At the bottom of our street is a small restaurant. We often order take-out from this place. The food is always good, hot and reasonably prices. Three of my favorite things when it comes to food :)
In this instance, we decided to walk down there for my mother's b-day. We were six people and we did make reservations. They are more of a take-out place, then a sit down diner. But on this day, we should have called ahead. They were packed! This is great for them, but I was not happy as we could not sit together. Luckily, a couple of people left and we were able to move a couple of tables together before we ordered.
I decided to order my usual: the pork souvlaki pita plate. I love Greek food. It was perfectly cooked and I ate the whole thing as usual. If I did not like, then I would not keep ordering it, now would I? Hubby was not as lucky. He ordered the pizza-ghetti, but he got the all-dressed pizza. The pizza was very good as usual, but he was pissed because he did not get what he ordered. To be fair, our waitress had a head cold and left for home after serving us our meals. But, because of this error, hubby has boycotted them for a little while.
We will go back to them as they are down the street from us. But for now, they will lose our business due to this mistake.
Until next time!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Book Review: Caleb
I got a bunch of books for Christmas! I have been busy plowing through them :) I finished reading "Caleb" by Sarah McCarty. It is the first book in her paranormal western series called "The Shadow Wranglers". There are four books in the series (so far), each one about a different brother in the Johnson clan.
The series starts with Caleb, the eldest brother in a family of vampires. He was turned about 250 years ago and has not completely adjusted to the modern world, especially modern women. The woman that he is attracted to is attacked by werewolves, and he attacks them to defend her. He is injured and she manages to bring him to his ranch. This is where all the action takes place.
The story starts out well. It has all the elements that I enjoy in a paranormal romance. There is a strong chemistry between the main characters, the dialogue is witty, and there is humor. The story itself lags after the heroine brings Caleb to the ranch. Which is barely a third of the way into the book. Every time something happens, in order to shut her up, he has sex with her. I like sex in my books as much as the next person, but this was a little overboard. You lose track of the story and all the various details that she throws in during the sex scenes. And, she throws in a lot of details , without any warming (or foreshadowing) at all. It is very distracting.
I will probably reads the rest of the series, but I will wait until the rest of the books come out in mass market paperback format, they are not worth buying in trade paperback format.
Here is the link for her website if you want to check it out: http://www.sarahmccarty.net/
Until next time!
The series starts with Caleb, the eldest brother in a family of vampires. He was turned about 250 years ago and has not completely adjusted to the modern world, especially modern women. The woman that he is attracted to is attacked by werewolves, and he attacks them to defend her. He is injured and she manages to bring him to his ranch. This is where all the action takes place.
The story starts out well. It has all the elements that I enjoy in a paranormal romance. There is a strong chemistry between the main characters, the dialogue is witty, and there is humor. The story itself lags after the heroine brings Caleb to the ranch. Which is barely a third of the way into the book. Every time something happens, in order to shut her up, he has sex with her. I like sex in my books as much as the next person, but this was a little overboard. You lose track of the story and all the various details that she throws in during the sex scenes. And, she throws in a lot of details , without any warming (or foreshadowing) at all. It is very distracting.
I will probably reads the rest of the series, but I will wait until the rest of the books come out in mass market paperback format, they are not worth buying in trade paperback format.
Here is the link for her website if you want to check it out: http://www.sarahmccarty.net/
Until next time!
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Book Review: Kitty and the Midnight Hour
Once again my sister has introduced me to a new writer. I just finished reading "Kitty and the Midnight Hour" by Carrie Vaughn. I read it in a day. It is a fun, quick read, but well written.
The story is about a DJ that accidentally starts a talk radio show for the supernatural community in Denver. She herself is a werewolf going through an identity crisis, which causes mayhem in her pack. Throw in a conspiracy, a serial killer and a bounty hunter and you have an entertaining read.
The plot is dense with characters. You can feel that the author wanted the characters to go in one direction, but they themselves took her in another one. Luckily, she managed to rein them in and create a cohesive story. The novel is well plotted and the dialog flows properly and is believable (not stilted like some authors).
