Macaron Ice Cream Sandwiches

Yes. I said MACARON ICE CREAM SANDWICHES!!!

Like that isn't good enough already, we got it for freeeeeeee^_^

Lady Marmalade

Another busy brunch spot in Leslieville.

We arrived at Lady Marmalade around noon only to find that there was a lineup outside the door. Note they will not seat you until your entire party is there. We found out the hard way.

Nevertheless, the restaurant is quite cozy and very green. Think majority of the restaurants in the area are small and tiny hence the long lineup.

HOT BALLS @ Table 17

Finally, I was able to taste the infamous hot balls at Table 17.

My first time at the restaurant was for brunch and it was a great experience. For my second trip I went for dinner and it was even better or shall I say, HOT!

Me and my sister-in-law arrived around 6pm. The place was empty at that time but by the time our food arrived people were bustling in.

We attempted to grab a table by the window so I can get more lighting for my pictures but sadly it was already reserved. (Note to self: when making reservations request for table 22 not table 17 j/k actually no I'm not get table 22).

My sister-in-law got a glass of red wine that was recommended by our waitress, Mia. She was very informative and definitely knew her wines. My sister-in-law really enjoyed the wine that Mia had suggested.

After a few minutes of contemplation we began ordering.

First off the balls. It arrived rather quickly I have to say. I didn't even finish snacking on the complimentary bread that was given. I thrust it aside and began pulling out my iPhone.

Here is a closeup of the Arancino stuffed with mushrooms and Fontino cheese mixed with risotto. It was crispy on the outside and filled with warm yummy goodness on the inside. Also each ball was accompanied by a specific sauce. For this one it was the red sauce which tasted like salsa to me but still complimented the ball very well. (Ok every time I type ball I am just laughing at myself. It's just funny that's all I have to say.)

Our favorite one was the goat cheese dipped in wildflower honey. It was luscious. A perfect combination of the two differing flavors of tangy and sweet.

Here was a side of the seasonal green which was kale. Unfortunately this was not pleasant at all. In fact the first word that came to my mind was funky and not in a good way. My sister-in-law tried a few more bites thinking she would get used to the flavoring but eventually gave up. When Mia came to clear away the plates she asked us was there anything wrong with the kale. We told her that we didn't really like it. Later on we discovered that this was removed off of our bill. Wow now that is customer satisfaction. I couldn't believe that they took it off our bill. Unlike one experience I had where all the plates were hardly touched except for one bite and yet the waitress still didn't even bother to ask what was wrong while here Mia actually noticed and took the time to ask us what we thought.

Here was the Cavatelli. It consisted of house made ricotta and black truffle pasta with soffritto, brussel sprouts and hedgehog mushrooms. My sister-in-law enjoyed this dish.

Now this was my meal. The duck confit with lentils, pickled carrots and almond cream. It was magnificent. Even the smell of it was intoxicating. It almost turned my so-called vegetarian sister over to the dark side hehe. She kept commenting how amazing it smelled. Also once my fork broke into the skin she even heard from the across the table the crispiness of the outer layer. Moaning sounds of approval came involuntarily from my throat before I could even stop them. The duck was super tender and full of juicy flavor. My sister kept laughing at me because after every bite I kept saying "OMG this is so good."

Can you see how scrumptious it looks?

Or how about this picture? Just look at that piece of crispy skin.

Last but definitely not least was the Gateaux Elvis. Originally we couldn't decide between the Elvis or the pistachio tart so we ended up choosing the tart since it would be something new to try. Sadly, it wasn't available so we chose our second choice. It was mind blowing. The dessert looked like an ice cream sandwich yet it was actually 2 pieces of light airy chocolate cake sandwiched together topped with a scoop of peanut butter mousse and caramelized bananas. The cake wasn't rich at all and went perfectly well with the heavy sweet flavor of the peanut butter mousse. I can't believe it was mousse. To me it tasted like real peanut butter that you would get from a jar but more light and fluffy like whipped cream. It was a perfect end to a perfect meal minus the kale. I'm sure the dessert would have made Elvis proud. One more thing because they didn't have the tart that we had first asked for our dessert was on the house. Omigod. I was in shock in again. They really value their customers and try to ensure you have the best possible experience.

Also during the course of our meal I noticed Chef John Sinopoli came out to the dining room. I personally don't know him but I do remember his picture from the website and also coupled with the fact that he was holding a little pot and scooping out, which I believe was the special of the day, polenta with rabbit, and placing it onto each individual plate. Now that is a chef who is passionate about his food and actually comes out of the kitchen to serve the food himself. Amazing. Wished I had ordered the polenta but since my dining companion once again was still terrified of meat I decided against it.

I highly recommend this restaurant not because of the freebies I got but because of the excellent quality of food and the love and passion cooked into the meal. Thank you Mia and Table 17 for an exquisite dinner and an unforgettable dining experience.

TOTAL BILL $76...EAT HERE NEXT!!!

Table 17

782 Queen Street East

(close to Broadview)

416-519-1851

Table 17

I rarely go to Leslieville but when I do go so far it's only been for brunch. I love brunch. Even though it's a combination of breakfast and lunch still I love the fact that you don't have to wake up so early for it. I noticed that Leslieville is filled with numerous spots for brunch.

I decided to give Table 17 a try. I have to say it did not disappoint at all.

Here is the Sloppy Giusseppe. I have no clue how you even pronounce that second word but it was yummy. It included two fried eggs served with Bolognese sauce and fried polenta and a side of green salad.

