Tag Archives: gnocchi

Now that’s a tasty meatball!!!!

Now, if you’ve been to Little Italy lately, you might be going “Dude, where’s all the Italian food?” Other than a few places right around College and Clinton, it’s pretty hard to find some real-deal Italian in the neighbourhood. So when I heard about Quadro Ristorante, this funky joint that opened on College, just east of Clinton, a couple years back, you KNOW we had to check it out, bro! And since this place is serving up five meatballs for $16.50, I think I know what I’m gonna order…

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Dude, these balls are magically delicious, bro! You’ve got a nice mix of beef and veal, served in tomato sauce with some basil and grated cheese — yes please! The meatballs are tender, juicy, and really soak up the sauce… but you KNOW that’s just a light snack in Flavourtown!!!!

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Now, this place might be more of a pizza place, with their real-deal, wood-fired oven in the kitchen. But me, I’m going gnocchi. I’ve got three words for you: wild boar bolognese, bro!!!! I gotta say though, this seemed like a pretty small portion, and not just because it came in a giant bowl. I’m definitely still gonna have room for dessert…

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Now, we’ve had our share of tiramisu on Triple B, but I don’t think I’ve had one before where you get the ladyfingers on top. But this was still pretty, pretty good, tasting just like tiramisu should — so I really can’t complain…

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Also, I got the chance to check another Italian beer off the bucket list. Sure, you can get a Peroni or a Moretti here (and I think they even have Stella), but instead I’m gonna go with a Semedorato. I had never even heard of this beer before, bro — but to be honest, it pretty much tastes like Peroni (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

You’re gonna be jelly of this beef tagliatelle…

Now, beef tenderloin on pasta is not something you see every day. I mean, chicken, seafood, or maybe spaghetti and meatballs… but I had never heard of any place pairing beef tenderloin with pasta before. So, we’re hanging out at 12 Tables, this cozy, family-run Italian joint at Ave & Lav (that’s Avenue and Lawrence, bro!), where they’re serving up this tasty tagliatelle in truffle sauce —  and it comes with either chicken or beef, so you KNOW we went with beef, bro!!!!!!

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This dish is super creamy, and you do get a nice hint of truffle at the end. But I wouldn’t have known this was tenderloin if they didn’t tell me. The meat is tasty, but just doesn’t taste like the cream of the crop. I would still order this again, though…

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But because we’re all about meat and potatoes here on Triple B, we also ordered some gnocchi, with a creamy Gorgonzola sauce. And these gnocchi were the highlight of the night — soft and pillowy, with that sauce adding a nice little kick at the end. Man, if they ever had All You Can Eat Gnocchi Night, I would be here with flip-flops on, bro!!!!!

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But of course, we’ve still got room for dessert. Now, you won’t find tiramisu, panna cotta or cannoli on the dessert menu here — but they do have this dark chocolate brownie, and that’s alright with me.

Real-deal ricotta gnocchi @ The Eaton Centre, bro!!!!

So, the other day I’m at the Eaton Centre, stocking up on warm socks for winter, when I walked past the Samsung Experience Store and saw a sign for the Samsung Chef Experience. Turns out that Chef Craig Harding from La Palma, home of the 100-layer lasagna, was whipping up some ricotta gnocchi with sausage and chilies…so you KNOW I had to come check it out!!!

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These tasty cheese nuggets in Flavourtown were hand-rolled and cut, brought to a boil and then finished in a pan with some dandelion greens — shut the back door!!!

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OK, now let’s break it down…

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Dude, this gnocchi was gn-yummy in my gn-tummy! You had the perfect spongy texture of the cheesy dumplings, with a bit of bitterness from the greens, nice crispy bites of sausage and a whole lotta fresh parma on top… You KNOW I went back for seconds, son!!!!!!!!!!!

Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the fandango???

Now, I’m not normally one for fine dining, but if you name your restaurant after a line from my favourite Queen song, then you KNOW I’ll be there with a crown on, bro! So we’re hanging out at Scaramouche, this funky joint at the bottom of a condo, a few blocks away from Av & Dav. It’s a little off the beaten path, but dude, if I lived in that building, I’d eat here every day! (Did I mention they’ve got a pasta bar upstairs???)

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So, we’re starting off with an appy that eats like a meal — the Gnocchi Parisienne, with shredded duck confit. Dude, I loves me some duck confit…and this is body by gnocchi, so you know it’s gotta be good! Plus, you’ve got some nice sauteed mushrooms, a duck foie gras jus and winter greens–but it’s the crunchy Parmesan crumbs that makes it!!!

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Now, so many of the main courses here looked super-cala-fragilistic extra delicious, but you know my tiebreaker is always gonna be bacon, so I just had to go with the bacon-wrapped venison. This gamey deer steak was cooked to perfection, a nice medium rare, with all sorts of stuff on the side, including some big ‘ol shrooms and a nice, spicy mustard. You could put that on a flip-flop, and it would still taste good! Now, the Parmesan fries were extra, but you KNOW we’re paying extra for some cheesy potaters, son!!!

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And of course, even after all this grub… I still had room for dessert!!!

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Say hello to my little friend Milk Chocolate Nougat Bar. This three-piece Oh Henry comes with salted peanut brittle and a side swipe of caramel sauce. Dude, I would swipe right on that sauce–right down my piehole, bro!!!

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