Pork Belly Ramen at Sansotei Ramen

Sansotei Ramen currently has two locations around the GTA- from what I gather on the internet, it seems like they'll be opening up a third location in Markham soon!  On our visit, we went to their Dundas location- the small shop was steps away from the Yonge-Dundas Square and at a very convenient location.  While we've definitely heard the name before, we had not found the right time to visit.  To be completely honest, I went to the restaurant ready to be disappointed as I don't seem to be a fan of the traditional ramen bowl.  But I am happy to report that I was very pleasantly surprised!  

Their storefront is certainly very small and cozy, with just a few tables squished closely together.  A quick scan of the place showed five or six large tables that seat between 4-6.  Luckily, we went on a Thursday night around 7PM and there was only a short 10-15 minute wait outside for a table for 6.

The menu offering is small- with just a few ramen and side dishes offered.

Japanese/Italian Fusion at Shiso Tree Cafe

This cute little restaurant is located in J-Town, which is a plaza that houses a Japanese grocery store and many other Japanese/fusion restaurants.  We've actually tried most of the restaurants in this plaza and I dare say we've enjoyed eating at all of them!  Particularly, Shiso Tree serves up a number of Japanese/Italian fusion pasta dishes, which sounds odd but actually tastes really good!  This is definitely one of our favourite uptown dinner spots (read: we come here often).

At our most recent visit, we brought some friends and ended up trying some new dishes!   Unnecessary snacking before dinner ruined our appetites so we decided to get something for the table to share, and split a pasta and salad between each couple.  (To be clear, each order of pasta does come with a small salad.)

Smoked Salmon Hors D'Oeuvres ($8)
Smoked salmon, Japanese mayo, ikura (salmon roe), caviar & dill on toasted garlic bread

Chicken Noodling: Touhenboku

Being back in Toronto is great. I love the city - there's great food, it's busy, tonnes of traffic during rush hour, and the food is delicious. Did I mention that food is good in Toronto?

I picked up my blogging buddy from downtown this one Friday evening and we decided to go out for ramen. While there were many options to choose from, we had little time to spare (for waiting in queue), so we opted to go to Touhenboku Ramen. The limited street parking was a mild inconvenience but we found ourselves a table as soon as we entered the restaurant.

In actuality, this was our second visit to Touhenboku since its grand opening. Their claim to fame is Chef Zuimei's special chicken-based ramen broth (as opposed to the typical pork- or miso-based broths).

Spicy (RED) Touhenboku Ramen ($10.50 CAD)

Tiffany loves a good kick to her food. It was only natural that she would pick the only spicy option on the menu. She opted for a spicy broth with sea salt, thick noodles, and chicken chashu. The ramen came topped with a soft-boiled egg, some wood ear mushrooms, green onions, and a sheet of seaweed. Tiffany said that it good but not particularly memorable...

Ramen Down-Under: Ippudo Sydney

Ramen was on the uptick in Toronto thanks to the booming successes of Kinton Ramen, Momofuku, Sansotei, amongst others. Still, prior to my departure from my hometown, Ippudo had yet to grace our mediocre metropolis with their fine Japanese ramen. Having missed Ippudo in my last visit to NYC, the discovery of its presence in Sydney was a welcome surprise. Located on the 5th floor of the Westfield Sydney, this upbeat ramen shop buzzes with activity. The line of hungry customers in front of the restaurant is a long-standing fixture.

Quick Eats: Menya Mappen

Menya Mappen is the epitome of Japanese assembly line fast food. All orders are serviced in a queue - hungry customers enter from one end, happy customers exit from the other. The food selection consists primarily of their noodles, rice bowls, in addition to an assortment of Japanese sides.

I passed by on one fine Thursday afternoon in search of lunch and happened upon Menya Mappen as I entered a building just off of George St near Liverpool St. Inside the building, there were plenty of other options (Pepper Lunch, Oiden, etc.), but Mappen happened to be in my direct line of sight. At the entrance of the restaurant, signs directed customers to an entry queue on the left.

A closer look at Menya Mappen's regular menu.

Late Weekend Lunch: Momofuku Noodle Bar

A couple weekends ago, we went to the Scotiabank Buskerfest at Yonge-Dundas Square.  After spending several hours wandering around the many exhibits and circus acts, we realized we were way overdue for some lunch!  

That day, we decided to visit Momofuku Noodle Bar, which was only a short walk away.  The "Momofuku complex" is located right beside the Toronto Shangri-La hotel and there are actually three separate restaurants and a bakery in the building.  The first floor houses Momofuku Noodle Bar, the second Momofuku Milk Bar, and the third Momofuku Daisho and Momofuku Shoto.

The restaurant is casual in comparison to the other eateries in the same building.  The dining room is very comfortable and offers diners an unobstructed view of the kitchen.  Diners are seated at large, cafeteria-style, communal tables.  As it was already 2PM by the time we arrived, lunch service was slowing  and we had no trouble at all with getting seats.