on Gastro World

Encore Catering's Open House Event

Posted on Wednesday, November 05, 2014 by Gastro World

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 5000 Dufferin Street
Website: http://encorecatering.com/

When invited to visit Encore Catering’s state-of-the-art kitchen, I was excited to see what happens behind the scenes. It’s no secret that I love food, so the event was akin to asking an art lover to watch an artist paint. I expected a utilitarian night surrounded by stainless steel appliances. But, to my surprise, Encore’s kitchen was transformed to an event space with drapery, candles, flowers and a sparkling arch (courtesy of their sponsors Divine Furniture Rental, DT Floral & Décor and Gervais).

With various stations set across their kitchen, I had no idea where to begin. So, grabbing a drink, made by Barchef, seemed to be a good place to start. Having tried the basil daiquiri and candied orange sour, they were both flavourful and refreshing. However, what blew my mind was the Sailor’s mojito: a shot of mojito suspended in a capsule which releases as you bite into it – these would work so well for parties and dessert tables.

To begin, a trio of open-faced sandwiches. First, a warm smoked turkey sweetened with cranberry jam and topped with creamy avocado and melted Swiss cheese. Followed by a delicious caprese with juicy heirloom tomatoes, a thick wedge of fresh mozzarella and a flavourful pesto oil (albeit a bit messy if ever served as a finger food). My favourite was the stuffed yorkie (pictured in the middle), where tender slices of filet mignon, meaty mushrooms and rich gruyere cheese were all placed into a crispy and light Yorkshire pudding.

Moving onto the more substantial “tapas” station, we were in for a treat with cubes of lamb confit and a surf-and-turf of scallop with parmesan crusted filet mignon. I particularly enjoyed the watercress spaetzle that sat underneath the steak which soaked up all the delicious juices from the meat. If only they were pan fried beforehand it would be even better.

But, it was the mac and cheese stuffed chicken wing that really got me intrigued. Looking like a plump drumstick, upon breaking through the crust you’re greeted with tender chicken mixed with creamy mac and cheese. On the side, a crispy pancake, which ended up being Caesar salad breaded and pan fried. This would be a hit with adults and children alike.

The Asian station allowed guests to customize their own cold salad roll, perfect for gatherings where there are varying dietary restrictions. With numerous toppings including Peking duck, soya chicken, lobster, jumbo tiger shrimp, mango, a variety of vegetables, dry pork floss, etc. to choose from, I made a refreshing lobster, mango and herbs version.

Off to the side were pre-made spring rolls served in steamers. I tried both the pork with shrimp and the chicken with shitake. I particularly enjoyed the chicken one where the juicy meaty shitake went so well with the sauce and thin rice sheets.

You could really customize the flavours with the sheer amount of dipping sauces available. There was lime fish sauce, peanut hoisin sauce, sriracha, spicy mint mango, orange fish sauce and my favourite - lemongrass ginger soya sauce.

If all that weren’t enough, tons of hors d’oeuvres were passed throughout the night. Just when I thought I was full another tray of delicious looking eats arrives. Each time, you can’t help but think – it’s small, what’s one more bite?

The caviar cannelloni is great for parties. A bite sized crepe wrapped around gravlax and crème fraiche then dotted with briny black and red caviar.

For those who love sweet and savoury combinations, a pecan and parsley macaroon topped with foie gras pate and garnished with a sweet slice of fig and kumquat chip.

The butter chicken partha was hot and fresh, reminiscent of a samosa but with a rich butter chicken filling.

The one bite corn bread, a nod to the South, with slivers of pulled short ribs inside. A crispy Cajun onion chip is stuck in as a delicious garnish.

Not pictured, but something you need to try is the lobster clam chowder shooter. It was sinfully flavourful and creamy. Seriously something that after a sip you wanted to close your eyes and enjoy.

Encore Catering also has their own pastry department, which laid out an impressive spread of sweets that evening. Of course, there were the shower and wedding favourite macarons … sitting on and topped with chocolate pieces.

On the cake tray were a chocolate and orange torte, chestnut Mont Blanc, burnt butter cheese cake, strawberry choux caviar and kiwi sesame croquants. I loved the refreshing nature of the kiwi on sesame chip – a great combination of juicy fruit, rich cream and crunchy/chewy sesame cookies.

