In Las Vegas. I keep returning to a restaurant called Hot ‘n Spicy Crawfish  as there’s nothing like it here in Toronto. Guess what? That’s changed. I don’t have to go all the way to Vegas as a similar concept opened right here in Toronto called The Boil Bar. I discovered them on Instagram a few weeks ago and before I knew it, I was invited to drop by for dinner.

When I walked in, I immediately started taking photos of the space as I think they did a great job at creating the “right” type of atmosphere.

Here’s how it works: Basically you pick your “catch”, then you select your flavour followed by the spiciness. Your meal then arrives to your table in a plastic bag…all steamy hot and flavourful.

Naturally there’s plastic bibs and plastic gloves and a big roll of paper towels on the table which YOU will really really need.. Here’s a photo of me all dressed up in the plastic bib and gloves ready to dig into my delicious crab.

I also ordered the baked lobster which is not something I would normally order but was opening to trying something different. The lobster meat was perfect and the creamy sauce was exactly what it was suppose to be…um, creamy!!

I sucked back these fresh meaty oysters too. Oh man were these oysters good.

Of course, I had to try the crawfish. However they aren’t my favourite as they have so little meat on them.

I also devoured some shrimp but for some reason I didn’t snap a photo of them. (forgive me?).

There is no doubt about it: I’m a seafood fan and this restaurant is ideal for people like me!!

The meal finished off with some refreshing bubble tea from a kiosk that insides the restaurant. It was a perfect way to end this fun meal.

I really hope you get a chance to check out this restaurant soon. You won’t be disappointed. Promise.

For more information:

Website: www.theboilbar.com
Scarborough Location: 633 Silver Star Blvd. #110 & 111
Phone: (416) 293-2666 Hours: Mon – Thur 4pm – 2am, Sat & Sun 12pm – 2am

Yonge Location: Opening Soon at 664 Yonge St.

Bloor Location: Opening Soon at 442 Bloor St. W

Instagram: @BoilBar

Facebook: www.facebook.com/theboilbar

Note: This meal was complimentary however all opinions are my own

I went to Rock Lobster Food Co. on Ossington back in the winter and was totally blown away by their epic Rock Lobster Caesars. I had read that a second location had opened on Queen W and knew that I wanted to go check it out (like a good foodie) Once I read Abbey’s Kitchen blog post about the Queen W. location,  I knew that I wanted to visit sooner than later.

When I heard my mom was arriving from Ottawa on the 7 pm bus, I mentioned to her that we would be enjoying some Lobster Love for dinner. She was just as eager as I was to head to Rock Lobster Food Co. on Queen W.

Here’s a picture of  us with those epic Rock Lobster Caesars.

The menu includes many other delicious sounding cocktails but I can’t stop ordering the Rock Lobster Caesar.  There’s a part of me that really wants to try the other cocktails and another part of me that just wants to have this lobster caesar each time I visit!! #firstworldproblems

We ordered:

Peel and Eat Shrimp – which were plump, fresh, meaty and served COLD. I’m thrilled I ordered this dish.

We also shared the Lobster Poutine (Nova Scotia Lobster, hand cut fries, Quebec Curds and Lobster Bisque Gravy). I love poutine so this was not hard for me to enjoy!!

Naturally, we ordered  the Lobster Roll as well (Nova Scotia Lobster, Yukon chips and McClure’s Pickle). I will describe this in one word: YUMMY.

Now that I’ve shared with you what we ate I would like to talk about the space. To begin with – it’s a much bigger space than their  Ossington  location. This is great news for those of us who aren’t fond of line ups!!

Here’s a photo of the space (kudos to the designer).

 What appealed to me (besides the food and the cocktails) was the fact that we could take advantage of the summer and sit on the outside patio. Again, whoever designed the space thought of every little detail.

As for the service: our waitress Renee was completely charming and was super friendly and attentive too. She had the type of energy you would like to see in every waitress that serves you.

I’m sure I will be returning to try: more cocktails and the Steam Whistle Steampot. Who want’s to join me?

For more information:

Rock Lobster Food Co

Twitter: @rocklobsterfood

Instagram: Rocklobsterfoodco

Facebook: www.facebook.com/rocklobsterfoodco

118 Ossington Ave, Toronto 416 533 1800

538 Queen St. West Toronto  416 203 6623

ps please note that each location has different hours and different menus too.

As you know, travelling can be expensive. However by using Airbnb and staying in one of their properties instead of a hotel can save you a lot of money!! I had talked to a few other food bloggers who had used airbnb and everyone seemed to have had a positive experience.

Accoording to Wikepedia, As of 2012, the company had 250,000 listings in 34,000 cities and 192 countries. I also learned that it’s a privately held company based out of San Francisco. Interesting.

I downloaded the (free) app and then you search the city you are travelling to. (in my case, I was looking for a property in Barcelona).

Here’s what you need to do:

-read the reviews carefully

-read the details carefully

-look at the photos carefully too

I did this for HOURS and then finally selected “Central Garden Entrance Suite. Here’s the description that sold me (ps the reviews and the price sold me too)

 My dream came true as I was able to shop for fresh shrimp  and garlic at the Boqueria market and then come home and make myself a little snack!!

Airbnb is so addictive that I find myself scrolling through photos DREAMING of my next travel adventure.

I would definitely be using Airbnb on future trips. My host answered all my questions (and there was more than one!!) and the property was spotless, in a great location and a price that I couldn’t beat.

PS for fun it’s even neat to put in the city you live in – to see what comes up!!

Happy Travelling!

 

I received an invitation to an event called “Taste of Iceland” that was going to be held at the Drake Hotel, from March 21-24, 2013. I have to admit, that it was the cocktail listed on the invitation that really caught my attention. Specifically, I am talking about the “Sons and Daughters” cocktail that was going to be served that night!

What’s in the drink? Let’s see …some pretty interesting ingredients! Reyka vodka, aquavit, lemon juice and caraway seeds, muddled thyme, and sea butckthorn syrup.

Not your average cocktail. I RSVP’ed very quickly – “Please add my name to your guest list”.

Not only did I enjoy my cocktail (or two), but I enjoyed multiple servings of EVERYTHING.

The evening started off with:

-Hardifskur  w/Icelandic butter (I would travel to Iceland just for this butter!!)

-Grilled Icelandic Langoustine, with garlic, butter and herbs

-Atlantic Shrimp and Lumpfish Caviar, with pickled vegetables and citrus vinaigrette

-Deep Fried Crispy Balls of Cod Potatoes with “Sol” mayonaisse

-Pickled Herring on sweet rye bread, curry dressing, green apples and spring onions (I had 3 of these).

The main courses included:

-Naturally Raised Icelandic Salmon – cold smoked salmon with grainy mustard dressing, sour cream dill oil, and Icelandic rye bread

-Free Range Iclelandic Lamb – seared Icelandic lamb filet with glazed root vegetables, juniper berry infused lamb jus and wild Icelandic blueberry herb dust.

I inhaled EVERYTHING. My table mate, Adam Mazerall from View the Vibe actually said ” he never saw someone devour something so quickly.

Needless to say, I barely had breakfast or lunch the following day!!

For those who can’t hop on a plane tomorrow and head to Iceland – please head to the Drake Hotel from March 21-24 to experience the food and the culture of Iceland. In the meantime, I think I’m going to add Iceland to my bucket list of places I want to visit!!

Drake Hotel 1150 Queen St. West Toronto 416 531 5042

Taste of Iceland: on Twitter: @IcelandNaturally