This is the first book in the series, and I can tell you that I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
If you want to check out her website site, here it is: http://www.carrievaughn.com/
Until next time!
The story is about a DJ that accidentally starts a talk radio show for the supernatural community in Denver. She herself is a werewolf going through an identity crisis, which causes mayhem in her pack. Throw in a conspiracy, a serial killer and a bounty hunter and you have an entertaining read.
The plot is dense with characters. You can feel that the author wanted the characters to go in one direction, but they themselves took her in another one. Luckily, she managed to rein them in and create a cohesive story. The novel is well plotted and the dialog flows properly and is believable (not stilted like some authors).
This is the first book in the series, and I can tell you that I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
If you want to check out her website site, here it is: http://www.carrievaughn.com/
Until next time!
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Waste Not, Want Not
If there is something that I hate in the kitchen, it is waste. It drives me nuts! Some would say that it is a short drive :) The one way that I have to combat that problem is a recipe website. I use it when I have leftover products from a previous recipe. This is my secret weapon.
The website is www.allrecipes.com. If you go to the top of the page, you will see an ingredients headings. This is the most perfect search engine. Type in the ingredient (or ingredients) that you want to use and you can type in the ingredient (or ingredients) that you do not want to use. This is the perfect site to find recipes for ingredients that you do not use everyday. You will need to read a few recipes before finding the perfect one. Be patient and take your time. It is worth the search!
It will also give you ideas for other recipes and meal planning. A good tool for those of us who are unimaginative or lazy. You have no excuse for a boring dinner party ever again.
Just a note of warning, these are recipes from home chefs. I have done some recipes that were beautiful and have been saved in my personal recipe book. And, there are others that are not good at all. But, it is all a matter of taste, so try them, change them and enjoy them. For certain ingredients, you will want to try a variety of spellings, for example broccoli is spelled a couple of different ways. The site is American, so use the term ground beef as supposed to minced meat.
It is fun to experiment with food, so have fun and enjoy!
Until next time!
The website is www.allrecipes.com. If you go to the top of the page, you will see an ingredients headings. This is the most perfect search engine. Type in the ingredient (or ingredients) that you want to use and you can type in the ingredient (or ingredients) that you do not want to use. This is the perfect site to find recipes for ingredients that you do not use everyday. You will need to read a few recipes before finding the perfect one. Be patient and take your time. It is worth the search!
It will also give you ideas for other recipes and meal planning. A good tool for those of us who are unimaginative or lazy. You have no excuse for a boring dinner party ever again.
Just a note of warning, these are recipes from home chefs. I have done some recipes that were beautiful and have been saved in my personal recipe book. And, there are others that are not good at all. But, it is all a matter of taste, so try them, change them and enjoy them. For certain ingredients, you will want to try a variety of spellings, for example broccoli is spelled a couple of different ways. The site is American, so use the term ground beef as supposed to minced meat.
It is fun to experiment with food, so have fun and enjoy!
Until next time!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Resto Review: Scarolies
Sorry that it has been a while. I was not feeling my muse, but now I am back! Hubby was in the mood for Italian food after his adventure, so he decided on Scarolies in the West Island on St-John's blvd.
It is usually one of go-to places for Italian food. The food is good and the prices are reasonable. We went early enough that we were seated right away. If you go after 6:30pm be prepared to wait for a half hour or more. Or, do like me and go somewhere else to eat. I do not wait in line to eat, Never! I dislike it intensely. There are plenty of other restaurants out there.
Once you are seated, the waiter brings you a warm loaf of bread and preps the olive oil & balsamic dip right in front of you. I have trouble ignoring warm bread, so of course I dug into it. It was so good! Hubby decided to order off the table d'hote for a change. He usually does not as his appetite is not as big as mine. He had the tomato & bocconcini appetizer. It was very good, but then again it is very hard to mess that dish up. His main course was the angel hair pasta with lobster tails and asparagus. He dove right in to that and loved it. He finished off the lobster but left half the pasta. The plates are huge. Since, he took the balance home and ate it for breakfast the next day, I can only assume that he liked it a lot.
