Tag Archives: Restaurant

8 course menu in a Cave!

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I’m not a foodie, but I know trying new restaurants with friends is a love language.

The three core pillars of a restaurant experience are: ambiance, service, food (aesthetics high up on priority).

I’m also someone who will go to a new restaurant, not for the food – as a priority, but for the vibes. I love seeing and surrounding myself with beautiful things. So of course, gorgeous restaurants and how the chef’s make art on a plate are no exception.

My friend and I recently checked out And / Ore and it was spectacular. We specifically went to the Below Ground dining room.

And / Ore did not disappoint. From the moment we entered we were treated with a friendly smile, courteous service and beautiful things to look at everywhere.

The Below Ground dinning room offered an 8 course tasting menu. I had seen pictures of the plates online and thought I’d have to grab a pizza afterwards (lol). But little did I know that 8 little plates would really add up!

The presentation of the food (and the taste of most dishes) were amazing. And just check out the view of the inside, it’s like you are in an actual cave!

If you haven’t been then I highly recommend it. The menu is seasonal and uses local ingredients so I plan on going again with the Hubz.

Would love to hear of any new restaurant experiences in Toronto – do share in the comments!

Love & Light
B

Lunch at Restoration Hardware

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You know you are a parent of young children when you feel the best way to describe a delicious child free meal is by quoting Julia, Child.  😂😂

We don’t often do this.  Fancy restaurants are just not in the docket with spilt milk and sticky fingers.  But we are finding that as the girls are growing we have more opportunities to make time for just the 2 of us.

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With that said, we finally checked out Restoration Hardware Cafe.  I’ve heard soooo many good things about this restaurant.  About how beautiful it is, about the chandeliers, the trees and the furnishings.

At the cafe, we started with their fries and garlic aioli. Ya I know basic, but so delicious.  The fries weren’t too thick and were the perfect combination of crispy and fluffy.  I enjoyed the fries with a refreshing glass of Pinot Grigio.  As I was choosing my main, the Simple Prep Fish (which was a marinate of EVOO, dill and lemon), the server suggested I go with the Gem Salad as pair.  All of my favourite ingredients put together in a meal – yes I will!

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The filet of fish was thin and so the flavors were evenly distributed.  I asked for my salad dressing on the side and thankfully so because it was the perfect accent to the fish.  The mister got the RH burger which was a double pattie – which he said was also good.

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We did stroll around the store before and after lunch.  In my humble opinion, the pieces are more suited for a mansion than a small suburban home.  Thankfully the cafe doesn’t give off that vibe at all]. And for me the food was way more delightful.

(Tip from a local: if you are going to the restaurant, get there early.  They do not take reservations and the wait time can be anywhere from 10-60 min)

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Toronto Restaurant: Valdez

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Few weeks ago, the Hubz and I checked out Valdez.  A great spanish street food / tapas style restaurant in the King West area.

We weren’t too hungry so we decided to try a few of the apps.  The restaurant does offer fuller size meals as well but we were pretty excited to re-live our Barcelona tapas experience!

We started with the Croquetas – and obvious choice for me (deep fried with a side of aioli – slurp!)  Memories of Barcelona started flowing back….

Next up was Chuzos Al Plancha, beef skewers with a Chimichurri chutni and soft moist Arepa bread.


This next item was by far the most flavourful.  The Atun Japones had our tastebuds dancing with the watermelon, radish, pickled ginger and ahi tuna.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

We washed all that down with a greasy bag full of Empanadas.

Valdez did a good job of making the “street food” style come to life with the disposable plates and paper bags (especially for the fried foods).  But I also appreciated having the more formal items served in the modern white dinnerware. All in all somewhere we’d definitely return to whenever we are craving some street food ;)