I’ve been anticipating the Grilled Cheese Fest since it was first announced back in December. Finally the day arrived and I made sure to be at Roy Thompson Hall at precisely 5 pm as they were letting in media before the event started. I try to take advantage of this opportunity so I can snap up some decent photos and talk to vendors about what they are serving etc.

Before I go any further – I want to say that I was there from 5 pm to 7 pm. During that time…..I sampled some cheesy goodness, enjoyed some soup and drank a craft beer or two!!  I also made sure to take lactose pills on a regular basis!!

I’m not quite sure how many lactose pills I took but I wasn’t going to a little lactose intolerance get in my way!!

The evening promised a variety of unique grilled cheese sandwiches, complemented with homemade soup and craft beer – and they delivered! My favourite grilled sandwich was the General Kim from Cut the Cheese.  (2901A Dundas St. W). The sandwich was described as: Kimchi, sweet soy pork, lotus chips, cilantro, fontina cheese on a light rye bread.

My favourite soup was from Cheesewerks. (56 Bathurst St)

I really did enjoy the event (again, I was there between 5 and 7 pm). However I then discovered thru a blogger friend that many guests did not get a chance to enjoy the event, as they had oversold the event by 700 tickets.  I really felt bad when I read this. This isn’t exactly how an event should be run but I’m sure Joylister learned a thing or two. Just like they learned a thing or two after they ran the Poutine Festival.

For more information:

www.joylister.com

Twitter: @Joylister

Instagram: Joylister

Facebook: www.facebook.com/JoylisterFUN

I’ve just returned from a fun night out at Cheesewerks (56 Bathurst St). You see, they are hosting these “Food Fight Trivia Nights” and they are selling out….that’s how much fun they are.

For $2 you are guaranteed to laugh, to think, to hang out with your friends and eat some fabulous food. The restaurant was packed.

So here’s how it works. You grab a few friends (teams are four are suggested), name your team ie. team goudalicious, show up from 7 pm – 9 pm and contribute $2. The questions are either: name that tune, multiple choice, WTF (identify obscure food photos), and a pop quiz.

There’s prizes to be won and I swear the video we watched had me doubled over laughing my guts out. It was a Nigella Lawson video that had been edited and was absolutely hysterical. Actually I hope someone puts it on YouTube so I can watch it over and over again.

More events are coming up – so make sure you follow them on twitter or on facebook. That way you won’t miss a thing!!

If you are struggling what to do on Valentines – here’s an idea: I think this is the PNO (perfect night out).

Seriously, this restaurant can be describes as having the total package: great owners, a cool vibe, an amazing social media presence, plus amazing food.

For More Info:

Cheesewerks 56 Bathurst St. (416) 243-3327

Twitter: @Cheesewerks

Facebook: www.facebook.com/cheesewerks

I wasn’t going to let a little grey weather keep me away from The Toronto Garlic Festival which took place over the weekend, at Evergreen Brickworks. They had moved the festival indoors so this meant no puddles or umbrellas in sight.

I strolled thru the vendors to see what caught my eye ,and it wasn’t hard AT ALL  to figure out what I was going to try:

1. Garlic Fudge:  Kudo’s to Busy Liz’s Farm Shop for developing this recipe. It was perfect.

 

2. Roasted Garlic Chocolate Ice Cream: It took me a second to whip out some lactose pills so I could try this ice cream that was was made by Greg’s Ice Cream.

 

3. A Stone Ground tortilla with garlic hummus:  Made with love from the good people at Chocosol. Just what I needed.

 

4. Ooey Gooey Goodness from Cheesewerks. I am so spoiled to enjoy their amazing food, both last week at Soupalicious and then this week at the Toronto Garlic Festival. I seriously need to organize a tweet up for a Fondue Nite. Who’s in?

I ended off my visit to the Toronto Garlic Festival by participating in the Garlic Breath test that was sponsored by the Ontario Science Centre. What a great idea to have this contest at the Festival. Wonder who won.

 

Clearly I had fun at this festival!! Not to mention I came home with an amazing variety of garlic for me to experiment with. I love garlic…can you tell?

Dear Soupalicious.

Why did it take me so long to find you? It’s your third year running this event, but it was my first time attending. I was super impressed with everything about your event: from the friendly volunteers, to the venue (Wychood Barns, 601 Christie) . But it’s the SOUP that I want to talk about.

Just so you know, I was sick with a bad cold on Sept 30th but I was all too happy to “sip, slurp and savour”!!

I couldn’t believe how many participating restaurants and chefs you had at this event…over 30, right?

Sadly I couldn’t taste every single soup from every single vendor but here’s a few soups that did stand out!!