Pictured, but not tasted, included a coconut mango pyramids and beautiful looking opera cakes.

For those who like fruit crumble and bread pudding, Encore’s Kaiserschmarrn Emperor’s pancake is a mix of both. Instead of bread, it uses chunks of pancake mixed with a variety of warm fruit.

My favourite dessert had to be the olive oil ice cream, which was slightly sweet and rich & creamy. Flavoured with icy granite and grapefruit jelly it is just enough to satisfy my sweet tooth.

I was also lucky enough to win a bag of Encore’s colossal cookies. Everyone I gave them were marveled by the sheer size and weight of the cookie. About the size of a scone, it has a crunchy crust but a soft centre – a great combination for all cookie lovers and would also work as a party favour.

Their professionalism and delicious bites explains why Encore has been in business for 35 years and is a preferred caterer for the Island Yacht Club, McMichael Art Gallery and MaRS Discovery District (just to name a few). Who knows, I’ve likely attended a wedding or gala in the past that served Encore’s creations. And after trying their food at their open house, here’s hoping I’ll attend more of their catered events in the future.

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Zomato Meetup at the Harbord Room (2014)

Posted on Saturday, November 01, 2014 by Gastro World

Harbord Room
Address: 89 Harbord Street

Torontonians are lucky. We have a wealth of restaurant review platforms that inform us about where to eat. In October, our choices have expanded as Zomato launched a Toronto section - it’s first foray into North America … move over New York! Zomato's not new, they’re already part of 17 countries and serve over 30-million visitors monthly - those of us in Toronto will just add to this growing number.

So, what makes it different from Urbanspoon and Yelp? Like its competitors, users can browse/post reviews, pictures and restaurant information. But, Zomato also employs a team of people who actually visit restaurants every few months to update information. So, you’ll less likely go to a place only to find it’s already closed. Also, I found their restaurant information more complete – listings I’ve looked at has menu pictures (often the hardest thing to find).

The social aspect of being part of their network is also more pronounced. Indeed on Urbanspoon and Yelp people can follow you and rate reviews. But, on Zomato, with the ease of use, I find people actually follow me and I get a lot of feedback on what I share. Like other social media platforms, there’s a “wall” that will show you updates from those you follow – allowing you to curate your own collection of information from those you trust and value. As a reviewer, you can also earn “expert” status by posting a number of reviews and pictures from a particular neighbourhood – I’ll soon be a North York expert!

From their app, I see features such as cashless payments and ordering online will soon be added to expand their service offering. So you can easily move from reading about a place to ordering delivery and then paying.

A week after Zomato’s launch, I was invited to a meet-up where they gathered a group of fellow users to meet their staff and give feedback on our initial experience. It was held at the Harbord Room, a place where my husband loves their burgers. Having only been there once for a quick bite (a large satisfying po-boys and the delicious freshly made doughnuts), I was excited to return and try more of their menu.

Our meal with wine pairings was much more complex than the po-boy I had previously. So, it was a pleasure to experience the intricate dining side of the Harbord Room. To start. a chestnut and chorizo soup (paired with a 2012 Campo Nuevo Rosado). It was more akin to chili with the chestnut puree creating a thick base and crumbles of chorizo adding a spicy element to the soup. Topped with toasted pumpkin seeds and dollops of tangy sheep’s milk cheese, there were plenty of contrasting textures with the seeds adding a nutty earthiness to the soup. A bowl of this with a wedge of crusty bread would be great for the cold weather.

The grouper ceviche (paired with a 2012 Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay) was much creamier than expected from the addition of coconut milk. Combined with mint, basil, cilantro, radish, jalepeno slivers, red chili slices, cashew and crispy tortilla strips, these all helped to lightened up the ceviche and add contrast against the tender fish. There was a lot going on with the dish with papaya and avocado mixed into it as well. For me, the fish became lost in all the ingredients but the flavours came together well. If the dish were promoted more as a salad versus a ceviche, it may be more aptly described.

For our main we were each served a hearty roasted Quebec partridge pot pie (paired with the 2011 Stratus Tollgate Red). What a decadent dish with the flaky crust made from duck fat and a thick slab of foie gras on top of that! The foie gras reminded me of the wine poached version I had a Cava, where it was cool and just melts in your mouth. Inside the pot pie were chunks of partridge (similar to chicken), plump mushrooms and pearl onions. All in all, a very filling dish and would be best eaten with lightly dressed arugula or kale salad.