I decided to have the rotolo milanese and no appetizer. The rotolo is rolled pasta with ricotta and spinach with a rosee sauce. I love stuffed pasta! I usually order that when I go to an Italian restaurant. I quite enjoyed it, especially when I cup up the basil leaves that they garnished the plate with and added it to the pasta. The filling was missing a little bit of zip and the basil provided it nicely. The plate comes with two rotoloa and I only one of them as I had eaten almost half a loaf of bread and I wanted dessert.
The dessert menu consists of the waiter bringing you a plate with all the desserts that they offer. I like that, because I get to see the quality of the dessert. You eat first with your eyes, and then with your mouth. If it is not pretty, you will not be tempted to eat it. I was tempted by all the offerings on the plate. I chose the Red Velvet cake. It is a new offering of theirs and I highly recommend it. The cake was a little nutty but light, the icing was flavourful and denser than the cake, which for me is perfect balance. It is garnished with a piece of kiwi and orange and whipped cream. Hubby and I shared the dessert as we usually do. I feel less guilty and he gets the 2 to 3 bites that he needs to cleanse his pallet. It is a win-win situation for us.
I ate my rotolo for lunch the next day. Because it had a cream based sauce, I warmed it up in the oven. I have learned from experience that you must NEVER microwave a cream based sauce, as it will clump up and be gritty. Always warm it up in the oven, it will dry out a little, but it will remain edible.
Back to the rotolo, it was very good the next day warmed up, I just wish that there was a little but more sauce. My fault for eating most of it the night before :)
Here is the website for those who want to take a look: http://www.scarolies.com/home-e.html
Until next time!
It is usually one of go-to places for Italian food. The food is good and the prices are reasonable. We went early enough that we were seated right away. If you go after 6:30pm be prepared to wait for a half hour or more. Or, do like me and go somewhere else to eat. I do not wait in line to eat, Never! I dislike it intensely. There are plenty of other restaurants out there.
Once you are seated, the waiter brings you a warm loaf of bread and preps the olive oil & balsamic dip right in front of you. I have trouble ignoring warm bread, so of course I dug into it. It was so good! Hubby decided to order off the table d'hote for a change. He usually does not as his appetite is not as big as mine. He had the tomato & bocconcini appetizer. It was very good, but then again it is very hard to mess that dish up. His main course was the angel hair pasta with lobster tails and asparagus. He dove right in to that and loved it. He finished off the lobster but left half the pasta. The plates are huge. Since, he took the balance home and ate it for breakfast the next day, I can only assume that he liked it a lot.
I decided to have the rotolo milanese and no appetizer. The rotolo is rolled pasta with ricotta and spinach with a rosee sauce. I love stuffed pasta! I usually order that when I go to an Italian restaurant. I quite enjoyed it, especially when I cup up the basil leaves that they garnished the plate with and added it to the pasta. The filling was missing a little bit of zip and the basil provided it nicely. The plate comes with two rotoloa and I only one of them as I had eaten almost half a loaf of bread and I wanted dessert.
The dessert menu consists of the waiter bringing you a plate with all the desserts that they offer. I like that, because I get to see the quality of the dessert. You eat first with your eyes, and then with your mouth. If it is not pretty, you will not be tempted to eat it. I was tempted by all the offerings on the plate. I chose the Red Velvet cake. It is a new offering of theirs and I highly recommend it. The cake was a little nutty but light, the icing was flavourful and denser than the cake, which for me is perfect balance. It is garnished with a piece of kiwi and orange and whipped cream. Hubby and I shared the dessert as we usually do. I feel less guilty and he gets the 2 to 3 bites that he needs to cleanse his pallet. It is a win-win situation for us.
