Pickle Barrel Grand

OK, so this is the first time I've been here since the big renos. Trying to look uber-cool, but still have the same corny menus with the dancing pickles... what the heck? There were also at least four birthday celebrations going on while we were having dinner; so help me, I would never want to have a birthday celebration at the Pickle Barrel, reno or not... I guess I was also jealous, as I knew a friend of mine was having dinner at Terroni at the same time that I was at the Pickle Barrel.
I had some spicy mussels. It seemed that most of my dining companions were satistfied with their dishes. I don't think my mussels were anymore inspired or better done than any other middling restaurant... and, they had no seafood forks to eat the mussels with... holy cannoli, I certainly sound elitist, don't I?

Kalendar

This is a bistro on College on the eastern border of Little Italy. Went there for a little lunch, in a little booth with cushioned seats. Was a lovely place to eat. Starting with a hummus platter, complimented with apples and carrots and olives was a nice way to start a lovely lunch. Most opted for the 'scrolls', which are, essentially, wraps, but I guess they just wanted to give them a nice name. Side salads topped with a bit of bruschetta mix was a nice touch. Wanted to have dessert, but couldn't fit it in, so we rolled outta there...

Spring Rolls

I am surprised that I haven't yet reviewed this place. It now has three locales throughout the city (the one I'm most familiar with is the one downtown by the Eaton Centre), and it's inexplicably popular. We went cause we had a 10% off coupon that was expiring in a few days.
I'd have to say it's popularity is puzzling to me, as I think it's highly over-rated (though the photos in their menus are gorgeous!). I know Mike has a mass/cost ratio in rating restaurants, but I think there has got to be more to a restaurant than give you a massive pile of food to make you think it's an excellent place to eat.
This is a case in point: the huge mass of food that came to the table in the form of seafood satay ho fun noodles was impressive in scope and size, but not in flavour. Also, seafood was very scant: Large quantities of sprouts, noodles and sauce, but not much else. Was completely unable to finish dinner, which I suppose, in the mass/cost formula, is a good thing, but overall, continue to be unimpressed with this place. However, I do know that I will probably be there repeatedly in the future for various birthdays and dinners for many years to come...

Kim Moon

So this is a small dim sum place on the second floor of a newly renovated bakery in Chinatown. I think we mainly went due to the proximity and the price. It's pretty cheap dim sum; I think most of the dishes were between $1-2. And, it's pretty standard fare: dumplings, chicken feet, turnip cakes, lotus leaf-wrapped rice, etc. And, you're left with the pretty standard feeling of feeling greasy and stuffed, but at least it cost you a lot less than dim sum usually does...

Korean Grill House

So, despite the 60 year plan, and the fact that this is a Chinese invention, I went to the Korean Grill House for someone's birthday. The men were quite happy with this. Essentially, for those of you who don't know, apparently, Korean people have gas grills in the middle of their dining room tables and they try to eat as much meat from as many different animals as humanly possible. There is, of course, always the requisite small dishes of kimchi and daikon, but, essentially, you go for the meat.
And, meat we had. I must say, I quite enjoyed the salmon, white fish and squid that they had, as well as the chicken. They do, of course, also have bulgogi and kalbi as well, which everyone enjoyed in great abundance. I must admit, it's great value for the price, and I'm very glad that the birthday celebrant liked their choice of restaurant, but I still can't get over the fact that every time (though admittedly, it's a very scant number) I go to a Korean BBQ, it's always Cantonese voices I hear amongst the waiters and the kitchen staff... :P
Overall, though, an enjoyable evening. Definitely an excellent choice for those who enjoy a variety of God's good animal creatures, bad for those who just like His plant friends... :)

Sunny Dragon Sushi

This is a new place that just opened up on Gerrard, near Yonge. Went there with a really dear friend of mine, so ate lotsa sushi. Had the spicy maki plate, which was quite generous with the fish, and the spice. Noticed it was owned by Korean people, which can never really be a bad thing :), so we ate, we drank and were satisfied, and then walked the whole one block home. Gotta love it....

Ben Thanh

This is the "authentic" Vietnamese restaurant in Hamilton. I'm not entirely sure where it is, somewhere near the downtown core. Looks like many other Vietnamese restaurants (what is with that? They all seem to have the same 'vibe'), though much sunnier, b/c they had very large glass windows surrounding most of the restaurant.
I didn't actually have anything Vietnamese to eat; ordered pad thai, but that's b/c it was on the menu. Tasted like most other restaurant pad thai, with that vaguely a bit too sweet sauce, but tasty nonetheless.

Vegetarian Haven

Yup, all part of the 60 year plan, man....
This beautiful little joint is on Baldwin, and actually also houses the Toronto Vegetarian Association HQ as well. Gorgeous ambiance. Entrees mainly have seitan, tofu and tempeh (not surprisingly). They make knock-'em-dead organic soy milkshakes; I think I could've made a whole meal supping on a few of those! Otherwise, had some seitan with grilled veggies and salsa - yum! We didn't have time for dessert, though they didn't look as appealing as at, say, Dufflet. As well, it was kind of hard to justify $3 for a cookie the size of an Arrowroot, even if it was made with spelt flour and no sugar.... However, overall, this made me regret the rule of having to go to ten more restos before going back....