Montana's Cookhouse

The other night we were treated to a nice dinner at Montana's Cookhouse in the heart of Scarborough.  This place has been around for quite some time now and boasts some of the best ribs in all of Toronto.  Naturally I went with their famous Smokehouse Pork Back Ribs.

Smokehouse Pork Back Ribs

The ribs arrived within 15 minutes of ordering.  I went with their customary BBQ sauce and mashed potatoes.  The ribs were nice and hot and had about 9 to 10 bones to the rack.  I took one bite into the meat and I could tell right away why these guys are famous for their ribs.  The meat was laced with BBQ sauce on every bite, was very, very soft and juicy and it literally fell right off the bone.   I have to admit it was one of the best ribs I have had in quite some time.  Needless to say the entire meal was completed without any problems.  The mash potatoes was nicely whipped as well.  It was soft, a little bit creamy but nonetheless pretty good. They also dug a hole in the centre of the mash potato to hold the gravy which I thought was quite neat.  There were also some corn cooked with some butter and red peppers which gave it a spicy taste to it.  Everything on this plate was just perfect.  The entire meal was well worth the money. 

Overall, everything was well organized and service was good considering this place was packed on a Friday night.  Our server had checked on us regularly that night to make sure our food was good or whether we needed more drinks.   I was told the only blemish was that my wife's steak was slightly overcooked as she had ordered a medium rare but instead got a steak that was closer to medium well done.  Otherwise, there were no other complaints from others.  With plenty of free parking and the restaurant located just within eye shot of Scarborough Town Centre, it certainly would make it a great place following a long day of shopping or right after a movie.  Overall I give it a 4.5 out of 5.

Montana's Cookhouse
41 Milner Avenue  Toronto, ON M1S 3P8

416 321-5684

Zen Japanese Restaurant

I have eaten at a lot of Japanese restaurants but this one has far exceeded many of my expectations.  I was told that this restaurant had very fresh, very authentic sushi and sashimi dishes.  For food that doesn't need to be cooked one has to wonder how much "better" can one be.

This restaurant located in south Scarborough is tucked in a small strip plaza but inside the restaurant it has definitely has the appeal of an authentic Japanese restaurants.  They even have two designated stalls where you can sit on the floor and enjoy their tasty meals.

Chef's Omakase Sushi Special

We didn't bring the stroller this time around but there was certainly a chance to do so if one wished to.  There was free parking in the parking lot out front and we were able to park right in front of the restaurant.  We were given menus but we knew ahead of time from our peers to try the Chef's Omakase Sushi AND Sashimi Special.  It comes with special types and more expensive types of fish.  We also ordered a black sesame ice cream, raw beef and a couple of spicy tuna rolls.

Chef's Omakase Sashimi Special

We were served a courtesy dish of edamame beans which was yummy as they did not have a whole lot of salt on them as how some of the other places serve them.  Only one miso soup arrived and that was for the Chef's Sushi Special.  The sashimi special did not come with a miso soup.  The plates came next and it looked delicious.  There was no salmon on either one but no need to.  It included toro, scallops, red snappers and tunas to name a few.  I tried the scallop first and one bite into the scallop sashimi and I knew why this place was a must go.  The scallop was very "sweet" tasting.  It tasted so fresh it was like the scallop was fresh out of the ocean.  It was not frozen or cold.  It was soft, tender and just simply perfect.  Needless to say the rest of the sashimi on the plate was just the same.  It was absolutely different than all the other places I have been to. The fish didn't appear to have been stored for a long period of time.

The raw beef was beautifully made. Lightly seared on the outside and purely raw on the inside the very thin slices of beef were absolutely delicious.  The meat certainly was not too fatty.  The dish was 7 dollars only and it came with 9 slices. It also came with its special sauce, minced radish and minced green onions.  To get the perfect taste, you should put all 3 together to give it that amazing zangy taste.

