Reds Midtown Tavern offers casual eats in a modern yet upscale tavern setting. This is the second location to the popular Reds Wine Tavern on Adelaide St W, and has since become a hot spot in the Yonge and Gerrard area. The location is conveniently a few minute walk away from both the Eaton's Center, and Yonge/Dundas Cineplex. Thus, it serves as a great spot for casual lunches or dinners with friends, co-workers, or loved ones. Additionally, the menu at Reds Midtown Tavern is large, and has plenty of options from sharable plates, mains, salads, drinks, and much more.

I have been to Reds Midtown Tavern a couple of times before with friends, and have always liked the ambiance. The space provides a warm atmosphere with its exposed brick walls, mixture of communal and private tables, wooden floor, and hanging chandeliers. The restaurant itself is large; occupying a 6,800-square-foot space with a large dining area, private area (for small parties), and a patio. 

I had the pleasure of attending a private dinner at Reds Midtown Tavern to try their new Steak and Wine by the Ounce program over the weekend. The newly introduced program launched last month, and focuses on their selection of California Chardonnay and California Cabernet Sauvignon, that you can order by the ounce. This is a great way to taste test the wine to see which one goes well with the steak.

My last visit to Reds Midtown Tavern was a couple of months ago, and they only had one cut on their menu. They have since removed the steak frites option, and added a lot of choices in steak cuts. I was definitely pleased that they expanded on their steak menu, and was excited to try it out that Sunday. Reds Midtown Tavern now serves high quality steak for reasonable prices, as no cut is over $25. The steaks that they now offer are perfect complement to their new wine by the ounce program.

As I previously mentioned, the steak and wine by the ounce program places a great emphasis on their wine selection. Customers are able to customize their drink order, and may order as little or as much as they want of a particular wine. They have created a list of wines that would go wonderfully with any of the steaks on the menu, so there's something for anyone who drinks wine. There are often specific wines that are perfect pairing for steaks, so this program encourages customers to customize the wine to their liking.

I opted for the Santa Barbara Winery, Santa Barbara 2013 ($2 per ounce wine) - passion fruit, buttery, and vanilla finish, to go with my steak dinner. The chardonnay was refreshing with a great hint of a fruity flavor to it. I thought that the blend was the perfect companion to my tender steak, as it washes it down just perfectly. One of the benefits of the program was that I was able to customize how much wine I wanted, as I got 3 ounce of the California Chardonnay. Additionally, you don't have to stick with just one wine choice, and can try and experience other ones by the ounce as well.

The crab & corn chowder ($8.25) - made with fresh corn, applewood smoked bacon, fresh leeks and tender crabmeat.

J got the Oysters 3 Ways ($17.95) - which was topped off with spicy mignonette, aguachile sauce, ikura ponzu. The freshly shucked oysters arrived with the sauces already on top of the oysters, so this was quite interesting to me.

I started off with the sticky ribs ($13.25) - caramelized in a spicy hoisin/sriracha glaze with crispy wonton chips, as our server recommended it. The ribs were good and the glaze adds a distinctive Asian flavor.



 I love the combination of seafood with my steak, so I opted for the lobster sirloin ($23.35) - topped with garlic chive poached lobster and hollandaise. I was thoroughly impressed with the steak as it was cooked perfectly to my liking - medium, and flavorful. Considering that Reds Midtown Tavern is not a steakhouse, the steaks was definitely of great value for its quality and price as none are priced over $24. I have been to a couple of steakhouse chains that are priced similarly to Reds Midtown Tavern's steaks, but theirs wasn't remotely as good. Lastly, the tasty garlic chive poached lobster portion was pretty generous, as there was a good amount of lobster.

All steaks come with one side dish to accompany the meal, and you can choose one of the following:

fully loaded baked potato
French fries
mashed potatoes
heirloom carrots
knife and fork Caesar salad
garden salad

You can freely browse their full menu here.

My steak dinner was executed well, and the portion of the side dish (knife & fork Caesar) was generous. Personally, I had a great dining experience, and would definitely come back for their steaks as it's at a very reasonable price.

J decided to go with one of the feature cuts; 14 oz rib eye ($19.95), which also came with one side dish (he chose fully loaded baked potato).

The dessert menu was limited with only four options. I ended up getting the flourless chocolate cake ($7.95) - milk chocolate mouse, cashew, and caramelized banana. I have never tried a flourless cake before, so this peaked my curiosity when I saw it on the menu. The dessert arrived, and it was a dense yet very chocolatey cake. The contrasting flavors were intense with a hint of saltiness beneath the chocolate layer, and the sweetness of the caramelized banana. It was an enjoyable dessert, as I do have a major sweet tooth.

