Frugal Fare #6: The Banknote

Location:
663 King Street West, Toronto

The Banknote is one of those work-lunch and after-work dinner/drinks places serving up burger & beer type meals in a bank setting.  Yes, aptly named The Banknote, as it used to a bank, they still have the ol' vault in the back and teller booths.  If that ambiance doesn't suit you, there's always their cosy patio on the King Street side.

It's a great place for post-rock-climbing eats as Rock Oasis is just around the corner!  I'd choose this over The Wheatsheaf, if you were wondering. :)



Burger and fries special



Pasta of the day:



Eggplant Parm Burger:



Penne:



Chicken Burg:



Fish n' Chips:

O&B Canteen NOW OPEN + O&B Cafe, Oakville

Locations:

O&B Canteen: 330 King St. West, TIFF Bell Lightbox, Toronto

O&B Cafe & Grill: 240 Leighland Avenue #235, Oakville

The new TIFF building's restaurant is now open - here's their menu online. It seems to always be packed in there and one day I will try it.

Not too long ago, we dined at the O&B cafe & grill at Oakville Place. Here, some shots.

The bread was delicious! So cutely packaged in a little metal box with little covered butter pots (reminded me of the packaging we used to get on airplanes back in the day).

This location of O&B has a really nice, quiet patio, designed in sleek woods and metals and clean lines.

Okay, but back to the bread. MMM MM mmm....warm, soft, and with a dab of butter...melted right in the mouth.

Did I mention the bread? It was soooooooooooo good!

To start us off we got the popcorn shrimp, which was AMAZING!  Very greasy though, but they'd already thought of that, placing the deep fried shrimp on a bed of crunchy filler crispy noddles which soaked up all the excess oil avoiding making the plate look slick.

Didn't really need the miso mayo it arrived with, the shrimp was just perfect on it's own.

We enjoyed a glass of Lillypilly Shiraz and a local beer.

Okay, so now, after quite some time had passed (and much bread had been consumed) another server arrived at our table with someone elses order: a plate of mac and cheese and a beef burger.  We noted to ourselves that our own server was too busy chatting it up with the couple (who appeared to be regulars) next to our table to notice this mistake on their part.

We send the food back and finally our server comes over and to compensate asks us if we want soup or salad...we chose salad and received a delicious spinach salad with sugar-coated pecans and thinly sliced pears...mMMmmmm MMM! Not exactly a healthy salad, I  assure you, but welcomed nonetheless!

Finally our meal arrives:  a chicken burger with fries and a margarita pizza. Boy, was the burger ever tasty! Usually when one orders a chicken burger, one gets a bland hunk of chicken breast with sorry looking grill marks on either side. Am I right? This, however was actual ground chicken, like we make at home. Very moist and juicy; I'd get it again in a heartbeat. Did I mention it came with bacon? Yesssssss!

The pizza had a super thin crust and was very light and non-greasy. Great tasting and a nice change from the burger.

The food was fantastic, our server was not.  Even by the time we were ready for the bill, he was still chatting it up with the regulars.  We didn't even get water refills once or asked how our food was.  When he finally did bring us our bill, it was the wrong one!  Yay!

Still, I'd go back for that shrimp.

Wayne Gretzy's

Location:
99 Blue Jays Way, Toronto 

www.gretzky.com 

Poutine$6.99 

Salmon Burger $14.99 

....and the BEST apple pie I've ever had!  With pecan ice-cream, what a change from vanilla, and so delish!!

(Not the greatest pics here, but I was more interested in digging in!) 

Salmon burger and poutine!

Apple Pie with Pecan ice-cream

 

The food is really great at Gretzy's and the service is wonderful.  They have a super happening (always packed) tropical-esque roof-top patio which is great for those warm summer nights.

Fynn's of Temple Bar

Location:
489 King Street West, Toronto

www.fynnstemplebar.com

It used to be a Fionn MacCool's and now the name isn't all that different but the menu certainly is.  For one, they have these God-awful photographs that don't really look related to anything ON the menu. Things like three scoops of vanilla ice-cream that looks as if a bite were taken out of one of the scoops. And tomatoes. Just you know, random tomatoes.