Spicy Tuna Roll

Raw Beef

Toro Sushi Roll

The spicy tuna rolls were spicy but not to the point where it was too spicy that your mouth was numb.  It had a sweet taste to it but the tuna one can tell was very fresh.  Absolutely no complaints here.  The surprise of the night was the Toro Sushi Roll.  We thought that the Sushi and sashimi's were done but after they had cleared our plates out came this toro sushi roll.  Unlike a California roll where it is triangular in shape, it is actually rolled up into a long cylinder.  The toro roll was very good from start to finish. 

Finally we had the black sesame ice cream.  Although we have had this dish before at other places, the black sesame ice cream was surprisingly different.  For example, it was wonderfully mixed with the milk and very well evened out within the ice cream. Again, the ice cream certainly was not "frozen" nor did it have a frozen taste to it  I personally believe that the black sesame ice cream is freshly made and made only when an order has been placed and not pre-made.

Black Sesame Ice Cream

Overall, this is one of the best sushi places I have ever been to..  I can't speak for some of the other dishes on the menu but the ones on the chef's special is definitely a must try for any sushi and sashimi lover.  On a personal note,  each chef's special set course was $49.50.  The difference between the two is that the sushi obvious comes with fish on the rice while the sashimi special all had at least 2 pieces of fish.  Given the price and me as a personal fish lover, the sashimi special was more worth while simply because you get an extra piece of fish as oppose to getting an extra piece of rice.  However for a much bigger person, the sashimi meal might not be able to satisfy a very hungry stomach.  My recommendation would be to order one of each and yes although it comes out to $100 plus tax and tip, it will definitely be well worthwhile.  It is a great place to bring a special date too and making reservations prior to going certainly would not hurt. Highly recommended and definitely earns my first 5 out of 5.

Zen Japanese Restaurant
http://www.zenjapaneserestaurant.com/

2803 Eglinton Avenue East,
Scarborough, Ontario.
M1J 2E1
(416) 265-7111

Yoko Japanese Restaurant

The other night we went to Yoko Japanese Restaurant to have some Japanese sushi.  This restaurant was recommended by our company lawyers as they had been there recently and said it was pretty good.  We decided to make reservations just in case it was busy.  There were 6 of us and upon entering the restaurant  we were given one of the private booths on the side.

We decided to order a large size sushi and sashimi boat, grilled mackerel  a seafood udon, shrimp tempura, spider maki and a dolsot bibimbap for the evening.  The boat and sashimi boat arrived first and at first glance of this huge boat, it was like a sea of orange.  If you love salmon, there was certainly plenty of it on this boat.  The majority of it was salmon.  Although there were some pieces of red and white tuna in it, I personally think that there should have been a few more variety of fish.

Shrimp Tempura

The seafood udon was good however the dish itself was small.  It was done on one of those teriyaki grills rather than in a bowl.  Appearance wise it looked pretty good however I think I would prefer it in a bowl where the portions could have been bigger. The noodles were big and there were pieces of squid and vegetables in it as well.  It was tasty despite a lack of a real soup base. 

The shrimp tempura was okay.  Nothing remarkable about this dish compared to all the other sushi places where we had the shrimp tempura.  The shrimp was fresh and was not mushy at all which was good.  

Sushi and Sashimi Boat

The dolsot bibimbap arrived next which is really assorted beef and vegetables cooked in a traditional Korean stone bowl mixed with rice, spicy sauce and topped with a fried egg.  The picture shot was actually a picture of the whole dish after we had mixed all the ingredients together.  Personally it was my favorite dish of the night as it was hot, tasty, and all the ingredients mixed really well together.  The spicy sauce gave it that extra bit of zing to it but not to the point where it was too spicy to eat.  For $10.95 it was a great dish for a great price. 

Seafood Udon

The spider maki arrived next which contained fried crab, cucumber, avocado and sweet potato or yam in it.  This was probably the best sushi or maki that we had all night.  It was crunchy and definitely quite filling as each pieces were quite big.  There were like 10 or 11 big pieces of maki which certainly made this dish worthwhile.  This dish was like $15 bucks but the size of each piece certainly made it a dish worth having.

