List/Pret a Manger/Visuals - SoW's tum speaks up! (fave food edition)

It's about time this lil' piggy let you in on 1 of her 2 loves in life!

1. seafood (ultimate fave - Chilean sea bass, lobster, scallops; also of note: mussels in white wine sauce, fried calamari)
2. walnut paste/dessert
3. bacon, BLT's
4. eggplant
5. zucchini
6. sesame hummus
7. pavlova
8. garlic!
9. puff pastries
10. palmiers
11. walnuts and almonds
12. moochi-ice
13. black olives
14. fried fish skin
15. Korean stews
16. spinach
17. lobster bisque
18. fettuccini alfredo
19. fried pork chops
20. T-bone steak, medium rare, w/ sides: garlic mashed potatos w/ bits of green onion in it, sauteed mushrooms
21. mushrooms (esp. enokitake, oyster, shiitake, porcini, King Oyster)
22. bittersweet chocolate, truffles
23. fresh corn and black bean salsa
24. burritos (particularly steak, fish)
25. PB & J - with natural pb (no sugar added) and swiss made berry-based jam (blueberries, raspberries)
26. Shanghainese dumplings (all fillings, steamed or pan-fried)
    
27. Szechuan cuisine
28. Japanese cuisine (top of the list: a childhood-comfort-meal of unagi donburi; also of note: raman, sashimi)
29. mamabear's crispy garlic'n'honey chicken wings
30. broiled or grilled lamp chops
31. grandpabear's fried rice, snake soup/stew, crispy chicken
32. dairy products (esp. cream, butter, aged cheeses...hm....compliments black olives so well ^_^)
33. avocado (esp. w/ a little shrimp salad in place of the pit; w/ a little creamy tangy salad dressing like Brianna's Dijon Honey Mustard; in curry chicken sandwiches; in curry veggie wraps.; and of course guacamole which is ABSOLULTLY NECESSARY in my burritos)
34. green onion pastry at Peking Garden, HK
    
35. papabear's duck l'orange, mushroom cream soup
    
36. roasted duck in lai-fan soup
37. indian curry - lamb w/ naan!!!!
38. thai curry - esp. red curry with seafood or chicken
39. fresh scones w/ creme fraiche or jam or butter
40. extra virgin olive oil
41. clam chowder from beantown
42. steamed or fried tofu
43. this conch shell w/ curry conch meat + veggie filling:
44. asparagus
45. beef stroganoff
46. cherries
47. pecan pie
48. apple crumble
49. lemon poppy seed cheesecake
50. toasted almond meringue
51. trifle (without the jello)
52. broccoli
53. crumpets w/ butter and/or blueberry or blackberry jam
    
54. green tea ice cream
55. black sesame ice cream
56. roma tomatos (esp. w/ buffalo mozzarella, fresh basil, and olive oil)
57. omelette w/ cheddar cheese, mushrooms, bell peppers, corn
58. pork souvlaki w/ cool tangy fresh made tzatziki
59. big juicy beefy fresh cheeseburger w/ sauteed mushrooms and onions and ketchup, mayo, tomatos and lettuce, accompanied by fresh fries tossed with some seasoning, and some sort of vanilla-based milkshake (esp. satisfying dinner at the end of a hard week)
    
60. coconut
61. savory pancakes (eg. with ham, mushrooms, aged cheddar, corn, and parsley plus various spices mixed in with the batter)
62. the cookie part of an Oreo
63. Kettle Brand potato chips - honey dijon flavour
    
64. cheesies (a fave only when I'm hormonal...*grrrr*)

my diet secret: wearing too-hot-for-you-to-handle-jeans one size too small

Resources/Pret a Manger - b/c i wish i could get my venti latte elsewhere

www.delocator.net

www.delocator.ca

Pret a Manger - post-nap snack

Chocolate-covered
Macadamia nut. Good.
From Australia.

(It's Koala bear shaped too!)

