Cheap Eats Toronto restaurant guide blog

New Street Food MONDAY!

It’s “spring” and that means it’s finally time for new street food! 

I just talked to the people at Toronto A La Cart about when the new vendors will be launching and the news is that 2 new street food vendors will launch on MONDAY!

They were quick to tell me that the official launch party/celebration of all the vendors will be May 29th, but the two opening on Monday will be in Nathan Philips Square. That’s just 4 more days until we can start to wean ourselves off weenies!!!  (More details on the official launch party/celebration as we get it!)

Based on the last press release about who will be serving what where, Monday’s lunch will be Greek (e.g. souvlaki) and Persian/Central Asian food (e.g. biryani).  

So, who’s coming?

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Previous posts on Toronto’s Street Food:

• TOhotdogs
• Some Answers a la Cart
• New Flavour of The Street
• Lex on Street Meat
• Street Meat or Street Treats?
• Toronto Street Treats

Some Answers a la Cart

With yesterday’s announcement of 8 new Street Food Vendors offering more than just sausages and dogs came a lot of people asking the same 2 questions: “when exactly will this new food be available?” and “why only 8 new vendors?” 

So I got in touch with a representative of Toronto a la Cart and asked.  The answers I got back filled in some of the holes for me, and I hope for you too.

CETO: The first question everyone has in response to the announcement is "When exactly will these new street foods be available?" The release says they will be available "in spring".  Do you have any firm dates for any of the vendors? (We already have a posse forming to visit them all on day one.)

Toronto a la Cart: You will not need to form a posse because we plan to hold a kick-off event for the vendors in one central location in May. The goal is to have them ready to go for the May long weekend.

CETO: Many of the previous reports indicated that there would be 13 locations open for new street food options. Why are there only 8 new vendors? How many applications did you get?

Toronto a la Cart: We had 19 applicants; of these 19, 12 proceeded to the food tasting stage (the other 7 did not either because they did not meet some of the mandatory requirements or they did not pass either the nutrition or food safety portion of the application).

Of the 12 at the food tasting, 3 chose not to go ahead because they were not offered their first choice of location, and one had to drop out for personal reasons.

CETO: We are all operating on the assumption the trial will be a success, so when will new applications and new locations be opened up?

Toronto a la Cart: We don't know when new applications and new locations will be opened up. Stay tuned.

CETO: Can you tell us more about the expanded options for existing street food vendors and when they will be able to start offering new food options?

Toronto a la Cart: This is a one year pilot project that will hopefully be launched around the same time as a la Cart.

15 existing vendors will be selected by lottery from those who apply and will be allowed to sell things such as pre-packaged salads, pre-packaged cut up fruit and veggies, whole fruits, coffee, bagels and pre-packaged cream cheese, pre-packaged nuts and seeds, etc.

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Of course there are always more questions coming out of this – including “do all food vendors have to pass a taste test to get a licence?”, and the corollary “really?!?”

All questions aside, we are very excited to see every step forward that is made to make Toronto a world-class food city. Increasing the variety, quality and styles of Street Food is great step.

Now who wants to be part of the posse?

Technorati Tags: toronto,toronto a la cart,street food,street food vendors,food carts

New Flavour of The Street

When I posted this morning that Toronto would be announcing new street food vendors with a wider range of food options I got a lot of feedback ranging from enthusiasm to sarcasm about how “different” these options would be.  A couple of people, like me, had heard about this initiative last year and had assumed the silence meant it had died a quiet death in the back corner of City Hall.

However, it looks like there is going to be some real change in the Street Food scene from 8 new vendors serving food across the city this spring. 

Here’s what you can get where:

• Pad Thai with fresh rolls at Mel Lastman Square - (Thai)
• Chapli kebabs  at Metro Hall - (Afghani/Central Asian)
• Biryani at Nathan Phillips Square - (Central Asian/Persian)
• Souvlaki in Nathan Philips Square – (Greek)
• Chicken/beef kebab wraps at Queen’s Park - (Middle Eastern)
• Injera in Roundhouse Park - (Eritrean) [I’m assuming this is injera wrapped around something because otherwise it’s just bread]
• Bulgogi with seasonal kimchi at Yonge and Eglinton - (Korean)
• Jerk chicken at Yonge and St. Clair - (Caribfusion)

These are solid Street Food options already available from street vendors around the world and I’m excited to see how Toronto responds.

