Iliana & Sergey's Palette: busy

My dad and I went for lunch on this corner plaza. This place was bright and hard-to-miss. Red type with Burger and Fries in a rectangle - all in a comic sans-like sans serif - friendly and cheap.

NOSE

hoppy

Once we entered, the line up was clearly created with piled large brown bags of potatoes. At the entrance, on top of them, there was a bag of salted, shelled peanuts and small, stacked, empty containers - a self-serve snack, without a note. (perhaps for the regulars)

There was a bit of a line up, but it was moving. On the side there were quotes of newspapers and critics admitting that their burgers are indeed amazing - a sure way to get people's expectations up..

It was all white inside with red highlights - vents, lamps, checkered tiles everywhere.

SWIRL
a bit of citrus

At the cash we ordered. My dad encouraged I go for their main one - bacon cheeseburger. He got the veggie sandwich. You also get any of the toppings.. and they white a few. I went for their lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, grilled mushrooms, grilled onions and mustard.

We took a seat, at one of their wooden tables. There were quite a few of us waiting. So now it comes to waiting your turn. My dad asked for a side of cajun mix. He said a lot of this colleagues eat it along with the fires. The burgers and made and dressed behind a low counter, everything is easy to see, but far away. I felt very disconnected from a process, they seemed to want to show.

The peanut snacks made sense, now that we sat waiting for at least 5min. My dad was saying that if people weren't pretending be so well behaved, they would be all tossing their empty shells on
the ground.

PALATE
light, dry, zingy

And so, they called our number. The burgers came in a paper bag with number on them, and covered with warm fries. Thats a smart strategy to keep the food warm.

So the burger was not too impressive. Firstly, I will never get grilled veggies again. They are tasteless, the mushrooms especially - soft big chances. They felt more marinated and dipped in a grill-smelling sauce. The patty was very plain, hardly any spice, the cheese was process and the bacon, hardly there. Appart from that, the side of cajun spice mix was a nice addition for their fries.

FINISH
bitter, short, leaving you feeling heavy

Overall, great atmosphere but perhaps it was my faut for going for grilled veggies. I noticed the had a bunch of their burgers in Little sizes and interesting cheese, bacon hotdogs..

Overall, a simple pilser.

1.7.12

Saving Grace

http://www.blogto.com/restaurants/savinggrace

We came here back in the winter, 15min before opening and entered as it was unlocked. We were quickly asked to leave and didn't make it back until now.
This time we came after 11 and it look 30min to be invited. Oh and the common etiquette is that you put your name on the clipboard hanging on the inside front frame - wait list.

APPEARANCE
medium-light golden, attractive
Outside bright, highlighter pink and green with contrasting details and a right-on green bench. This place is hard to miss - there are people always standing around. After almost being skipped, as the waitress felt like reading the list the opposite way, it was our turn.

NOSE
butterscotch, stuffy - needing air
Inside, very simple and trying to look bigger than is - white walls, black lamps and a large mirror. It reminded me of a fitting room, especially being warm and stuffy. That might have also been because we were sat on the small top floor overlooking everyone. All I have to say is, thank god for the high-ceilings adding some space and air.

SWIRL
hazelnut, hint of cinnamon
Setting down, we were entertained by the sun revealing the previous store sign underneath.
Cups with steaming ice and a charming airtight glass water bottle came on our table. They gave out either this type of a bottle or a wine olive-green glass one, both pretty cool.
I asked for the Strawberry-Agave Shake. We were quick with our food order, feeling a bit exposed to ally eh other waiting outside. I was hoping to have space at the end for that popular French Toast with Caramelized Bananas, as we really felt like something more substantial before. We got their Rajasthani Eggs and the Old White Cheddar Sandwich.

As we waited, I noticed the cute chalk-board with a version of the menu on the wall. I kind of wished I read it earlier. A bunch of people were having the iced fresh ginger, looked interesting. Also, we were entertained by the sun revealing the previous store sign underneath in front of us.

