Food - Oliver & Bonacini (Summerlicious)

Last Friday, my boyfriend and I went to our first reservation for Summerlicious. 


Website (of Summerlicious): http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/summerlicious/2011/index.htm
There is a restaurant list which shows all the menus and prices, so I suggest checking that out. Hurry up though, last day of Summerlicious is July 24th.


my appetizer: Sweet Chili BBQ Baby Back Ribs crushed peanuts & mini corn bread pudding.
It was really good, I had a picture of the whole plate, but I thought that this would make it look more appealing and mysterious ~ so that you would go to check it out. 
 

















boyfriend's appetizer: Crispy Chicken & Ginger Dumplings maple scallion soya sauce (not pictured) 
 
my main: Steak Frites with caper & tomato brown butter sauce.
I was quite shocked when I ordered my steak frites, and the waiter didnt ask me how I liked it. It was alright when I got it, and it was rare. I can eat rare, as long as blood is not spewing out, but I usually like medium-rare.  It seems like there isnt a lot of food, but I couldnt finish it! I was so surprised, I love fries, and I couldnt even finish them !!
 

closer picture of my steak (looks sooooo good) 

boyfriend's main:  Panko & Citrus Togarashi Crusted Baked Atlantic Cod on minted sweet peas with red skin potatoes, baby shrimp & cabbage slaw

 

boyfriend's dessert:  Oliver’s Famous Carrot Cake with cinnamon Chantilly

my dessert: Chocolate Marquise. milk chocolate torte with hazelnut praline crunch.

This was a cute little dessert. It was quite small, but I guess the taste made it all okay. It was like a chocolate mousse, with fudge on top, and when you bit into it, it was like eating ... maltasers?  I can't really describe it, but every bite had a hint of hazelnut in it -- awesome. 

Picture while we're leaving, it's so beautifully lit. 

service: The waiter was friendly, joked around, and when we thought he forgot about us (we randomly asked him for a coke), he randomly surprised us with it ! Yay, I love coke !!

price: $25 + tips / person

decor: it's very urban-upbeat style, with tree stumps and flowers as decourations between rows of tables. (Funny story -- I was leaning back, and something was touching my head, I wasnt sure, so I ignored it. And then I leaned back again, and this time I turned around, and saw that a leaf was hitting me - I think a fake leaf - and then our waiter walked past and joked around with me)

additional thoughts: This was my second time coming to O&B for Summerlicious (once, just random), and my forth time eating at this chain (I ate at Auberge du Pommier last summer, with my family) and I would LOVE to try Canoe! So, of course I would revisit! It was quite crowded though, and I was a bit annoyed at some parents, because they let their kids run around, screaming and crying, and playing with furniture !!

First Luxebox !!!

Today, I received my very first Luxebox !

For those who don't know, it's a monthly subscription where you get a little box (but the things inside are anything but small) and it's filled with different products, ranging from skincare, make up, hair products ... the list goes on. (more information on their website!)

You can sign up here: http://www.loosebutton.com

For only $12 + tax a month (yes, free shipping) you get a wonderful box of awesome *deluxe* samples!

Here's what's inside. Let me start off by saying that the box was so adorable, it was nicely wrapped in bubble wrap, and when I opened it, it smelled great. Then I was greeted with two little notes (super cute) one which described the contents, and the other was a welcome note!

I would like to say that oh-my-gosh, blue wrapping paper? pink sticker?!!?! It feels that they put so much effort into wrapping each of these boxes! I am SO impressed!

 

So here's what's inside! When I read the little card telling me what I had, I was like "no way, I get an essie? Oh, it's probably a small little ones like those mini gift sets" -- Oh, was I wrong! It was a full sized Essie nail polish, in the colour "In stitches" I am super excited to try this out!

Next, we had a few things I am not familiar with:
1. Hair oil treatment (Proclaim) -- which I am also in need of, since my hair is pretty damaged with all my perming, dying and blow drying.
2. Pro lip liner (Trucco) -- I am not too sure if the product I got is JUST a lip liner, because the picture on the card shows a lip liner, and the product I got is "Pencil Duo" which has lip liner AND EYELINER! Pretty cool. Pretty good surprise too!

Lastly, I got a Stella in two peony miniature eau de toilette. I just feel, that Luxebox read my MINE! I have been looking for a new scent for a month or so now, I was looking for rollerballs to try out. And now I dont have to look! *little girl squeals* 

Well, I just got this box and I havent tried anything out yet. But I will be sure to take more pictures and give more comments and little reviews sometime within the next week or so.

Once again, this was from http://www.loosebutton.com. Check it out! You can do monthly subs, three month subs, or yearly subs! I've got to say, this box is beyond my expectations! I love it already and I havent even tried it!

Until next time!
aggie

Ribfest !

