Oliver & Bonacini @ Bayview Village (Summerlicious)

My third 'Summerlicious' meal was a very casual one at Oliver & Bonacini located at Bayview Village.  It was my bi-weekly lunch gathering with one of my bestest, Mr. LCS, we had a great chat and a delicious lunch that Sunday afternoon.  We made a reservation for 11:30am but when I got there it was fully packed.  I have never been to this O&B and was not surprised that many were just there for a relaxing Sunday brunch or lunch.  We both had an urge to just order brunch but at the end we went with their Summerlicous menu.

For appetizer, I ordered the Crispy Chicken & Ginger Dumplings dipped in maple scallion soya sauce, and LCS got the O&B Cobb Salad served with iceberg lettuce, avocado, bacon, boiled egg and Roquefort. Nothing too special or exciting with both of our appetizers.

I wasn't expecting too much after our appetizers, but the main course and the dessert did surprised me. We both got the Cajun Shrimp Quesadilla served with white kidney beans, cheddar and sour cream. It was delicious and tasty  The whole dish seemed very healthy!

For dessert, we both got the same thing again, we ordered theChocolate Marquise milk chocolate torte with hazelnut praline crunch.  It wasn't too special but desserts are always good!

Thanks to LCS for lunch!  This was a $15 Summerlicious lunch, which was perfect for a casual lunch catch-up.  We were drooling over brunches that others were having.  Some day I will go for brunch atOliver & Bonacini for sure.   'To.live.my.life' rates this meal with a 8/10 considering the quality and quantity of the food, and also the price.

c5 Restaurant (Summerlicious)

My second 'Summerlicous' meal of the year is at 'c5 Restaurant' located at the pinnacle of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal at the Royal Ontario Museum.  I would of missed out if it wasn't one of the Summerlicious restaurants. c5 Restaurant is at the fifth floor of ROM with stunning rooftop views, the environment in both the lounge and the restaurant are perfect. 

Miss. S. So and I changed our reservation back and forth between lunch and dinner, but at the end we did lunch because the Summerlicious menu were almost the same for both.  Lunch is just $25, while dinner is $45.  I love all three courses I chose, the quality and quantity were excellent considering it is a Summerlicious meal overall.

For appetizer, I orderedAlbacore Tuna served in Mango & mint salad, soy reduction.  The piece of tuna is huge since it is just an appetizer.  The mango gives it very refreshing taste.

Miss. So's appetizer :Air cured Coppa served with crostini, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic, pecorino, summer seedlings

For main course, I ordered Pork Shoulder and it was served with Polenta, chorizo cacciatore, pine nuts, olives & baby spinach.  I have never had such a large quantity served to me in a 'licious' main course.  The pork was tendered and the sauce was very tasty.

The other main course was Lake Erie Whitefish served in smoked tomato vinaigrette, ontario asparagus, green beans, and pattypan squash. I tried a small piece of the fish but it wasn't as tasty and mouth-watering as my pork.  Nevertheless, the quantity was again very big and the quality was excellent.

Next, my favourite part of the meal is of course dessert, I ordered the Chocolate Mousse Cakeserved with aerated milk chocolate, chocolate snow, caramelized white chocolate,and vanilla tuile. The cake was soft and not too sweet. I like how it is served with different sauces because each bite of the cake dipped in different sauce gives a different taste and feeling.

Miss. So ordered Panna Cotta with caramel, and sea salt brittle. The caramel in the middle was too sweet, but the fact that this is a dessert is alright to me.

Thanks to Miss. S.So for recommending 'c5 Restaurant' to me.  I really did enjoy this meal and I can say that it is one of the best 'licous' meal I have ever had.  The environment was great, the food quality and quantity were excellent considering its price and the fact that it was a 'lcious' meal.  'To.live.my.life' will rate c5 Restaurant with a 9/10.

Spacco Restaurant and Bar

It's hot!  It's sunny! It's PATIO time!  Love dining at patios this year.  A random Wednesday night after work, Mr. Yu and I went to a midtown patio 'Spacco Restaurant and Bar' for dinner.  I requested for a patio that's not on located right on a main street and Spacco is a perfect one.  It is facing Yonge but the patio is further in.  Probably due to the nice hot weather, it was surprising that the patio was nearly filled and there were more and more people coming later in the night too.

We ordered Grilled Calamari made with roasted cherry tomatoes, black olives, lemon, garlic, and spicy extra virgin olive oil for appetizer.  It was delicious and smells mouth-watering for an appetizer.

As our love for spicy and hot food continues, I chose Spicy Fettucine served with ground Italian sausage, wild mushrooms, fresh peas, and extra virgin olive oil.  I love this pasta because I've never had spicy pasta before.  It is so addicting, and doesn't feel too filling or heavy at all, you just want to keep eating!

