Ethiopiques Restaurant

Address: 227 Chruch Street, Toronto, Ontario M5B 1Y7, Canada

Phone: 416-363-0884

Website: http://www.ethiopiques.ca/

Why we dined here: WagJag had a voucher promotion for Ethiopiques and we were curious to try out Ethiopian food.

In a Nutshell: A unique dining experience, especially the coffee ceremony!

Ethiopiques was a very welcome surprise for us. We would never have stumbled upon this place on our own. The reason for our visit was really just to use up the WagJag voucher we bought ($20 for $50 worth of food). We ordered a Meat Platter, Gored Gored (Tender beef fillet) and Goden Tibs (Lamb short ribs). The meal was more than enough for 3 starving yuppies. We still had a bag of take-out after we stuffed ourselves to the brim. It was our first time eating Ethiopian cuisine. We liked the exotic flavor from the variety of spices. Some dishes had a spicy kick to them so have your water handy. The food is served with injera (similar to rolls of airy crepe/pancake). You use the injera to eat the foods with your hands, without the use of the spoon or fork. So that was also fun!

We also requested the coffee ceremony after reading the reviews in Yelp and Googling about the ceremony. Apparently, coffee originated from Ethiopia. They bring out the roasting pan when they're roasting the beans and shake the pan in front of you so you can whiff the intense aroma of freshly roasted coffee beans. The host will bring the jebena (clay coffee pot) to your table. Then, she will slowly pour the coffee to the small porcelain cups. Sugar is provided for you to sweeten the coffee to your taste, but not milk. The coffee is meant to be drank black. A basket of popcorn is also included for you to munch with your coffee. It was definitely a memorable experience and great way to cap off the night :)

Meat Platter + Goden Tibs + Gored Gored

Coffee Ceremony

Eat List: Belgium

Some of the popular snacks and food in Belgium that you shouldn't miss!

1.  Belgian beer

You can't really visit Belgium and not try their beer. There is an abundant variety of local beers and the prices are dirt cheap. During our trip, we ordered beer at every restaurant we dined at. Gave us every reason to be cheerful and bubbly when we toured Bruges and Brussels.

Bier Leon (house beer at Chez Leon)

Trappistes beer (made by Trappist monks)

2.  Belgian chocolate

We sampled three different brands of Belgian chocolate during our trip: Dumon Chocolatier in Bruges (they don't have a branch in Brussels), Mary Chocolatier and Neuhaus both in Brussels. Since these are specialty chocolate shops, the prices are steep. I enjoyed Dumon the best, Mary follows closely and then Neuhaus is far behind.

Leonidas is probably the cheapest specialty store they have but they are mainstream now and have branches in Canada and even in the Philippines; I wanted to try something exclusive to Belgium. There are also souvenir stores that sell Belgian chocolate boxes at low prices but I don't know if they are good quality.

Dumon Chocolatier

Mary Chocolatier

Neuhaus

3.  Belgian waffles

We went to Biscuiterie Dandoy, a pastry specialty shop and tea room, to sample Belgian waffles. They offered two types of waffles - Liege and Brussels. I personally preferred the Brussels waffle, which are the more common kind of waffles available in North America. They are crunchy outside and fluffy on the inside. The Liege waffle is thicker and has a chewier texture and I found it to be sweeter.

Liege waffle

Brussels waffle

4.  Belgian fries

The world is familiar with French fries, but this well-loved snack traces its origin to Belgium. If you love fries, you should try the frites in Belgium and pay homage to the country that made it all possible.

Frites with spicy mayo

5.  Moules-Frites (Mussels and fries)

Moules-Frites is probably the most popular dish in Belgian restaurants. It was in the menu of all local restaurants we went to. Chez Leon is the most popular Mussels and Fries restaurant in Brussels. We ate at Chez Leon and found it to be just average. We had a better Mussels and Fries experience in one of the bistros at the Markt center of Bruges. The mussels there were bigger, juicier and the sauce was more flavorful.

Mussels and Fries from Chez Leon

6.  Waterzooi

Waterzooi is a kind of seafood stew that originated from Ghent, Belgium. The soup is creamy and reminds me of the New England clam chowder.

Seafood Waterzooi from Chez Leon

7.  Speculoos

The speculoos is a gingerbread-type biscuit that is popular in Belgium. It has a strong distinct taste because of the spices used - cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and others. In the picture below, the Dandoy biscuit is a speculoos.

Speculoos gelato and biscuit

Eat List: Barcelona, Spain

Here's a list of what kind of food to look for while touring Barcelona, Spain.

1.  Tapas  

It will be next to impossible to avoid tapas when you visit Barcelona. Most restaurants offer specials and a great selection of tapas.These small courses go well with sangria, wine, beer or <insert favorite alcoholic drink here>.

