Spoon and Fork

Spoon and Fork is an all you can eat restaurant that specializes everything from Japanese sushi to Thai curry to Italian Pasta.  Although there are many different locations within the city, we decided to give the one on York Mills Road a try.  When we got there, a rather large menu with a huge variety of foods were given to us.  At $29.99, it is probably one of the more expensive all you can eat places in the city and that is not including drinks or dessert either.

Beet Salad, Prosciutto Ham, Mango Salad

I will only highlight some of the foods that were brought to us as we certainly took advantage of the huge selection of items in their menu that evening.  For starters we ordered their Prosciutto Ham, Beet Salad and Mango Salad.  The two salads were done very well as they were both simple, refreshing and provided that bit of exoticness to the table.  The Mango Salad had some cashews and peppers added to it to give it that bit of zangy taste and the Beet Salad came with green leaf sprouts and sauce added to it to really enhance all the flavors of that salad.  The Prosciutto Ham was served on a slice of cantaloupe fruit.  The funny part was that since there was only once slice of ham, I decided to order a half dozen more, asking the waitress if it was possibly to get just the ham and not melon that went with it.  Either she didn’t understand or the food was already made but she came back with like a half dozen plates of this dish with the meat on top of a melon which unfortunately filled up our entire table. 

Beef Tataki

The sashimi plate was pretty good.  It had a mixture of eel, squid, salmon sashimi and serf clam which were all very fresh and provided an interesting combination.  There were no butterfish, whitefish or tuna on the plate however one could not actually complain about what was served on the plates as the types of sushimi served were certainly no slouches either. 

Green Curry Chicken

One of my favorites for the night was the beef tataki.  Perfectly seasoned and perfectly seared on the outside, it was nice and pink on the inside. This dish alone was probably about one third of a person's bill that evening.  We liked it so much that we actually ended up ordering a couple more plates of this dish.  Each slice of meat was sliced thinly and the each slice sucked up the sauce very well to give each piece a nice juicy flavor to it.  Every piece was great and it’s something that one should order when they are there. 

Lamb Legs

Another great dish to have while one is there was the Lamb Legs.  This small but beautifully plated dish again was perfectly prepared and the meat nicely seasoned all around.  One could truly enjoy the tenderness of the meat all the way around.  Although one could complain that it was only a tiny piece of lamb leg however the tininess allowed one to enjoy their entire meal and not become bogged down with just the one piece of meat. 

Red Curry Chicken

A couple of dishes that were a little disappointing were the Green Curry Chicken and the Red Curry Chicken.  The green curry chicken looked great, had all the necessary peppers in it, had its curry spiciness to it however the sauce itself was a little “diluted”.  It was all there but when one tastes it, it feels like it was lacking something.  Either there was too much coconut milk in it or the curry sauce itself became watered down but something was amiss when tasting the green curry.  The red curry was in my mind a little too pasty and thick.  It felt like there were one too many tomatoes in it and there was hardly any spiciness to it.  Both of the curries smelled very good and looked reasonable on presentation but unfortunately lacked the finishing punch to make it a truly wonderful dish. 

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Another disappointing dish was the hot and sour soup.  Although I had the miso soup and it tasted fine, a couple of my friends had the hot and sour soup and felt it was more like a sweet and sour soup.  The taste was way off and something was definitely amiss.  Needless to say the soup was tossed aside after a couple of sips and left for the trash bin. 

Coconut Shrimp

Overall the food was not bad but the price might turn some people away.  At almost thirty bucks a pop, with no drinks except water and no dessert could be a little discouraging for some especially for the price one pays.  The waitresses were able to keep up with the orders with the exception of the last one which they unfortunately had totally forgotten.  The place does look a little upscale and it would be good place for a first date however if your cost conscious then it might not be the place for you.  Overall, I give it a 3.5 out of 5. 

Spoon and Fork

865 York Mills Road Unit #9

North York, Ontario

647-748-3675

Landmark Seafood Cuisine

After not having dim sum for quite some time I decided to pay a visit to a place where I have not had dim sum for quite some time.  Landmark Seafood Cuisine has been around for quite some time, provides a variety of dim sums and offers it at a reasonably price (roughly $2.25 per selection) so that the average person could give it a go. 

We got to the restaurant just before church got out on a Sunday afternoon and it was a good thing that we did.  Without reservations, it would have been a long wait had we gotten there 10 minutes more.  We got there just after 11 am and a few minutes later there was a hoard of people just inside the door and a long line up all the way outside the door. 

