Top Picks for Winterlicious 2015

It's that time of year again where, after a short month of rest from all the belly stuffing during Christmas holidays, more eating! Although I shouldn't use the term "stuffing" for this culinary event as it is all about exploring and really enjoying what the Toronto culinary scene has to offer.

Before I go into my 2015 Winterlicious wish list, I wanted to highlight previous restaurants that I have been to during previous Winterlicious/Summerlicious events since they are also on this year's list: 

Aria (Menu): I would still recommend it for the delicious food, yummy wine, friendly service as well as awesome decor. Great for a girl's night out or a romantic date. 

Big Daddy’s (Menu): You can't go wrong with their clam chowder, fried pickles or jambalaya. 

  

Ciao Wine Bar (Menu): Very good deal for what it's worth. The food and vibe is great. Good for friend gatherings or romantic dinners. 

La Maquette (Menu): Best place for a romantic dinner with candlelit dinner by a fireplace accompanied by live music. Also, did I mention lobster?  

Weslodge (Menu): Cutting edge decor and innovative dishes without the hefty price tag. The scotch egg is delicious.

I will probably revisit any one of these restaurants this year if I can manage. This will also be my first year attending one of the culinary events as part of Winterlicious. Rosewater is no stranger to me so I am super excited about this one:

Source

Every year I try to check out new places, so here are my top 5 picks for Winterlicious 2015 (in alphabetical order):

Recipe: Raspberry Oreo Chocolate Cheesecake

For a friend's birthday during Christmas holidays, I decided to make a cake. Her roommate is allergic to gluten, so I had to whip up something that didn't have any flour. After scrolling through Pinterest, I came across this recipe and I absolutely loved it. I'm not a huge fan of cheesecake, but the Oreo cookie base and chocolate ganache topping made it irresistible. The red raspberries also add to the colours of Christmas. I like this recipe as it doesn't require any icing or decoration, which saved me a lot of time!

An Afternoon at Butter Avenue

Butter Avenue has been on my list of dessert places for the longest time, but I never got to visiting the store as it is a bit out of the way for a downtowner like me. The main location is on Yonge street in a nice neighbourhood between Lawrence and York Mills. They also recently opened a second location downtown (yay! much closer) on Queen Street close to Spadina.  

We each ordered a different type of dessert to try and an iced coffee and latte. The coffee was good but pretty standard, and I was a tiny bit disappointed that my latte didn't have latte art. 

I didn't have any macarons at the store, but did buy some to go. My favourite flavours are lychee raspberry and dark chocolate. 

Let Down at Locus Lounge

Waking up naturally on a sunny Sunday with no particular plans in mind is the ideal condition for growing brunch dates. Even though I adore Cafe Medina to no end, my curiosity and aversion to block-long line ups on the most popular brunch day of the week led me to Locus Lounge! The place exudes a dark, gothic vibe when it comes to its decor, so I was very surprised to learn that they served brunch.

Locus Lounge has quite an extensive brunch menu, so it took us a while to finally decide what we wanted. First up was the Huevos Rancheros. I was expecting a hearty mess of ingredients thrown together but their version was surprisingly light and refreshing. I would have liked the salsa to have more kick in it but overall this dish managed to keep me on my toes without being too overbearing. 

Huevos Rancheros $13

A New Favourite: Siena Restaurant

Tucked just ever so slightly away from the hustle and bustle of Broadway and Granville sits Siena, a nice little neighbourhood gem. The space is small but inviting, with its use of wood and its handwritten chalkboard of the daily specials. Unfortunately, since we had a later reservation, many of the special items were already sold out.

Nonetheless, Siena's staple menu still had many things that caught my eye. I'm always a little iffy when it comes to pork tenderloin because often times it can end up being tough. This was certainly not the case as the pork came out to be melt-in-your-mouth good. Even though the portion did not look intimidating, I'm sure I would have been satisfyingly full if I had polished this off on my own.

Grilled Natural Pork Tenderloin $25