Casual dining at Pickel Barrel

It’s been a while since we last ate at Pickle Barrel. A bit tired of the food court, we went to Pickle Barrel in Vaughan Mills for some casual dining.

I got the chicken and waffles which I shared with DD#2. 

Chicken and Waffles @Pickle Barrel

DD#1 had a kids’ meal where she had upsized her drink to a milk shake. 

Strawberry Milkshake @Pickle Barrel

Chicken tenders kids' meal @Pickle Barrel

Hubby got a PB Burger complete with fried onion ring and bacon as well as a side of fries. 

PB Burget @Pickle Barrel

Grandma got a Lobster Grilled Cheese sandwich.

Lobster Grilled Cheese sandwich @Pickle Barrel

Hubby’s and Grandma’s meals were both good. Not out of this world but good, nevertheless. My chicken had a nice crispy skin but the meat was not as tender as I hoped it would be. It was nicely spiced, though. What I did love was the waffles. I loved that there were bursts of corn kernels and jalapenos as I bit into syrup-infused waffles. I would probably order this again (and hope that the chicken will be better next time).

 Price ranges from $15 and up but the serving was quite significant. We were stuffed. 

Bungeoppang:Korean street snacks at the Red Bean Waffle House

Red Bean Waffle Ice Cream

 After we went for Korean BBQ, we had to have some Korean dessert. A tiny place in the same Yonge-Steeles complex as Kobi, this unassuming snack place turned out to be such a wonderful discovery! They don’t only serve red bean waffles, but they also serve other snacks like rice cakes, squidballs and dumplings.

Red bean waffle (Bungeoppang) is a popular street snack in Korea. It is a fish-shaped waffle which is crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. It is filled with red bean paste. 

Since we were full and we just wanted to try, we only ordered the red bean waffle ice cream. For $5, you get two scoops of ice cream with sprinkles and a chocolate stick in a fish-shaped red bean waffle. It was good and we really enjoyed it. They gave a generous serving of the ice cream and the red bean waffle was nice. It tasted fresh but it would be nice if it were warm. Still, since the hot waffle would easily melt the ice cream, I'll take it as is. The red bean paste did not overwhelm the waffle so if you are looking for that red bean taste, it might be better to just get these at Korean supermarket instead (sans the ice cream).

The presentation was beautiful, service was pretty quick and the price was ok. It is a great place to get some dessert. They only have a couple of tables, though, so be prepared to eat outside. We will be back to enjoy this again!

Better with cheese: dinner at Kobi Korean BBQ

Kobi Korean BBQ

Along with the restaurant name signage, there were a couple of other signages boasting of Kobi Korean BBQ’s specialties: Chicken and Cheese and Pork Belly. So, we no longer complicated our lives by ordering anything else. For either of those, there is a minimum of two orders so it was good for our party 5. DD#2 wanted dumplings so we ordered those as well.

The place was packed as it was a Friday night but we got a seat at the patio. It turned out to be a good thing as the smoke from the grill was not confined as we imagined it would be in the airconditioned area. However, as with any BBQ, we were resigned to smell like smoke at the end of our dinner, which we did.

The side dishes (ban-chan) came first along with fluffy steamed egg. We also got soup which was ready to boil in the middle of one grill. We had two grills as one was to be used for the pork belly and the other, for the chicken and cheese.

We got the pork belly ready to cook along with some lettuce for wrapping and a ton of onions to go with the dipping sauce. We started cooking it right away. The only way you can go wrong with this pork belly is if you burn it. It was wonderfully cooked, so we all enjoyed it-- ahem ahem..

BBQ Pork Belly @ Kobi BBQ

The soup was delicious but it got boiling hot and we didn’t know how to get the bowl out.  We couldn’t turn off the grill as we were still cooking the pork belly. In the end, after we turned off the grill, we had to let it cool down before we got to enjoy it.

soup @ Kobi BBQ

The spicy chicken was already cooked and came in a circular grilling pan with cheese around it. The grill was used practically just to melt the cheese. The chicken was nicely flavoured, a good combination of sweet and spicy. The additional richness from the gooey cheese brought it up a couple of notches.  Anything with melted cheese is good, right? It was like a different kind of fondue.

Spicy Chicken and Cheese @ Kobi BBQ

Anyway, service was okay considering how busy the place was and the food was good. It was pretty pricey though at almost $20 per order (with a minimum of two orders for the grilled items we ordered). I can say it was such a hit with DD#1 that she is already asking when we are coming back. I think we will come back very soon.

Sweet. Spiked. Savoury: gourmet delights by Von Doughnuts

Von Doughnuts

So what do you do when your co-worker opens up a box of oh-so-pretty doughnuts for you to try? Well, you just have to get one…or two!

From Von doughnuts, I tried both the Crème Brûlée and Sangria. The Caramel Salt ‘N’ Pepa and Kabobs looked good, too, but I had to share. Oooh and they were so worth all the calories that the alarm bells in my belly warned about. Von doughnuts are said to be trans-fat free, so it is not so bad, right? Yeah, yeah.

Another thing to justify this treat is that their doughnuts are baked fresh daily and all their toppings and fillings are made from scratch. The fun thing about these doughnuts is that they don’t have common flavours.  Their slogan captures their offerings: sweet, spiked and savoury. They have Milk Chocolate Whiskey, the Sangria I’ve tried and Honey Bourbon Cruller for spiked. They have a Burtle (bacon and Turtle chocolate) and Sappy Pig (again with bacon) for savoury. And of course there were all the other sweet goodies—Cookie Dough, Chocolate Malteser, Raspberry Cheesecake and so many more. They change up the offering per day.

I really liked the Crème Brûlée. The burnt sugar on top provided the crunch on the light and airy doughnut. The custard was smooth and creamy. It was really like having a crème brûlée! 

Crème Brûlée @ Von Doughnuts

The Sangria used a red and white wine glaze which was also good but if I didn’t know it was sangria, I wouldn’t be able to guess. The strawberry jam swirl did give the right tang to balance the sweet, fluffy doughnut. 

Sangria @ Von Doughnuts

I loved the decadent flavours I don’t usually get in other shops and the light texture of the doughnut itself. Of course, the price is almost twice the fancier Timmy’s options (some flavours have an upcharge—perhaps for the alcohol shot?) , but an indulgence every now and then is necessary, at least for my sanity. The size was pretty big, too.

Cannot wait to check out their store at Danforth. I am so sure that my fam and I will have a hard time picking which ones to try from all the beauties!

UPDATE: We found ourselves in the Danforth one Saturday and they were almost sold out at 1pm. We only managed to get Kabobs. They were mini versions of yumminess. We especially liked the triple chocolate. Blueberry Lime and Caramel Salt 'n' Pepa were also good.

Von Kabobs @ Von Doughnuts