gastroworldblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome-to-gastro-world.html


CLOSED: Bent (Toronto)

Posted on Wednesday, November 14, 2012 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 777 Dundas Street West   
Type of Meal: Dinner
It’s been years since I’ve eaten at Susur and Madeline; so, when news that Susur would be teaming up with his sons to open Bent was announced, I was excited to try his Asian fusion creations again.
Bent is much like many of the new west-end restaurants – small with compact seating where all that separates you from the neighbouring table is half a foot of space.  Much is discussed about its décor – it’s designed by Barbara Bent, Susur’s wife, and pays homage to them and their son’s childhood by including their toys and school pictures.  Indeed the family feel is interesting but what makes Bent great is the food.
As a warning, if you don’t like dishes that are strongly flavoured and a mixture of varying textures and tastes, you will not like Bent.  Undeniably, the main ingredients are often covered with so many sauces that you won’t be able to taste its natural flavour; but, it’s these distinctions that make Susur’s creations his own.


The highlight for me was their ceviche, which is surprising, as I'm normally not a huge fan of acid cooked seafood.  My favourite was the Peruvian style ceviche ($15) that incorporates tart lime juice, the heat of chili and freshness of cilantro.  All are laid on top of carpaccio slices of white snapper, pieces of mussels and calamari and a few in shell clams.  I love being able to fill the clams with the sauce and eat the clams straight from the shell.  The shaved red onions add a great crispy texture against the tender fish.
The tuna and watermelon ceviche ($15), although also chili and citrus based, has a sweetness to it from the cubes of watermelon.  The tuna is cut into cubes and more like the ceviche you’re typically used to. I actually prefer the carpaccio slices as it soaks up the flavours more and you can cut slices of the snapper and wrap it around the herb mixture.  Topping the tuna and watermelon ceviche were croutons of fried Chinese dough stick, which is an interesting play on the Asian traditions.  The croutons are great for soaking up the citrus spicy sauce.

We had many fish dishes that night, aside from the ceviches we also tried the tartare 2 ways ($10) - spicy tuna with avocado and onions and salmon with shallots, capers, gherkins and dill.  Both are served on top of a crispy sushi rice cake so it resembles eating a mini sushi pizza.  The dish was good but I found the rice cake a bit chewy and tough.  If it were perhaps thinner it may be crispier and add a better contrast to the tender fish.

Another was the smoked cod taro tacos ($15), which was personally my least favourite dish.  I liked to tomatillo and jicama salsa that topped the taco – it was refreshing and crunchy. The shells were interesting as they were made from fried taro slices; I liked the starchy crispiness.  The smoked cod mixture itself reminded me of a tuna fish salad and was okay.

Some of the meat dishes we had included the rare beef ($14), thin slices of what seemed like tenderloin beef that’s quickly seared and sits in an olive oil and ponzu sauce.  I’m normally not a carpaccio fan but, found this to be quite good, perhaps because the raw beef was masked with so many flavours.  The menu states it’s served with a crispy rice cake but on that night arrived with a parmesan crostini instead.  I didn’t mind the substitute but found the strong parmesan overwhelmed the delicate beef.

The Shanghainese steamed pork belly ($19) is marinated in Shao Hsing wine, although it was really hard to distinguish. It’s likely due to the Romano bean & turnip puree and poached apple sauce being so sweet that it covered up other flavours. In the end, the pork belly ended up tasting like any other braised meat, which isn’t necessarily bad, but just not very Shanghainese. I liked that the dish came with a mixture of fattier and leaner cuts to give variety to patrons.  I had the leaner slice and because of that it was a little tough. The poached apple, although to me tasted like pear, was too sweet for my taste and could be left out.

If you were going to get one hearty meat dish, I’d suggest the braised spiced short ribs instead ($22).  The meat is tender and went really well with the thick demi glace (?) and the silky truffled parsnip puree.  Even the roasted baby potatoes accompanying the dish were great.  Crisp on the outside, yet tender and light on the inside, with just a hint of rosemary; all baby potatoes should be prepared like this.

To balance out all the proteins we ordered the vegetarian roll ($10).  It had a good mix of flavours – sweetness from the braised daikon and eggs, earthiness of the shitake mushroom, saltiness from soy sauce and the bitterness of the legume on top.  However, overall nothing remarkably different from a typical futomaki roll you’d get at a sushi restaurant.

The duck salad ($14) was an interesting mix of tender shredded duck and vegetables dressed with a sweet and salty sesame dressing which reminded me to having cold sesame noodles. The coleslaw type mixture was topped with crispy taro slivers and served in a fried vermicelli bowl. Given the mixture of ingredients it was difficult to taste the duck itself unless you specifically pick it out.  The duck was surprisingly tender and I wish it was served in a slice format, rather than shredded, so it could be better appreciated.

 A salad I shockingly liked better was the kale and tofu salad ($10). I know, it sounds very healthy and bland so how could it taste good?  But, I loved the soft tofu and crunchy kale mixture.  Domino sized slices of tofu are marinated in a miso soy sauce and sesame dressing, so even when eaten by itself was wonderfully flavoured. Topped with large amounts of chopped kale coated with a sweet dressing (similar to the Japanese seaweed salads but less sugary), the dish was refreshingly light.