The 2 remaining plates were the French toast with cinnamon creme anglaise and a few pieces of fresh berries and a grilled Cuban sandwich which consisted of Black Forest ham, house roasted pork and Havarti cheese with mustard and pickles and a side of fries. It was all delicious. My favorite dish out of all 3 was the French toast. Although it was a bit burnt it was light and tasty. I love sweets so this was a great treat in the morning. To me, it was my reward after a 90 minute hot yoga class. I am not at all flexible nor can I tolerate hot temperatures but that hot yoga class was a killer. All of my efforts and hard work wasted with this meal but oh so worth it. I just can't say no to good food.

We also ordered 3 sides with which were the thick cut double smoked bacon, Merguez sausage and potato rosti. My favorite was the potato rosti. It was crispy just the way I liked it. It's so fattening but tasted so good.

Lastly, we ended our meal with a slice of pumpkin cheesecake. Originally I wanted the cinnamon bun however, they were all sold out or something so we settled for the cheesecake instead. The crust was flaky but the filling was not that great to me. Then again when it comes to cheesecakes I never really like the filling I always head straight for the crust. Yup I'm a crusty kinda gal.

TOTAL BILL $55...EAT HERE NEXT!!!

Table 17

782 Queen Street East

(close to Broadview)

416-519-1851

Bonjour Brioche

Yesterday was a perfect day for brunch. Ok any day is good for brunch. But yesterday the weather just made it even more enjoyable. Got the beautiful sunshine and warm weather where no fall jacket is necessary yet.

Me and my 2 best friends made plans to go have brunch at Bonjour Brioche. It was originally suppose to be 3 however my other friend caught the flu bug. Here is a post so she gets to see what she missed out on. I discovered the bakery cafe from watching the show Toronto Dining and also saw it was listed as number 3 on the Best French Toast in the city on blogTO.com. I had to go check this place out since I've been drooling over it ever since I saw the review.

When we first arrived there was already a lineup with people standing outside of the cafe. This instantly got me excited since I thought there's a lineup at 11:30am on a Sunday morning. It had to be good since people are actually up this early and waiting in line for brunch. Yes I consider it early since I normally don't get out of bed till 12 or so and I definitely wouldn't be up all the way in Leslieville either lining up just for brunch.

However, the wait wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. We waited for like 10-15 minutes before we were seated. But I have to point out since this was a small place we had a table which I think is normally for 2 but instead since they were extremely busy they had to seat me and my 2 friends at this tiny table. A wobbly one I might add but the waiter fixed it for us immediately after upon noticing the unstable table. If I wasn't extremely in starvation then I would've waited for another table but my stomach couldn't wait any longer nor seeing or smelling the food on other patrons' table didn't help either.

After we were seated our waiter came and gave us our menu along with the specials for the day. I asked him what was a popular dish and he recommended the special, Norwegian Benny, along with their infamous Baked French Toast and also their Smoked Salmon dish. He was extremely informative and very friendly and helpful. It didn't take much persuasion so we decided to order all 3 that the waiter had suggested along with a side order of peameal bacon since what is brunch without some good ole fattening bacon.

After what seemed like an eternity, although it might've been 30 minutes or so but when you're really hungry time just appears to stand still, our food finally arrived.

I was in awe when the plates arrived. I mean just look at the picture doesn't it look colorful and inviting. I couldn't wait to dig in but as always no matter how hungry I am I have to take pictures first before I can even eat otherwise how else will I have pictures to show on my blog. Of course I had to refrain my friends as well from digging their forks and knives into the pretty arrangements.

Here is the smoked salmon with scrambled eggs, chives, rosti potato, creamed horse radish and caviar. It was good but I have to say the next 2 dishes coming up took my breath away.

Here is their popular baked french toast with fresh fruit and maple syrup. This was truly the BEST french toast I had EVER had so far. The texture was like a bread pudding cake moist and delicious. It was full of flavor even without the maple syrup. A must have if you are ever in the mood for some yummy french toast.

Here is my favorite dish out of all the 3 entrees, the Norwegian Benny.

First of all, I have never had a benedict before so kind of hard to compare since it's my first but will definitely not be my last. If you are like me and never ate a benny before it basically consists of an English muffin topped with bacon, ham or poached eggs and served with Hollandaise sauce.

Now what is a Hollandaise sauce? It's essentially the backbone of a good eggs benedict without it, it's just eggs n bread. The Hollandaise sauce is one of the sauces served in French haute cuisine. It is a mixture of egg yolk and butter along with seasoning such as lemon juice, salt and a bit of pepper. Yes this sauce is definitely fattening but oh so buttery good.

This is Bonjour Brioche's version of a benny served with fresh green salad along with their signature dressing. It was so delicious and will be my benny that will be compared with the future bennies to come.

After we licked our plates clean, onto dessert which I appear to always have room for but one of my friends was crying out no since she was stuffed to the max. However, being the good friend that I am I forced her to share in my joy for desserts and split the tart with me. I couldn't resist it since upon clearing our plates away the waiter returned tantalizing us with this assortment of tarts. He's evil I tell you. Just kidding. Or maybe not.

The flavors we were presented with were pear, strawberry, blueberry, lemon, coconut, chocolate, pecan and 2 other flavors I don't quite remember since I was too busy taking a picture.

We ended up picking pear and it was pretty tasty. It was served with whip cream but I think it already is sweet without it.

The grand total came to about $50 for 3 people which I thought was pretty decent. The portions were good and the food was unbelievable along with the helpful friendly staff.

Overall, it was two thumbs up and I definitely recommend a trip to this favorite neighborhood spot. Now I have to make a second trip with my sick friend so she can taste what I am drooling about.

TOTAL BILL $50...EAT HERE NEXT!!!