Regardless, Fynn's is always a staple lunch time spot for us 'cause it serves what we really want for lunch on Fridays: beer. In my case, Guinness.

The food is still yummy and plentiful in portion-size.

Can't ever go wrong with the Fish n chips.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="fish n chips $14 (one piece $9)"][/caption]

Unfortunately my fave Jerk Tilapia has now been changed to tilapia with pesto and tomatoes (ah, I see where the image of tomatoes comes in useful now). It's not bad, but I miss the Jerk Tilapia 'cause it had a delicious pineapple salsa on top. Bring it back, please!

pesto tilapia and roasted tomatoes on quinoa and basmati rice, with veggies, $16

Overall, no complaints though, this is definitely the best pub on King street near Spadina.

Grand Opening: Compass Lakeside Grill & Lounge

Location:

2340 Ontario Street, Oakville

So I was invited to attend the VIP Grand Opening of the latest waterfront resto in Bronte's Harbour:  Compass Lakeside Grill & Lounge.



When we arrived just after 8pm, Compass was out of food so I can't make any judgments on that however I can comment on the drinks and service.

At the bar, after waiting for quite some time, I requested a glass of Cookoothama wine and was told that it wasn't being served that night but two seconds later it was served to someone else! Awesome.



Then we asked for a regular coke and a rye & coke. What we received was a watered down coke (so much so that it didn't taste like coke at all) and a scotch and coke. They served us Grant's Whisky (scotch) instead of Canadian Club (rye) which was the brand of rye we specifically asked for. Thanks.

The view from the restaurant is amazing, overlooking the Bronte Harbour.



Likewise, the patio is quite nice with the large windows giving a clear view of the interior of the restaurant from outside.



So much so that we witnessed the martini guy conjuring up the martinis by dipping his bare hands into the jar of olives. Classy.



After a few perfunctory photographs of the dull blue and brown interior we were out of there.



Time?

8:20pm.

Where did we go eat after?

Thai Senses.

Where we got some actual food and attentive service.

Raq n Waq

Location:

739 Queen St. W. 2nd Floor, Toronto

www.theraq.ca

The Raq is a great place for summer after work drinks.

They have a really nice partly-sunny patio, pool tables (hence the name) and fireplaces indoors.  The service is semi-attentive and the food, although nothing to write e-mail  home about, is fine for drink snacks, but don't expect much.

Basically, if you're looking for a place to raq it up (or possibly shack it up on a Friday night club night), this venue is for thou.

chunky fries

finger foods

Bar Wellington

Location:

520 Wellington St W, Toronto

Oh, Bar Wellie, how you've changed.

View

Okay, not to be quite so dramatic, but we really had some good times Bar Wellie and I. Once upon a time, when the service was nice and friendly, and I had my first taste of Leffe beer. Let me tell you, it was something else.  Now it really IS something else.

The service is sloooooooooooooow and rude and the food is, well, okay, so the food was never really THAT good.  The club sandwich, really dry and the pizza bland.

Club Sandwich

Pizza



It does have a big outdoor patio though, but size isn't all that matters.

I guess we will always have Leffe Beer.

Compass Lakeside Grill & Lounge

Just got invited to the opening of Compass Lakeside Grill and Lounge, Oakville’s Newest Waterfront Resto in Bronte Outer Harbour!

Looking forward to it.

Moxie’s, Yorkdale Mall

Location:
Yorkdale Mall, 1 Yorkdale Road, Toronto

Moxie's has the lowest lighting possible, which is really no excuse for bad photos, and these really are the worst pics ever, so I'll just leave you to them whilst I turn away.

Harbour Sports Grille

Location:

10 Yonge St., Toronto

www.harboursportsgrille.com

Fish n' Chips..............check.

Fish n chips

Beer....................check.

mmmmmmmmm....beer

TVs....................check.

Over 50 TVs and 2 big screens

Random pasta dish.............check.

Pasta

Can't ask for more from Harbour Sports Grille.

Beer Bistro

Location:

18 King E., Toronto,

www.beerbistro.com

Was hyped to go to Beer Bistro having heard so many great things about the huge selection of beer etc etc etc...



