I’m a foodie adventurer and I’ll try anything at least once, if not twice. I love to taste, savour and explore my food from the littlest shop like Mr. Jerk up at the Peanut Plaza in Don Mills to my favourite and filling meals at Jumbo Empanadas in Kensington Market to the most satisfying weekend brunches at FRANK (AGO) and succulent octopus salad at Fabbricca. Oh! And the highly addictive porchetta at Vincentina Meats in Concord is soooo good! Living in Toronto is perfect for any food lover as we’ve got restaurants that cover all corners of our small planet. You could literally spend every day of the year exploring the nooks and crannies of this city and discover a different dish from a culture other than your own.
So, as adventures go, my friend Cayla (aka The Urban Kitchen) and I had a night on the town with DishCrawl Toronto. We were curious as to what this growing interest was all about and it really appealed to all of our senses. For $60 per person you meet with food-loving, like-minded people strangers and share a night of eating at not one, but four restaurants. You don’t know where you’re going or what you’ll be eating. Love it!
Cayla and I signed up online three days prior to the event and we were excited! This particular evening featured restaurants in the Bloor Yorkville area. Each Dishcrawl event has either a neighbourhood or theme. The day of the event we were told to meet our host Yashy, at specific time and location to kick- off the event. There were about 20 of us in total.
Our first stop was Pangaea Restaurant – a favourite amongst locals and tourists alike. Both restaurant owner and the chef greeted us in a private dining area and gave a great history of the establishment as well as their menu inspiration. Here we were presented with three delicious and filling offerings from their spring menu. Included was their House-Made Duck Pastrami Slider, Slow-Cooked Quail Egg with wild mushroom, crisped rice and camelot goat cheese, and a Green Acres Farm Onion Confit Fennel salad with wild greens. It was a great start! Cayla and I were already feeling full.
Second stop brought us to Yorkville’s darling Dynasty Chinese Restaurant. I beamed a smile as this is a spot that my family goes to regularly for dim sum on weekends. Here the owner presented us with a wonderful assortment including Har Gow (shrimp dumplings), Vegetarian packets, chicken dumplings, sesame beef, and pumpkin/chicken fried rice. Yum!
From there we ventured to another one of my favourites, Toni Bulloni’s where the owner said “hey, you’re here all the time!” — insert blushes. You think people don’t remember you? Heh.
Here we sat down and was offered a Guinness to accompany our meal. The first plating arrived with a variety of bruschettas on warm flatbreads then came out the Agnellotti Caruso with mushrooms, prosciutto and chicken in a cream sauce. But it didn’t stop there. We were then treated to their famous Tiramisu. At this point, Cayla and I said “we’re done. no more.” We were at the point of wafer thin mint. But as we left each of us received a 6 pack of Guinness Extra Stout to take home as well as a gluten free KIND bar.
But there was one more stop to make. We couldn’t believe it.
The final stop was at Dessert Lady where we were treated to their home-made cupcakes (um…I think we had 3 mini cupcakes each) and then to their Coconut Avocado Macadamia Nut Ice Cream. On top of that the sent us all home with a box of their chocolate truffles.
Done. Roll me home.
Cayla and I both loved this night out and the price was amazing for what we got! We agreed that there was more than enough food. It was definitely fun meeting new people and trying out new restaurants (or revisiting favourites) and was money well spent.
We were very impressed with the incredible food and service at each restaurant. We truly felt welcomed and taken seriously as foodies. We both agreed that we would definitely go back to these individual restaurants in the future and we would venture out with DishCrawl again.
If you’re curious about their upcoming events, visit www.dishcrawl.com/toronto/
The night ran just over 2 hours in total and all the stops were within walking distance of each other (we were grateful for the walks in between meals) Our host/guide, Yashy, was great at keeping us on time and made everyone feel comfortable and ensured that any food allergies or dietary restrictions were met where possible.
A meal like this could easily run Torontonians closer to $120. So, for $60 it was a great experience. Our fellow Dishcrawlers were all super nice. There were young couples on a date night, singles, older foodie lovers and BFFs all out to enjoy this evening.
FYI Drinks are not included in the ticket price. The Guinness was a bonus!
There are Dishcrawl events happening in various cities in North America. We’re looking forward to getting in on another one! Check their page often as they sell out quickly.
Um… YUM!! Sounds like an amazing and super-fun night! Glad you and Cayla enjoyed!!