yummie ice cream waffle

We went to Pacific Mall in Markham (Steeles and Kennedy) to pick up some DVDs, but while we were there we couldn`t resist stopping for a snack. We were really tempted by the bubble tea that everyone was drinking, but decided to get a ice cream waffle instead.

Yummie is located upstairs and is a bulk food store. In addition to selling bulk candies and food, they also sell egg waffles and these ice cream waffles. It`s a brick of the most amazing ice cream (we chose Mango) wrapped in a thin waffle shell for only $3.00! It only took us a couple of minutes to scarf down this treat, but it really hit the spot.

restaurant review: milestones restaurant

Restaurant: Milestones Restaurant
Location: 17-3401 Dufferin St., Toronto, Ontario
Telephone: 416-789-9940
Website: milestonesrestaurants.com

Meal type: Brunch

Average price per person: $11-$25

What I ordered:
- Eggs Milestones (pictured below)

Ratings:

Comments:
We recently discovered that Milestones now serves brunch. I`ve been there before and was really impressed by my dish - the prime rib hash (pictured at the beginning of the post), so I was excited to go back and try another dish. This time I opted for the eggs Milestones and it was delicious. I love hollaindaise sauce! I definitely want to learn to make it at home.

Unfortunately our waitress was horrible. She only had a handful of tables to serv eand spent most of her time at the largest table and almost completely ignored the rest of her customers. And the Yorkville Milestones is definitely dated in it`s decor. You can tell it`s 1 of the older locations.

tim hortons

I love Tim Hortons and I don't even think 1 post is enough to capture everything I want to say about Tim's. I think my obsession started when I was living and working in Hamilton, Ontario (where the first Tim Hortons was opened). Actually, the first store located on Ottawa Street in the east end of Hamilton was close to where I worked and I would swing by there to get donuts once in a while. We even brewed it at home!

I know lots of coffee connoisseurs turn their noses up at Tim's coffee, but I don't care. I still love it - and it's affordable too! Although I guess now Starbucks has lowered their prices to stay competitive.

Some of the things I love about Tim Hortons:

- iced cappacuino (with chocolate milk)

- honey cruellers & honey crueller timbits

- roll up the rim time

- hot smoothies with a hazelnut flavor shot

wilton cake decorating classes

I get bored very easily, as most of my friends know, so every now and then I'll take a general interest course to keep me occupied and quench my thirst for something fun and crafty.

A while back I took a Wilton Cake decorating class at Michaels (The Arts & Crats Store). I never even knew they offered these kinds of classes in-store, but they do! It was lots of fun and not very expensive at all!

For more details check out a Michaels near you or visit: michaels.com

restaurant review: canyon chophouse ($25 set course meal)

Restaurant: Canyon Creek Chophouse
Location: 430 Progress Ave., Scarborough, Ontario
Telephone: 416-296-1400
Website: canyoncreekchophouse.com

Meal type: Dinner

Average price per person: $26-$60

What I ordered:
- Ceasar salad starter
- Chicago-cut striploin (with a side of mashed potatoes and grilled vegatables)
- Lidnt chocolate cheesecake
- side of sweet potato fries
- coke to drink (free refills)

Ratings:











Comments:
I know I already reviewed the Canyon Creek Chophouse in Burlington, but I had to write about the dinner we had at the Scarborough location. We were trying to decide where to eat, when we drove by the Canyon Creek and saw a banner advertising a special $25 3-course dinner menu. Similar to Summerlicious where you have 2-3 options for a starter, main course and dessert to choose from.

It's a pretty sweet deal considering the chicago-cut sirloin entree alone is usually $29 alone. Granted the portions are smaller, but I was still totally unable to finish all my food.

Unfortunately I wasn't impressed with the mashed potatoes or grilled vegatbles. Similarly to last time my grilled vegetables were very measly (would it kill them to give more than 1 piece of red pepper? or more than 2 pieces of asparagus?) and my mashed potatoes were cold and un-appetizing. But the rest of the food was great.

The service and atmosphere were very good. I really love their patios. They did a really good job creating an inviting, but chic outdoor place to eat.

Sorry - no pictures! My camera is still on the fritz.

ottawa chronicles: top 5 picks

I'm sure as I try more & more restaurants in Ottawa this list will change, but for now...in no particular order:

Restaurant: The Standard Tavern
Location: 360 Elgin Street
Website: thestandardtavern.com

Restaurant: Social
Location: 537 Sussex Drive
Website: social.ca

Restaurant: Eggspectation
Location: 171 Bank Street
Website: eggspectations.com

Restaurant: Sushi Kanata
Location: 655 Kanata Avenue
Website: sushikanata.com

Restaurant: Green Tea Sushi
Location: 280 Elgin Street

gathering 'round the table

Back in university me and my housemates had a weekend ritual where we would make a huge breakfast on the weekend and enjoy it all together. We were never able to do this on weekdays (because we had classes), but on weekends when there was no rush we would indulge our appetites.

Our breakfast feasts comprised of goodies such as: freshly brewed Tim Horton's coffee, bacon, sausages, pancakes, eggs, hash browns, toast, fresh fruit, etc.

I miss those amazing breakfasts and the great company that came with it. Nowadays when I want to indulge my breakfast appetite I head to a diner or a place like Cora's. I never expected I'd be lazier to make food when I was done school.

way to a man's heart

I made these chocolate-chip pancakes many years ago for my sweetie-pie for valentine's day.

They were actually a lot harder to make than I had imagined. I had a pancake form to shape them while on the griddle, but that meant making 1 pancake at a time and being very careful that the pancake mix didn't escape from the form.

Next time I make these I think I'll cheat & just cookie-cutter the pancakes afterwards. =P

restaurant review: tea shop 168

Restaurant: Tea Shop 168
Location: 5661 Steeles Ave. East, T&T Supermarket Unit #12
Website: teashop168.ca

Meal type: Drinks (bubble tea)

Average price per person: $0-$10

What I ordered: Traditional Bubble Tea with Tapioca

Ratings:





Comments:
Okay, so it's not exactly a "restaurant", but I couldn't resist reviewing it anyways.

I love the sealed bubble tea cups - they're really convenient expecially if you're holding a bunch of other things and trying to juggle a drink at the same time. Also, it made shaking the tea so easy & non-messy to distribute the cold of the ice around. My only complaint is that the tapioca balls were not sweetened so it was more bland than I'm used to & than I like.

Their special price for the plain bubble tea ($1.99 + tax) is great though, especially since that is what I always get anyways, so I'll overlook it.

taiwanese shaved ice dessert

Not too long ago I tried this dessert for the first time while having dinner with my family at Great Khan Mongolian Grill.

According to my search results on wikipedia it's called "tsua bing" in Taiwanese.

It's made up of: ice shavings, toppings, and finished off with condensed milk.

The toppings can include: fresh fruit, red bean, fruit jellies, or all of the mentioned. My favorite topping is the mango jellies. Nice a simple and really lets the mango flavour stand out. It's a very light and refreshing dessert. It would be awesome to be able to make this at home!

Time to dust off my snow-cone maker!