Light Cafe in Toronto – Baldwin Village

Hello Loves!

I finally got the chance to check out Light Cafe in Baldwin Village and I’ve got some good news and some bad news. Good news, the place is super cute and some of the food is really good. Bad news, the lighting is awful and some of the food could be better.

I got the mushroom truffle croissant sandwich which was amazing and I would definitely recommend it to anyone…unless you don’t like mushrooms of course. Just thinking about it is making me salivate. The croissant was nice and flaky so expect lots of crumbs. To drink, I got the iced southberry herbal tea which is beyond beautiful. I love the effort they put into presentation! Definitely makes it Instagram worthy. It is light and refreshing but might come off tasting medicine-y to some. You’ve be warned.

My friend got the lobster bisque soup which I have to say was quite a disappointment. The soup was very watery and did not taste like lobster at all. It’s a shame because it looked promising, especially in that rose gold mini pot. She got an italian soda to drink which was refreshing as well. Perfect for those who like a little fizz. 

Here is a close up of the beautiful drink. Bonus, you get to eat the fruits after or while you’re drinking!

Sadly, I didn’t get to take pictures of the restaurant because the lighting was horrible. We actually waited specifically for the only window seat in the restaurant. If you’re looking for a nice brunch spot and don’t care for photos, I would suggest going to Light Cafe. If you’re like me and need to have pictures of the food you eat, be ready to wait.

They’ve got a bunch of interesting looking desserts that I didn’t get to try this time around but I’ll have to go back sometime to try them. Let me know if you’ve been to Light Cafe or if you plan on going.

xo, Rose

 

The Dime Toronto

The Dime Toronto – Restaurant Review

Hello Loves!

I stumbled across The Dime on Queen while walking on Queen St. W. the other day. It was just around lunch time so I was looking for something to munch on. What really drew me in were the tiles that said “Made in Canada” in front of the restaurant but alas, I could not take a picture because there was a big sign in the way. As I looked closer at this sign, I realized that everything was $4.95! What?! So upon investigation, it turns out that The Dime is a brother/sister/cousin/whatever you want to call it company to Queen St. Warehouse which we all know is a budget friendly (read cheap) place to eat but usually with massive lines. So, I was pleasantly surprised to see that The Dime was relatively empty so I of course snagged the window seat in hopes of being able to get some nice pictures.

the dime toronto

Like I said, everything on their menu is $4.95 so being the little piggy that I am, ordered 3 dishes for myself. I got the avocado toast, street tacos, and cajun carbonara. The avocado toast was made with avocado (duh), toasted focaccia, chilies, feta, radish, balsamic reduction, and peppered greens. I definitely am a huge fan of the balsamic reduction and the flavours overall were really nice. My only wish was that it had a tiny bit more avocado since it seemed to be swallowed by the peppered greens. avocado toast from the dime toronto

There are 3 options for the street tacos and each order comes with 3 tacos. Unfortunately you can’t order one of each and have to pick between the Al Pastor (slow cooked, spiced pulled pork, grilled pineapple, red onion, cilantro), Baja shrimp (battered shrimp, avocado, carrot-cabbage-broccoli-honey miso slaw, toasted brioche bun) or the Jerk Chicken (jerk marinated chicken, roasted red pepper mayo, fresh cabbage, pickled onion, cilantro). I ended up getting the Al Pastor and boy was it spicy. I liked the flavours but it was definitely too hot for my palate. Be WARNED!

The Cajun Carbonara was what I looked forward to most since I am a huge fan of carbonara pasta. This one came with smoky bacon, fresh cream, cajun spice, parmesan, black pepper, linguine, and fresh tomatoes. At $4.95, it was such a steal. I would definitely get the Cajun Carbonara again.

the dime toronto food

Lastly, I could not resist getting some donuts when asked if I wanted some. Pro Tip: NEVER SAY NO TO DONUTS! This is the only dessert they offer at The Dime but I’m okay with that. Made fresh to order, they may take a bit of time to get to your table if they’re busy but I can tell you, they are amazing little balls coated with cinnamon sugar with some having strawberry filling served with a side of chocolate sauce.cinnamon donuts

All in all, a great restaurant with cool vibes and the nicest wait staff. I can’t wait to visit again to try some more items. I would definitely recommend you check out The Dime on Queen before more people find out about it. I anticipate there will be massive line-ups like their sister/brother/cousin company.

