Patria

Patria is a swanky restaurant that serves up traditional Spanish cuisine. My friend and I were in the mood for tapas, and we certainly came to the right place! Patria is located right downtown at King and Spadina. From start to finish everything about this place was amazing. The ambiance was lovely with low lighting and an open kitchen view. Our server was very attentive and friendly. And the food was so flavourful. Here's what we had:

Blood Orange Cocktail and White Wine Sangria

Bocadillo de Higado graso de pato (foie gras on bun with pedro ximenez reduction and quince)

Charcuterie (Assortment of prosciutto, salami, capicola) 

Croquetas de jamon (traditional ham croquettes)

Datiles con tocino iberico (Dates and iberico bacon + manchego cheese and guindillas) 

Glass of white wine

Fideos con almejas y chorizo (Fideo pasta and clams + chorizo and aioli)

Churros con dulce de leche (Spanish donuts with cinnamon + and dulce de leche)

Mousse de dulce de leche chocolatey crema fresca (Dulce de leche mousse + creme fresh + chocolate)

This restaurant was close to perfection for me. Every dish was packed with so much flavour. My favourites of the night were the stuffed dates and foie gras bites. I enjoy tapas style meals because it's perfect for ordering a variety of small plates and sharing. If you haven't been to Patria, I highly recommend giving it a try.

Happy Eating!

Magnum Pleasure Store

Magnum Ice-cream has many 'pleasure stores' in North America. One just opened in Yorkville for a trial run. Until the end of August, people can customize their own magnum ice-cream bar. With a variety of toppings for the choosin' you can really make your magnum experience enjoyable. I checked it out last week with my sister, heres how we did our bars:

I opted for vanilla ice-cream center, milk chocolate coating, dark chocolate drizzle, pop rocks, nerds, coconut and rice crispies.

My sister had vanilla ice-cream center, white chocolate coating, milk chocolate drizzle, dried strawberries, pop rocks, and popcorn. 

If you love ice-cream, check out this Magnum Pleasure Store before it's gone! 

Happy Eating!

The Argentinian Food Experience

This past month I had the most amazing experience travelling Argentina! Aside from the amazing people, night life, scenery, music, and wine that make up this gorgeous country...the FOOD was (obviously) something I had the most excitement over. I know it's not in the 416, in my beloved Toronto, but I still want to share some of the food highlights from my trip! 

Hot Chocolate (The milk comes piping hot, with separate pieces of chocolate to add yourself for melting)

Empanada (I had too many of these to count during this trip) They come with a variety of fillings. The most common is ground beef with hard boiled egg and spices.

Choripan (street meat) 

Milanese Sandwich

Argentina is known for their beef. This is an example of a fast food menu....pure steak.

Dinner at Don Julio's

Papas Fritas aka fries

Chimichurri for the meat. A mix of green herbs, chilli's and olive oil. 

Panqueque con Dulce De Leche. (Pancake with caramel sauce) This dessert was addicting. I had it many many times throughout the trip from numerous restaurants.

Dinner at the famous La Cabrera

Sides for the steak

Chocolate mousse Brownie

More empanadas

Sorrentini pasta (stuffed with ricotta)

Ravioli in a cream sauce

Dinner at El Arrabel 

Various meats, steaks, chorizo, blood sausage.

Four cheese pizza

Mate (argentinian tea) 

Meat and cheese platter 

Gnocchi with bolognese sauce

Pasta with ham and cream sauce

Ham and cheese croissant 

Cheeseburger from the famous Cafe Tortoni

Spinach pasta with sun-dried tomatoes and mushrooms.

I miss this food and I miss this country. 

Happy Eating!