Just Wingin' It

I bought these at Costco last week. I threw away the box already but it said something along the lines of Buffalo Chicken Wing style chicken tenders, nuggets, or something to that effect.

I just had to share with y'all because these is what they look like:

CHICKEN WINGS!! They look like real CHICKEN WINGS!!! They're coated in spicy buffalo sauce and shaped like drumsticks and wing tips. Seriously, if this isn't attention to detail, I don't know what is.

I couldn't stop crackin' up as I was preparing them for the oven. As for taste, they're kinda spongey. Tastes like a chicken nugget but not even up to your run-of-the-mill frozen nuggests standards.

Still, I quite enjoy eating them simply due to the novelty factor. Does that makes me a little crazy? Perhaps....

Cheers To The Weekend...

My weekend....

♥ Yummy apple juice for grown ups
♥ So bad for you yet so.so..soooo...good
♥ Bring back the 90's with my Casio
♥ My sweet little Abby

How was yours?

Pretty Ombre Cakes

I don't care if other people are over it. I'm not! I still can't get enough of ombre (aka gradient) cakes. They are just so PRETTY. Like, seriously seriously pretty!

Go ahead. Feast your eyes!





















all via my pinterest board

Yellowtail Sushi - Woodbine & 16th, Markham

A few weeks ago C, my mom, and I went to Yellowtail Sushi for AYCE (all-you-can-eat) lunch. C and I have been there before for dinner but as a frequent Japanese AYCEer I've noticed that lunch and dinner can be significantly different.

The price difference can be significant between lunch and dinner (usually around $7-10 diference) and at some restaurants the menu really shows why. For example, some places allow you absolutely NO sashimi or specialty rolls whereas other places.

At Yellowtail, the lunch menu is one of those that are pared down. You cannot have any sashimi. Not a big loss for me personally as I don't really eat sashimi.

The food is average. It's not bad at all, just not great. If I need an AYCE fix, this satisfies the cravings but I would not go out of my way to come here. It's just like the cheap sushi restaurants lining the Annex area in downtown Toronto - not very refined and a little too much rice but totally satisfies that sushi itch if you happen to be in the area.

Here's some photos of the food we ordered. It may not have been amazing, but trust me, it looked better than what came out of my little cell phone that makes everybody and everything look like it has gout!

My favourites were the sushi (first photo) and tempura. The sushi had a good ratio of seafood to rice and the tempura was battered just right.



























Dinner is a better affair at Yellowtail but according to reviews online at Urbanspoon and Yelp, the sashimi although available during dinner, is not very fresh.

So be warmed, sushi connoisseurs, this may not be your place. But all you others who periodically succumb to the sushi shakes? You can get your fix here!

Origin Restaurant - King E & Church, Toronto

Last month a few friends and I went to Origin Restaurant in the St. Lawrence market area for a girl's night after work. Origin is a tapas style restaurant; food is served via smaller shareable dishes. The food doesn't follow one cuisine - it's more "global" with influences from Italian, Asian, Mexican, Greek, etc.

Unfortunately, I didn't take any photos of the interior but it is really pretty. Here's the restaurant's website gallery. I loved the exposed brick and the lighting they used.

I did however, take photos of our food.


Spicy Spanish Fries + Chorizo + Manchego

This was pretty much incredible. I didn't find the fries spicy but they were salted just right and the chorizo added a nice savory taste - think bacon bits but a 100 times better. I'll stop right here because I think the photo says it all. Mmm!!

Bufala mozzarella + pear + rosemary oil + pinenuts + honey

This was so SO delicious! I've never had Bufala mozzarella but it was so fresh and a completely different taste and texture than pizza/snacking mozzarella you get in blocks at the grocery store. The sweet tastes of pear and honey mixed with the fragrant pine nuts and rosemary oil was just DIVINE. I would love to replicate this at home.


Tostones + Guacamole

The Tostones were plantains mashed into large chips. We broke these apart and dipped them in the guac like nacho ships. I love guacamole but didn't find this anything special. The plantains were lightly salted and not that different from nacho chips.


Pulled Pork + Softshell Crab + Coleslaw

This was a daily special and when I hear pulled pork and softshell crab, I was like "DONE!" So glad we got this because it was absolutely i.n.c.r.e.d.i.b.l.e!! I can't even begin to describe how good this was (and thus, I am not a "food blogger"). The crunch and savory crab, the sweet and tangy pulled pork, the crisp coleslaw. Everything about it was just perfect.