Let me know if you try out The Dime on Queen or if you have any other recommendations for cheap eats around the city! xo, Rose

 

 

Butter Avenue Newly Launched Afternoon Tea

Hello Loves!

For those of you that don’t know yet, Butter Avenue has launched a new afternoon tea menu. I got to try it in May, the weekend before Mother’s day, but haven’t gotten around to posting until now (whoops). I’m sorry I’m so bad at blogging (haha).

Anyway, you can see that we started off with some tea, there is a selection of tea you can choose from. They have some that are specifically for afternoon tea or you can choose something from their regular menu. What are the options you ask? Well, I forgot to take a picture of the menu so I guess you’ll just have to go and ask yourself.

As for now, here are some lovely pictures of the tantalizing desserts that they offer for the afternoon tea set. I can guarantee you that even the biggest sweet toothed person you know will be completely satisfied with the offerings.

We start with a savory quiche type thing. I think there was ham or bacon or some type of meat in it. It was delicious. I highly recommend the almond tea option (it’s my favorite). There are apple slices, cinnamon, and chai in it as well if I recall correctly (don’t quote me).

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Next, we moved on to the dessert portion. A.K.A this tower of goodness. Really, are any words really needed?

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What are you waiting for? Catch you at Butter Avenue. xo, Rose

Easy Avocado Pesto Pasta Recipe

This is a super easy avocado pesto pasta recipe that I experimented with the other day. I wanted a recipe to use up all the avocados that were getting way too ripe and I didn’t want to go to waste. I would have made guacamole if I had the right ingredients and weren’t lazy to go out and buy chips and other sh*t. Oh well. So, this recipe was born. Super easy and quick, you really only need to cook the pasta.

You will need:

Cherry tomatoes/ roma tomatoes / grape tomatoes or whatever you call small tomatoes. I cut mine in half and then sauteed them with salt and pepper. This is completely optional. I just like how sauteing tomatoes really changes the flavour of them. 



Avocadoes: The number of avocados you need will depend on how many people you plan on feeding/ how many you want to get rid of before they go bad. Smash these in a bowl or process in a food processor to get a smoother consistency. 

Some sort of Pasta: After you have cooked the pasta of your choice, mix the tomatoes and avocado with the pasta and add pesto. You can make your own or just buy store bought pesto. We’re going for easy, so store bought it is.  

Then you just mix it all together and season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Done! Super simple but so good.

Do you have any avocado recipes to share?

xo, Rose

Bar Ape Pop Up Event (YUM!)

I was invited to Bar Ape’s Pop Up Event hosted at The Sovereign and got to sample some of their soft serve concoctions. I was first introduced to Bar Ape in the summertime when I stumbled upon their cute ape (pronounced ah-pay) near Trinity Bellwoods with my friend Alexa. They usually serve gelato bars but at the event, their focus was on soft serve gelato.

I got to sample their pear sorbet, pumpkin seed gelato, and a pistachio gelato on a gluten-free cookie. All of the flavours were amazing but I must say the pumpkin seed gelato was my favourite. Also, the gluten-free cookie was amazing and I hope they sell them in packs one day so I can buy them in bulk (or at least give me the recipe to it).

They are not sure if they will be back next year due to problems with the city. Hopefully everything pans out. They did mention that they would like to open a storefront so that might be coming soon. Please stay Bar Ape; You’re absolutely scrumptious!

Have you tried Bar Ape yet? What are your thoughts?

xo, Rose