Pukka [New Menu Media Preview - Indian]

This is my 5th time at Pukka (@pukkatoronto) and that says a lot since I barely go back to restaurants that many time (see previous post here, here & here)

Food being delicious at Pukka is a known fact but this time around, what a huge improvement on the cocktails as well compare to the last few time I've been there. There was 4 feature cocktails for us to try that night.

Mumbai Sour
~ Bombay Sapphire, Aperol, grapefruit, cardamon bitters, egg white
Varanasi Sling
~ white rum, mango + cherry + orange liqueurs, almond, lime, pineapple juice
Lyte Martini
~ cachara, coconut liqueur, coconut water, lemongrass syrup
Pom Cosmo
~ vodka, pomegranate liqueur, pom juice, lime

And remember Pukka does amazing wine paring for all their dishes with Peter Boyd as their Sommelier. You would be surprise how well Indian food paired with wine. I personally think that white is better then red with the curries.

Okra Fries

~ mustard taita

These are so good that I can munch on them all night and I would be satisfied. With the batter, the okra doesn't have the usual amount of gluey-ness to it.

String Tikka
~ string vegetables, moong sprouts, rice crisps, pomegranate, mango, chutneys + yoghurt

A Pukka all time favorite, it's a must with all the ingredients packed into a bowl.

SuzyQ Doughnuts [Ottawa]

SuzyQ (@suzyqdoughnuts) is a small "shack" shop in Hintonburg and their doughnuts honor the old Finnish traditional recipe with new and unique flavors.

We arrive at around half an hour before closing time and there was still a constant line up and there was still constant smell of fresh doughnuts drifting out as you wait in line.

Pricing was surprisingly reasonable at $2 each, $10 for 1/2 dozen and $20 for a dozen.

Even though we were pretty full from eating all day, we couldn't resist getting a dozen with the different colors.

Mr Tonkatsu [Japanese]

Mr Tonkatsu is pretty much what's it's name states and serves Japanese style fried pork. The menu is mainly focused on katsu here, pork chicken and shrimp katsu with only a few other dishes like chicken karrage and Korean fried chicken.

Can you imagine they bake their own bread and make their own panko from it. 

They also make their own salad dressing, tonkatsu and katsudon sauce in house which are totally MSG free. They also have instruction on each table as to how to grind your sesame seeds and add it to the katsu sauce.

Crisp Chicken Thigh $5.50

~ Korean Style Deep Fried Chicken

Love the use of chicken thigh (dark meat) instead of white meat, this is more flavorful and moist. It was super crispy and with a peppery taste to it. Would definitely need to come back to try the Karraage Wings soon.

Town [Ottawa - Italian/Canadian]

Love locally source ingredients restaurant and Town (@townlovesyou) was no exception, we just had to squeeze in a last meal for our Ottawa trip and here we were there at 5:00pm as they open.

Love the decor of the space with the art wall and especially the little area with the book shelves that lead to the kitchen.

Love the list of local beer and wine; I just got to try a glass of Redstone Winery Chardonnay which is the latest venture of Moray Tawse and Ben had the Dominion City Brewing Co. (@dominioncitybc). My clumsy boyfriend end up spilling his beer only after a few sip, the guys were nice enough to clean it up in no time and bring him a new pint.

The Albion Rooms [Ottawa - Canadian / Brunch]

The Albion Rooms (@TheAlbionRooms) is located inside Novotel Hotel, it's recommended by a quite a few friends and we manage to squeeze in Brunch there. They serve both Breakfast Buffet and a la carte Brunch as well but by the time we got there, it was too late for the buffet which ends at 11:00.

From their website: 

Chef Stephen La Salle selects from the finest in the neighborhood  to put our regions growers, producers and artisans’ passion on your plate.  From breakfast to lunch to dinner and late night, Chef Stephen’s menus take a rustic yet contemporary approaches to bites, snacks, meals and feasts for any and whatever the occasion! Our bartenders serves up craft Ontario beers, wines from small wineries and winemakers, classic cocktails and our house signature serves that deserve their own place at the table.

Love the space at the front bar are and we were seated by the window with great lighting inspite of the gloomy weather but when we walk to the back which was closed, we discover an even more pretty area especially the chef's table by the kitchen. Love the different space from the leather sofas by the bar to the country rustic tiles at the chef's table, the velvet booths at the dinning area and even a hipster corner with copper tiles covered wall.

Art-Is-In Bakery [Ottawa]

Heard so many people raving about Art-Is-In Bakery (@ArtisinBakery), so we managed to drop by for a afternoon bite but we were a bit late and most of the goodies are already sold out.

Though their cafe location would be at a more commercial location but it was next to their production facilities warehouse location.

I guess the bright side of a warehouse location is a larger sitting space.

Ham and Cheese Croissant $3.25

~ guyere cheese and ham

They were sold out of the plain croissants and that's the only type they had left and it was delicious. The crossant was perfectly fluffy and buttery plus love the slightly burnt guyere pieces.
The next day we went to the Ottawa Famers' Market and got the plain regular croissants and it was delicious and we even bought home a few, it tasted just as good the next day.

Porzia [Italian]

Porzia (@porziaparkdale) is one of the restaurant that's been on my list for a while but have never been able to make it one way or the other. Last Friday, I finally manage to make my way there and I wish I did sooner, really enjoy our dinner her and will definitely be back soon.

As per their website:

Led by chef/owner Basilio Pesce, our staff believes in building memories around food and eating. It's simple: We like feeding people.

We use local, ethically grown and raised ingredients to create menu items that vary depending on the season (our wine, beer and coctail lists also rotate). We believe this keeps things interesting for our staff and, most importantly, our guests. If you like to and drink, you'll probably like it here.

#brando $12

~ dill infused tromba blanco, house made aquavit, fresh lime, eggwhite

Crostini $4

~ cotechino & rapini

Perfect start and why did we only order one... def not sharing next time. Love the huge price of cotechino sandwich in between.