Amaya Express @ Urban Eatery

Amaya Express (Urban Eatery, Eaton Centre, 220 Yonge Street, Toronto)

Spicy lamb curry bowl.

This bowl was extremely filling, probably because of the rice and chick peas. The lamb is pretty soft and indeed spicy. 

Butter chicken poutine.

Bianca said that the fries were soggy, but there was a really long time between when the food was received and when we started eating. She also noted that butter chicken poutine was on the menu of the New York Fries Poutinerie next door.

 Would I return? Sure. I think this place had the most aroma surrounding it in the food court, which is what drew me there to begin with. The curry bowls are definitely filling. 

Oh yeah, good luck to those who want a garbage bin in the Urban Eatery. I don't think they exist there. 

Total damage for my curry bowl: $8.

Rare @ Urban Eatery

Rare (Urban Eatery, Eaton Centre, 220 Yonge Street, Toronto)

I was excited to try something at the Eaton Centre's brand new Urban Eatery because many millions of dollars has been put into those renovations. Though the name is a little pretentious, it does seem a little nicer and bigger than the average food court. But I must insist that it is still just a food court, a really huge food court.

There were the food court regulars such as McDonald's and KFC, but there were also some more unique options. I noted a Big Smoke burger joint, Mucho Burrito, Amaya, etc. Among the newer names, Andrew noted Rare, a sandwich joint.

Oh Canada roast beef sandwich and mango salad.

The sandwich came with aged Canadian cheddar, bacon, creamy horseradish, and caramelized onions. I really liked the caramelized onions, and the pressed, toasty ciabatta white bread held everything together quite nicely. There was a good serving of roast beef, but I thought the meat lacked a little flavour. Andrew said that might have been because the other ingredients were really strong and overpowering. Also, I was still a bit sick, so my taste buds might have also been under the weather. A soup or salad of my choice was also included in the $8.95 price tag. The mango salad had bits of noodles and I think there was cilantro in there too. There was a sourness reminiscent of the clear vinegary fish sauce at pho restaurants.

Oh Canada roast beef sandwich and chicken noodle soup.

Andrew didn't seem to have many complaints about his sandwich other than the creamy horseradish sauce being strong. He mentioned that he'd like to try the philly sandwich next time.

Would I return? To the Urban Eatery? Probably. It's now the only food court in the Eaton Centre and it seems convenient when shopping in the area. There are a lot of options, and the area is clean (for now). The other big change that was implemented was the use of reusable dishes and cutlery. Cups and glasses too! It's like Ikea, but fancy. Andrew thinks the glasses will be stolen because they're pretty nice. There are signs on some tables to remind patrons to bring their trays to one of the service stations where staff will clear and sort trays. Andrew said that on Friday, the piles of trays and plates were about two feet off the counter. There were less people and less chaos when I went. Oh, and there are hooks underneath the taller tables to hang your purses, bags, new purchases, etc. 

Would I return to Rare? Sure. It's okay. It seemed like a healthy meal, and overall the food tasted pretty good. My mind wasn't blown, but it's pretty good stuff for food court food. Also, I'm a sucker for caramelized onions.

Total damage: $10.11.

All pics by Andrew's camera.

Pickle Barrel MUFFIN

The Pickel Barrel (Vaughan Mills, 1 Bass Pro Mills Drive, Vaughan, Ontario)

905-669-2544

Hours: 

Sun - Thurs 9 a.m. - 10 p.m.

Fri - Sat 9 a.m. - 11 p.m.

I don't know what prompted my search for a decent chocolate chip muffin. I think I wanted one at some point, and realized I couldn't find one. That's when my continuous cravings started. It's always that I want what I can't get. Anyway, walking around in Vaughan Mills, we noticed some awesome-looking muffins at The Pickle Barrel, of all places. 

Chocolate chip muffin.

The top looked super crunchy, and not shiny and soft. It had the proper mushroom shape, with a giant top. Best of all, they had chocolate chip flavoured ones. 