Assorted cold tapas

Chopitos (Fried tiny squid)

Chicharron (fried pork rinds)

2. Cava

Wine in Barcelona was so much cheaper than in Toronto and I know that this area of Spain is famous for their wineries. So definitely try some of their local wines. Our hotel offered us Cava (sparkling wine) upon check-in to welcome us into Barcelona so we were off to a great start in our trip. Cava is to Spain what Champagne is to France. Drink, be merry and you'll have an even more pleasant vacation :)

Privat Cava 2009

 3.  Cochinillo (Suckling Pig)

I'm a huge pork eater since I originally hailed from the Philippines which was a Spanish colony for 333 years. So a lot of our food actually has Spanish influences. We do have amazing cochinillo in Manila too. Try Casa Armas if you ever visit Manila but you'd have to call a day in advance so they can prepare the whole pig.

During our trip, El Celler de Can Roca had roasted suckling pig in the tasting menu. We also ordered suckling pig at Montiel since this was their specialty and had glowing reviews from TripAdvisor members. Both were incredible - crispy golden brown skin and tender melt-in-your-mouth meat.

from El Celler de Can Roca

from Montiel Restaurante

 4.  Churros (Con Chocolate)

Churros has always been one of my favorite desserts. In the Philippines, Dulcinea served decent churros con chocolate. In Toronto, Pancho's Bakery in Kensington Market sells freshly fried churros with a variety of fillings to choose from. Of course, I've never had authentic churros so I couldn't vouch for their authenticity.

So, during our trip to Barcelona, we had to put churros into our eat list. After some Googling, we found Barcelona Food Girl's blog pointing us on where to find churros and chocolate walking distance from our hotel. The Xurreria fried a new batch of xurros/churros when we ordered them so it was fresh and hot! We headed to La Granja which was nearby for the thick Spanish chocolate to dip our churros with. Fried dough dipped in chocolate is always a great treat - yum!

from Xurreria

Chocolate from La Granja

 5. Paella and fresh seafood near the pier

For our last supper in Barcelona, we opted to have fresh paella near the pier to cap our memorable 3-day trip. There was a whole slew of restaurants lined near the pier. We had to walk through some smaller streets and further off the pier to find Can Majo. Definitely worth the trek for avid foodies!

Paella from Can Majo

Seafood soup from Can Majo

Robuchon A Galera (now Robuchon au Dôme)

Reservation Date: November 16, 2010 at 12pm

Chef: Francky Semblat

Duration: ~2 hours

Address: 43/F, Grand Lisboa, Macau, China

Phone: 853 8803 7878

Email: Reservations Email

Tasting Cost: 638 HKD

Website: http://www.grandlisboa.com/en/food_and_beverage/index_id_9.html

Accolades:

• #82 in the World's 50 Best Restaurants by San Pellegrino
• #4 in The Miele Guide Asia's Top 20
• 3 Michelin Stars

Alinea

Reservation Date: December 21, 2008 at 9pm

Chef: Grant Achatz

Duration: ~3 hours

Address: 1723 North Halsted, Chicago Illinois 60614, United States

Phone: +1 312 867 0110

Email: Reservations Email

Tasting Cost: 145 USD

Website: http://www.alinea-restaurant.com/

Accolades:

• #7 in the World's 50 Best Restaurants by San Pellegrino
• 3 Michelin Stars

Menu

Trout Roe - parsnip + licorice + ginger

Cauliflower - five coatings + three gels + cider

Wild Striped Bass - chamomile + shellfish + celery

Alaskan King Crab - popcorn + butter + curry

Hot Potato - cold potato + black truffle + butter

Lamb - lemon + fennel + coffee + aroma

Chestnut - quince + chocolate + baked potato

Eggnog - encapsulated

Sweet Potato - bourbon + brown sugar + smoldering cinnamon

Bacon - butterscotch + apple + thyme

Spice Cake - persimmon + rum + carrot

Chocolate - prune + olive + pine

Candy Cane - frozen and chewy

Oud Sluis

Reservation Date: January 15, 2012 at 12pm

Chef: Sergio Herman

Duration: ~4 hours

Address: Beestenmarkt 2, 4524 EA, Sluis, Netherlands

Phone: +31 117 46 12 69

Email: Reservations Email

Tasting Cost: 195 Euros

Website: www.sergioherman.com/en/oudsluis/about

Accolades:

• #21 in the World's 50 Best Restaurants by San Pellegrino
• 3 Michelin Stars

Oud Sluis is located in a small town in Netherlands. We took the 42 bus from Bruges in Belgium since Sluis was just 40 minutes away from there. We arrived minutes early for our reservation so the restaurant was still closed, but the hostess kindly seated us anyway. The service was impeccable as can be expected in this kind of restaurant. The food was excellent and definitely exceeded my expectations (especially for the seafood...yum!!! I'm a seafood lover :D). The seafood was very fresh and I think all were locally sourced. I can't nitpick on any of the food since I genuinely enjoyed each dish. The only criticism I have is that they use a lot of similar ingredient combinations so you will taste familiar flavours for a couple of the dishes, rather than having an entirely unique experience for each dish. Also, some of the plating could have been improved but this is just really aesthetics.