Dolsot Bibimbap

The mackerel arrived last however this was not the fault of the kitchen.  We made an extra order after all the other food had arrived.  The mackerel was a little salty but was quite delicious.  It was perfectly grilled but not charred.  There were small pieces of bone left and although the mackerel was like $9.99 it was worth the price.  If you do order the mackerel, I would recommend that you get it with some rice because this fish is quite salty and does require some extra side to go with it. 

Fried Mackerel

Spider Maki

Overall it was a decent night.  My only complaint was that there were just way too many pieces of salmon on the boat.  As my fellow readers know, I go to a lot of sushi restaurants in and around the city and when we order a medium or large size boat we expect variety.  Service was good and the staff was nice.  Overall I give this place a 3.5 out of 5.

Yoko Japanese Restaurant

490 McNicoll Avenue
North York, ON M2H 2E1

(416) 502-9750

Spring Rolls

The other night we went out for a  function out at Spring Rolls located just outside Fairview Mall in North York.  We had reserved a long line of tables and it was ready when we got there.  When we sat down, we were originally given the regular menu however afterwards, a waitress had come by to take back the menus and given us a special menu. Tonight I decided to go with a coconut fried shrimp, a chicken pad thai and a mango creme brulee. 

Coconut Shrimp

The coconut fried shrimp came first.  There were three of them inside a cup suspended on top of some salad at the bottom of the cup.  There was also a special shrimp sauce placed beside it.  The shrimp itself was quite bland.  It was crispy and nicely battered however the shrimp's taste was all but gone.  One really needed the sauce to give it some flavor.

The chicken pad thai arrived next and at first glance it looked pretty good.  However as one sank their teeth into it, the goodness of it stopped right there.  The pad thai was quite gooey and the lime juice added to it really made it quite sour.  The roasted peanuts helped it a little but the tofu was not good at all. The tofu were hard and stale.  I had to push it to aside in order to continue with the meal.  Needless to say, I was only able to finish half the plate. 

Chicken Pad Thai

Last to arrive was the mango creme brulee.  The creme brulee was nice burnt on the top but the bottom of it lacked the true zing in the mango.  In other words, you taste the mango but there was nothing spectacular about it. 

Mango Creme Brulee

Overall, I was a little disappointed with the whole meal.  I also surveyed one of my friend's sushi and sashimi dishes and he said it was just not that good.  Personally although it is appreciative of the fact that they try to have a little bit of Asian on their menu, I think that they would be better off at focusing on one or two particular culture's food rather trying to have a little bit of everything.  Quantity does not always equal quality.  As well, their specialty menu was littered with spelling mistakes including the name of the event.  That is bad.  Overall I give this a generous 2 out of 5. 

Spring Rolls
1800 Sheppard Avenue East  Toronto, ON M2J 5A7

(416) 756-7655

Ruby Watchco

Tonight we went to visit celebrity chef Lynn Crawford's restaurant Ruby Watchco out in the eastern part of Toronto.  Located on the corner of Queen's Street East and Broadview Avenue, this restaurant boasts some of the best foods and staff in the entire city of Toronto.  We were there for a function so we ended up booking the entire second floor for the evening. 

We got there around 6:00 tonight and they served us with a bunch of appetizers.  There were some cooked butternut squash, salmon beets and fried scallops and lobster meat to name a few.  The portions were small however they were then again meant to be served as appetizers.  They were all tasty but we were told that the best was yet to come. 

Next to arrive was their special $49 dinner for the evening which included Carron's Farm Red Beet and Orange Salad, Ruby's Brick Chicken With Mushroom Bits, Canadian Artisanal Cheese and Dark Chocolate Cheesecake. 

The salad was the first to arrive.  It was a combination of cucumbers, romaine heart's, living greens and gouda cheese.  The entire salad was then tossed with vinaigrette sauce.  The salad was very tasty and the addition of the orange and the vinaigrette sauce gave it a surperb tangy taste.  It was an excellent salad to have as starters. 