Now, quit teasing me and tell me  WHEN exactly is “spring”?

Previous posts on Toronto’s Street Food:

• Lex on Street Meat  
• Street Meat or Street Treats? 
• Toronto Street Treats

Technorati Tags: street food,street meat,toronto,toronto a la cart

Street Food: Now More Than Tube Steaks!

Today at 10am, Toronto Councillor John Filion will be introducing the new Street Food Vendors and their menus.

It’s part of the new Toronto a la Cart program. 

“Toronto a la Cart takes street food to a new level. Toronto food lovers will be able to step outside and enjoy foods from around the globe when the Toronto a la Cart street food pilot project hits the streets this spring.”

You won’t find these options just anywhere, as usual vendors are restricted to their licensed cart locations but the city’s site Toronto a la Cart does list the locations where you can find these new vendors.

More details on when you can hit the streets for kimchi and kebabs as soon we have it.

Tomorrow is Lunch Money Day!

Lunch Money Day is one of the easiest ways to help the hungry in Toronto.  Here’s the deal: instead of buying lunch, brown bag it and donate the money you would have spent to Second Harvest.

Every day Second Harvest  picks up excess fresh food, that would otherwise go to waste, and delivers that food to approximately 250 social service programs in the GTA.

Here are another couple of easy ways you can help feed Toronto's hungry:

• Ride the rocket - give generously to Second Harvest volunteers wearing chef hats in participating TTC stations.

• At work or school - support your company or school campaign and help them reach or exceed their fundraising goal.

• Grab some lunch -

• pick up a turkey sandwich and orzo salad at your nearest Starbucks and Second Harvest will get a portion of the proceeds 

• enjoy a vegetarian pasta and salad at the Calphalon Culinary Center (corner King & Spadina) for a minimum $5 donation, with all donations going to  Second Harvest

• Shop for your groceries at Sobeys - and donate $2 to Lunch Money Day at the checkout.

• Get some laughs - purchase a ticket for any Second City show and Second Harvest gets $5.

• Relax at home - and feel good as you make a secure donation online. Remember that every $5 you donate provides enough fresh food for 10 meals for those in need.

Lunch Money Day is Second Harvest's annual fundraiser. Money raised is used to keep Second Harvest trucks on the road, picking up food from donors and delivering that food to those in need. This year their goal is to raise $410,000 - that's enough to provide 820,000 meals to the men, women and children who are hungry in Toronto.

Reservations Start Today for Winterlicious

Winterlicious is a great excuse to stray outside into the cold of winter and outside the strict CheapEats rules to try some of Toronto’s higher-priced restaurants. 

This year’s Winterlicious is running from January 30 to February 12, 2009 and has 150 restaurants offering 3-course prix fixe menus ranging from $15-30 for lunch, and menus ranging from $25-45 for dinner.

Remember if you pay with your American Express card they will donate 5% of your purchase to the Canadian Association of Food Banks

Winterlicious Almost CheapEats (lunch $15 or dinner $25)

1055 Plakutta Restaurant

1055 Yonge Street, 416.482.8485
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

7 Numbers Danforth

307 Danforth Avenue, 416.469.5183
Menu $25 Dinner

93 Harbord

93 Harbord Street, 416.922.5914
Menu $25 Dinner

Acquolina Ristorante

579 Mount Pleasant Road, 416.545.1220
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

Alice Fazooli's Italian Grill

294 Adelaide Street West, 416.979.1910
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

Alize Restaurant

2459 Yonge Street, 416.487.2771
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

Amaya's Bread Bar

3305 Yonge Street, 416.487.1100
Menu $25 Dinner

Amaya the Indian Room

1701 Bayview Avenue, 416.322.3270
Menu $25 Dinner

Archeo Trattoria

Distillery District  55 Mill Street, 416.815.9898
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

Arriba Restaurant

Renaissance Toronto Hotel Downtown 1 Blue Jays Way, 416.341.5045
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

Autogrill Restaurant

495 Eglinton Avenue West, 416.489-0961
Menu $15 Lunch, $25 Dinner

(and that’s just the “A”s, keep reading!)

Vote for CheapEats Toronto in the Canadian Blog Awards

The Canadian Blog Awards are underway and we’ve been nominated! But, it’s only Round One and you can only vote once per category.  So we need your support to make the Final Round.