I ate my rotolo for lunch the next day. Because it had a cream based sauce, I warmed it up in the oven. I have learned from experience that you must NEVER microwave a cream based sauce, as it will clump up and be gritty. Always warm it up in the oven, it will dry out a little, but it will remain edible.
Back to the rotolo, it was very good the next day warmed up, I just wish that there was a little but more sauce. My fault for eating most of it the night before :)
Here is the website for those who want to take a look: http://www.scarolies.com/home-e.html
Until next time!
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Resto Review: Les 3 Brasseurs
After a matinee movie, my husband and I enjoy going out for dinner. On this night, we decided to to go Les 3 Brasseurs, as it was walking distance to the movie theater and we would not have to move the car. Walking after a meal is a good idea!
I ordered the Flammekueche with goat cheese, tomatoes, onions, oil & herbs. It is a very thin pizza. I liked it. The crust was really thin and crunchy. The toppings were a good mix of flavours in just the right amount. I was satisfied without feeling too full. I still had room for dessert :)
Hubby ordered the Roast beef sandwich that came with a side order of fries. The plate arrives, and surprise, surprise, there was no mound of fries on it. This is a rare event in a restaurant. There was actually a reasonable amount of fries on the plate and not a sumo-sized amount. The sandwich was good and properly seasoned.
And, for dessert we shared the House specialty which is a coffee or espresso a small slice of cheesecake and a small cup of chocolate mousse. Hubby had the espresso and we shared the desserts. This is an excellent idea for dessert. We tried two desserts without having to stuff ourselves to the bursting point.
Here is their website if you want to check them out: http://les3brasseurs.ca/eng/index.php
Until next time!
I ordered the Flammekueche with goat cheese, tomatoes, onions, oil & herbs. It is a very thin pizza. I liked it. The crust was really thin and crunchy. The toppings were a good mix of flavours in just the right amount. I was satisfied without feeling too full. I still had room for dessert :)
Hubby ordered the Roast beef sandwich that came with a side order of fries. The plate arrives, and surprise, surprise, there was no mound of fries on it. This is a rare event in a restaurant. There was actually a reasonable amount of fries on the plate and not a sumo-sized amount. The sandwich was good and properly seasoned.
And, for dessert we shared the House specialty which is a coffee or espresso a small slice of cheesecake and a small cup of chocolate mousse. Hubby had the espresso and we shared the desserts. This is an excellent idea for dessert. We tried two desserts without having to stuff ourselves to the bursting point.
Here is their website if you want to check them out: http://les3brasseurs.ca/eng/index.php
Until next time!
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Resto Review: Five Guys
I love hamburgers. And, for me it is all about the meat. It does not need to be huge, but it needs to be flavorful and I need to taste the beef. I actually like raw mincemeat. I know that it is not good for you, but I am going to go of something, so I may as well enjoy! I like my hamburgers to be rare or medium rare. Restaurants cannot serve it that way, so I get them medium (but at home, they are rare).
The burgers at Five Guys are delicious. They are properly seasoned and taste like beef. I have not had the all-dressed burger, as I like my burgers simple. I put mayo, tomato, lettuce and pickles on the cheeseburger. In this one instance, bacon is not needed on the burger.
The fries are ordered on the side. They are deep-fired in peanut oil (people with allergies beware), and the skins are left on. They are very generous with their order of fries. The fries are great with some malt vinegar and salt.
Here is the Five Guys website if you want to check them out: http://fiveguys.ca/en
Until next time!
The burgers at Five Guys are delicious. They are properly seasoned and taste like beef. I have not had the all-dressed burger, as I like my burgers simple. I put mayo, tomato, lettuce and pickles on the cheeseburger. In this one instance, bacon is not needed on the burger.
The fries are ordered on the side. They are deep-fired in peanut oil (people with allergies beware), and the skins are left on. They are very generous with their order of fries. The fries are great with some malt vinegar and salt.
Here is the Five Guys website if you want to check them out: http://fiveguys.ca/en
Until next time!
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