Sssssh, I'm going to let you in on a little secret.
Costco, yes, mega wholesaler COSTCO, has THE BEST hand dipped chocolate vanilla ice cream covered in almonds, bar.
Plus it's only $1.50 and it's the size of a baby elephant. (photos via iphone)
TODAY: Starbucks 50% OFF
Starting TODAY, get 50% off Tazo Tea Lattes at STARBUCKS, until February 20, 2011 between 2pm and 5pm.
Frugal Fare #5: The Bellwoods Bar & Grill
Location:
756 Queen St W., Toronto
Cost: Under $10 for breakfast
It's almost refreshing to find a place in TO that doesn't cater to all your dietary concerns (ie. lactose-free and/or soy milk, gluten-free what-have-you).
It's plain white or brown bread.
Milk or cream.
Sausages or bacon.
That's what was so perfect about spotting the "ALL-DAY BREAKFAST" sign while driving around the Queen/King street area at 9am on Sunday in the search for breakfast.
ALL DAY BREAKFAST!
Peter Pan was closed, Brant Street Cafe was closed, Fusaro's was closed. Everything was either closed or only opened at 10:30am for brunch. The key was to find a place that served coffee.
So the "ALL-DAY BREAKFAST" sign was that much better.
The interior
Bellwood owner Tom Koulias has been in business for 40 years!
The first thing on the menu was simply: FOUR eggs with toast, bacon and potatoes.
DONE!
I believe French toast might have been the second thing on the menu.
"I am so happy right now."
FOUR eggs with bacon!
Ma French Toast!
BUTTER! Awesome.
Heavily buttered goodness!
COFFEE
We like to mix it up
There's a "Help Wanted" sign....any takers?
Frugal Fare #4: Ghazale
Location:
504 Bloor St. W, Toronto
Cost: $3.49 for a falafel
www.ghazale.ca
We found ourselves searching for food in the Annex one evening before the start of Filmi 2009.
I laugh now when I think about how we walked right PAST Ghazale (even though it was packed; which we all know is a clear indication that the place is damn good) and over to Mount Everest (which I've also heard is amazing) to check out their menu and see if we could have a sit-down dinner there in under 30 minutes (answer: no). So again, we walked about perusing outdoor menus and turning our noses down to practically everything we didn't have a hankering for. Finally with less than 15 minutes left before the start of the fest, we shared a quick slice of Pizzaiolo pizza (I am a fan of their chicken pesto slice) vowing to get a proper meal after the show.
Alas, after the show and after chatting with friends, we realized it was too late to enjoy a fancy restaurant experience on a weeknight, but not too late for a falafel! And after hearing how good Ghazale is from the said friends, we had to try it.
I present you with:
Falafel Sandwich "Falafel Sandwich $3.49".49
Ghazale Menu
Fresh ingredients
Ghazale is situated beside the Bloor Street Cinema
Happy Falafel it was.
Frugal fare at it's best in the city!
They're open till 4am all week, and a new location just opened at Church & Wellesley (78 Wellesley St.)
Mount Everest has some competition now.
Frugal Fare #3: Back Alley Woodfire BBQ & Grill
Location:
188 Augusta Avenue, Toronto (Kensington Market)
Cost: Lunch specials (Mon - Fri only) $5.99 -8.99
Beside Back Alley Woodfire BBQ & Grill is a fancy place called Amadeus; you can't tell from the exterior but inside, the cream-coloured walls, dark wood and cloth napkins don't exactly call out "lunch specials!" and certainly not "lunch specials under $10!!". No.
We felt like Portuguese food, but not $25 Portuguese seafood. For dinner maybe but not for a hurried lunch date. And where the chicken at? Next door, apparently. So, Back Alley it was to be.
The rustic interior and giant woodfire ovens made for a cosy atmosphere and the wallet-friendly menu wasn't too shabby, either. The lunch specials are a good deal - which makes this #3 in Foodhogger's Frugal Fare in the city.
We got the quarter chicken breast and the shrimps in a herbed lemon sauce...each including a salad, which was fairly good and arrived promptly to the table.
Granted the portions aren't massive, and the sides a bit bland - especially the rice with gravy drizzled over it, but there were 5 jumbo shrimps (in the shell) which weren't altogether terrible.
The chicken breast looked a tad mightier in size, but a bit fatty for my liking and lacking in any true flavour.
Not an entirely satisfying meal - I think I really really wanted some hearty Portuguese BBQ instead, like churrasqueira-style chicken from Bairrada Churrasqueira Grill on College St....mmm..yummeh - but it's probably our own fault for not ordering something that would benefit better from a smouldering wood oven. Something like ribs?
Definitely worth another try.
Frugal Fare #2: Mini Bar
Location:
116 Spadina Ave., Toronto
Cost: $1-6
Mini Bar is #2 in Foodhogger's Frugal Fare in the city!
It may be mini, (literally a hole in the wall on Spadina, south of Camden on the West side) but Rachel & Susan (pictured) are doing a splendid job serving fresh sandwiches ($3), sushi ($5.75), edamame ($1.50), miso soup ($0.95), tea, coffee, juice, bagels, fruits, candy and more from the depths of this tiny shoppe.
The two ladies are wonderfully warm and friendly and speedy!
Their straight-forward menu:
My tuna sandwich for $3.50; delicious & home-made tasting:
Mini Bar's fantastic, but don't go, 'cause it's a hidden gem in the city and we want it all to ourselves! ;)
Frugal Fare #1: CJ Lunch Box
"Frugal Fare" is going to be a new feature on Foodhogger, where we'll cover the more affordable places to dine for lunch/dinner in Toronto and still get great food & service.
CJ Lunch Box (but everyone refers to it as "Lunch Box") is one such place.
Location:
409 Richmond St., W, Toronto (Spadina/Richmond)
Cost: under $10 (cash only)
There used to be something else in it's place, but I can't recall what it was (anyone remember?) and now it's very clear what's there.
Lunch Box is a small lunch time spot serving little containers of sushi, deep fried chicken, noodles, edamame and dumplings...for as little as $3 - $5! What a steal (and tasty too)! These days business is booming and it's our first in Foodhogger's : Frugal Fare.
Salmon sushi with chicken combo $5.97 (with free miso soup)
Veggie Dumplings: $3 - a bit on the greasy side, but it makes a good side or snack.
Although Lunch Box has started increasing their prices (almost everything is one or two dollars more than before), the raised cost hasn't seemed to deter the crowd. The line-ups are almost always curled around the counter in the tiny restaurant, where in cafeteria-like fashion you pick your boxes.
Chicken? $4.
The staff are cheery and highly efficient (one at the cash register, one packing your lunch, one making the sushi, one warming the dumplings; there's at least 6-7 people behind the counter). Not to mention that the turn-over is so high, the food's fresh. In fact, if you don't see any more sushi of your desire, they'll roll it up for you in 2 min! (Sushi connoisseurs [of which, I am not one] beware: it's not gourmet sushi, but it's great for lunch)
Salmon sushi $4
There are also a handful of tables if you wish to dine there, with a newly added flat-screen TV playing concerts by different artists everyday (last time it was Celine Dion and before that Beyonce) to keep you entertained.
Also, I hear that with every purchase you get a free miso soup but I will have to confirm this (as I found out only after my purchase, sans soup) and this should be relatively easy considering I'll most likely be back there next week!
They're open from 11am to 5pm on weekdays only - so if you wanted some chicken or noodles to take home after work, you're out of luck. I think they would do well to stay open for dinner, but then it would have to be called CJ Lunch/Dinner Box...which doesn't have the same ring to it.