Hands down, Oud Sluis is one of the best and most memorable meals I've ever had! If you have money to splurge and loves food, you should add this to your eat list.

Menu

Tofu and mushrooms to lick

Balinese boemboe, cucumber, white radish

Queen scallop, seaweed, kamut, mandarin, creme cru

Creme of black pudding from my friend Steven - sorbet of green apple, sweet onion, just of smoked bbq celeriac

Egg, oxtail, wild mushrooms, chicory and artichoke

Marinated and pickled atlantic cod with bergamot

Zealand terroir, sea and land

Scallop in the shell roasted on pine - chorizo, parsley root, little mushrooms and spices

Flat Zealand oyster - airy buttermilk pancake, winter herbs, miso-lime and oyster structures

Seabass - refreshing marinated winter vegetables, chlorophyll juice, pottage and lemon

Steenvoorde pigeon BBQ - red bittersweet salad, lentil yoghurt, hazelnut ganache and saus royal

Desserts:

-Stones, chocolate and barley malt

-Apple, mint and buddha's hand

-Rice, berries, agerdolc sergio and beetroot

El Celler de Can Roca

Reservation Date: January 17, 2012 at 9pm

Chefs: The Roca Brothers (Joan, Josep and Jordi)

Duration: ~4 hours

Address: Can Sunyer, 48 17007 Girona, Spain

Phone: +34 972 22 21 57

Email: Reservations Email

Tasting Cost: 175 Euros

Website: www.cellercanroca.com

Accolades:

• #2 in the World's 50 Best Restaurants by San Pellegrino
• 3 Michelin Stars

Welcome to the world of El Celler Can Roca! The right picture shows the entrance of the restaurant from the outside. The left picture shows the unveiling of the first amuse-bouche called The World - Mexic, Peru, Lebanon, Morocco, and Korea.

We arrived at El Celler promptly at 9pm and found ourselves to be one of the early patrons so we took our sweet time taking photos of the venue. Our expectations were extremely high for this restaurant knowing that it was the 2nd World's Best restaurant. El Celler did not disappoint. If this is your first molecular gastronomy experience, prepare to be blown out of your mind. This was actually my 3rd experience (having been to Alinea and Colborne Lane) but I was still wow'ed by the creativity of some of the dishes. It really like a Disney World for your taste buds and other senses. My favorite was the king prawn dish and also the amuse-bouches that just explode with strong flavours in your mouth. The downside for me was dessert. I didn't find any of the desserts particularly memorable especially compared to other fine-dining restaurants.

The menu is pricey since the tasting involves 13+ dishes (including the amuse-bouche). However, if you compare the price to tasting menus at other restaurants, this is an absolute steal considering the calibre and status of this restaurant. I've heard from friends that reservations here are extremely hard to come by so be sure you reserve early! For our trip, we lucked out since it was winter so it was a low season. I reserved just a month and a half in advance and was able to secure a spot with no problem. 

Menu

The world: Mexic, Lebanon, Morocco, and Korea

Caramelized Olive

Truffled bombon

Ring calamar adapted

Campari bombon

Zucchini omelette

Truffled brioche

Green salad - Avocado, lime, melon, cucumber, Chartreuse, sorrel, green shiso, tarragon, rocket, oxalis

Autumn salad - Sea urchin, pumpkin, sweet potato, quince, kaki, tangerine, boletus, edulis, distilled sand, sand of boletus, edulis, sand of pumpkin seeds, sand of walnuts

Oyster with Palo Cortado and white and black garlic

A whole king prawn - Charcoal-grilled king prawn, king-prawn sand, ink rocks, fried logs, head juice and king-prawn essence

Charcoal-grilled sole meuniere - Milk skin, black butter, lemon, capers, flower and citrus peel

Salt-cod brandade - Braised salt-cod tripe, salt-cod foam, olive-oil soup, shallots and honey, thyme and chili pepper

Iberian suckling pig blanquette with Riesling

Mango and summer - truffle terrine, beet, garlic, orange concentrate and saffron pistil

Red mullet cooked at a low temperature - stuffed with red-mullet pate and aniseed-flavoured herb, orange and saffron pistil

Steak tartare with mustard ice cream

Spiced tomato, caper and lemon compote, hazelnut praline, bearnaise sauce, Oloroso-sherry raisin, chive butter, Sichuan pepper, Pimenton de la Vera smoked paprika and curry, small scoops of mustard ice cream, mustard leaves, baby onions with vinegar

Lamb with charcoal-grilled sweet pepper and tomato

Wood-pigeon liver with onion, caramelised hazelnuts with curry, juniper berries, orange skin and herbs

Orange colourology - Orange, tangerine, egg yolks, fruit passion and carrot

Milk desserts - Milk caramel, sheep's milk ice cream, sheep's milk curd-cheese foam, sheep's milk yoghurt and milk cloud

Understory - Beetroot, chocolate, tangerine, tonka bean, cocoa and shiso