At Bent, all tables receive a complementary dessert, which pays is similar to getting fortune cookies, sliced oranges or red bean soup from Chinese restaurants. Given there was four of us, we got to try all four desserts (guests get one per person). 
  • The lemon curd was a welcomed addition after feeling so full as it was nice and light.
  • The coffee pannacotta with foam was nice and rich a favourite of my friend. 
  • The chocolate mousse with crispy cocoa rice bits was good and tastes just like it sounds.
  • The fried sesame ball with red bean filling in a rum caramel sauce was a bit tough as it’s likely made ahead of time and gets cold and stale.
We ended up ordering 11 dishes for four people and we were very full; likely a better number is five dishes for every two people.
Service was good – the staff were pleasant and checked in to make sure we actually liked the dishes. But, what could have greatly enhanced the dining experience are some simple cutlery improvements:  
  • After some of the saucier dishes, Bent should offer to change the patron’s dish.  My plate ended up having such a mess of sauces after 10 courses that flavours blended together. I’d like to enjoy the dishes as they were meant to taste; 
  • Given Bent encourages sharing dishes they should offer serving utensils – some simple like chopsticks, a spoon and a fork for the table would suffice; and 
  • A utensil holder, similar to the chop stick and spoon rest some Chinese restaurants use, would be helpful given Bent provides four utensils and it’s very difficult to ensure everything is balanced on the small plate once used.
In 2014 I returned to Bent for their Winterlicious menu. Unfortunately, I didn't think it was as successful as their regular menu.  To read about the Winterlicious offering please go here to read about it.

Overall mark - 8.5* out of 10

 * Mark could have been a 9 if Bent had a bit more polish in terms of servicing customers. The food was good but it’s the small things (like the recommended changing plates and having serving utensils) that scores higher marks.

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Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!
For further general discussions about this blog please refer to http://gastroworldblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome-to-gastro-world.html

CLOSED: SpiritHouse (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, November 10, 2012 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 487 Adelaide Street West

SpiritHouse bar area (1)

Contrary to the typical financial district lounge where you’re standing around the bar like sardines and it takes half an hour to get a drink, SpiritHouse is refreshingly nice and unpretentious.  A short walking distance from the core at Adelaide and Portland my friend and I were able to grab seats at the bar when arriving at 7:30.  Sadly, the gentleman (possibly the manager) that was at the door was over optimistic and advised we’d be able to get a table “soon”.  By the time we left at 10:30 we still did not get a table.  But, we didn’t mind sitting at the bar and watching all the cocktails being made.

Their cocktail menu is extensive with throwbacks to the Mad Men era – bourbon, bitters and egg whites are abound!  I now understand why they drank so much; something about a hand-made cocktail with fresh ingredients really does shine. 

Our first drink was a Peroni Sour ($14) which was suggested by a friend.  They only had enough Peroni left to make one of them, but we shared it anyways.  The cocktail would be a great summer drink as it almost reminded me of having a spiked fresh squeezed lemonade.

 We also had an Original Cosmopolitan (circa 1988) ($12) which is nothing like the sweet cranberry mixed version you’re normally served at restaurants.  The sweet and tangy was well balanced to the point you couldn’t even taste the alcohol.  Perhaps that’s the scariest part; they taste so good that you can have many without feeling like you’re drinking.

 Now for the food … such a disappointment when the drinks and service are so good!  Whoever runs the kitchen needs to be better with managing their stock.  Considering the menu only consists of a dozen items, it’s pretty sad that they stock out of two key ingredients – duck confit and avocado.  Come on, we’re not talking about black truffles here… it’s only duck and avocado, order a little extra and risk some food wastage costs!

 Given fries are one of my favourite foods in life; we had to try the SpiritHouse poutine ($11).  On the menu it’s described as being topped with duck confit; upon ordering the poutine we were advised the dish would be delayed anywhere from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours as the duck was being cooked.  At 7:30 it’s inexcusable that the kitchen has already run out of an ingredient used on two menu items. Whoever was in charge of prepping would have Gordon Ramsey going crazy.  We ended up having the poutine without the duck and it was satisfying but not much better than a New York Fries poutine.

 The Whitefish tacos ($13) are definitely in need of revamping.  The fish itself is non-existent and over battered and fried.  Regrettably, it resembled a deep fried frozen fish stick to anything fresh. On that night, the chef chose to dress the tacos with radishes rather than the promised avocado on the menu.  This was a horrible decision!  Bitter radishes on a taco does not go well, can I suggest just using a tried and true coleslaw if avocados are not available?  The chipotle dill sauce drizzled on the cabbage was good, it just needed more of it to mask the bitter radishes and tasteless fish.

Brad, the mixologist serving us, was keen enough to ask us about the food. Upon hearing the mediocre fanfare he provided us a complimentary order of donuts.  Freshly fried timbits dusted with cinnamon & sugar, it arrived with a miniature bottle of caramel sauce.  A great gesture, but once again over fried so nothing I’d order again.

Overall, what makes SpiritHouse shine is their pleasant employees and the amazing drinks.  I would suggest staying away from the food - if you have to order something stick with the oysters.

 Overall mark - 8* out of 10

* Mark is solely as a place to come for drinks and not for the food.  I would definitely recommend SpiritHouse as somewhere to go for drinks before or after dinner.

____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!

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