On Holiday

Hey everyone! I’m currently in New York, and finally finished up this post recapping the rest of my time in Toronto. So keep an eye out for my New York recap as well.

My mom spotted fresh figs at the store, so naturally they accompanied my breakfast the next morning.

Along with the most delicious yogurt ever Liberte’s Plain Organic, multigrain cereal, cinnamon, and almond butter. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find that specific yogurt since I’ve been in the states. I’ll try my luck once I get back down to Florida.

We also spotted a bread that’s made without yeast since my mom is trying to figure out the culprit of her stomach upsets.

Topped with vegetable hummus, Laughing Cow, avocado, grape tomato bits, and red onion.

The bread was dry, but nothing unexpected since that is how that bread typically is.

Later on, I went downtown and moseyed around.

I stopped in to get a big cup of tea.

I also went back to the chocolate bar, MoRoCo, with a purpose.

I had never tried a macaron before, but have heard lots about them. The reviews for these were comparing them to the likes of Ladurée and Hermes, which I’ve heard are the best.

The Salted Caramel…

It was quite tasty for the most part, but just a tad bit too sweet for my taste.

I also tried lemon macarons.

I actually enjoyed this one! When I bought the boxed pair I wasn’t too sure about the lemon and my heart was set on trying the salted caramel. Since they didn’t have any of the salted caramel macarons left to buy individually I decided to take a chance and get the last one that was paired with the lemon flavor. The lemon one had a much better consistency than the salted caramel, and had just the right amount of sweetness. Not to mention it brightened up my taste buds with it’s zesty flavor!

Zing!

I always think of macarons as delicate treats.

I also picked up some local sheep’s milk yogurt.

I wasn’t a big fan of it however. It was very pungent, but atleast it was creamy! Did you know that because of it’s molecular composition it is easier to digest, and can even be used as baby formula!

And another local find… strawberries from Ontario!

I find that local produce always tastes better.

Two fruit finds for breakfast: persimmon and strawberries

I was able to make a few outings to the downtown area during my trip, and came across a lot of interesting things.

Check out this work of architectural art at The Royal Ontario Musuem.

After a long day of walking around I picked up some take out at Fresh.

I followed the recommendation from a few of you, and I’m glad I did. Sadly, I couldn’t sit down and eat because I was with my pup, Matilda. But it’s alright because they didn’t make a fuss about having to take my order at the door. In fact, the man who helped me held Matilda for me while I went in to snap some pictures!

Snap snap

The first time I intentionally got take-out for myself in years!

I’m rarely in the mood for take-out, and I usually don’t find the motivation to order take-out. Wait. What? Since when does take-out involve motivation? Well, for me it does. I just have a lot of things that I can put together in a cinch and voila! And if I’m getting food from elsewhere I’d rather just go to the restaurant. So that’s why I rarely order take-out.

My eyes went straight to the quinoa-battered onion rings along with their housemade BBQ sauce.

Oh my word! These were incredible and I didn’t have to try the other onion rings in Toronto to know that these deserve to be dubbed “one of the best”. You get more than the usual satisfying crunch with the quinoa. Then you bite into it you get to the soft onion ring in the middle. The BBQ sauce was the perfect dipping sauce for these, thanks to the waiter’s recommendation! Seriously, I could go on and on about how great these were. If you’re in the area you should definitely stop by and try these.

I ordered their monthly-special salad, which had too many delicious things to remember them all.

The ginger dressing was another welcomed recommendation from the waiter. Let’s see… it had all sorts of sprouts, sweet potato rounds, tofu, all sorts of colorful kale, pumpkin seeds, quinoa, goji berries, broccoli… ohhh so many things to remember!

Matilda and I had quite an adventure that day.

Finally got back to the hotel to enjoy the rest of the salad.

And Matilda got a giant doggie cookie after enduring her first subway ride.

On our last night in Toronto we met up with my mom’s co-workers at a Hungarian restaurant.

The only options I could have were the salads, aside from this creamy mushroom dish with tomato sauce that didn’t sound appetizing to me. I ordered the spinach salad with fresh fruits and an orange-yogurt dressing. It was actually quite tasty! Not very filling, but what did I expect? I had another restaurant picked out for me and my mom to enjoy, but she wanted to meet up with her  co-workers who were already at this place. To be honest, I was upset about not being able to enjoy an actual dinner together, especially on our last night. Oh well. Atleast the company was fun!

So my last night in Toronto entailed a yummy salad and a microwaveable soup.

The next morning involved quick packing.

All the while little Matilda was relaxing on her pillow.