Origin beef burger + avocado + smoked mayo + arugula

This was good but I have to admit, bit of a disappointment. Probably because I had such high expectations going in. The Origin burger was recently listed in Toronto Life magazine's 25 Best Burgers as #13 (article here) and being amongst the ranks of cult favourite Burger Priest and crazy-expensive $35 Bymark, I thought it was be amazing. But really, it was just another good but not great burger that was also a little too tall and skinny for me, too simple, and not juicy enough.

Not pictured here was dessert: "Dulce de leche + lemon sponge + raspberry ice + caramel + sea salt", our bottle of Riesling (forgot the name), and additional cocktails/coffee. Rest assured they were all good!

Our final bill for 4 people came to approx. $75 each. Needless to say, it's not cheap. And judging by the other patrons, this is the type of place the younger Bay St. and King St. crowds come to mingle. Not my everyday crowd.

It was a great experience though. I didn't love all the dishes but there were definitely some highlights and the restaurant was beautiful. What I didn't like though was that my plain brewed coffee cost $6 and they charged us for WATER! Yes, WATER! And I'm not talking Evian or sparkling water. This was just water they brought over in glass jugs. But I guess it would have been too guache for the server to mention or something.

Anyway, if you're looking for a place to have a chic girl's night out, I do recommend Origin but for me, this isn't somewhere I would come out of my way to eat at. There's plenty of nice restaurants both downtown and uptown with better food at a better price. Then again, this is not coming from a hotshot young lawyer...

ZAZA Restaurant - Beijing, China

I'm back in Toronto! I have to admit, although I visit Beijing annually, have gone without Cam more times than with, and went for less than two weeks this time, I became really home sick by the second week.

Living in Stouffville has really spoiled me. The traffic, population, smog, and general "big city"-ness of Beijing seems like just a jarring difference.

But despite realizing how much I couldn't live in the city again, I still hand a wonderful time visiting with family, shopping, eating, and taking in a few tourist attractions.

My dad took me to ZAZA, a "fusion" restaurant if you will. The decor was beautiful and the food delicious. Here are some photos of the delicious and plentiful food we had.





















With Beijing so inland, I was surprised at how fresh the sashimi was. And the kimchi hotpot full of veggies? So SOO delicious! I kept eating even though I was so stuffed.

I have tons more photos from this trip and a number of beauty reviews to post as well so expect lots of activity on this blog in the next while.

Ginger & Onion Cuisine Restaurant - Market Village, Markham

My dad came back from Beijing to visit us for the holidays. We were quite excited to have a second guest (the first begin Cam's mom and only for a night) staying for a week. The night before he left, Cam and I treated my parents to dinner at Ginger & Onion Cuisine, which is located near the end of Market Village across from Pacific Mall in Markham.

Since mom has been really busy recently, I haven't gotten my Cantonese comfort food fix in. When I eat out with Cam, it's usually "western" food or other ethnicity's foods like Indian, Greek, Japanese, etc. So I picked out 5 dishes, all fail-safe "comfort foods" if you will.



I have two favourite hot pots - Spicy Eggplant with Ground Beef and Fish with Beancurd (usually some type of white fish). They're so savoury, hot, and simple. This one was Fish & Beancurd and absolutely delicious. The fish was lightly breaded and fileted, which was a pleasant surprise. Most places chunk the fish, bones and all. The only thing I disliked was the vegetables at the bottom of the hot pot - there was a faint smell of bleach. Ew!



Ah, Yeung Chow fried rice. Such a classic but a dish pretty much every single Chinese restaurant geared towards non-Chinese patrons fail miserably at. Soy sauce does not belong in this dish!! This had a nice amount of shrimp and large ones at that but it was a little light to the taste. I like mine saltier. And it still does not compare to Noodle Bowl's.