• CheapEats Toronto has been nominated in both the Best Cultural and Entertainment AND the Best Local Blog categories

I'm delighted to see CheapEats, as well as a number of our bloggers and colleagues amongst the nominees!

• Andrea’s blog a peek inside the fishbowl has been nominated for the Best Family Blog
• My personal project blog, Mini Book Expo, has also been nominated in the Cultural/Entertainment category
• Our sister blog – CheapEats Ottawa has been nominated in both the Cultural/Entertainment category (yes… competing against both Mini Book Expo and CheapEats Toronto)
• Our friends over at BlogTO have been nominated for Best Local Blog. And while I’m not saying CETO doesn’t deserve it… but BlogTO deserves it more (I’m just saying)

Please take a moment and support CheapEats, our fantastic contributors and all the other great Canadian blogs that have been nominated by voting!

Round One Closes mid-day Saturday, Nov 29th!  So vote today!

Happy Seven Not So Happy

This afternoon the Public health inspectors closed down Happy Seven because rats were photographed, videotaped and broadcasted live on Breakfast TV this morning. 

The rats were first spotted yesterday and photos were posted on both BlogTO and Torontoist, which triggered Toronto's Public Health inspectors to re-inspect the restaurant even though Happy Seven had just passed a health inspection on October 2nd.

TheStar.com says that 3 rats were caught by traps set by management last night and quotes Councillor John Filion, chair of the Toronto Board of Health, as saying "It's an unusual situation," he said. "The rats must have shown up between the last inspection and yesterday. They haven't been there long enough to leave evidence."

Public Health inspectors point out that while rats in Chinatown have gotten the blogosphere snapping photos and chattering this year, they aren't the only restaurants in town with the problem.

If you see a health code violation in any restaurant, you can report it to Toronto Public Health.

 

Video shot by Jesse Ship, Arts Editor of Format Magazine, below fold...

Gotta Getta Corn Dog!

  IMG_0662
Originally uploaded by Phil Marion.

This week's  CheapEats Photo of the Week is   IMG_0662 taken by Phil Marion.  (Add your own photo to the CheapEats Toronto Flickr Group and it could be our next Photo of the Week.)

Vovici Online Survey Software

Because what is the CNE without Corn Dogs aka Pogos?  It's okay, you can admit it.  We all have our favourites. Those treats we crave all year and can only get at the CNE.  I like Tiny Tom's doughnuts so much that I took a video of them cooking one year.

The media use them to remind us of the tastes and smells of the EX (the good ones anyway), and most of us leave with our bellies full and talking about how much bigger, better or cheaper they were before.  But we all know we'll be craving them again soon and spend another year fantasizing about our favourite treats.

For a little bit of CNE food trivia, did you know that each year more than:

• 18,000 glasses of lemonade are consumed
• 50 tonnes of butter are used for butter sculptures
• 20,000 lbs of Tiny Tim Donuts are devoured

If you are planning your visit around the food building, check out our Food Building Favourites post listing all your, and my, food building favourites.

Be the Griller of Glory

As many of you know cooking with fire and beer are 2 of my favourite things.  So I am very excited to announce that I'm one of the judges at Rickard's Griller of Glory BBQ cook off August 28th in Yonge-Dundas Square.  

Rickard's is looking for Toronto’s best backyard griller, and the contest is open to anyone with a recipe featuring Rickard's Red or White. 

 

To enter:

1. Email your best beer grilling recipe featuring Rickard's Red or White to grill@rickards.ca
2. In your email submission, include:
• a photo of your creation
• a 1-2 sentence description
• a name for your recipe, using "Rickard's" in the title
3. The deadline to get your recipe in is Friday August 22nd!

It's that simple to become one of 3 finalists I'll be judging in the cook-off in Yonge-Dundas Square on August 28th. Oh, and Rickard’s Griller of Glory winner will be walking away with a prize pack including a new Napoleon Gourmet Grill. 

I'll be judging alongside Phil Nyman of Phil's Original BBQ who has whipped up a video with some secrets of grilling with Rickard's.

Rickard's Griller of Glory: Phil Nyman's Beer Grilling Tips - video powered by Metacafe

More details are available at www.rickardswhite.ca.