PALATE
smoky, spicy, smooth texture yet drying
My shake came warm and I was ready to whine for ice, but it turned out that there was a big cube near the bottom. The shake was too think to let it swim out though. It was that same steaming ice, making my drink ice-cold in a few minutes. I was quite happy and impressed; it held the chill for some time. It was a bit sweet, but the light yogurt base was a great balance.
Next came out plates. I started off with half of the Old White Cheddar Sandwich. It came well toasted with grill marks, a spring salad and their house potatoes. The bread added a lot of interest to this dish, as it was whole-wheat raisin with a few walnut pieces. The insides were tomatoes, avocado and a yummy rosemary mayo. The cheese only got a bit of attention, competing with all the tastes going on, but overall it was delicious and a bit heavy.
The Rajasthani scrambled eggs had a very spicy red-onion, tomato chickpea masala. There was also a side of herbed, corn paratha and a side of potatoes. The cilantro and sour-cream were essential in my tolerance of this dish, but still not enough. Rajasthani is definitely not for my tummy in the morning, but I it has a hidden purpose - to make you sweat so that this room no longer feels warm or stuffy.

FINISH
hint of melon-pineapple and freshness
I wish I had space for dessert, perhaps next time I will sharpen my sweet tooth from the beginning.
Whoa, getting out makes you appreciate the breezy cool weather outside, even if it is mid 30C.

overall.. an intense (stifle) Chardonnay

14.1.12

Atomic

http://www.atomica.ca/

It's been too recommended, for me to miss this place out. Plus it sounded perfect for mon cheri's birthday, knowing his interest in Italian wines.

APPEARANCE
clean, widespread
And so I made a reso days ahead. Tried changing the time, the same day but it was impossible, they are ridiculously busy. I just dropped off the cake earlier, and hoped for the best.

From the outside the place seems clean, geometric and organized. The word mark is horizontal and simple. There is a few places with a logo of an atom, believe the old one, thankfully it's not prominent.

NOSE
mishmash - many weak hints at ones
We came a tad earlier than our reservation. It was busy, we waited for 5min standing, the host offered us to sit next to some couple, while we waited.

It is a small, and cozy place. However we couldn't stop noticing the fluorescent wall behind the bar, which kept on changing colours. I felt like I am in a club and too many of the colours were clashing with the rest of the room.. it wasn't hard not to notice that the red-orange seconds of the light were the only appropriate ones. Even if one was to turn away from the bright wall, there is a lovely mirror on the wall across, reinforcing it.

SWIRL
unresolved, simple
They sat us at a booth, the place felt a bit rushed. We ordered two glasses of Primitivo-ca'del doge. Followed by a pizza we put together - salmon, sundered tomato, basil pesto cream, fior di latte, artichoke and onions. The waitress seemed stressed and distracted. They serves us some bread as we waited. We continued our discussion on what possible major our waitress is doing.

PALATE

easy to like, light, pleasing
Our pizza came quickly - small, thin-crusted but delicious.
I went to the washroom, checked on the waitress who was fully on board with bringing out the cake. Cheri didn't know what was coming, so I asked for the wine list again while he asked for the dessert menu.. the waitress looked at me and was confused. Made him feel inadequate, as he didn't understand why its so hard bring out a dessert menu.. I smiled and said yes, can you bring it out. We ordered two glasses of Prosecco. The waitress brought out a bottle, started opening it and its a good thing mon cheri spoke up and told her we only wanted two glasses. He entertained himself with the dessert menu while the waitress brought out the cake with two candles. I brought 24 more and the poor cake was fully lit by the time we finished putting them all on. He blew the candles, our waitress took the cake back and then cut two pieces for us.

FINISH
light and short
At the end, she brought back the cake fully packed. All the warnings I got that there was a fee on the service of serving the cake, was definitely worth it. We paid and left.
Honestly, perhaps I was too distracted by the event to really take a good look at the menu or even order anything apart from what cheri wanted. This place is worth visiting again in a few months, but not at a busy night with that hideous lit up wall.

overall.. a young Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc blend