Another dessert was the sticky toffee pudding ($7.95) - warm medjool date pudding with apple bourbon, caramel sauce and vanilla ice-cream. Unfortunately, J liked it so much, that I never got to try a taste of it.

As you enter Reds Midtown Tavern, you are greeted by their impressive wine collection.

Overall, I found the service to be really good, the atmosphere was fantastic with great choices of music, and great value as the food was delicious. I left Reds Midtown Tavern completely full, and satisfied. Lastly, I'd like to thank SIR Corp for the warm and welcoming hospitality (our server and service manager from Sunday were great). I have been to their other chains, Canyon Creek, several times over the years. So it's great to know that they hold the same high standards for all restaurants under their umbrella. 

Address: 382 Yonge St, Unit #6, Toronto, ON, M5B (Yonge/Gerrard)

Website: http://redsmidtowntavern.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/redstoronto

Instagram: https://instagram.com/redsrestaurants/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/REDSRestaurants

The thing about Mississauga is that there is a plethora of well-known chains, so dinner options are kind of limited in my opinion. Even Vietnamese restaurants up here are chains with multiple locations throughout the GTA. Out of all the choices that we had, we chose Pho Dau Bo, cause it was a short drive away. Pho Dau Bo serves traditional Vietnamese food at reasonable prices. They're located in a nondescript plaza, and offers minimum decor. However, they are always bustling with customers on both weekdays and weekends.

I have been to this Pho Dau Bo at least three times in the past two months. They make pretty solid rice dishes, so I have always ordered the same rice dish. My regular order is always (#469) grilled chicken, grilled pork chop, shredded pork, steamed egg, and fried egg with steamed rice ($8.25). This dish was generously portioned, and came with a bit of everything that I like. Both the grilled chicken and grilled pork chop were flavorful, and fairly moist. Additionally, the overall presentation of the rice dish was pretty decent.

The brisk and non-conversational service is exactly what you come to expect from any Vietnamese establishments in the city. So for me, the service isn't really a factor when it comes to choosing a Vietnamese restaurant to eat at as the food quality is much more important to me. I find the food at Pho Dau Bo to be pretty consistent, and I have never had any issues with them. The portions are generous, and you can easily feed two people for under $25 (including tax/tip).

Address: 1125 Dundas St E, Mississauga, ON, L4Y 2C3

Lim Ga Ne is an unsuspecting Korean restaurant on the Bloor/Christie strip. The restaurant isn't open 24/7 but it does stay open pretty late, which is good for late night eaters. J and I walked into the restaurant randomly as the Owl a few doors down was pretty busy that night. During our first few visits, the 13% tax was included in all of the listed menu prices. However, we recently returned about 2 weeks ago, and that's no longer the case. They now add tax on top of the (previous) already taxed menu prices.

The menu was pretty standard offering various Korean dishes including do it yourself BBQ with your choice of meat(s).

In addition to the bachan dishes, they also provided complimentary Korean pancakes.

They have a wide selection of banchan (bean sprouts, mushrooms, potatoes, japchae, kimchi, and fish cakes), which were refillable on request.

I opted for the pork bone soup ($10) on my first visit. I have to say that the food portions here are pretty generous,and contained chunks of fall of the bone pork. However, I was slightly disappointed with the broth flavor as it wasn't very spicy. One thing that I did like that came with the meal was the bowl of purple rice, which is a slightly healthier alternative to white rice. 


The rice cakes with fish cakes ($10).


The bulgogi jungsik ($13.50) - sliced tender beef marinated in special sauce served with rice


The soon tofu soup ($10) - beef, pork or seafood, is J's favorite dish from Lim Ga Ne. He orders it everytime we eat here, so it's really up to me to taste-test other dishes.


On my last visit, I got the LA galbi jungsik ($15) - beef short ribs served with rice. I absolutely love kalbi, so I was excited to try this dish here. It was good with a slight sweet marinade flavor. 

Coming Soon: The One Eighty

The now defunct Panorama Lounge is being reinvented into a fantastic new restaurant, The One Eighty. It's set to open up sometime this upcoming spring. I have been to Panorama Lounge a couple of times in the past, and the skyline view of Toronto from the 51st floor of the Manulife Centre was really beautiful. The One Eighty is owned and operated by Canada’s award-winning restaurant, event management, and catering brand, Eatertainment. It is going to be both a restaurant and cocktail lounge located in downtown Yorkville.