1. Globe Earth Restaurant: They served a white chocolate parsnip soup with pistachio earth and sour cherry reduction. OMG.

 

2. Brunchworks Cafe: This vegetarian french onion soup with garlic crostini rocked. There was a touch of fennel in this soup, that made the soup “extra ordinary”. Loved it.

 

3. A Food Gypsy: They served a savoury, sweet and locally delicious cabbage borsht that was outstanding. Lisa explained to me that she had used a organic beet broth to make the soup extra flavorful and it worked!!

 

4. Cheesewerks: Their rustic herb tomato soup hit the spot. Not to mention it was Gluten/Dairy free and Vegan!

Congratulations to Soupalicous and to Plant a Row, Grow a Row. What a great event and what a great organization. I wasn’t aware of this organization before, but found out that the funds raised from Soupalicious are dedicated to the support Plant a Row • Grow a Row which encourages the sharing of the harvest from your garden with neighbours in need.

I’m already looking forward to next years event.

Cheers,

Vicky – @momwhoruns

 

As you know, I’m a sales rep and on the road throughout the GTA. This means, that I’m always on the lookout for something cheap and cheerful for lunch. Here’s a list of my top 10 cheap and cheerful restaurants in Toronto.

1. Mother Dumplings; I can’ stop ordering B8 which is boiled dumplings filled with bok choi, mushrooms and tofu. 12 pieces for $7.49. This makes me very very happy!!

Address: 421 Spadina Avenue

2. The Fish Sandwich Store; You pick the type of fish you want (that is lying on a bed of ice infront of you) and he grills it and then puts it on to a perfect roll.

Address: 654 College St.

3. Cheese Emporium; They make a simple simple grilled cheese sandwich on a simple sub style roll  – for $5. Cash and Carry. Note: hugely popular at lunch with high school students. Therefore, I  try not to go there exactly at noon.

Address: 1-245 Eglinton Avenue East.

4. Poutini’s: I love this place. That is all. (ps I was the 2nd customer when they first opened 2 years ago and so so proud of this fact)

Address: 1112 Queen St. West

5. New York Subway – this gem of a place closed for a year and I was SO SAD. I have been ordering the potato burrito for years. Note: they don’t serve subways here!! Plus – the burritos arent filled with beans and rice like a typical burrito.

Address: 520 Queen St. West

6. Dr. Laffa. Ive organized two tweet ups at this restaurant and I blogged about this restaurant as well- no need for me to explain my love for this place. Nobody is making Sabih like this restaurant.

Address: 401 Magnetic Drive

7. Mustachio; Love visiting this St. Lawrence Market stall to order my massive eggplant sandwich.

Address: 91 Front Street East, Lower Level

8. Cheesewerks: Perfectly grilled grilled cheese sandwiches in a stunning space that is LICENCED. Can you say beer and grilled cheese sandwiches? what a combo. I organized a tweet up right after opening nite – cause I wanted to share my love for this place with others.

Address: 56 Bathurst Street

9. One Love Vegetarian: You probably pass this restaurant all the time on Bathurst but have never gone in. I hope you stop the car one day soon and check out this awesome veggie restaurant that makes some great tasting food ie SOUP. You have to try their famous soup which has been on the food network!! ps impressive website too.

10. Last but not least…My  OWN Kitchen. Its not a restaurant but I can make some pretty good cheap and cheerful meals!!

What do you do for lunch. Do you bring your own? do you go to the same restaurant all the time? do you eat the same sandwich all the time?

Would love to know.

After following CHEESEWERKS on Facebook and Twitter for many months, I was delighted to get an invitation to attend the opening of this new ‘artisinal” grilled cheese restaurant.

Here’s what I like:

1) The space is gorgeous. Its bright, colorful, and well laid out.

2) The menu: lots of delicious choices with really really cute names.

3) There is an alcohol menu: Brilliant!!

4) The sandwich itself. Everything works  – the bread, the combination of flavors and it’s grilled to perfection as well.

5) The owners are nice nice nice.

6) This brochure (it makes me smile). Please note, that one day soon they will soon have options for those who are lactose intolerant and for those who require gluten free bread.

7) They ‘get” social media and have actively been using twitter and facebook for months.

9) Their website is fantastic. It’s clean, it’s fun and it’s easy to navigate.

10) I know I am repeating myself, but their grilled cheese sandwiches really are DELICIOUS.

You can find CHEESWERKS at 56 Bathurst St (at Wellingston St. West) Toronto, 416-243-3327.

Hoping to put together a tweet up at this restaurant as soon as possible. It would be the perfect spot.