We also had various sides to go with the pot pie. I tried a piece of each but simply could not go back for more as by this point I was quite full. A cauliflower gratin served piping hot in a clay dish. Roasted and topped with a generous sprinkling of parmesan cheese, this is a dish to order if you like cauliflower.

My favourite was the charred zucchini, which after roasting becomes soft and creamy. Topped with crunchy toasted pumpkin seeds and juicy pomegranate seeds, I was surprised how much I enjoyed the dish since I normally don’t like nuts/fruit with savoury dishes.

As well, some slices of bread (good for dipping into the pot pie juices) with a pumpkin (?), lemon hummus on the side.

To end, a stick-to-your-ribs baked pumpkin custard cheesecake (paired with the Barrbeito Malvasia Madeira 5-year Reserve). The base was creamy and rich – a mix between a pumpkin pie and cheesecake. I loved the ginger snap cookies, crunchy candied walnut pieces and unsweetened whipped cream on top. They all went well with the custard. There was also a scoop of ox blood plum sorbet on top. Admittedly, I didn’t read the menu carefully so had no idea it incorporated ox blood. Really, it tasted more like fruit than anything else. Although it was a refreshing sorbet, I would have preferred it on the side as personally didn’t feel it went well the rest of the dessert.

In the end, all the above dishes are great for the upcoming cold weather. Indeed, you may not want to eat everything in one sitting as each is rich and heavy. Based on Harbord Room’s current menu line, you can order the ceviche ($14) or charred zucchini ($9) to try. Perhaps the other dishes is a highlight of things to come and what diners can look forward as the temperature dips.

Don’t live in Toronto? Don’t worry, over the next while Zomato is expanding to Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and Ottawa. I’m sure it’s not going to end there and further cities will be added afterwards. So, I suggest you try it out. Signing up is easy and you can even just read or follow others if you don’t want to post. Of course, please considering following me, especially if you don’t have Twitter, as I’d love to hear from you!

Disclaimer: The meal provided in this post was complementary, but the opinions are still my own.

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CLOSED: La Mere Restaurant 老媽肉餅 (Toronto)

Posted on Wednesday, October 15, 2014 by Gastro World

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 3278 Midland Avenue
Type of Meal: Dinner

Don’t be fooled by the name, La Mere doesn’t serve French cuisine. Rather, it’s a swankier translation of their Chinese name “Old Mom’s Meat Pie”. Tucked away in a non-descript plaza in Scarborough it’s a small restaurant that could easily be overlooked. But, locals know where it’s located and they are visiting; even arriving early during dinner service got us the last table. Luckily, with their limited menu, service is quick and tables turn over quickly as no one seemed to wait more than ten minutes.

It would be a shame to visit a place named after meat pies and not try their pan fried meat stuffed pancakes. With three proteins to choose from we went with pork ($4.99). Similar to a green onion pancake there are alternating layers of chewy dough and filling. Except, in this case, it’s less greasy and there’s a much thicker layer of tender spiced minced meat. The crust is toasted (but not that crispy) and may have been made with a grill press (similar to what’s used for burritos) judging by the even dry browning. Overall, it’s a decent dish that’s worth a try.

I thoroughly enjoyed their handmade noodle with beef soup ($6.99). The noodles were soft but still springy and went well with the flavourful beefy soy sauce based soup. With some chili oil mixed throughout it had a nice level of spiciness without being overwhelming. On top were plenty of sliced tender beef each with a marbling of collagen. And finally a sprinkling of chopped cilantro stems helped add a brightness to the noodles.

Another meaty dish is marinated pork bones ($5.99). If you like Korean pork bone soup, this is similar with tender fall-off-the-bone meat. As a warning they are smaller in size, but with plenty of pieces there's enough to go around. They were flavourful and aromatic; I'm not quite sure what sauce they used but it may be a master stock mixed with five spice?

The boiled dumplings ($5.99 for 15) appear home made with a fresh doughy wrapper. They are a bit imperfect as some arrived split, but for those that stayed closed there was plenty of juices in it. Stuffed with pork, Chinese vegetables and black fungus they were decent dumplings.