The location boasts a "spectacular 180-degree-view of the city’s skyline making it the city’s premiere celebratory destination." The name of the upcoming establishment is a reference to the 180-degree-view of the city, and reflects the approach to the new food menu that they will be offering. Additionally, the restaurant is 3,000 sq. ft, and can accommodate over "90 guests for sit-down dining and up to 250 guests for cocktail receptions and events." (source: rockit promo)

“We are introducing a unique approach to dining unlike any other in Canada, and bringing the culinary experience to a whole new level, with The One Eighty,” said Sebastien Centner, President and CEO of Eatertainment. “Guests will love The One Eighty’s new contemporary and luxurious décor, highlighting the incredible views of the city, but our real focus is on creating an outstanding menu that pushes the boundaries of innovation while remaining highly accessible.” 

If you would like more information on the upcoming The One Eighty, then please visit their website. 

Website: www.the51stfloor.com 
Twitter: @the51stfloor    
Instagram: @the51stfloor      
Facebook: www.facebook.com/the51stfloor

Coming Soon: Guu Izakaya

Guu Izakaya is expanding, and will be opening up their third location uptown. This location will be located at Yonge and Sheppard. According to Post City, the new location will have about 80 seats inside and an additional 70 on the patio. This is great news as the warm weather is quickly approaching Toronto. 

Coming Soon: Lucky Red

Lucky Red didn't really have much luck when it first launched in 2015 due to the influx of Chinese restaurants in Chinatown. However, they're planning on re-launching as a dine in restaurant, and the grand re-opening is set to be this Tuesday, March 17, 2015.

 Coming Soon: Miku

Miku is a very popular high end sushi bar from Vancouver, and they're coming to Toronto this summer (date is TBA). 

Coming Soon: Carl’s Jr

Carl’s Jr is making their Toronto debut with two locations in Toronto (date is TBA). .

Open Now: Dirty Bird

Dirty Bird is the latest restaurant to open up in Kensington Market. The restaurant offers fried chicken and waffles for decent prices.

Open Now: Nadège Patisserie

Nadège Patisserie recently opened their newest location in the downtown PATH.  Not only are they serving up the beautifully and tasty pastries, but are also offering breakfast and lunch takeaways (sandwiches, salads, etc...).

Open Now: H Bar Toronto

H Bar Toronto is a brand new restaurant on Queen Street West, offering dishes made with the most locally sourced ingredients.

Closing: This Ends Up

This Ends Up will be closing its door on Monday, March 16, 2015. They posted a goodbye note to all of their patrons on both their official website and Facebook.

ClassPass is officially here in Toronto! It is a fitness subscription service that gets you "unlimited monthly classes at the best fitness studios and gyms in Toronto. With just one monthly subscription you can work out at Studio Lagree, Track Fitness, Barreworks, Quad Spinning, Hard Candy Fitness, IAM Yoga, Body Harmonics, Barre3, Yoga Tree, Spynga, Core Studio, and over 80 others all over the city!" for a low price of $99 per month. - (source: ClassPass)

You can sign up now here.

However, to celebrate their launch in Toronto, they're offering ClassPass subscriptions at the special launch price of $89 CAD per month! This special offer (reduced from the standard price of $99 CAD) is limited-time only for first users in Toronto. SPECIAL LAUNCH PRICE EXPIRED!

 For an affordable price of $99 per month, you will have access to over 80 studios and gyms in the ClassPass network all throughout Toronto. The great thing about ClassPass is that you're not limited to just one studio, you can attend as many as you like on a monthly basis, and change your workout routines around. For example, you can take a spin class on Monday, bootcamp on Wednesday, yoga on Friday, and then a barre class on Sunday. The only limit to the subscription is that you can only visit the same studio up to three times per month, but that shouldn't be a set back at all. There are several other nearby studios offering classes that you can attend and try out.

There are no year (long) commitments when it comes to ClassPass, as you can cancel anytime. Be sure to notify them before the month is up though, as there is auto renewal each month. The membership is renewed monthly, but you do have the option to put it on hold (for $19 per month) in case you want to pause the membership (illness, vacation, school, etc ...).

If you register for a class, but can't make it for whatever reasons, then all "cancellations must be made at least 12 hours before a class starts" (source: ClassPass). Late cancellation will result in a $15 cancellation fee, and a loss of a class credit for that specific studio.

Additionally, I found their website to be very easy to use, and I liked the user-friendly interface. You can use both the web version or iPhone app to search, view, book and cancel classes. Download the app here (the Canadian version is coming soon).