And I have to say, although the beers were good and the selection massive...we were a tad disappointed with the food. We went for brunch and everything looked fantastic and our service was excellent.



There just wasn't anything overly fantastic about the meal.  Definitely not the place for brunch, but yes to after work drinks, me thinks.

So here's what we shared for brunch.  Some appley-type fritters...



Gorgeous presentation, but not outstanding flavour.

Eggs benedict sandwich, something something.   Disappointing.



Certainly had interesting beers...we got a taster ($6 for any 3).





We thought the interior looked like a rock climbing gym...funny blue coloured ceiling with holes in it, stuccoed walls and lights that look like hanging harnesses....

Or maybe we'd just had too much to drink...

It IS called Beer Bistro and not Brunch Bistro for a reason.  Go for the drinks.

TRAVEL: Banff: The Maple Leaf

Location:

137 Banff Avenue
Banff, AB

www.banffmapleleaf.com

After a two hour trek across Lake Louise and back to the Chateau and by the time we reached Banff, we were riddled with cravings for salmon (or really, anything other than sandwiches and soups), so we headed straight to The Maple Leaf, number one on my list of Banff eateries.

Also, after not finding a single fireplace (working) at the Chateau, we were tempted to ask if there was a fireplace at the Maple Leaf, to which we got the response, "one moment please", and then, voila! A table RIGHT beside the fireplace!   Mind you, not only a fireplace, but a giant moose head to go with it, right above us.  

GIANT moose head!

I love Banff. Everything's so rugged, so earthy, so natural. If it isn't wood, it's leather or stone. The Maple Leaf ambiance was beyond cosy.

Such a cosy interior

Oh so comfortable leather chairs

The many celebs who have visited

We'd scoured the outdoor menu to make sure that there was salmon and I knew what I was going to have:

The Atlantic Wasabi Salmon...sesame-scented Asian noodles, nori, pickled ginger.

The other item we ordered was the Mahi Mahi sandwich (I know I said enough with the sandwiches, but it sounded so good!) with potato and leek soup (okay, I take it back).

Yummeh x 2!

Our only - and very slight - qualm was that the "Coke" tasted more like Cola and then we figured out it was DIET Coke. Er, no thanks. Not on vacation (or any other time, for that matter).  Our server was very accomodating and made no fuss.  Our adjoining table of seven or eight however, complained about their regular burgers being too pink and found out that the regular burgers also had a mix of bison in them (the server said something about bison burgers being more on the pink side).  They voiced that the menu made no mention of the bison mix in the regular burg and they'd have loved to have known beforehand...etc.etc.

If I hadn't overdone the whole burger thing having had two in the last four days, I would have ordered the regular burg as well, but the salmon and mahi mahi sandwich was exactly what we needed. 

Wasabi Salmon

The salmon dish was amazingly good.  Surprisingly, the noodles were chilled, but together with the crispy (breadcrumbed and fried) salmon and the fresh ginger slices, the dish was refreshing and satisfying. 

Mahi Mahi Sandwich

The fish sandwich was tasty as well; we tried to pinpoint the "indian" flavour in it.  At first I accredited it to the chilly yogurt mentioned in the menu, but then it dawned on me as being CILANTRO (to the joy of N and to my dismay).  If you know me, you know I am not a fan of the green stuff and its overpoweringly horrid scent.  That said, it was still a good sandwich.  Washed down with a cold glass of real Coke, that is.

Potato and Leek soup

The potato and leek soup was the perfect antidote to an active Winters day, while the Maple Leaf was the perfect end to an active Winters vacation.

Red Room

Location:

444 Spadina Avenue, Toronto

Cost: $7-10 for an entree

Ah, the Red Room....takes me back to my university days...when "dining out" meant spending less than $5.

An item on the eclectic menu will set you back about $7 - 10 and the portions are decent enough to split when you order a few items.

That's what a bunch of us did one snowy Friday night after work.

The chicken quesadillas, wings and spring rolls are good (it's so dark in there that there's no way you can get away without using flash). Also, the service is slow, but that's not what you're paying for.

Spring Rolls

Wings

If you want an atmosphere that allows you to feel years younger (relatively), and a meal that won't cost an arm and a leg, the Red Room is a great place.