Showing posts with label happy hour. Show all posts
Showing posts with label happy hour. Show all posts

Happy Hour at Blue Bovine Steak + Sushi House (Toronto)

Located in Union Station, Blue Bovine Steak and Sushi House is not the easiest place to find. Most eateries are found on the lower levels, but Blue Bovine is situated street level with no storefront. The easiest way to locate the restaurant is head to the Front and Bay Street corner, look for a large bronze bull statue, and walk up the steps through those doors.

Their happy hour menu, available weekdays from 3pm to 6pm in the lounge, is a big draw for tourists and commuters alike. By the time I got there at 5:30pm, the place was bustling and in full swing.

For those who are peckish, the happy hour menu includes a good selection of sharable plates.

The Chef’s selection maki roll ($16) arrived as a run-of-the-mill spicy tuna. For a restaurant that touts itself as a “Sushi House”, I’m surprised that the rice was too cold and pressed into such a thick layer than the tame tuna filling became lost. Perhaps leaning into the “Steakhouse” side would be better.

Certainly, the wagyu beef slider ($10 each) was more impressive. The beef patty was flavourful and juicy, but complimented nicely with crisp lettuce, tomato, and sauce. I instantly wanted to order the larger burger ($45) after the slider.

The karaage chicken ($14) was substantial compared to other options. Chunks of dark meat was lightly breaded and fried. While not outstanding, they were at least hot and hearty.

In fact, get an order of the karaage or sliders and tack on the truffle fries ($12) to create a full meal. The fries were crispy, hot, and had a prominent but not overwhelming truffle taste. A fancier chicken fingers and fries perhaps.

If the duck spring rolls ($14) were crispier it would help provide the crunchy contrast that’s needed to combat the ground duck filling. While it was light and fluffy, there wasn’t much but the ground meat, so the spring roll felt mushy. Adding Peking duck accompaniments into the filling like carrot, scallion, and cucumbers may help.

For those who are standing around with their drinks, the big eye tuna tartare ($12) and prime steak tartare ($12) are easiest to eat having been pre-scooped onto thin crispy crostini. Both were nicely seasoned. Yet, the fried garlic slivers topping the tartare, which is a powerful tasting ingredient, does make both proteins taste similar.


The ½ price bar special, includes almost the entire menu except for select wines. Still, even being half off, cocktails ring in at $11-$15 and large glasses of wine around $22-$25. Hardly budget but at least keeps the drinks at a reasonable price. Pregame or post-work, I can see why Blue Bovine draws a crowd. Now go find it. 

In a nutshell... 
  • Must order: wagyu sliders, karaage
  • Just skip: maki roll, duck spring rolls

No "mark" provided as this is an informational post.


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 65 Front Street West


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The Good Son (Toronto)


Have you’ve heard the positive sayings “look on the brighter side” and “things always happen for a reason”? Sometimes, they’re true. During a recent staycation, our outdoor day trip was dampened with rainy weather so we decided to stay in town and check out close by destinations. We first visited Oomomo (it’s definitely no Daisho) and then headed to the Shops of Don Mills down the street.

It just so happens, the newest outpost of The Good Son also opened at the Shops so we stopped by for dinner. It’s then we realize the food gods were looking down upon us. Firstly, we made it there in time for happy hour where all cocktails and draft beers are half off. Score! I wanted to try the Little Priest (normally $13) anyways. It’s a refreshing concoction that tastes like a lighter Long Island iced tea – while I couldn’t really taste the vermouth Amaro, it was a fitting spring drink.


Since it wasn’t a busy in the restaurant, we took our time with the meal, ordering appetizers to nibble on with the drinks. Of course, the burrata ($19) was soft and creamy, but The Good Son adds a bit of roasted garlic on top. While this may sound overpowering against the mild cheese, the roasted garlic provided mostly aroma versus bite and the balsamic reduction creates some sweetness. It’s a tasty burrata.


In the future, I’d stick with the Italian dishes and steer clear of the sea bream ceviche ($16). The fish became lost under all the avocado, pear (?), pomegranate, and tomatillo sauce so it tasted like eating chunky salsa versus ceviche. Plus, incorporating both pomegranate and pear in the dish made it too sweet and it lacked the chili bite I like with ceviche. On the bright side, the corn tortillas were tasty and abundant.


Regardless, the food gods continued to bless us. Wednesdays also means $10 pizza day! It would have been our choice anyways given The Good Son is known for their wood oven pizza… the large station in the corner certainly entices you to want to bite into the smoky pie.


Craving a hearty pizza, the capricciosa ($20) fit the bill with big chunks of mushrooms, mild sundried olives, artichokes, fior di latte, and layers of Prosciutto cotto. Understandably, under the weight of all the toppings, the pizza is impossible to pick up but the crust is well-toasted on the bottom so it’s not mushy either. If only they left off the balsamic with the mushrooms – don’t sneak a sweet and savoury combination on me please!

Normally, I likely would have ordered the spicy sopressata ($21). Simply adorned with slices of cured meat and little chunks of Anaheim chili strewn throughout for a manageable heat.



In the end, the rain did not put a damper on the day and we ended up saving quite a bit on dinner. But as a good customer, just remember to tip a higher percentage. The restaurant workers are doing the same work, even though you’re saving a bundle. 

Overall mark - 7 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 11 Karl Fraser Road (in Shop of Don Mills)

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____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


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