I was craving ginger & onion lobster like a mad woman. I love lobster any way it can be cooked but this is one dish I have not had in ages. The restaurant seems to have this on a standing special at $12 for a single lobster if you purchase $10+ in other foods. Buying a double lobster would be $27, though...which really doesn't make much sense but fortunately, one was enough to satisfy my craving. This dish was so SO good! It was cooked perfectly. The meat was tender, the amount of ginger and onions was just right, the saltiness was just right, and the lobster was cut in an edible way (sometimes you get odd pieces with too much shell to even try). Next time I get a craving, I'm dragging whoever is willing (or not) here.



Cam ordered this dish: sweet and sour pork. The dish was done typically, but well. There wasn't much meat but the batter was very crispy which I think Cam preferred. The sauce was a little bit more sour than sweet but there didn't seem to be any complaints around the table. I only had a couple pieces because it's not a dish I really care for but I have to say, this was done exactly how most people would like it.

The only dish missing from here is the Ginger & Onion Beef with Mushrooms. It was so good! As with all the other dishes we ordered, it came out exactly as I had imagined. I'm always disappointed when I order a common dish on a menu and end up with a dish that is a little different. Even if it's actually cooked better, it's just not the same. Like if you're craving Kraft Dinner and you get some fancy shmancy aged cheddar mac & cheese. Might be delicious but doesn't satisfy that particular craving!

This was my first time but I would definitely come back to this restaurant again. The prices are very average. We spent about $65 after tax & tip on 4 people and came home with enough left overs for my lunch next day. But best of all, all my favourites are on the menu and if these dishes were any indication, they're cooked exactly how I like them.

Congee Queen

Mmm, I love me some good congee-house comfort food. I usually go to Congee Wong at Woodbine & Hwy 7 but a few of my friends have mentioned enjoying the food at Congee Queen. There's one in North York I've gone to and I remember it begin pretty much the same menu as Congee Wong.

However, a second location opened up at McCowan and Hwy 7 recently (perhaps in the last year? I only just noticed it!) so I decided to try it out. It's in the plaza just east of McCowan on the north side. Here's a photo of the outside.


image via yelp.ca

There are a few dishes that I think determines whether a congee restaurant is good or not. Aside from the obvious congee, Turnip Cakes are one of those dishes.



This was delicious and better than the ones that Congee Wong has been making in the past few years. I remember when Congee Wong's used to have a good number of shrimps, egg, hot peppers, preserved turnip, etc. And the turnip cakes themselves were soft and moist on the inside but crisp and structured on the outside. Over the years the cakes have become more mealy and the other ingredients less.

This is still not as good as I used to remember the Congee Wong's way back when, but in terms of a current comparison? The Queen reigns. The turnip cakes are just as a remembered and the saltiness is just right, too. Even if the ingredients are not abundant, I still prefer this restaurant's version.



Mango Shrimp was on their features menu and called out to both of us. Cam was sold on the mango aspect and me? It's anything Mayonnaise-covered (don't judge!).

This was really delicious. The amount is about the size of an appetizer but trust me, you wouldn't want anymore. The shrimp tasted fresh and was cooked just right. The mayo was sweetened, similar to what you would find at dim-sum accompanying the shrimp spring rolls.

There was also a good amount of mango salad and it was perfectly ripe. I hate when they use unripened mango in salads - has a very weird texture and taste. The seasoning for the mango salad was also delicious - not too salty, sweet, nor sour.

This was a delicious dish and one I know I'll have the occasional craving for. I really recommend ordering this dish for groups of 3 more more. It may look like a small amount but this dish is very rich and full of flavor. While I can eat a whole plate of stir-fried noodles, a few pieces of mango shrimp is enough to satisfy my cravings.



Both of us are also big fans of curry noodles. Our absolute favourite is from Noodle Bowl at the corner of Bloor & Spadina (YOU MUST TRY IT!!). So far nothing else has compared and Congee Queen's version is no different. In fact, I was disappointed with this dish. Visually, it looks great but the chef cooked with a very light hand. I ended up adding a dash of salt and some chili satay salt to add flavor. There was slightly less curry flavor than I usually like and certainly not enough salt. Decent amount of meat and other ingredients, though. I would not order this again but it's not so bad that I wouldn't eat it if the table ordered one.

Overall, good meal but not amazing. I don't see any reason to choose Congee Queen over Congee Wong except for the environment (dimmer decor/lighting) and for me, the closer location to home. The prices and service at both places are about the same - main dishes around $8-10, fast but very impersonal service. Typical congee restaurant all the way!