Is February largely about love and romance? I feel as if it's only a traditional excuse for couples to display their love and affections publicly and for the ones who are single to relish in the pity. This, all in all, is absolute silliness. Why should February be any different than any other month or day? Why should you or your SO only spend one insignificant day to profess your love to each other? Well, if you only feel loved on that one day, then you are being cheated. I'm sorry, but you should not appreciate or be appreciated on one out of 365 days of the year. February 14th should also not be a day that is placed on a high pedestal with expectations that not even the most romantic protagonist in a cheesy Harlequin novel can achieve.
Okay, rant over! Time for some February recap. Mr. W and I basked in the glory of food food and more food (yes, so what else is new?) all month. No wonder I am quite the Chubs and can't quite fit into my pants and have resorted to tights and skirts (it's work equivalent clothing to sweat pants).
Our $35/person Winterlicious meal at Celestin consisted of:
Maple syrup cured Atlantic salmon with Szechwan pepper crust, seedling and avocado oil
Verdict: Too salty, and lacked the freshness of the Atlantic salmon.... or maybe that's what cured means? Unfortunately my knowledge of food only pertains up to what is aired on the Food Network and sometimes I still get confused by Gaida...
B.C. crab soup ‘Bouillabaisse’ style, red pepper aïoli croutons (no photo)
Verdict: Meh.
Tender braised buffalo rib with Banyuls wine and fingerling potatoes ‘Grand-Mère’ style (no photo)
Verdict: According to Mr. W it tastes like soup brewed pork. I think it tastes like braised beef aka minced "au naam".
Hokkaido scallops and lobster gratin in shell, with medley of snow peas (no photo)
Verdict: The sauce was scrumptious, but either of us can probably whip up the same stuff for a quarter of the price. Unfortunately I don't have photos of either main course because I did not want to pull a Tourist and blind the couple on our left with my camera's flash. Talk about ruining a romantic moment with paparazzi creepiness!
5. Pecan chocolate moelleux with French caramel ice cream
Verdict: Brownie with ice-cream. They fooled me with the french.
6. Pistachio crème brulée
Verdict: Surprisingly creamy, but then I only took a bite because it was the only decent part of Mr. W's meal, so I did not have the heart to engulf his whole dessert down.
Atmosphere:
Good romantic feel, except for the drunk women who had their drinks at the bar first and then titter-tottered to their dinner tables. Would we go there again? In terms of location, it's super convenient, but the quality of the food has me questioning if whether or not I could pay for better food and service elsewhere. I'm not sure if most of these restaurants are hyped up or not but I feel as if I get more of my money's worth eating at Springrolls. However, the cool thing is that the chef is handicapped below the hips, so he cooks in a one of a kind kitchen that allows him to cook in a wheelchair. I heard the kitchen revolves....but could be a myth!
To book reservations, click the link.
We dined and wined at Uncle Joe's on supposedly the most romantic day of the year. This restaurant is a hybrid of when Eastern meets Western. So basically, you have Chinese people cooking a Western meal. Kind of like, a cat attempting to pass off as a tiger. I think they pulled it off decently for those who rarely go out to eat or when they do it's take out or McDonalds. In fact, there is a lot of room for this place, because every dish seemed to have come out of the oven at 500 degrees Celsius aka charred and moldy. I think part of it can be blamed on my cellphone's camera under the "romantic" but poor lighting. Though, when you eat it, the dish does not taste as bad as it looks (I know, I sound delusional, but you're just going have to take my word for it).
The rather bland soup - I don't even remember the texture, taste or what went into it now.
Garlic bread that even I could heat up better with bread from Metro.
The sad attempt of freshly marinated squid. It's sad because it was neither fresh or marinated. At least it was squid.
Mr. W's lamp chops, which were a little dry and overcooked. I didn't take a large enough bite to critique it (because I cannot stand the smell of lamb) but Mr. W claims it was decent. At that point, I think decent would be 5/10 if not 4/10.
I had the New York steak and I found it a little dry and the meat a little difficult to cut. Or, perhaps that is a result of a dull knife?? But nonetheless, for the price the food was offered, it's a decent place to go for couples with a thin wallet. Plus, at the end of the meal the waitresses presented me with a rose! I like free stuff.
Uncle Joe's is located in the heart of Unionville.
Mr.W spent the next entire morning make up for the two mediocre meals with his superbly delicious sushi.
YUMMMM.
(Hitler-lookalike sushi courtesy of Yours Truely)
My mouth salivates just thinking about the eel.....
Other in the news tidbits: Sister came back from England with lots of goodies and I managed to paw my way thru to claim some of them.
My Primark hobo purse! Primark is a UK store that is literally a shoppaholic's heaven because their stuff is so cheap and so IN style. They sell designer imitations and which is why people purchase from Primark and resell it online as Primark goodies (I think they're a bit like H&M but with much better quality and slightly more affordable). This purse was purchased for 5quids and resold on ebay for 15quids + additional shipping. OUTRAGEOUS. My sister also managed to purchase for me a pair of tan buckled boots for 10quids, which people are selling atrociously for 30+pounds.
My longchamp! Hello helloooo beautiful.
Walkers is apparently the North American version of Lays. This flavor had an odd curry aftertaste. I think I prefer Lays... Ironically, even though it's called Monster Munch, the bag is puny. I finished it off in six or seven bites. North American manufacturers should learn from the Brits instead of attempting to persuade BObama to regulate obesity.
What the chip actually looked like. The texture is similar to those of onion rings, but lighter and probably less fattening.
