Restaurant: Allen's

To most people, comfort food is nostalgic and generally easy-to-eat foods that have some sentimental value to them. For me however, comfort food is JUNK. You know, wings, burgers, fries, pizza, chips, etc etc. You know, everything that's bad for you. But unfortunately, I do have a little bit of understanding of my health, so I can't have that stuff every day (maybe every other day is ok. haha). So while I've kept blogto's Best Burger list around for a while, I've only been able to try them sporadically. When a friend invited me thus to try Allen's....? Of course I jumped at the chance!

Ambiance: 2.5 / 5
Cleanliness: 3.5 / 5
Service: 3.5 / 5
Taste: 4 / 5
Presentation: 3 / 5
Price: $$
Overall: 3.5 / 5

So apparently, Allen's supposedly uses fresh, organic beef for its burgers (I don't know for sure, I read it somewhere at some point). And they DO have a fairly extensive beer list. The lighting was VERY dark which made me not want to go through it. It being a pub, I ordered a black and tan. It never occurred to me to take a photo of the beer (whoops), so I thiefed this one off of the internet. I apologise in advance to the person who took the photo for not giving credit.

For anyone who ends up ordering this. Please, I implore you, DO NOT MIX IT! There's a little section in the middle where the two beers connect that's a delectable little sweet spot. Not to be trifled with and certainly not to be ruined.

I was a little disappointed that the burger comes a la carte, but I suppose I kind of expected it. And on top of that, anything toppings outside of lettuce, tomato, and pickle, is also an extra charge. But I couldn't help myself and ordered sauteed mushrooms, and sauteed onions, and cheddar cheese to top my burger off. The burger itself, was ordered medium rare.

Yes....my photography skills are SEVERELY lacking. Plus, I only had my phone with me. The toppings, actually came on separate plates. Even the lettuce that I'd asked for came beside the burger. Anyway, picking up the burger, I found the bottom piece of bread already soggy. That was a bit of a disappointment. But biting into the burger was scrumptious. Nicely seared, perfectly grilled, and nice and juicy.

If you notice in the background of the photo, we did order a side of fries as well. And quite honestly, the fries aren't even worth mentioning. A little bland, a little dry.

If you've never been, I suppose this place is worth a try, but to be quite honest, by the time you top up your burger, and add in tax and tip, you're looking at roughly $20 for the burger all on its own. And while it was well prepared and delicious, I just don't see it being WORTH that much.

Allen's
143 Danforth Ave.
Toronto, ON
416-463-3086
~Cheers.

Restaurant: Czehoski

At some point in time, they Czehoski must have changed hands because last I heard, this place was pricey and not entirely worth it. But with the most expensive entree priced at $23. How is that overpriced?

Ambiance: 3.5 / 5
Cleanliness: 3.5 / 5
Service: 4 / 5
Taste: 3 / 5
Presentation: 3.5 / 5
Price: $$
Overall: 4 / 5

A 3 floor restaurant / bar with a nice bohemian feel and a stage for live music. It's got a well stocked bar, and guess what... That third floor? Rooftop patio! Definitely a place I'm going to have to try and hit this summer.

The first thing we ordered were the onion rings. I only had my mobile with me and I'm certainly no photographer. But these rings are the best I can remember. Nice, big, juicy, plump rings of onions covered with light, fluffy, batter with the smallest kick. Very yum.

Then the entrees came. My friend ordered Pork Belly over Lentils/Tomatoes. It's not the lightest of fares, but it's pork belly. Which means the meat is nice and juicy and tender (partly because it's moist with belly fat. Haha). The lentils do have a bit of a kick, but you can ask for mild if you're not a fan.

I actually ordered their Mac & Cheese. Topped with slices of Chorizo, I found it a touch milky for my taste, but at $14.95, it's certainly no Kraft Dinner. Aside from the Onion rings, I wasn't particularly blown away by the food. But the ambiance is nice, with that old world feel, and retains a little bit of its original Butcher shop / Kalbasa store feel. The service is friendly, and the food is decent.