Turnip Cake

We ordered many of the traditional dim sums that were out there including Ha Gow and Siu Mei.  There were no carts being pushed as all the dim sums were ordered through a selection of items on a piece of paper.  The Ha Gow and Siu Meis were decent and tasted about as good as it could get.  We also ordered some tripe, egg tarts, turnip cake, rice noodle rolls and buns and all were decent.  None of the dishes listed were spectacular but did its job.    

Steamed Spare Ribs

The only one item I wasn't too sure was the Steamed Spare Ribs and Chicken Feet dish.  Both items came together in the same dish.  At first I wasn't too sure if the redness of the Chicken Feet had gotten into the Steamed Spare Ribs, but after closer examination I realized that they were completely separate and that many of the steamed spare rib pieces were rather pink.  Upon further inspection, the spare ribs were probably not fully cooked and to serve borderline raw pork I thought was rather unacceptable.  I had about one of the pieces and that was about it. 

Yes this is probably the shortest blog you will ever hear from me.  After the rawish spare ribs, I was pretty much done here.  The staff were pretty busy as it was pretty packed inside the restaurant.  Regardless, if Chef Ramsey or if Chef Alvin Leung had been dining with us, would the chef have survived the cut?  I think it was one of those situations where when everything else was pretty good, does one bad dish cancel out all the goodness of the other dishes?  After dim sum, I myself was pretty puzzled as to what the overall proper mark should have been.  After deep thought, I said to myself that one bad dish should not be the end all for this place, yet one could not really give them high marks either.  Therefore I will give it a 3 out of 5.

Landmark Seafood Cuisine
3601 Victoria Park Avenue Unit 101
Scarborough Ontario

416-498-8882 

Fushimi Authentic Japanese Cuisine

After spending a couple of weeks eating and catching some rays in Hawaii, we returned home to celebrate a relative’s birthday at a slightly newer establishment. Fushimi Authentic Japanese Cuisine is an all you can eat Japanese buffet restaurant located in Markham and is located where the old Memories of Japan use to be.  When we got in, I noticed the interior hadn’t changed a whole lot.  It almost looked like one business had moved  in as another had moved out.  Very few renovations were performed as some of the paint on the walls were still chipped away and the lights appeared to have been there for quite some time.  Nevertheless, since we were a pretty big group (there were about 11 of us) we were given a table all the way to the back. 

Raw Oysters

As with all of my buffet experiences, it would be impossible to list all of the foods that had come to our table.  We ordered quite a bit, everything from noodles, ribs, sushi, sashimi and soups.  The tab for each person that evening was $24.99 which meant one could order everything on the menu and each person was given two complimentary raw oysters and curry frog legs as well.  The raw oysters were all pretty fresh and all came with a bit of hot sauce added to it.  The oysters themselves were rather large.  The taste was there and met expectations for the evening.  The curry frog legs had a bit of a kick to them.  The curry was a little spicy and went well with the frog legs.  All the legs were cooked properly and actually tasted pretty good. 

Sashimi Bowl

One thing you will notice about their dishes was that everything was rather large.  I don’t know whether it was because we had a large group or that that it was just them but all the sushi pieces, the sashimi, the tempuras were rather huge in nature.  Other buffet restaurants often will serve smaller pieces or proportions so that one could try other things on the menu.  I found that with larger proportions, one is forced to eat “the mountain” of food which gives less opportunity for one to try other foods at the table. 

Garlic Mussels

Even the squid had about 40 pieces to it.  Having that many pieces can make a person full just by looking at the plate. Even though it’s a buffet, I would like to try a variety of foods and not just be stuck to one kind.   It is a buffet after all and if I really enjoyed it, I could certainly order more afterwards.  As for the sushi, sashimi and the squid itself, all of them seemed pretty fresh with no complaints coming from the eaters.  One of the better dishes was the seared tuna as this was perfectly done both on the outside and in. 

Squid

One thing you will notice that was not included in the pricing are the drinks.  Other than water, one must pay for the drinks.  It could run anywhere from two dollars a pop to up to seven or eight dollars for specialty drinks.  One of the detractors, and I have read the same problem before on other sites, was that one does not always get everything that they have ordered.  For example, on the first selection, we noticed that some dragon rolls had failed to arrive and on the second round surf clams and other sushi dishes were amiss.  Even with their complementary oysters did we have to remind them that only four raw oysters had arrived when we were suppose to get two each per person.

