NYS Steak Co.

Date: September and October 2010
Location: 5892 Main Street Stouffville Ontario L4A 2S8
Website:  http://www.nyssteakco.com/

My C.C. and I recently visit Markham and the Stouffville area for a day trip. It was a fun day and we visited so many places. We visited a restaurant called NYS Steak Co. for dinner. I have seen the advertisement on a local magazine before and finally I have a chance to visit. 


Originally I though NYS = New York Steak, but later on I found out NYS = "Not Your Standard" which is the principle of this restaurant. After we sat down the owner of the steak house came and greet us. He offered an off menu $40 Prix  Fixe Dinner with selections of their specialties. 

Appetizers/Starter

Lobster Bisque

My mouth was fulled with rich lobster favor and the soup contained lobster meat

House Salads

Red and green leaf lettuce, tomato, red onion and fennel with a balsamic and citrus vinaigrette

A typical salad but the dressing is just right for me not too sour

Gnocchi

The owner of the restaurant called it N'YO-kee

It was freshly made on the day of our visit and it tasted excellent

Chewy but soft and it just tasted perfect in the rose sauce. 

Entrée

Half Lobster

This is not just a hard boiled Lobster where you can see water dripping down

The chef spice up the lobster with garlic and "baked" it, so the meat was not soggy

Kansas City Steak 34 ounce

This was one of my favorite cut of the night. 

The steak were very tender and juicy though not as tender as tenderloin

**All their steaks are aged for at least 35-42 days **

Top Sirloin 23 ounce

This was still an excellent cut. A bit more chewy compared with the Kansas

Vegetable Side

Risotto Side

Mushroom Side

Dessert

**All their dessert are made in-house FRESH**

Crème brûlée

My favorite and it was a huge one

Very creamy. Love it!!!

Biscotti

Most of the biscotti I got the the supermarket were way too dry

This one has the right moisture yet very crunchy

Blue Berry Cheese Cake

I was so full already, I couldn't describe it anymore but it tasted excellent

Apple Flutte

Fin Izakaya

Date: April and June 2010

Location: 55 Eglinton Ave E, Toronto, ON M4P
Website: http://www.finizakaya.com/

It has been awhile since I decide to update the blog. The main reason is I am being lazy. However I didn't stop searching around the cities and found out delicious food.

I went to Fin Izakaya earlier this year and this restaurant didn't disappoint me at all. A lot of people had been talking about Guu Izakaya. However, I just can't find the motivation to go there. Anyway, let's go back to Fin Izakaya. I tried different dishes in Fin and their food are おいし (delicious). I also had the chance to try out Japanese sake which really opens up my eyes. My C.C. and I fell in love with 玉乃光純米大吟釀 right away as it has a very distinct aroma. Alright, it is dull to just look at words so here comes the pictures. 

Beef Tataki Salad

A very refreshing starters. The dressing was just right not too sour.

The beef tataki is briefly marinated in vinegar with a hint of ginger.

Ika Sugatayaki

The Ikayaki tasted great but nothing too special about it.

Mentaiko
Mentaiko is salty and I don't taste anything. No wonder Japanese always have mentaiko on rice.

Sukiyaki
The soup base was excellent although I have no idea what it was made of.
The beef was marinated just right, very tender.
This is one of my favorite dishes.

Fin's Special Dinner Bento
We were still hungry after all the dishes we ordered, so we ordered a bento box.
This is a great choice for people who never try Fin before.
It has three different layers including 6 starters, sushi, and sashimi.

First Layers

Seaweed Salad
Nothing special but tasted better than T&T

Takowasa
Fresh raw octopus marinated with wasabi and lemon juice. Love this!

Gobou no Wasabi Ae
Julienne strips of cooked burdock root dressed with wasabi mayonnaise.
A very traditional Japanese started. burdock tasted just like a raw potato without the starch taste

Second Layer

Vegetable & Shrimp Tempura
The coating was just right, not too oily

Duck meat with spicy powder on top
I can't find this on the menu but I am pretty sure it is duck.

Tebasaki koshou
Crispy fried chicken wings. OMG this is a dish to die for.
The chick wings were not oily at all yet juicy. A very good dish with beer.

Third Layer

Sushi and Sashimi
I didn't come to Fin for sushi and sashimi so not much a surprise to me.
However it filled my stomach ^0^

Drinks
We ordered "Sake Flight" - a choice of 3 samples of sake (1oz each).

Tamanohikari 純米大吟釀 玉乃光 備前雄町
This is the best zake. Aromatic and rich.
Takara Plum Wine 梅酒
Good for girls as it has a very sweet taste.
Hakkaisan 八海山
This one has a hint of spicy taste after I swallow it into my thoat


Lychee and Tropical Calpis Jucie Vodka Cocktail
I didn't taste any alcohol in my drink.