I'm a little torn on the pork with Chinese sauerkraut in a clay pot (I believe was $7.99?). The cut of meat was pork belly, which when boiled is rather chewy, fatty and bland. But the pickled preserved vegetables and thicker chewy bean thread noodles in a flavourful broth was nice. If the dish was made without pork belly and had dumplings instead I think it'd be perfect.

La Mere’s only downfall is their lack of vegetables – if you’re vegetarian I wouldn’t even bother visiting. The sole green offering appeared to be the mixed celery with dried bean thread and agarics salad ($4.99). Served cold, it’s a refreshing dish of crunchy blanched celery, dense bean curd sheets and crispy cloud ear black fungus. Tossed with sesame oil and some salt it’s a simple but tasty offering.

The food arrives in quick succession with the salad appearing soon after ordering. Service, although not rude, is also not the most attentive given the family run business and lack of true trained staff. However, with La Mere’s prices and their scrumptious comfort food items, the service and atmosphere is not why the locals are keeping this place busy.

Overall mark - 8 out of 10

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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!

CLOSED: Prohibition Gastrohouse (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, October 11, 2014 by Gastro World

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 696 Queen Street East
Type of Meal: Dinner

It gets busy at Prohibition Gastrohouse. So, if you’re going on the weekend, do yourself a favour and make a reservation. Of course, it’s not difficult to see why people are drawn to the bar - their “hooch hour”, offered from 4-7pm and 10-midnight, gets you any beer (draft or bottle), house wine or liquor for only $5.09. And the bar keeps up with all the demand with ease; we quickly received each round of drinks ordered.

Their food is another matter. With “Gastrohouse” in one’s name, you’d think the food would be just as great. Of course, I wasn’t expecting fine dining but perhaps a rung above pub food would be nice.

My organic bison burger ($13) was a disaster. The first one I received (pictured below) appeared burnt on the outside but upon biting into it, the patty was clearly raw on the inside. Although the waitress had warned me that bison, being a leaner meat, wouldn't be completely cooked through, I still wanted it medium (not rare).

So, it got sent back and I received another burger about 10 minutes later (the waitress was apologetic and put in a rush order). This one was still rarer than the medium I wanted, but at least edible. Something about their cooking surface is off as this patty also had a burnt ring around it so the char masked any of the meat flavour I hope to enjoy. Luckily, they provide a pail of great artisan condiments so I resorted to using plenty of the jalapeno relish to give the burger flavour.

Prohibition’s sandwiches aren’t accompanied with sides so we ordered three to share. For me, they were the highlight of the meal and if I ever return would just order a few in lieu of a main. The ultimate mac and cheese ($9) was delicious with a sharp cheddar and gruyere mixed in a rich truffle cream. The pasta are larger spirals with great crevices that holds in the fragrant buttery sauce.

The DF (duck fat) frites ($3) were also good arriving with shoestring thinness, great potato flavour and crisp crust. They are definitely not as good as Beer Bistro’s duck fat fries, which are much longer and seasoned well, but Prohibition’s fries were still enjoyable.

The organic green salad ($8) was decent with a pleasant balsamic dressing.

Two of my friends also ordered sandwiches and they looked much better done than the bison burger. The double decker club ($12) had a good helping of pulled chicken, prosciutto, grana padano cheese, basil, tomato and lettuce. My friend just found it a bit heavy as they buttered and grilled the sourdough bread instead of toasting.

The other had the pulled pork grilled cheese ($13), which actually sounded more indulgent than it looks. For this sandwich, Prohibition uses duck fat pulled pork confit, gooey cheddar and flavour it with BBQ sauce mixed with a raspberry jalapeno compote. She seemed to enjoy it.

My last friend tried the fungi flatbread ($13) which smelled fantastic from the fragrant truffle oil. It was topped with big mushroom pieces and plenty of cheese (chevre, pecorino romano and mozzarella). In the end, she thought it was okay.

All in all, Prohibition Gastrohouse has a great vibe and the drink prices are hard to beat. So, it would be a great location for pre or post-dinner drinks or maybe even a meal of mac n’ cheese with salad. But, don’t expect too much “gastro” from this neighbourhood joint.

Overall mark - 6 out of 10