Czehoski
678 Queen St. W
Toronto, ON
M6J 1E5
416-366-6787

~Cheers.

Blogger's Note: Found a nice little story in blogto about this place from the daughter of the original owners (please read after the jump).

Restaurant: The Dragon Bistro

Ambiance: 3 / 5
Cleanliness: 4 / 5
Service: 4 / 5
Taste: 4 / 5
Presentation: 3 / 5
Price: $$
Overall: 4 / 5

Once upon a time, there was a little pub in the middle of Toronto called The Crown & Dragon. It became the weekly hangout of myself and a few of my friends. The English styled pub, catered mostly to regulars, served interesting "un-pub-like" food, like Korean kalbi ribs and Tom Yum Soup. Its location was central to all of us, and we'd meet there to unwind on Fridays. The food was tasty and the service was always very friendly. Unfortunately, with all of our busy lives, our weekly visits slowly became monthly visits; and monthly visits became seasonal visits.
One day, after not being there for a while, they were sporting an entirely new menu. One with 27 flavours of chicken wings. Each one, more delicious than the previous. And for a little while, I frequented my little pub a little more so that I could try ALL 27 flavours. Quite soon after I did, The Crown & Dragon made a little announcement. This little pub that I'd been introducing many of my friends to, won the Toronto Wing Off (2009). Not only did they win, they beat out heavyweights like, Duffs, and Jack Astor's. And to make the victory sweeter? They won in EVERY category.

Best Traditional Buffalo Wing (Mild) :  Key West BBQ
Best Traditional Buffalo Wing (Hot) :  Dragon's Breath
Best International Flavour : Bollywood
Most Creative Taste : Roadside Lemonade

News of their win spread like wildfire. And soon, the little pub that could, was packed. And the owner, decided that it was time to open a new location. And earlier this year, he finally found a location for his all new restaurant, The Dragon Bistro.

So after going down to The Crown & Dragon all these years, I was looking forward to trying the new location. Would it be the same English style pub? Would the wings be as good? Would the waitresses be as cute-I-mean-friendly? Well, let's take a look.

The new location is much larger, with a much more modern feel. It's much more spacious, and of course, with big screen TVs readily available. The menu looks much like the original one, with a few add-ons to fit the "bistro" part of the new moniker. But I wasn't there to try their new stuff. I wanted my wings. We had 2 pounds of wings. 1 pound was "Cold Sweats", and the other, "Key West BBQ".

According to their menu, the description of the two types of wings we chose were:
Cold Sweats: It's Chili Chicken! Chinese / Indian by roots. Blending Spicy & Sweet
Key West BBQ: Sweet & smokey with real lime juice and sultry hickory.

What can I say about these wings. Big, fat, juicy wings, cooked just right. You will notice the the slightest kick with the Cold Sweats. Like the description says, it's a little bit spicy with a little bit of sweet. With the Key West BBQ, I do like how they don't overdo it with the sauce. There's really, just enough of it, to give it a rich, smokey flavour with a touch of sweetness to it. Very, very well done.

But if you're going to go to The Dragon Bistro, this is something you MUST try. Their yam fries. They do their yam fries differently than I've tried in any other place. Fried perfectly, these large, fat cuts of golden yam is crispy on the outside, and tender within.

Now, The Dragon Bistro has a new sauce for the yam fries, of which I'm not a big fan of. If you're going to go, I recommend you ask for the 'original sauce'.

It really doesn't look like much. It's the same sweet chili peppers as the Cold Sweats, in a soy sauce.  But somehow, it marries perfectly with the yam fries. Absolutely delicious.

A final note... The waitstaff is still very friendly, and the entire experience, very enjoyable. That being said, as nice as the modern look and feel is to the place, somehow to me, it lacks the magic of the Crown. Although, I do admit, that it probably has to do with the memories and the familiarity of the place.

The Dragon Bistro
139 Main St.
Unionville, ON
Canada


~Cheers.