So that was my trip to Toronto! It was very low key, but it was nice to atleast be introduced to Canada. If I go there again I’d like to do things a little different so it’d be easier for me to get to places, so I can experience it more. Ever have a vacation that you’d just want to do over?

I’m extending the Restaurant.com giveaway till next Wednesday. Who in the D.C. area wouldn’t like to get a $25 gift-certificate to any of the restaurants on the D.C. guide list?! What’s better? I’m giving away four. So I’ll repeat the rules:

1. Browse through the Washington D.C. restaurant guide, and let me know which restaurant you’d like to go to.

2. If you have a blog you can mention this giveaway in a post.

3.  Share this give away on Twitter: “Win a Restaurant.com $25 Gift Certificate for the D.C. area from @mixoparthenos over at  http://wp.me/puETn-1ze!”

Each of these counts as an entry so please make sure to notify if me if you share this on Twitter. Good luck! The giveaway officially ends next Wednesday 13 July, 2011 at midnight.

Getting to Know…?

I enjoyed reading the ways that everyone gets to know the places they visit. A few of my favorite ways is by going on outdoor runs, trying the local food, walking around, taking public transportation if it’s there, talking to people, and going to places like galleries, neighborhoods, and parks. Sometimes if I’m lucky there are festivities going on during my visit!

Every major city seems to have a neighborhood with a high population of people from another country.

Whether it’s a Chinatown, Little Italy, or Little Havana.

I’m always curious about any places Dim Sum.

Later on we headed on over to Yorkville Ave.

A sign for desserts caught my mothers eye, and we walked into the lushest dessert place I’ve been to yet.

You can get ‘Fondue To Go’ if you so desire.

Toronto’s MoRoCo is a place for lovers of chocolate, and those who don’t mind in indulging. This place was very unique and eclectic, being influenced by French sipping chocolate, edgy glamour, and European salons. There’s a boutique where you can get truffles, chocolates bars, gourmet s’mores, other chocolate treats, macarons, and even frozen yogurt!

Or you can sit in the patio or the indoor lounge, and order from the menu.

Perhaps the service was having an off night because it took them quite awhile to get to us, and finally when they did they weren’t very accommodating. We still wanted to enjoy one of their treats though…

So we decided to get a frozen yogurt and Ginger Rocks to go.

We split a ‘twist’ of chocolate and original frozen yogurt topped with caramelized pecans, milk chocolate chai sauce, and strawberries. The Ginger Rocks are these incredible little bites of crystalized ginger covered in 62% dark chocolate and dusted with icing sugar. Sadly they were all out of their macarons, but maybe I’ll find my way back there to see if they have them again.

The next day we ventured out of Toronto to another part of Canada…

Don’t go over the Niagara Falls!

Then a rainbow decided to come out in celebration of New York’s recent decision to allow same-sex marriage.

Woo hoo!

Eventually we headed back and our tummies were knocking on our doors telling us it was dinner time.

My mom said this was a Thai restaurant, but when we got there we found out it was a sushi place.

I am not the biggest fan of sushi, but I didn’t want to rain on my mom’s seafood parade.

I did find something on the menu, and I do like seaweed salads!

After our little bite to eat we went to another grocery store called Fortino’s. I continue to be amazed by Canada’s grocery stores. Perhaps that is a strange thing to be amazed by, but as a lover of food and cooking… well it’s not so strange afterall. I found some of your recommendations like the Liberté yogurt, President’s Choice, Taste of Nature bars, and some other finds.

How I know I’m in Canada… Vega everywhere I go!

I got the Liberté plain organic yogurt…

And oh my goodness! It was so creamy and full of flavor. It tasted similar to one of my favorite yogurts: the honey flavored Greek Gods. But this was plain, less sweet, and not Greek. I’m pretty sure they sell this brand of yogurt in the states, so I will definitely be making this my staple yogurt. We just got this container yesterday and we’re almost done with it. It’s that good!

I’ve enjoyed this straight out of the container and here with raw multi-grain hot cereal, mango, dried figs, almond butter, and cinnamon.

By the way, the grocery store I went to in my last post was Highland Farms. They have a great selection of cheeses, breads, vegetarian items, and produce from around the world. This is one of those places that just has so many things that it will take you awhile to peruse through everything.

I had mentioned that one of the ways that I like to get to know a place is by trying out the local food. Recently, I was contacted by a rep over at Restaurant.com. I’m sure that many of you have heard of this site, and may have even taken advantage of their great offers.

I was given the opportunity to host a giveaway for four Restaurant.com $25 gift certificates for the Washington D.C. area. You can click over here to see what restaurants are on their list.