...And as Mr. Yu's love in cheese continues, he had the honour to chose our pizza of the night, and he chose Quattro formaggio with asiago, provolone, and gorgonzola cheese.  I couldn't say it was the best pizza or anything, but I like the thin curst and the taste of chessey-ness due to the four cheese 'toppings'.

Spacco Restaurant and Bar has a relaxing and chilling patio, and nice food.  What more can you ask for on a Wedsnesday after work night in a midtown patio?  'To.live.my.life' rates this dining patio experience with a 8/10.

Cheesecake Factory @ Buffalo

A day of shopping at Buffalo and a meal at Cheesecake Factory is relaxing and care-free.  I am NOT a big fan of cheesecakes at all because it is very fattening and if there is a choice I would choose other types of desserts.  However, one cannot say NO to cheesecakes from Cheesecake Factory.  We arrived at around 4pm and we got a table right away.  However, usually there are long waits and line-ups during lunch and dinner peak hours.  The main purpose of being at Cheesecake Factory was for the cheesecake, so we only ordered the Factory Nachos and the Carlton Salad as our 'mains' to share.

The Factory Nachos are served with crisp tortilla chips covered with melted cheeses, guacamole, sour cream, jalapeños and salsa.  Not too much cheese were melted on the tortilla chips, so I really like it that way.  Also, the 'Nacho Expert' seemed to enjoy it since he finished the whole thing, so I believe it was above average but not exceptional since no specific very positive comments were given.

I mainly ate the Carlton Salad, which is served with romaine lettuce, grilled chicken, feta cheese, avocado, organic dried cranberries, raisins, pears, fresh orange and pecans tossed with vinaigrette.  I really like this salad because I never had this type of salad before.  It had both a sweet and sour taste at the same time.  I like the pecans and the fruits served with it.  However, I tasted goat cheese in the salad which I dislike, but it is weird how the ingredients did not include goat cheese at all.

My 'main' dish was actually the cheesecake.  Out of the whole list of cheesecakes, I chose the Caramel Pecan Turtle Cheesecake because I love pecan turtle chocolates.  The dessert is a pecan brownie and caramel-fudge swirl cheesecake, topped with caramel turtle pecans and chocolate.  It was very very very good, the cheesecake is very soft and I have never had such a delicious cheesecake.  I just want to try all their cheesecakes as soon as possible.  Unfortunately, I was too full yesterday, so didn't get a chance to have another piece until I go to Buffalo again next time :(

'To.live.my.life' rates a 9/10 to Cheesecake Factory because their food is very good.  The price is low as opposed to the portion, so luckily, I get to share their appetizer, salad and cheesecake with another.  It is very hard to finish such large portions and able to eat desserts by an asian small-eater girl like me. Also, the cheesecake is soft, not too sweet, and one word: 'ADDICTIVE'.  Everything is perfect for the cheesecake.  I just can't wait for another piece of Cheesecake Factory's cheesecake. 

Cafe Mirage Grill & Lounge

First day of long weekend, the weather was super nice and I really had the urge to have dinner at a patio.  Sadly, I failed to find the 'perfect' patio and I was lazy to drive downtown, so ended up at Cafe Mirage on Sheppard.
(My definition of a 'perfect' patio' is one with good food, not on a main street, and can be comfortably seated, please give suggestions if anyone have anything in mind.  Thanks!)

I have always wanted to try the desserts at Cafe Mirage, so I know this will be a great chance to.  Miss. A.Wong and I arrived at around 7-ish but the restaurant was pretty quiet, so we even picked where we want to be seated.  Both of us didn't want to have a heavy main dish, because we want to save our tummies for desserts!  I ordered a Chicken Caesar Pita with side-salad.  It is a whole-wheat pita stuffed with tender chicken breast, crispy romaine, and sautéed onion tossed in creamy Caesar dressing.  I love their pita because it was toasted, so it was crispy.  

Miss. A. Wong ordered a Chicken Chipotle with house salad.  It has grilled chicken breast, golden onions, and Swiss cheese with spicy house chipotle sauce and is served on toasted foccacia.  I tried a quarter of it, I like my Chicken Caesar Pita more because the toasted foccacia is just very similar to toasted sandwich so it wasn't too special.  

Last but not least, our dessert!  We ordered a Chocolate and Strawberry Ice-Cream Waffle with strawberries.  I rarely have negative comments about desserts, so of course it was very good and actually very filling.  However, it wasn't 'too special' and 'one-of-a-kind' thing.  I actually  really want to try their cakes next time because they look delicious and the portion served is enormous too.  

'To.live.my.life' give Cafe Mirage on Sheppard a 7/10 because overall everything was just standard.