Burger Week + Priest vs. Chuck

Did you hear? For the next five days from May 30 - June 3, it's The Grid's (@TheGridTo) very first Burger Week! HAPPY BURGER WEEK! So what does that mean exactly? It means it's time to put on those fat pants after you've decided which of these 20 participating burger spots to hit up. And considering a Burger Week burger will only cost you $5, perhaps I might need reinforced elastics on those fat pants...

So on a somewhat related note, this past weekend I went and had burgers twice....one right after the other. It might have been all the excitement and anticipation for burger week, or perhaps just a simple craving, but either way, it happened. I didn't intend on it playing out like that though. In fact I would've been perfectly happy eating just one burger that night. But the problem was I couldn't decide whether or not I wanted The Burger's Priest or Holy Chuck Burger, so obviously the solution was to have both, right?

[Toronto] Jacobs & Co Steakhouse

Review Location:
12 Brant Street
Toronto, ON


I actually considered not blogging about my dinner at Jacobs & Co Steakhouse (@jacobsandco) because it was that one odd day where I didn't have my camera on me. And anyone that knows me, knows that it almost never happens. But my experience that night was so unforgettable that I thought it was worthy of a post; even if I didn't have the perfect pictures to do it justice. A big thank you to my boyfriend for taking these pictures on his phone, knowing that I might change my mind and need photos afterall. You know me too well! :)

Let's keep this intro part short so we can get to the part where I get to talk about the food. Jacobs & Co Steakhouse is probably one of the best steakhouses I've been to.

[Toronto] The Black Hoof

Location Review:
938 Dundas St. W.
Toronto, ON
416-551-8854


So I haven't been very diligent in the past month with this blog, and as a result I've had a backlog of restaurants to write up. So much that I ended up visiting the restaurant of today's review:  The Black Hoof (@theblackhoof) twice before I got a chance to review it. But the good news is, that is a good indication of how much I liked it.

When I went to Chicago, I visited a restaurant named The Purple Pig. My brother in law Nelson mentioned that it reminded him of  The Black Hoof, with both restaurants serving the most obscure parts of the animal. It's pretty ironic how these internal organs and far-fetched body parts which I thought only Chinese cultures would consume are so mainstream in Western cuisine now a days. But when you have someone like Jenn Agg (@theblackhoof) behind the restaurant and Brandon Olsen as head chef (@King_of_ginger), it's no wonder how the most obscure ingredients can become such a culinary delight. It's also been highly regarded as one of the best restaurants in Toronto!

So anyways, for simplicity's sake I've just decided to dump both of my visits into one post.

[Toronto] Fin Izakaya

Location Review:
55 Eglinton Ave E
 Toronto, ON M4P1G8

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Whenever I think about going to an izakaya, there really is only one place that consistently pops up in my head: Guu Izakaya. And so when someone suggested  Fin Izakaya (@FinIzakaya) in the Mount Pleasant area of Eglington as an alternative, I was delighted when I finally went with Carmen (@carmenhungry), Justine (@foodigatorJ), and Vickie (@kiki_BFF).

Banana Mafia Asian Street Market Party

So I'm a little behind on this post, but I figured a great event deserved at least a mention, even if it is a tad late. But hey, better late than never, right?

So this aforementioned great event is the inaugural Banana Mafia Asian Street Market. It's a bit of a mouthful to say , but the concept is simple. Five great chefs of the Asian culinary world: Chef Nick Liu (@Ninjachefnick) of GwaiLo, Chef Robbie Hojilla of Ursa, Chef Leemo Han (@Limohan) from Swish by Han and Oddseoul, Chef Jeff Claudio of Yours Truly (@YoursTruly229), and Chef Jonathan Poon of Chantecler (@chanteclerTO) gather at Toronto's Amsterdam Brewery with the objective to serve delicious dishes in a Singaporean night market inspired setting.

Mavrik Wine Bar Tasting

Review Location:
676 Queen Street West
Toronto, ON
(416) 214-9429


Last week Grace and I were invited by Tim (@mrtimchan) to Mavrik Wine Bar (@MavrikWineBar) for a wine tasting event. Not being much of a wine person, I was pretty intimidated. I don't know the first thing about wine, except the fact that it's made from grapes, right? Well lucky for me, once a month Mavrik invites professional sommelier Alexander Hamilton to educate on the art of wine tasting to whoever would like to drop by. And if you ever have a chance to talk catch a conversation with owners Liz Choi and Joanne Park, they will be able to tell you how Mavrik came about. I'll elaborate more later, but it's an interesting and inspiring story!

[Chicago] Wow Bao

Review Location:
1 West Wacker Dr
Chicago, IL 60601

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When I first walked by one of the 5 Wow Bao locations found in Chicago, my initial reaction was to chuckle at the originality of the name. Two rhyming one syllable words, creatively summing up exactly what their product is, and how good it is....genius!

In a nutshell,  Wow Bao (@baomouth) is a fast-food style eatery that serves Chinese/Asian fusion style steamed baos (bao being a Chinese word meaning bun), pot stickers, and rice bowls. The ordering and food delivery process is efficient and quick, making it a great grab-and-go option. And as a Chinese person who's had many a baos in my life, I have to say, the ones at Wow Bao are actually half decent!

[Chicago] The Purple Pig

Location Review:
500 N Michigan Ave
Chicago, IL 60611

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After an early morning architecture boat tour of Chicago (which by the way was AMAZING), I went along with my sister, Nelson (@BiteMeFoodBlog), and a couple of friends, for some lunch at The Purple Pig (@thepigchicago). This award winning Chicago restaurant is located right on the Magnificent Mile, only steps away from the beautiful river where we had our boat tour. The pathway leading up to the restaurant entrance iis guarded by a large black gate, proudly displaying their motto: "Cheese, Swine, & Wine". And it really doesn't get much more straight forward than that. The restaurant is a collaboration of three well established Chicago chefs, bringing some of the best home made cheeses, pork dishes, and fine wines.

[Chicago] Joe's Seafood, Prime Rib, & Stone Crab

Location Review:
60 East Grand Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611

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The story of Joe's starts in Florida almost 100 years ago in 1913, when Joe Weiss opened up a small lunch counter on Miami beach. This iconic beach-side spot established its claim to fame through their Florida stone crabs. In fact, before Mr. Weiss, nobody even knew that stone crabs were edible. With it's huge success, two more locations have surfaced, one being in Chicago. Drawing its reputation from the original location, the menus are almost identical, allowing patrons to experience the Floridian jewel of a restaurant without the long flight down south. Anywhere there is great seafood, count me in!