Now I know that not all of my readers are from the D.C. area, but if you are or if you plan on going there then this giveaway is right up your alley! Here’s what you have to do to enter:

1. Browse through the Washington D.C. restaurant guide, and let me know which restaurant you’d like to go to.

2. If you have a blog you can mention this giveaway in a post.

3.  Share this give away on Twitter: “Win a Restaurant.com $25 Gift Certificate for the D.C. area from @mixoparthenos over at  http://wp.me/puETn-1yH!”

Each of these counts as an entry so please make sure to notify if me if you share this on Twitter. Thanks and best of luck! The giveaway ends next friday 8 July, 2011 at midnight. Remember I have FOUR of these to give away!

And if this giveaway may not be for a part of the states that’s on your radar, keep in mind that they offer discounts on over 15,000 restaurants across the states. So you can check out what they have available near you.

Welcome to Canada!

Good day to everyone and greetings from Canada! I arrived in Toronto on Wednesday night, and I’ll be staying here till Canada Day. Then my next stop is New York.

First, I needed to motivate myself to pack for an 18-day trip.

A pot of mint tea to help me relax.

Thankfully I had someone cute to help me pack… or atleast keep me company.

Whilst I had a super skin-tightening clay mask that always makes my eyes bulge out.

Progress!

Packed a bagel for the trip.

Sprouted Wheat Onion Poppyseed Bagels with cream cheese, marinated portobello mushrooms, avocado, and some cucumber slices.

Alvarado Street Bakery makes great bread along with other things like bagels, rolls, and pizza bread! My old roommate would always get these bagels and they smelled so awesome when she’d toast them.

Fig Almond cake for snacking–check.

When we got to the airport there was a flight delay. It worked in our favor since we weren’t sure if we’d make it in time for check-in since it was an international flight, plus we had Matilda.

Oh, and that bagel sandwich? It was so good!

 We finally made it, and the cutest Canadian ever granted us permission to enter the country. My mom and I should’ve taken him up on his offer as tour-guide… even if he was just kidding!

Checking out her new surroundings.

First morning I decided to go downstairs with my mom to have breakfast.

They get their scrumptious bread from a local bakery, and the fried potatoes reminded me of Bratkartofeln. Alongside with a bowl of cottage cheese topped with fruits, muesli, and nuts.

My mom looked lovely before she headed into work.

Around lunchtime my mom and a few of her co-workers swooped me off to a Vietnamese restaurant.

I ordered the stir-fried vegetables with tofu. It was a simple meal, but I’m not sure what was in the sauce… or what it was but my stomach was swimming for the rest of the day.

Also tried a funky looking lychee drink.

Later on we went on a real food adventure–a Canadian grocery store!

My goodness! The produce section was HUGE! Foods from all over the world. Lots from Asia and South America. My mom even found granadia, also known as passion fruit. I also found a ton of kabochas, but there’s no way of preparing them here… unless the hotel lets me use their kitchen.

I was amazed by all of the cheeses and breads that were at the store–these are some Canadian specialties.

They had a shelf just of German breads, and different kinds of pretzels to choose from. There was also a freezer-full of gluten-free options as well!

And lookie here what I was reunited with!

They stopped carrying these in America because people may choke on the small toys inside -cough-stupid lawsuits-cough-.

Milk chocolate goodness!!!

Beware you could choke on these, bahaha!

I was curious about these… they reminded me of a less saltier version of Bugles–tasty.

Got some of the best hummus ever (you can smell the caramelized onions!), and I wish the US had lentil salads like this on the regular.

I would gladly buy pre-packaged food like this!

Enjoyed over a bed of lettuce and various sprouts.

We also got a loaf of Swiss fruit and muesli bread.

Ze cheeeese

Cheese monster

Such a creamy and oily texture under the rind.

Pantry full–check.

Fridge full–check.

My mom spotted fresh gooseberries at the store as well.

We also got this interesting tea to try–this is what it looks like when a tea bag is holding on for dear life.

I also found some chamomile flowers when I was on a walk with Matilda.

This is just the beginning of my trip so there will be many more recaps! So far I really think it’s neat that everything here is in French and English. I’ve been reading everything in French with my best accent, and just having fun with it. I wanted to go on a run and explore some more. Alas it started raining heavily so that will have to wait.

In other news, Meg has started a new tradition on her blog called “Feature Friday”, and she asked me to be on her blog! Meg is one of those girls that has a good (and incredibly beautiful) head on her shoulders. She’s got a great outlook and such an awesome sense of humor. So check out her blog if you don’t know her already, and you can also check out my post right over here!

I hope you all have a great weekend ahead of you.

How do you guys like to get to know the places you visit?

Anyone have any recommendations for while I’m here?