I just received these pictures off my boyfriend's phone. We visited "Ribfest", I put quotations because it wasnt really ribfest, it was called "Rotary Multicultual Ribfest"

Website: http://www.rotarymulticulturalfestival.com/
Location: 2020 McNicoll Avenue (corner of Kennedy/McNicoll)
Price: $13 for half rack / $22 for full rack (approx)

This isnt really a review thing, just showing some pictures of it.
Boyfriend got pulled pork.


And this is a bunch of us eating the ribs.
It wasnt much of a ribfest, because there were only three.























Below is a picture taken of Ribfest at night, we went up to a building(residential) to watch fireworks. This is what the ribfest looked like, there arent too many booths.

Food - Whole Lota Gelata

My boyfriend came to where I was studying for the weekend and he took me to this cute little place called Whole Lot-a Gelata.

Website: http://www.wholelotagelata.com
Address: 120 King Street. Waterloo, ON
Phone: (519) 884-5760

There were so many flavours of gelato! The picture has maybe about 75% of it, so there's a few more I didnt get in the picture. It was super duper hard to make a decision, luckily, my boyfriend let me choose his flavour too (^^)













Look at that, look at those swirls. If you don't know which one to pick, you can always try it out (taste test) They are so nice, and they make sure that when you try it, you get the full flavour. I tried a strawberry swirl, and the girl made sure that I had a couple of strawberries on my tiny little spoon.

















We hadnt had lunch yet, so we got grilled cheese sandwiches first. I got a Four Cheese Grilled Cheese, and my boyfriend got the Chuck Norris Grilled Cheese(Chuck Norris can grill it, just by looking at it.)
Boyfriend's Chuck Norris.

My Four Cheese.














The sandwiches were amazing. They are so good, and so filling, and the best part, it was $3, including tax !!!!!! It is delicious, and it doesnt break the bank. Oh, and after we ordered, we went to sit and they actually delivered the food to us!

After the sandwiches, we sat around for awhile and talked. Then we finally got what we came for. We got our gelato! Yum !! My boyfriend got the Tiramisu gelato, and it tasted pretty good. It was very coffee/expresso tasting, which I assume is good. There were chucks of those lady fingers (?) and it was like eating an actual Tiramisu cake!

I had gotten the oreo swirls, which I was doubting at first, since McDonalds was having their Snack Size McFlurry for $1.99. Oh, man, am I glad that I got this. It was soooo good. I dont even know how to explain. And this baby, was a small size. It was huge!! There was so much gelato in it!

Oh yeah, and before I forget, it was $7 for both of these gelatos (once again, including tax)













Revisit? : I would definitely come back again for some more gelato, grilled cheese sandwiches, and after looking at their website, I think I might spend my whole undergrad there! The atmosphere was great, the people were friendly, and it was just a small little restaurant that people can chill and relax in.
Price: $3-5 /person (for normal things, nothing too extravagant. I'm sure if you get a whole cake it'd be much more)
Additional thoughts: YUM YUM YUM!

Food - Kenzo (Ramen)

Restaurant: Kenzo
Address: 6180 Yonge St (south of Steeles, west side of Yonge)
Number: 416.229.4526
Open: everyday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

My boyfriend and I decided to try out this ramen place called Kenzo.
It was a tiny little place, it was sort of home-y. I didnt take pictures of the inside because there were only about4 tables that fit four people, and 3 other tables that fit 2 people. And, there were people sitting in all the tables, so I didnt want to seem creepy.
(Sorry about the pictures, I forgot my camera again and had to use an iPhone) 

My boyfriend got the King of Kings Ramen (I think)
Look at how awesome it it looks. Makes my mouth water.
It had spicy broth, seaweed, egg, fishcake slices (naruto), green onions (I learned that day that my boyfriend loves them. Who knew?), and I believe that it is BBQ pork (Chasiu).














Mine looks so plain compared to his. This is mine.
I ordered this because it came with gyoza, and I am pretty picky with food so I wanted to play it safe.
I think I got it in miso soup broth, or original broth. I cant remember.














This is the gyoza, it looks funny and all stuck together.
But, my goodness, it was sooooooooooo good.

















And I'm assuming that this was some sort of appetizer, or flavouring.
A bunch of stuff I didnt eat, but my boyfriend enjoyed.

















Price: around $10/person
Revisit? DEFINITELY!
Additional thoughts: I love this place, although parking was really hard (we didn't know there was extra parking in the back). It was a bit hard to find, it blended in with the other shops, so drive slowly! I love this place. Next time,  I think I'm going to get the spicy one.

Oh, and if you're wondering how it compares with Ajisen Ramen (Warden/Steeles) this is way better. Kenzo is authentic, the waitresses were Japanese, while at Ajisen they are Chinese. The menu at Kenzo doesn't have as much variety or pages, but the food there is super delicious. My boyfriend used to love going to Ajisen, and I asked him which one is better, and he said Kenzo - hands down.