Tag Archives: scallops

Funky seafood feast @ Season Six!

So, we’re hanging out at Season Six, this funky little joint on Ossington, just south of Dundas and right next to the Rotate This record store. Man, I think the last time I ate here, it was at a joint called Rashers that only served bacon sandwiches. Kinda sad that place didn’t stick around… but Season Six is pretty funkalicious in its own right.

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We’re starting off with a pile of grilled garlic shrimp with great green globs of chimmichurri. Shrimp are cooked perfectly, with a nice char and some good grill marks. Not a bad first round in Flavourtown…

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But now it’s time for the main event. We’re talking sea scallop fettuccine, with a creamy pumpkin brown butter, some nice chunks of pancetta and roasted Brussels sprouts. Cuz the only time I’ll eat Brussels sprouts is when you serve ’em up with Italian bacon, son! Pasta is super-rich, scallops are nice and tender — I would definitely eat this again!

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Washed it all down with a couple Nordic Pale Ales from local brewing bros at Woodhouse. Light and fruity, at 5.2%, with enough hops that you’re drinking an IPA, but not enough to get the gas face. I think I’ll have another three…

Seafood Tower of Power @ The Chase!!!

Now, you don’t really see a lotta seafood towers on Triple B. I mean, most places that serve seafood towers are steakhouses…and whenever I’m at a steakhouse, I’m eating steak and taking names, son! But now we’re hanging out at The Chase, this funky seafood joint just offa Yonge St, and this place specializes in seafood, so that means it’s gotta be good right?

And here on Triple B, it’s always go big or go home. So when there are three different seafood towers to choose from, we had to go for the biggest, baddest one of them all. They called this the Diamond, and it’s like a double black diamond skiing straight down my lobster hole. You KNOW the picture’s only begun, bro!!!!!!!!

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This Tower of Power in Flavourtown comes with everything you see here — times five. You’ve got a B-52 chilled rock lobster, snow crab legs, shrimp cocktail, smoked salmon, yellowfin tuna sashimi, rock shrimp salad and an east coast/west coast oyster rivalry going on (I liked the ones from PEI). About the only thing missing are some scallops…

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…which is why I made them my main meal. This might be the purdiest plate of scallops I’ve ever seen, served with roasted sunchokes and crispy chicken skin — dude, the crispy chicken skin is what makes it! But the scallops are cooked perfectly, buttery soft and tender. Now, if they could just put these on the new Double Diamond tower next time we swing by, that would be perfection on a platter, bro!!!!

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Now, this Nordic pale ale doesn’t hail from Scandinavia — it’s coming straight outta Ottawa, which is probably close enough in wintertime. Whitewater Brewing’s North Meets South is hoppy, juicy, but not too heavy, at just 4.6%. Dude, this beer checks Bud Light into the boards and gives it a facewash, bro!!!!!!!!!!

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But even after all those crustaceans back there, we’ve still got room for dessert. And when it comes to dessert, whenever I see something called Chocolate on the dessert menu, it’s guaranteed to be heading straight down my piehole. This one was a little too funky to be considered funkalicious, though. You’ve got a dark chocolate tart with pistachios, cream and mint, and then there’s a scoop of blood orange sorbet on the side. Hey, I like Terry’s Chocolate Orange as much as the next fat guy, but this dish just didn’t do it for me. I shouldda gone with the sticky toffee pudding instead… 😦

Eating all the non-spicy things @ Mimi Chinese

Dude, Mimi Chinese has been known as one of the fanciest, funkiest Chinese food places in the city ever since it opened — they’re pretty fly for a white guy, bro! And while my philosophy on food is sharing means you couldn’t finish it yourself, and you weren’t trying hard enough… when it comes to Chinese, you’re really supposed to order more than one thing. I mean, that’s why they put the spinning wheel in the middle of the table, right?

Now, Mimi’s menu has all sorts of spicy Sichuan dishes that would send this white guy straight to the Poo Ping Palace, so we’re gonna avoid the $110 Chef’s Menu that gives you a little bit of everything, and stick to the non-spicy stuff. But that still gives you plenty of options here — and you end up spending a lot less per person in the process!

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Round 1 is all about seafood, with scallops, seabream and shrimp toast (oh my!) along with some pork and scallion dumplings, just to switch things up a bit. The standout has gotta be the shrimp toast, though — you’ve got some greasy greasy frybread stuffed with big chunks of shrimp, topped with sesame seeds and served with a side of hot mustard (I stayed away from the hot stuff).