It was everything I could hope for in a muffin: chocolate chip with a giant crunchy top. Underneath the cap, it wasn't as moist and buttery as the one from Cafe Palma, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Pickle Barrel's version was also larger. 

Would I return? For muffins? Yes. My craving is finally satisfied.

Total damage: $1.31.

Johnny Rockets

Johnny Rockets (Vaughan Mills, 1 Bass Pro Mills Drive, Vaughan, Ontario)

905-669-0944

They have cool straw holders... but it'd make me feel a little better if the straws were individually wrapped.

My Route 66 burger and fries. 

The cheese made the burger. The onions were very flavourful as well. Along with the mushrooms, it was like omelette contents in a burger without the egg. The fries were hot, fresh, and crispy, but they could've used seasoning. That being said, I was fine with making snow with the salt shaker.

Jo's burger and fries.

The actual meat in the burger was of decent thickness, but so dry. It was so dry that it made me a little sad. Jo agreed that the meat in her burger was dry, but she said it was passable towards the centre of hers. I guess I got the hockey puck. 

Would I return? I don't know. It seemed a little pricey for such a dry burger. The worst part was that everything except the meat was fine. Jo seemed to like the bun as it reminded her of the Filet-o-fish buns from McD's. 

Total damage: $17 for my burger, fries and Sprite.

New York Fries

New York Fries (Sherway Gardens, 25 The West Mall, Toronto)

Small poutine. 

They were out of the braised beef poutine (booo!). The signs boast real cheese curds from Québec, and they were indeed cheese curds; however, they did not squeak. It was passable, but I would've preferred crispier fries, squeaky cheese curds, and more flavourful gravy. 

Total damage: $7.18.

Sakura

Sakura (Village by the Grange food court, 109 McCaul Street, Toronto)

Chicken katsu. 

I honestly didn't have enough time to eat this properly. I basically shoved it down my throat in under five minutes. From what I could gather, the chicken was crispy, and the rice could have used more sauce. In my rushed eating, I noticed no awful bites. 

Would I go back? Yes. It's affordable and decent for students. With anything deep fried, if it's crispy, it's on the right track. It took maybe around five minutes for my food to be done, and it was served hot. I also like how they made the price with tax into a nice amount that returned no stupid change.

Total damage: $6.25. 

Egg Waffles!

Location: Pacific Mall (4300 Steeles Avenue East, Markham, Ontario)

How to get there: Go up the escalator in the middle of the mall. Walk past the people selling purses, bags, and swords. Follow the smell of waffles down one of the aisles towards the mini food court. The unit that sells these snacks should be in the middle somewhere. Look for a sign that says "egg waffles" somewhere on it. Mainly, I just followed the smell once I got upstairs.

The sign said "egg waffles", but I know them as "little chicken eggs" from Chinese translation.

They're a great combination of the fluffy puffs and the crisped batter in between them. They're sweetened ever so slightly, and they come warm and fresh! The guy filled the waffle makers and told me to wait two minutes. Around two minutes later, he took them out, and fanned them on a cooling rack with a paper bag. It's important to let them cool down before putting them in the bags so that they don't get all gross and soggy. I commend his fanning efforts.

These snacks are two bags for $5 or one bag for $3. Of course, I had to get two.

Would I go back for more? Of course! Fluffy waffles!

Total damage: $5 for two bags. 

Noodle!

Noodle (5120 Yonge Street, North York, Ontario)

I found out what the name of that place in the food court under North York Central Library was. It's Noodle. *thumbs up*

These boxed meals for under $10 can probably feed two normal people for lunch. They're great value, and the "diet combo" which doesn't include meat is even cheaper (closer to $5 than $10).

I'm a fan of their silky spicy tofu and their spicy noodles.

Other than some items being a bit on the greasy side, the food tasted good to me!

Random Food Post!

Cheesecake Factory


I can't remember which location this is, but I like Cheesecake Factory food in general. Most of the time, it's pretty good.

