Review: New Yorker Deli

New Yorker Deli

If you’re going to insert “New York” somewhere into the name of your restaurant, then you’ve got some big shoes to fill. Does the New Yorker Deli live up to its name?

Sitting right up near Bay and Bloor, the New Yorker Deli caters mostly to the office crowd and probably gets the odd patron heading down from some high end shopping in Yorkville looking for a cheap eat outside of the ‘ville. The deli was pretty busy on the Sunday afternoon when Antony and I decided to go check it out for brunch. They do have an amazing breakfast deal for under $5 but unfortunately we weren’t early enough for that.

inside the New Yorker

Antony ordered the three eggs and hash special which came with toast and homefries. I decided to order a burger with cheese. Our food came pretty quickly, and we sat where we could see the front counter as the cooks prepared our meals. Antony’s eggs came over easy, as asked. The toast was nice and thick texas style toast which is the best toast for egg yolk dipping. The meat hash wasn’t all that great, nothing too special. No added spices or anything to give it a burst of flavor. The home fries were you standard McCain frozen then deepfried variety, almost like the same ones you get from Frans Diner.

Eggs and meat hash

My burger was also the same mediocre patty you get from President’s Choice. Actually, I think it was the same as those thick President’s Choice burgers, as they have a pretty unique gear-like shape, as did this thick burger. Not saying using frozen supermarket burger patties are a bad thing, but they also lack imagination. I prefer hand made burgers myself. The bun was a great choice though, an onion bun, which you don’t see too often in Toronto. The fries that came with my burger, shoestring, were actially a bit better than the home fries, as they weren’t nearly as potatoe’y in the middle.

Cheese burger

A note about the staff, we had a really great waiter serving us, but when he wasn’t present, we did ask the manager (I’m assuming she was the manager as she wasn’t dressed in the usual waiter uniform) for water as she walked by. Instead of her getting it for us, which was right behind us, she snapped her fingers and told another waiter to grab us water. Her hands were free and honestly, there was no excuse for her not to grab the water herself. Antony wanted to add a comment about how she seemed like the type of manager who walks around and looks for stuff that has to be done, but gets everyone else to do it for her. This creates a stressful environment for the staff and as patrons, we can feel it too.

Overall, the food was okay although most of it seemed to be frozen supermarket food rather than made from scratch. The price of it all was pretty cheap though considering the area, and service was quite fast. I’d definitely go back if I’m in the area for a cheap eat and not feeling up to shopping at the grocery store nearby.

Average Price: $6 – $10 per entree
Hours: Open 7 days a week [I'll get back to you on the actual hours when I find out]
Address: 1140 Bay St
Phone: 416-923-3354
TTC Directions: Get off at Bay Station, at the Bay Street exit, and walk south a block towards Charles St on the west side of Bay

Review: Eggsmart

I’m unsure whether the name Eggsmart is a fusion word for either Eggs mart or Egg Smart, but if I had to chose based on how I felt after eating at this restaurant, I’d go with the latter of the two. Eggsmart is a relatively new Ontario based brunch franchise with a few locations popping up on the radar. The one I went to was one of it’s newest locations at the intersection of Bay and Elm St. Taking over the shady spot that Coffee Time had for years, Eggsmart lies across the street from the extremely cheap Bay Street Hotel, and is destined to become a good breakfast/brunch spot for its guests.

Antony and I couldn’t believe that the previously vacant Coffee Time had finally been renovated and opened into a new restaurant, so we couldn’t resist the urge to go in and have a bite to eat. We were greeted with an extremely friendly waitress who promptly sat us to the desired seat, “near the sun but not directly in it”. She was very attentive to our needs and was not too intrusive.

Inside Eggsmart

Even though it’s largely a breakfast place, the Eggsmart menu does come with more lunch oriented choices, such as sandwiches, salads, and wraps. But I was feeling like a brunch this time so I ordered the Sausage Scrambler, a bowl of scrambled eggs mixed with sausage, cheddar, green peppers, and onions. It came with a side of excellent texas toast, and home fries. The Sausage Scrambler was an excellent choice, with it’s nice blending of the two tastiest brunch vegetables. There was enough in the bowl for it to be filling too, and I had more left over to share with Antony who also liked the dish. The texas toast came buttered, but was slightly drenched in it. Antony noted that sometimes it’s best to ask them not to butter your toast.