Menu

Restoran Malaysia

Date: March 2010

Location: 815 Major Mackenzie Dr E, Richmond Hill, Ontario

Website: www.restoranmalaysia.com

Recently, I went to Restoran Malaysia with my C.C. I have been trying to bring my C.C. there couple of times but this restaurant are always full and they closed on Monday. Reservation for dinner is highly recommended.  This time I visited them during lunch time at around 2pm so there was no line up at all haha. The portion of their dishes are in average size and it fills me up We ordered from their lunch menu: Pad Thai $8, Penang Fried Kuay Teow $7.5 and hot beverages Teh Tarik $3.

The Front Door of the Restoran Malaysia

 Statue of Maitreya Buddha

Pad Thai
I love their Pad Thai because the sauce is not made from Ketchup

Penang Fried Kuay Teow

Wok fried flat noodle with dark soy sauce, shrimps, egg, sprouts, chives and chill sauce
Their flat noodle is thicker than normal Chinese flat noodle. I love the hint of spiciness as well

Teh Tarik 拉茶

A direct translation of Teh Tarik is "pulled tea". It is a very popular beverage in Malaysia
"pulling" = the pouring process from one cup to the other

This action cool the tea down and mix the condensed milk with the tea together

Joe Maggiano

Date: March 2010

Location: 2450 Sheppard Avenue East Toronto, ON M2J 1X1

Website: www.joessteakanditalian.ca

I haven't update my blog for so long. My C.C. kept all the pictures so I didn't have a chance to a hold of them. Anyway, This time I want to share my experience with Joe Maggiano with everyone. I've been to Joe Maggiano many times. I found their food to be delicious and with a reasonable cheap price. I have tried their oysters before ($10.99 for 6). It was a very good deal and the oysters were fresh. This time my C.C. and I ordered their pasta dishes (Penne ~$14.99, and Spaghetti ~$11.99) and their homemade strawberry cheesecake ($5.99). Yum! I will definitely try their oven bake pizza next time!

Bread Sprinkled with Olive Oil and Diced Garlic

The bread was soft and it tasted very good with the olive oil and garlic

Penne with Creamy Tomato Vodka Sauce

Penne was fresh and I love the favorable tomato vodka sauce. Nicely balanced!

Spaghetti with Clams in a White Sauce

I wish the pasta has a bit more sauce because it is not as favorable as the other dishes

Strawberry Cheese Cake

This is a very delicious homemade cheese cake. Highly Recommended

The chef baked different cake everyday so make sure you ask to see if they save a slice in the fridge 

Tomi Good Eats 湯米王

Date: Feb 2010
Location: First Markham Place - Food Court, 3255 Highway 7 E, Markham, Ontario L3R 3P9


My C.C. and I love to have noodle for lunch and Tomi Good Eats is one of the places we like. Their rice noodles are average but the soup base is the best. Every bowl of noodles have a choice of fish soup base or chicken broth soup base. Personally, I found the fish better than chicken as it is more tasteful and healthier (lot of omega 3).

Tomi Good Eats also serves 過穚米線 (Guo Qiao Mi Xian) and the direct translation is "crossing bridge rice noodle". You may wonder how come the name sounds so weird. Well there is a story behind it and for those who are interested, you can checked it here. Tomi Good Eats' 過穚米線 (Guo Qiao Mi Xian) is served with a big bowl of really hot soup and it comes with a few slices of thin raw chicken meat, fish, and some vegetables. The idea is to get the meat cooked by submerging them into the hot soup. A bowl of 過穚米線 (Guo Qiao Mi Xian) is about $5.99-$6.99 depending on the ingredients.

This time I didn't order their 過穚米線 (Guo Qiao Mi Xian) but I tried out their chicken rice noodle and dumpling rice noodle. Both are $4.99.

Tomi Good Eats

Chicken rice noodle with fish soup base

White fish soup base. Very delicious!

Dumpling rice noodle with fish soup base

 

Inatei 稻亭 (2nd visit)

Date: Jan 2010
Location: 9021 Leslie St., Unit 7&8, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 0B2

This is my second visit to Inatei within a month. Inatei is definitely one of my favorite Japanese Restaurants. Inatei distinct themselves by serving seasonal and special sashimi such as Hiarme (Fluke or 左口魚) and real white tuna. The waiter said they only serve real white tuna (Albacore), not butter fish (Escolar). Most importantly, their sashimi are always fresh and tasty. Oh! one more thing, I just can't resist their dessert which is different on a daily basis. Their sushi & sashimi lunch is $13.99 and Salmon Don is $10.99.

Let's talk about some of the sushi I tasted this time. Hirame has a very firm texture. It looks like the meat is taken from the fish's fin area. Because the meats are small and 2 of them are needed to top the sushi. The real White Tuna sushi has a totally different texture than butterfish. The meat is softer and less oily than butterfish and it is more refreshing. Kazunoko is Herring roe which has a bright yellow colour and it is very crispy!

Sushi & sashimi with California roll

 From L to R: Hirame, Salmon, White Tuna, Prawn, Kazunoko (Herring roe), Arctic Surf Clam

Salmon and Tuna Sashimi

Salmon sashimi don

Very fresh and fatty Salmon
I found the rice more tasty than last visit because it is firmer

Milk tea pudding

Very smooth and milky pudding. Yum!
I love the syrup container so cute!