Some of the cheesecakes are better than others. It helps to have tried a few to know what to pick.

This smiley face formed by itself during a lunch at a Chinese restaurant. Having mealtime is always happy.

Suite 88 (3957, rue Saint-Denis, Montréal)

I bought a set of these chocolate shooters and took pictures of the ones on display so I could remember what were in them.

Fun if you like alcohol and chocolate!

A guy makes fresh noodles at the Pacific Mall upstairs food court. It's quite a show and pretty loud when he bangs the noodles on the metal surface. Also, the noodles are pretty tasty. 

St. Louis Bar and Grill

St. Louis Wings and Ribs (Fairview Mall, 1800 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto)
Phone: 416-637-WING

Nine wings. Cajun dust.

The wings weren't dry, but the cajun dust flavour was a bit bland. Andrew said my wings didn't look very appealing. What I like most about St. Louis Wings are the fries and the garlic dill sauce. I think the sauce is actually for the chicken, but I like it better with the rippled, fat fries.

Would I go back? Yes. For fries. And dill sauce.

Total damage: Can't remember... $10-$15-ish?

Z-Teca

Z-Teca (Fairview Mall, 1800 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto, Ontario)
416-494-4224
Hours:
Mon  - Sat 11:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sun 12:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

There was a coupon floating around the internet to get a burrito for $5. They're supposed to be gourmet burritos that cost even more regularly.

I didn't get one myself, so I just took some of Chris's.

The burrito looked promising, but it disappointed me, Chris, and Andrew.

I noted really dry chicken meat and a chewy wrap. I thought the wrap would have that slightly crunchy part like Burrito Boyz since they put it in that press machine, but it didn't. The rice also wasn't as cool as the cilantro-lime rice from Chipotle.

Chris said that his burrito was full of the rice and that it was pretty gross.

Andrew said that it made him physically sick, and that it was just terrible. He went on a mini tirade about how awful it was the next day. We went to Chipotle within a few days of visiting Z-Teca to restore his faith in burritos and to get the experience out of his mind.

Total damage: $5 per burrito.

Will I be returning? Um, that's a no, folks.

Caribbean Queen

Caribbean Queen (10 Dundas Street East, Toronto)

If you walk by close enough to the front of Caribbean Queen, someone will very likely offer you a sample of the meat. As I walked by, toothpicks were already stuck in various pieces of meat.

Well, their methods worked on me. I picked the meat I was offered to try along with some fried plantains and rice. 

I have no idea what Caribbean food should taste like, but the chicken tasted like Chinese BBQ pork meat (cha siu). It looked pretty similar as well. Renée tried a piece and thought that it had tasted so much like cha siu that she forgot she was eating chicken.

The plantains were a little limp and oily, but it didn't bother me that much. The rice was coated in brown and included some beans as well.

I have actually also tried the Caribbean Queen in the food court of Sheppard Centre as well. The plantains were the same, and the meat I had there also tasted like Chinese food.

Total damage: $8.22 for the first box of food shown.

Aroma Expresso Bar

Aroma Expresso Bar (Promenade Mall, 1 Promenade Circle, Thornhill)

Located near the food court of The Promenade mall, this joint seems to bring in a lot of business during lunchtime on a Tuesday. It has a designated eating area, but you can easily take your trays to sit elsewhere if there are no more fancy red chairs left.

If you're on a diet or can't finish a whole sandwich (why), you have the option of ordering half a sandwich (why). I ordered a whole sandwich, of course.

Whole avocado sandwich on white bread:
You might not be able to tell from the picture, but it was loaded with avocado. It was oozing out messily as I was trying to eat the sandwich with dignity. To add to my lack of elegance, the bread was really soft and just collapsed from the weight of the filling. In short: tasty, but messy.

Only the New York locations are listed on the website, but I can assure you that this chain does exist in the Greater Toronto Area.

Not the cheapest sandwich I've had, but quite tasty.

Total damage: $8.81.