Sausage Scrambler

A container of jam packets sits at each table, so you never have to worry about being short of jam. And the home fries… they were excellent! Soft in the middle, crispy on the outside, and they had just the right amount of seasoning (a bit of salt and a bit of spice) to make them really good. Antony said his home fries came out a bit too salty for his taste, which he told the waitress about. She quickly had them replaced with no hassle, and even inquired later how they tasted. Antony said they were excellent and was glad that there was no problem getting them replaced.

Antony had the traditional breakfast, 3 eggs served with choice of meat (bacon, ham, or sausage) choosing “bacon, extra crispy and eggs over-easy” as usual. His eggs came in perfect shape, with the yolks intact and waiting to be punctured releasing their slimy, yolkie goodness. His bacon was perfect and his request was met, it came extra crispy! Each dish also came with a slice of orange twisted with a slice of melon, a great addition to the meal.

Traditional Breakfast, bacon extra cripsy

We both were extremely satisfied with our meal, and even more satisfied with the bill. The grand total of all this good food for the both of us? Just shy of $14. It’s been ages since the both of us have had great food at a sit down restaurant for under $20. In fact, I don’t think we ever have outside of a fast food restaurant. While looking at the small bill, I’d also like to say that you better make sure to tip your waitress. At $14, I felt stingy leaving the usual 15% tip, so I went ahead with Greg’s Twoonie Rule (that you should usually try to give a toonie per person), and gave her a $4 tip. This place is also open until midnight, and I’m a sucker for great late night eats, so I definitely plan on going back again. [Edit: I recently went by Eggsmart about a week ago, and unfortunately, they are now only open until 3pm. I guess staying open until midnight wasn't viable for them.]

Here’s something cute. On the way home later on in the day, I walked by Eggsmart, and caught a picture of an Eggsmart Smart car in the parking lot across the street. Once again, reaffirming, that these guys are smart.

The Egg-Smart car

Average Price: $6 per entree
Hours: 6am – 3pm
TTC Directions: Get off at Dundas Station, walk west on Dundas St. until you reach Bay St. Walk 2 blocks north to Elm St.
Website: eggsmart.ca

Review: KOS

Having brunch in Kensington Market on an early Saturday afternoon means having to choose between a dozen different restaurants and cafes, each with their own unique pitch. Especially going with a group of friends, you’re stuck between deciding on a place that all can enjoy. Walking down though Kensington Market, we were hit with many different signs advertising brunch, but once we came upon the corner of Nassau, we noticed a small stand up chalk board sign which read “Brunch at KOS” with an arrow pointing towards the right of the sign. Zam, Sara, Antony, and myself decided we would go check it out.

Walk a block to the west of the sign and you’re at the corner of Bellevue and Nassau streets, slightly outside from the heart of Kensington, which is where this greasy spoon sits. KOS used to be at College and Bathurst, but they recently relocated here.

The outdoor patio at KOS

Even though it was an overcast day, we decided to sit outside on the patio, which was bustling with patrons enjoying their afternoon brunch. Antony and I ordered the Brunch Special, which for $12 came with a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice, home fries, fruit, toast, 3 eggs, and a selection of brunch meat: italian sausage, breakfast sausage, peameal bacon, and strip bacon. Antony chose bacon, adding an “extra crispy, please” to his choice, while I went with the italian sausage over the usual breakfast sausage. Zam went with the pancake special which came with the same choices as our meals did, but without the fruit and orange juice, but with an option between pancakes or french toast. Zam went with the former.

If you’ve read the about page, you’ll see that Zam doesn’t eat pork because of his religion. Unfortunately, there were no substitutes for pork. No turkey bacon, no veggie sausage, nothing. They did allow him to substitute it for baked beans though, but this was hardly the option Zam was hoping for.

Sara went with the egg special with peameal bacon, which was like our brunch special, but a few dollars cheaper, and without orange juice as she was already having a coffee.

Fresh Squeezed O.J.

Speaking of the orange juice, this one was definitely freshly squeezed. It came with the pulp and the seeds all included. Being used to getting a glass comparable to a thimble in size at most places, it was a welcomed surprise that the tall glass of fresh squeezed orange juice did indeed come in a tall glass. It was just after Antony and I received our orange juice that a few of us finished our glasses of water, and asked the waitress for a refill. I’ll let you know when we get our water.

