May 21 2014

SANSOTEI RAMEN 三草亭

SANSOTEI RAMEN 三草亭, there are 2 locations, the one I went to is located on 179 Dundas St. W, the other one is on 650 Yonge St.  Both places are pretty small and unique.  One thing you have to try is their signature broth – Tonkotsu (豚骨, “pork bone”). It takes hours to cook and they measure the concentration level hourly to ensure that the broth has reached the ideal thickness and texture. Overall, the ramen I had was probably better than the others I have tried on other restaurants, main reason why is because everything was less salty, the taste was very rich and the ramen itself was very chewy, just the way I like it 🙂  Same as all the other ramen restaurants, you also get to choose different kinds of soup base.  The only downside is, I am not sure where you can find parking, I actually took the subway there so, umm…  Anyways, this is a perfect place if you have a ramen craving while you are in downtown, 2 thumbs up!!!

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May 19 2014

TAPS ON QUEEN

This is probably one of the best places to have a couple of beers and hang out with friends.  TAPS ON QUEEN is located in downtown Niagara Falls, an area which you think it’s pretty much dead but it’s not 😛 All their beers have a unique and refreshing taste, not to mention they brew their own beer, big variety of choices, very inexpensive (about $5 a pint), they also have a complimentary beer tour and you can also try their beer tasting fir about $5 dollars, sounds pretty good eh?  Not only their beers are awesome, so is their food, you can also host private functions/parties and live bands on Tuesdays and Saturdays, sounds like a perfect place to hang out right?  Anyways, I strongly recommended this place, who wouldn’t like spending a nice afternoon on a patio with a few beers 🙂

Oh oh, they also have different combos specials everyday, also don’t forget to ask for the waitress Stephanie, she is my favorite and the best 😉

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Rating: 10.0/10 (1 vote cast)

May 16 2014

Ciao wine bar

Located in downtown Yorkville, Ciao wine bar, my favorite kind of food, Italian 🙂  If I remember correctly, it was movenpick (the ice-cream place) at the same location from years ago.  Tho the entrance doesn’t look very appealing to me but once you open the door, the excitement started to kick in, the inside is very spacious and trendy.  Quite a lot of interesting dishes choices to choose from and the prices, woah, I always thought the restaurants in that area were always over priced but ummm not this place.  Ordered my all time favorite which is pasta as always and I was impressed, well, I guess in that area, it has to be or it will not survive right?  😛

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Rating: 9.0/10 (1 vote cast)

May 16 2014

Outlet Collection at Niagara Falls

The much anticipated Outlet Collection at Niagara is opened finally, if you are going from Toronto side, you exit right after you pass the skybridge, the mall would be on your right hand side, along the QEW at Glendale Avenue exit, you can’t miss it.  I am not sure whether if it is bigger than the one in Vaughn Mills or others but it is huge 🙂  I would assume after this one is opened, people would probably forget about the old one on Lundy’s lane Niagara Falls 😛  Tons of brand names stores (all outside), not to mention when I went there, it was only phase 1, there will be a phase 2 opening soon including Bass Pro Shops’ 77,000 square foot store (opening in November) as well as Polo Ralph Lauren, Kate Spade, Diesel Surplus and Cole Haan.  Well, if you love shopping, it is worth the drive for a visit 🙂

P.S.  Don’t forget to try out their food court as well, BIGSMOKEBURGER is there 😉

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Apr 04 2014

CAYO COCO – CUBA

CAYO COCO CUBA, what a great place to relax and to enjoy the sun while Ontario was still in the cold weather 😛  Compare to VARADERO where I had my very first vacation, this place is way more prettier and calm, probably because no one lives on the island, so people have to travel hours from the other side just to get to work.  Same rating 4.5 stars as the resort Melia that I stayed in the last time, Memories Flamenco Beach Resort is apparently remarkable.

Weather was nice and temperature was around 30°C the whole time in all my 7 days, with only minutes away from a beautiful beach and pools, I stayed in the sun most of the time and came back with a really nice tan.  Sadly my allergy got me rashes on my neck and legs but it was manageable, not sure if it was something I ate or was the sun…  One big thing I notice while I was there, not a single mosquito in the whole area, could it be because it’s an island?  What I enjoyed the most was the amazing beaches, white sands and everything you wanted, made you feel like you were in heaven, especially the beach PLAYA PILLAR, located at the east end of the island which takes about an hour of a bus ride. Also another best thing I saw was, for some reasons, there were billions of baby jelly fish in the sea water which even the people that worked there had never seen and they didn’t sting, amazing 🙂

With the amount of money that I paid, just a little under $900 with air fare and all inclusive resort (non stop alcohol drinking, hehe), this is by far the best valued vacation I ever had, if you are looking for inexpensive, this is really a place to think about, but just keep it in mind that this is CUBA, food won’t be as good 😛

there are tons more picture on my facebook, here is a link https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152306065145211.1073741837.689775210&type=1&l=f69368f3ea

and all panoramic view here https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152305971405211.1073741836.689775210&type=1&l=21725d7c5a

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