Seared Tuna

Overall, the food was respectable however not getting everything that we wanted was a sore point in our visit. There were no explanations from the waiters or waitresses who served us that evening.  Not to mention, the restaurant also had an impromptu “waterfall” right in the center of the place as rain water was slowly dripping into four receiving buckets due to a leaky roof.  If improvements could be made on decreasing the size of the proportions and getting better accuracy on getting the food out on the tables, then certainly this place could get higher marks.  Free soda drinks would also be a bonus as well.  Their sister branch located in downtown Toronto might be better than this one as this one still has a little ways to go. As for this one, it would be difficult to give it more than a 3 out of 5.

Fushimi Authentic Japanese Cuisine

7501 Woodbine Avenue Unit 3

Markham Ontario

905-470-8858 

Da Kitchen

Not every meal in Maui, Hawaii has to cost you an arm and leg.  Case in point, if you do just a tiny bit of research on restaurants in Maui, you will see that this restaurant that we had gone to serves huge portions of amazing food for a very reasonable price.  Da Kitchen, which is located within 5 minutes from the airport, is a  very convenient place to go to prior to leaving or coming back from the airport. 

Spam Musubi

Manchego Burger

There were about 8 of us and we all decided to order something different for lunch that day.  We all had our own dishes however a few of us took the time to sample other people dishes as well. Scanning their massive chalkboard and their menu, I went with their signature Manchego Burger ($8.95).  It wasn't really an item that was listed in their menu but was actually something that was listed on their huge chalkboard of theirs.  Inside this massive burger, there were cheese, lettuce, bacon and onions plus a side order of coleslaw and fries.  At first glance, the burger looked like any other burger but one bite in and you could just tell that this burger was different.  The patty itself was not fatty but it sure was juicy!! I was really amazed at the quality of the meat.  Every bite was soft, juicy and tender.  It was actually one of the best burgers I had.  The meat was perfectly cooked with the cheese melting and served at just the right texture for the burger.  Seeing how big the burger was and the price I paid for this, I would say that this was truly a bargain.  

Hawaiian Plate

Da Fish Sandwich

For those who were willing to pay double the price and don’t want the beef burger, Da Fish Sandwich may be the way to go.  The question most people ask is do you get twice as much food and honestly yes!! They give you two HUGE pieces of battered fish for this fish burger.  How my sister in law finished this meal I have no idea but this sandwich was monstrous. Just look at the picture.    It looked like it was impossible to stack both fish inside the bun which was truly.  She ended up sandwiching one and eating the other like a fish and chip.  I had a piece and I can tell you the fish was clean, fresh and delicious.  It tasted almost as if the fish was just cooked from the sea.  It was well worth the price of $16.49. 

For the appetizers, we went with a Deep Fried Musubi ($5.79).  There were about eight pieces cut from the one big piece.  Spam is huge in Hawaii and musubi is one of their main staples here on the island.  This “sandwich” consisted of a piece of spam surrounded with rice both on the bottom and the top.  The entire sandwich is then lightly battered and then served with teriyaki sauce.  It’s difficult to describe the taste and texture only that if you could use your imagination it would be close to eating a spam tempura sushi.  I wouldn’t recommend having all 8 pieces to yourself as you would want to say stomach space for you monster meal but it would be great for sharing and having it as a small appetizer around the table. 

Kalua Pork Plate

Pesto Ahi Sandwich

Other things we ordered that day were the Da Saimin ($8.99), Soup and Sandwich Combo ($10.99) and the Pesto Ahi Sandwich ($16.95).  For those who are super hungry, the Kalua Pork Plate($14.99) and the Hawaiian Plate ($18.99) are the perfect choices for you.  Both plates were enormous with each plate consisting of 2 BOWLS OF RICE.  With the Hawaiian Plate, the beef is shredded into thin strips and the pork pieces come wrapped in bamboo leaves.  There was also a bowl of poi and a side order of tomatoes that came with it.  The Kalua Pork Plate is similar minus the beef.  The beef melted nicely in one's mouth due to its thinness and the pork's juices and flavors were well contained in the bamboo leaves. Both were very tasty, very filling and absolutely delicious.

Da Saimin

Soup and Sandwich Combo Part B

If you do visit Maui, then this is one place you really have to go to.  Many people who have eaten here before having given this place high ratings on other websites.  I have to admit this was truly one of the better places I ate while I was over there and a place where one certainly gets best value for their money.  As well, don’t hesitate to order their 16 oz freshly squeezed lemonade for only $3.99 to go with your meal. All prices are in US dollars.  You won’t be disappointed.  Overall I give it a 4.5 out of 5.

Da Kitchen

425 Koloa Street, Suite 104

Kahului, Hawaii

808-871-7782