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But now we’re about to kick it up a notch with char siu pork, stuffed chicken wings and a four-foot belt noodle, which they cut into pieces at the table. The noodle wasn’t spicy, but the the chili oil on top made my tongue tingle (in a good way). And man, if they ever had 25 cent wing night, I’d be there all night long for those wings stuffed with rice and mushrooms, son!!!!

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This Greatest Hits album in Flavourtown keeps going with some black pepper beef, braised eggplant with garlic sauce (Yu Xiang Qie Zi) and a Supreme Fried Rice that’s packing shrimp, scallops, eggs and Chinese sausage. But the star of the show has gotta be the beef, bro! You’ve got an 18 oz boneless ribeye, chopped up into little pieces, cooked in black pepper sauce and topped with onions. This dish alone will cost ya a cool hundred, but split six ways, it’s only $16.34. 😉

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But you KNOW the Triple B Road Krew has always got room for dessert, bro! And we’re ordering everything on the dessert menu — mango pudding, steamed cake with custard and black sesame ice cream. Now, none of these desserts would go in my all-time top 10, but when you pour the custard onto the cake, then I eat them both up!!!!!!!!!

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These fguys also own Sunnys Chinese in Kensington Market, and how’s this for cold tea? Their Sunny G ginger sour is perfect with Chinese food — light, tart and refreshing. The ginger is definitely there, but unlike when you accidentally eat a whole piece of ginger in a beef hot pot, it’s not overpowering at all. Now put that in your lunchbox and drink it, son!!!!!!

Whole lotta seafood @ Ivar’s Salmon House

Now, you can’t go to Seattle and not eat seafood. That would be like going to Texas and not eating BBQ, or going to Nashville and not eating hot chicken. So we’re hanging out at Ivar’s Salmon House, this funky little seafood joint that’s right on the water — not the Pacific, but Lake Union…which does flow into the Pacific, though.

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Now, this place is an offshoot of famous local chain Ivar’s House of Clams, so you KNOW we gotta start off with a bowl of clam chowder, bro! This creamy, New England-style soup has some nice little pieces of potatoes, but when you get a chunk of those chewy clams, that right there is the ticket!!!

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But now it’s time for the main event! This Taste of the Northwest platter combines salmon, halibut and scallops for a triple threat in Flavourtown…

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We’re starting off with salmon, which was nice n juicy, with a hint of lemon at the end.

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Cod was so tender you could cut it with a fork… a nice, flaky piece of fish.

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But the scallops are the star of the show. Super soft and tender, they melt in your mouth like butter! I would totally polish off a whole plate of these bad boys!!!!!

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And their beer selection is just as fresh and local as the seafood. This here’s a Scuttlebutt Hefeweizen, brewed in nearby Everett, Washington. Nice and smooth with a slight citrusy aftertaste — reminds me of Big Rock Grasshopper, the brew I was raised on (which you can’t find in Toronto anymore, but that’s another story…)

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But now we’re kicking it up a couple notches with Bad Jimmy’s Habanero Amber. This rich, red beer has a nice flavour profile — but I can’t really taste the habanero though. It’s definitely not spicy, bro, maybe just a bit of an aftertaste when you drink it on its own.

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Now while that seafood trio was pretty tasty, it wasn’t a particularly large portion — so you KNOW we’ve still got room for dessert. We’re talking house-made key lime pie, nice and tart with a crunchy graham cracker crust and a bit of whipped cream on top. Again, it was pretty tasty, but a little on the small side. I *might* hafta stop for pizza on the way home…

Allez les Duck le Bleu!!!!

Now, we’re pretty big fans of French food here on Triple B, and one of the most classic French dishes is duck confit. So when I heard Joy on Avenue, this funky little joint in Yorkville, was serving up this dish called Duck le Bleu, you KNOW I had to check it out, bro!

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But before we get to the duck, first let’s have some pork. Dude, this pork belly is super-tender, with cauliflower puree on the bottom and wild figs on top. I could crush at least four of these, son!

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Speaking of things that come in fours, these seared scallops are super-legit! Man, after that disappointing Crouching Melon, Hidden Scallop dish I had at Chica, I was hungry like the wolf for some real-deal bivalves, and these babies definitely didn’t disappoint!

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Now, usually when I see duck confit, it would be duck leg, not duck breast. But the meat here is cooked perfectly, nice ‘n juicy. And it’s served with a side of blueberry risotto, which puts the bleu in Duck le Bleu. Man, this would really go great with a Blanche de Chambly Bluet…but they don’t serve any beer at this place at all, bro. 😦 😦 😦

 

 

 

Pairing Belgian beer with Atlantic seafood @ Pearl Diver

Now, I don’t usually think seafood when I think of Belgium — hey, the country is surrounded by land on three sides. But at Pearl Diver, this funky little seafood joint on Adelaide, they’re importing Belgian beers from across the pond to go along with some off-the-hook seafood dishes…so naturally, I had to try two or three.