Pret a Manger/Visuals - delirium

Burrito Boyz
120 Peter Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
(Peter and Richmond)
*Located in the basement level.
416.593.9191

Some people lust for a pint of creamylicious ice cream as a soul-soother. I don't. I love ice cream but it's not my soul-soother. BLT's are, along with Shanghainese dumplings, T-bone steaks... and BURRITOS!!!!!! Specifically, that big honking steak/chicken/fish-filled-packed-with-the-rice-salsa-refried-beans
-guac-sour-cream-fresh-veg-mix-of-cheese-in-a-tortilla-meal in your hand. For no good reason, such perfectly luscious burritos are difficult to find on the east coast, and as far as I know, none exist in Toronto.

But my god. My beautiful foodie god decided to smile upon Toronto and blessed my dear city with Burrito Boyz!

They offer exact replicas of those authentic west coast burritos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Their menu is simple: burritos and quesadillas. My first love is the burrito, so I shall go on about that. Small or large. Choice of steak chicken, halibut, bean w/ cheese, vegetarian. Fixings are gratis (except the guacamole - but I love guac and what's the point in having such a fab burrito w/out guac?) Thus far, I've tried the steak and halibut. Both equally good but it seems that the steak is flavoured so perfectly that it just gives that added punch. For some reason, my tastebuds saids Taco del Mar's fish burritos have more flavour but I haven't had one in a while so I'm gonna hold back on the comparisons. And in general, I do prefer steak burritos.

And it is REASONABLIY PRICED!!!!!!!!!! The smalls range from CAD$4.00 to $7.00 depending on your filling-choice. If I love such burritos so much, why am I only consuming a small, you ask? Because, my dear salivating readers, the small fills me up like a Subway foot-long. YES!! A meal that cost LESS but BETTER (read: fresh) IN QUALITY! Mon dieu!!!

My first try was a steak....*sigh-o-pleasure*....the first bite brought the closed-eye-satisfied expression across my face and a sigh of great pleasure. Warm and satisfying. The veggies still crisp, the substantial not-too-tough, not-too-tender beef strips still piping hot from the grill, the guac oozing around everything so frightfully well...the various ingredients co-existing in balance. The various flavours mingling and meshing in such harmony so well, so well. I was close to shedding tears of gratefulness for the existence of this establishment. I might as well have been delirious.

It was an euphoric - dare I say, heavenly - moment. And for a long time after (while basking in my long-sustaining-full-belly-happy-place), I was still in a state of astonishment. So stunned, actually, by my experience that I hesitated about blogging it. You see, drooling readers, the surge of dopamine brought on by the delicious burrito prevented my rational thinking. I was afraid that if I announced my find publicly, it would jinx my discovery and somehow I'll realize it was just a dream; thus, preventing me from making a return visit!!! Oh but I have....and my Shangri-La is still there - hence the appearance of this post.

Now, if Burrito Boyz could just do a Mexican hot chocolate as well .... I would make a bequeathal to the establishment in my will.

And I swear to my foodie god, if the owners become lax and cut corners, thereby, degrading the quality of their scrumptiously delicious burritos, I will Cry. You. A. River.

*Note on the location: Burrito Boyz resides in a small cramped basement with a few bar seats. Much like boarding a Southwest jet, be prepare not to have the luxury of space. You are not at Burrito Boyz to soak up the space or the ambience. You are there to feast on those perfectly luscious steaming freshly packed burritos. This ain't the Monsoon. Please firmly have this etched in your head.

*Update: It is a stauchly upheld policy here at Spoils of War that we do not emit any hate-on's on anyone or any topic unless we find the subject in question personally offensive to our taste. Therefore, while I will not diss any other purveyors of burritos in Toronto, I stress that none of them - no matter how alike they model themselves to the Burrito Boyz shop and product - are on par with the quality Burrito Boyz produce. Do not be fooled by imitations!!!

Pret a Manger - bafflement

I once bought a bottle of Ontario Ice Wine for a friend and he used it for cooking.

Words fail me. I was overwhelmed with disappointment and all I could offer was a long drawn out sigh.

List/Pret a Manger/Visuals- fave bev's

1. Yakult

2. Breve lattes

3. Tanqueray & tonic

4. Mexican hot chocolate

5. Warmed Vitasoy



6. Ice wine
7. HK-style milk tea
8. fresh soy milk
9. steamed milk
10. Ribena
11. milkshakes (except strawberry flavour)

Pret a Manger - Trade-offs

downer: 3am hunger pang
upper: "pure extra bitter chocolate spiced with artemisia absinthium"