Brunch special with Italian Sausage

Our meal came about 15 minutes after our order was placed, while our request for water still didn’t make it yet. The eggs were great, with Antony, Zam, and my own being the toughest to make (over-easy), all of ours came with the yolks intact, ready to be punctured. Sara’s came scrambled, as asked, but they did not come with any special spices or seasoning on them. Antony’s extra crispy bacon came extra soft. We’re unsure if the cooks just forgot to make it crispy, or if our waitress did not pass the request on to the cooks. My italian sausage seemed a bit dry in the middle, and kinda hard and chewy on the outside. I wouldn’t recommend that as a choice here if you’re deciding between italian sausage and the breakfast ones. I didn’t hear any complains from Sara about her peameal bacon so I can say that she must have enjoyed it. The home fries were excellent, nice and fluffy but fried with butter which gave it some crispy edges. They were also fried with onion which gave it a nice taste, and added flavor to the potatoes.

The brunch special with not-so-cripsy bacon

The fruit sides came with a few grapes, a slice of watermelon, a strawberry, and a slice of orange. The fruit was fresh, cool, and added a nice side to our brunch. All of our meals came with two pieces of toast, which had a light layer of butter on them. The toast was the standard texas toast, nice and thick, great for egg yolk dunking.

We still did not get our water.

The pancake brunch, with beans substituted for meat as there was no non-pork option

It was finally after our 6th or 7th request for water that the waitress finally returned with a jug. Unfortunately, during the filling of my glass, she spilled most of the jug on to our table. It didn’t get any of us wet, and most of the water spilled off onto the ground, but we weren’t told “sorry” or ever given napkins to wipe up. Before I continue on with the rant about our waitress, I’d like to point out that our table outside, and a few tables behind us, were the only ones who had this particular waitress serving them. The other waitresses at the establishment seemed spot on. Ours just didn’t seem to really care either way. We don’t think she was a new hire either because she gave us the impression that she really didn’t enjoy her job. As Sara said, “a crappy waitress gets crappy tips, then they usually end up hating their job and never get get better tips, believing it’s the job that’s crappy.” So if you go to this restaurant, you get about a 1 in 6 chance of getting a bad server.

Overall, Zam and Sara both liked the place, but Antony and I were a bit dissatisfied. We felt the poor service topped with Antony’s not so crispy bacon was a bit of a let down. That’s not to say the food was bad, because it was pretty good and filling. One thing I have to mention though is the brunch special Antony and I got for $10.95, is only $6 through the week. I can’t remember if it comes with the orange juice or not, but at nearly half the price, that makes this place a much better place to go to through the week.

[note: the urbanspoon address is their old address, but I have sent in to have this corrected]

Average Price: under $10 per most entrees, cheaper on weekdays
TTC Directions: Coming from the Bloor subway line – Get off at Spadina Station, take the Spadina streetcar south and get off at College street. Walk west three blocks to Bellevue (optional: or take the College streetcar west and get off at Bellevue) Walk south two blocks to Nassau. If you are coming from the Yonge subway line, it would be best to get off at College or Queens Park station and take the College streetcar west to Bellevue, and walk south two blocks to Nassau.

Review: The Croissant Tree

I’m never really satisfied with these little sandwich and coffee chains that we’ve got around the city. Druxy’s, Cultures, Bagel Stop, Coffee Time, the list goes on. Unfortunately, Croissant Tree does little to stand above the rest.

CROISSANT1

With only a handful of locations, all based in Toronto, the franchise isn’t exactly in your face unlike the bigger guys such as Tim Hortons, and most locations are tucked in small street corners or within malls. According to their website [Psst, your Joomla favicon tag is sticking out!], the name has been around since 1981.

Having one right nearby where we work, Ashley and I decided to finally try it out. I’ll admit that they do have a nice patio, but we didn’t bother sitting outside with the weather being a bit breeze.

Pasta Salad

Ashley ordered a simple pasta salad (if you’re wondering why there’s no tomatoes, it’s because she requested to leave them out) which she described as excellent, and not too tangy. I, myself, went with a bit of comfort food, grilled cheese and a fruit salad.

Fruit Salad and a Panini Pressed Grilled Cheese

I wasn’t expecting much to come out of this grilled cheese, as it’s a simple sandwich to begin with. Two slices of bread and some cheese, possibly butter the sides and pan fry it til crisp. Well at Croissant Tree, they don’t pan fry, or butter it. They just shove it in a panini press, and wait for it to toast. Not that I don’t mind, as the less butter and frying, the better. But this is a grilled cheese.

My fruit salad was good. The fruit was really fresh and it did contain the usual coctail of fruits: melons, grapes, kiwis. What it lacked were berries, and there was hardly any kiwi in the salad.

The lone kiwi in my salad

Overall, it was a decent quick lunch for under $10 without any frills. The upside is that the location we went to near Church and Bloor has a nice patio, which will be perfect once the warm weather rolls around and stays.

Average Price: $4-$5 per sandwich, $8 for a combo with a salad