Ruby's Brick Chicken With Mushroom Bits

Next to arrive was a four-plate main course meal.  The chicken was cooked with small mushroom bits.  The skin of the chicken for those who like to eat the skin had what looked like little bits of black pepper mixed in with it.  The white meat was perfectly cooked. It was not overly done where the meat would be rough and tough. Although the meat was slightly dry, the meat was soft and tender but the combination of the juicy skin with the white meat made it a dynamic combination which when together, melted nicely in one's mouth. 

There was also a plate of brown butter and walnut roasted brussel sprouts that came with the chicken.  The brussel sprouts were a little hard however it captured all of the brown butter taste so when one sank their teeth inside them, the taste of the brown butter coated the vegetable very well and brought out much of the flavor of this dish.

A plate of crushed potatoes mixed with chive sour cream were also placed on the table. The potatoes were a mixture of mashed and cooked potatoes and with the addition of her specially made chive sour cream sauce, it was an amazing dish to have. Also to arrive was the spliced butternut squash.  This dish was also amazingly done.  Each piece were sliced into huge pieces and they too were very, very tasty. 

After such a filling dinner, we were introduced to three different types of cheese.  This was to serve as a break between the main course and desert.  I don't know much about cheeses but I think one of them was goat cheese.  All three had a very strong flavor to them as the odor of the cheese would go right through the nostrils as one bit into it. 

Finally the dark chocolate cheesecake desert was last to arrive.  Although I am not a huge fan of dark chocolate, this cheesecake was one of the best cheesecakes I have ever had.  Mixed with cranberry caramel sauce, the cheesecake was extremely soft.  The entire cheesecake was so soft one felt like they were eating melted marshmellows.  It was sweet, but not too sweet. To me, the desert alone was worth the asking price.  
Overall, the night was a smashing success.  The food, the staff and the atmosphere were absolutely amazing.  It was 9:15 on a weeknight and people were still lined up outside the door to get into the restaurant.  I am very happy that I had gone to have dinner tonight at this wonderful restaurant.  Kudos to chef Lynn and to their staff Melissa and Jeremy.  Class acts and true professionals.  Overall I give this place a 5 out of 5. 

Ruby Watchco
730 Queen Street East  Toronto, ON M4M 1H2

(416) 465-0100

PF Chang's

I have been to the PF Chang's in Niagara Falls a couple of times however I have never put pen to paper.  A couple of weeks ago I was in Miami and at that PF Chang's.  Truthfully both of them were very good and the one in Miami certainly was no exception.

We went with a huge group while we were down there so we all decided to order individual dishes.  I went with a share dish of Seared Ahi Tuna and a personal dish of Crispy Honey Chicken. 

The Ahi Tuna arrived first and there were about 8 pieces of tuna.  The middle was raw while the surrounding tuna were all nicely seared but not burnt.  The tuna was fresh and tasty.  There were also some salad and cucumber laced with black pepper salad dressing sauce.  The tuna also had its own sauce as well.  The entire dish was delicious and a great appetizer to start off with. 

Seared Ahi Tuna

Crispy Honey Chicken

 My main lunch arrived soon afterwards.  The Crispy Honey Chicken were only a small handful of dishes that did not have any spicy chicken in it.  Since I had my little one with me who for sure would want a piece of chicken or two, I thought it was imperative that I get something that was tasty but not spicy.  At first glance it looked like quite an ordinary dish.  There was really nothing to it.  There were chicken balls and fried rice on the plate.  I took a bite of the chicken and the meat sank into my teeth.  It was very soft ad the honey was a perfect compliment to the chicken.  The chicken was lightly battered and not overly done but still had that crispy texture.  One did not get this deep fried feeling when consuming the meal.  It was a wonderful lunch meal.

Overall it was a very good lunch at PF Chang's.  Whether I was in Niagara Falls or Miami the standards were there.  The prices are reasonable and now that there is one in Toronto, I would encourage all to go try it one day if you haven't done so yet.  I will leave at the bottom the address of the PF Chang's for the local folks here to try.  Overall, a wonderful restaurant and service was great.  Overall I give it a 4.75 out of 5.

PF Chang's Restaurant
O'Neill Road, Toronto, ON M3C 0H1
(416) 510-8838