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We’re actually starting off with a beer that’s not Belgian, though. I’m a pretty big fan of Blanche de Chambly, a Belgian-style wheat beer from Unibroue in Quebec, so when I heard they had a blueberry version, Blanche de Chambly Bluet, I totally had to check it out! It’s more tart than fruity, but still not too strong — it definitely tastes more like beer than fruit punch, which is a good thing.

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We’re pairing that with the one-two punch of scallops and pork belly, along with some asparagus, almonds and a green, minty sauce. The menu says these come three to an order, but they actually gave me four…not that I’m complaining!

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But now we’re heading across the pond with Saison Dupont, a blonde ale straight outta the farmhouse. Unlike most saisons you see over here, this isn’t a sour beer, but rich and malty at 6.5% — which is actually kinda light for a Belgian.

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For the main course, we’re going with Atlantic cod with grilled zucchini, potatoes, avocado and pineapple salsa, along with some sort of spicy donkey sauce at the bottom. Fish was cooked perfectly, zucchini added a nice touch…but this dish was actually quite spicy. Guess I’m gonna need another beer, bro!!!

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This Westmalle Trappist Tripel kicks things up a couple notches at a hearty 9.5%. It’s got a strong flavour that’s literally bananas — and bananas is good! I think I’m gonna need some dessert with this one, though…

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Their chocolate brownie seems pretty tiny, but it’s also quite tasty. You’ve got nice bites of chocolate, along with some raspberries, blackberries and a white chocolate sauce. Doesn’t quite soak up the booze when you’re drinking Belgian tripels, though. I guess that’s what the sticky toffee pudding is on the menu for…

Build your own steak dinner @ The Shore Club

Now, I’ve had a lotta great steaks all over this city, but I had never been to The Shore Club, this fancy steakhouse next to The Ritz-Carlton on Wellington. You KNOW this is body by steak bro, so I had to check it out…even if I had just destroyed a giant steak the other night!

Now, the deal at this place is they’ve got a buncha different cuts of meat — striploin, filet mignon, rib steak, short rib and bone-in ribeye, then you can choose to add seafood, like shrimp, lobster, scallops or crab legs. They also have five different sauces and butters, for that extra kick. Plus, there’s no less than 12 different sides to choose from, son!

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Me, I went with an 18 oz rib steak, instead of the 24, but I added scallops and a Bearnaise sauce, plus steakhouse fries and wild mushrooms. Now, this wasn’t quite as good as the steak I had the other night — which is one of my top five steak dishes ever — and I think I’ve even had a better rib steak at Barberian’s, at Morton’s and maybe even Ruth Chris. But the scallops were super-tasty, nicely seared, and melt-in-your-mouth tender. This is the perfect bite, right here:

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Oh, and word to the wild mushrooms, which were sauteed in garlic and herb butter. Wild mushrooms could not drag me away from you, Mick Bro-gger!!!!

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Of course, even after eating all that steak back there, you KNOW I still had room for dessert. Dude, that was more like a steak snack in Flavourtown, bro!!!

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Man, this Old-Fashioned Chocolate Brownie had pretty much everything I want in a dessert. You’ve got marshmallows, pecans, chocolate sauce AND caramel, with a scoop of ice cream on top??? Shut the front, back and side doors, son!!!!

St. Jacques is no jokes @ Cafe Boulud!

Now, you know me, I’ll eat just about anything that moves. But I can’t even remember the last time I had scallops — I think it mighta been the cold ones at Langdon Hall. And those were not your ordinary scallops! So, when I found out that Cafe Boulud, this funky French joint inside the Four Seasons, was serving up a legit Coquilles St. Jacques, I was all over that like a beret on a baguette, bro!!!!

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Don’t get me wrong, these little flavour nuggets of the sea were seared to perfection, with some corn puree, cherry tomatoes, and a truffle vinaigrette…but what makes it are the lardons!!!

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Pretty much any time you add little chunks of bacon to a dish, you KNOW it’s gonna be good! The problem was that this dish was kinda small — it only took up like one-third of the plate. But that just means I still had room for dessert…

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Dude, this chocolate molten cake was too legit to quit, son! You’ve got a great ball of chocolate, oozing with chocolate sauce, with a little scoop of caramel ice cream and a smear of caramel sauce — I could eat that all day and all of the night, bro!!!!!

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