I currently have two classes lined up, and this information would be available under the "upcoming" tab at the top.

The Launch Party:

 I was invited to attend their launch party last night at Hard Candy Fitness. I was met by a few of the friendly ladies from ClassPass, and a handful of fitness/health bloggers in Toronto. All were ready to work out a sweat with the one hour complimentary spin class. It was my very first spin class, so I really didn't know what to expect. The class was very energetic (with top 40 songs playing), and I felt really invigorated afterwards. Many thanks to Jessica from ClassPass for giving me the opportunity to check out some of the classes within the ClassPass network this month. I am not a fitness enthusiast, but I still do want to maintain a somewhat healthier lifestyle considering my eating habits as a food blogger. I have been delaying working out since I have been busy and the extremely poor weather didn't help. However, I hope to start it up, and share my personal experience of the program with you all. I will also be updating on Instagram, so you can follow my workout journey at https://instagram.com/foodaholicblog_

Click to sign up to ClassPass :)

Did you know that Madonna has a partnership in a gym? She partnered up with her manager Guy Oseary and the founder and CEO of 24 Hour Fitness, Mark Mastrov. Hard Candy Fitness has locations worldwide, and there's one in Toronto (located walking distance from the Eaton's Center). Hard Candy Fitness is one of the participating studios in the ClassPass network.

Social Media:

Official Website: http://classpass.com/

Thank you so much ClassPass for a great night!

Disclaimer: The service provided in this post was complimentary courtesy of ClassPass. However, all of the opinions expressed in this blog post are of my own.

Five Guys Burgers & Fries is a chain of fast food restaurants with multiple locations in Canada, US and UK. The limited menu is centered around the usual fast food fare; burgers and fries. Just a note that there are no combo options, so everything is individually priced. I opted for a cheeseburger, regular fries, and a medium drink, and the total was a little under $20. 

The cheeseburger ($8.49) was a lot smaller than I expected, given its price. However, I do have to give it them that they are consistent with the quality and taste of their burgers. All burgers are made to order, so the patties aren't frozen like a few other known chains. For those who likes to customize their burgers with various toppings; Five Guys offers quite a few free toppings. Looking at their counter top, they do have a good selection of free toppings that you can add such as mayo, lettuce, pickles, grilled onions, grilled mushrooms, jalapeno peppers, BBQ sauce, hot sauce, and more. Overall, the cheeseburger at Five Guys Burgers & Fries was not outstanding, but it was still a good burger.

 Address: 1510 Dundas St East Mississauga, ON L4X1L4

Pusateri's Fine Foods is a premium grocery retailer with three store locations in the GTA. We were unable to cook Christmas dinner last year (2014), so we decided to have it catered instead. I came across Pusateri's Fine Foods' Christmas menu on the whim while researching companies that catered Christmas dinners.

We opted for the Classic Holiday Dinner Package ($200), which serves 8 people. I chose the following items:

Appertizer: Baby Spinach and Arugula Salad with Cranberries, Maple Roasted Pecans, Chevre and Black Fig Dressing

Main: 10 lb Whole Herb Roasted Turkey with Traditional Bread Stuffing, Pusateri’s Cranberry Sauce and Turkey Gravy

Sides: Creamy Roasted Garlic Whipped Potatoes, Herb Roasted Heirloom Carrots, and Brussel Sprouts with Caramelized Apples

Dessert: Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Tart

All of us were pleasantly surprised and pleased with the turkey. Despite reheating it twice, the turkey was not dry, and delicious. Additionally, both the creamy roasted garlic whipped potatoes, and baby spinach and arugula salad, were a hit as well. John opted to make his own stuffing though using Stovetop instead of using the traditional bread stuffing that came with the catered meal. I have always liked his stuffing, so there was no complaint on my end.

Cooking would have been a lot cheaper, but this was a very last minute decision so it was fine. I actually called them on the 22nd (which was the deadline for the pre-orders), so we came pretty close to not having a traditional Christmas dinner.

I opted to pick-up since there was a Pusateri's Fine Foods nearby. Pusateri's Fine Foods was busy enough on the day of the 24th (pick up), but they didn't seem to be understaffed at all. The items were supposed to be all packed and ready to go by noon. Unfortunately, it wasn't, and I was left disappointed with the service. It took a while until someone actually noticed me, and then it took another 40 minutes for them to get my order ready.

Address: 57 Yorkville Ave, Toronto, ON, M5R 2B1