Ly's Place

Hello readers! Well, Todd is safely back from Cuba (without a sunburn, I might add - well done, Todd!!) so we were able to reunite the whole group this week during our dining adventure at Ly's Place - a small restaurant on Wellington Street between Princess and Queen streets. The night of our visit, we were competing for parking spots with those attending the Scotties Tournament of Hearts at the K-Rock Centre (congratulations to Team Ontario!!) ... Something that can be a frustrating aspect of no longer living downtown and having the ability to walk to our destinations... But hopefully hard-to-find-parking means busy businesses, which is always nice for the local economy.

Now, when I say Ly's Place is small, I really mean small. I'm not sure what the exact capacity of the restaurant is, but our group of seven certainly took up a good portion of the floor space. In spite of being really small, though, Ly's Place certainly doesn't make you feel claustrophobic. The tables available are well arranged - including a booth in the window with a bench seat, and a bench seat along one wall to optimize space for multiple tables. Colours on the wall are simple and light with beautiful hanging art accents. Most impressive, perhaps, are the pieces of origami art that have been made and are sitting on the cash counter. I'm not sure how to make origami. I'm certainly not sure how to make origami that ends up smaller than the size of the tip of my pinky finger - but someone at Ly's Place has done just that (insert "oooh's" here), and in my opinion, that is just plain impressive. Maybe the only thing that does make the restaurant seem a little smaller is the plant that grows in the window... but I like to believe that the plant is more of an homage to the restauranteurs' interest in fresh product.  All in all, Ly's Place ultimately just feels like a small place with a big heart (insert "ahh's" here).

Since we were such a large group, we made a reservation, and there was ultimately only one place to seat us. Sadly, this was in front of the door, which meant that we got a rush of cold air each time someone came or went and resulted in some of us leaving our coats on or draped over our laps; but in no time, we were being served and deep into our usual good conversation, so we didn't notice for too long.  Service at Ly's place is nothing short of great. The staff are very friendly, and visited the table enough to ensure you always had what you needed but not so much that you felt bothered.  The menu at Ly's Place is simple, but definitely provides you with enough options to find something that you'll enjoy.  It was refreshing, to be honest - to be able to sit down with a menu that isn't pages upon pages of dishes in a language that you don't understand, forcing you to read every description only to forget the first few that you read by the time you get to the end. We found ourselves asking "what kind of food is this?", but the reality is that I think they call themselves "Fine Asian Cuisine" for a reason - it seems to be a nice mix of Cambodian, Thai and Vietnamese. You can check out their menu here, but sadly they don't have a website of their own that I could find, so I don't even know much about the history of the restaurant.  All I know is what I experienced (and admittedly, what I have experienced in the past, since this is not my first visit to Ly's) - so let's get to those details now.


What we ordered:
Carrie: Vietnamese spring rolls; Sweet and Sour Chicken with pineapple, onions and peppers on rice.

Tonia: Vietnamese spring rolls; Vietnamese Chicken Curry with sweet potatoes, carrots and coconut milk on rice.

Todd: Coconut shrimp with Thai dipping sauce; Fresh pan seared fish with veggies, lemon grass, lime and coconut milk on rice.

Jordan: Vietnamese spring rolls (shared with Kendra); Singapore noodle - stir fried vermicelli with homemade Cha Siu, bean sprouts, sesame seeds, and a hint of curry.

Kendra: Pad Thai - stir fried rice noodles with chicken, tiger shrimp, peppers, bean sprouts, green onions and crushed peanuts.

Samer: Goi Cuon (shrimp fresh rolls); Kung Pao - stir fried chicken cubes with cashew nuts, water chestnuts and peppers on rice.


Benoit: Grilled Hoisin Beef Short Rib on rice.



The timing of everything created a pretty clear message in my mind: fresh ingredients. After we ordered, it took a little bit of time (not too long - we weren't upset by any means) for our starters, and the general feedback about the rolls and shrimp were positive. In so many Asian restaurants, I have found it hard to tell if the rolls are fresh or have been pre-made and mass-produced... and while they may come to you nice and hot, they don't taste super fresh. That just wasn't the case here. Todd's shrimp looked delicious, Samer's fresh rolls looked appropriately named, and the Vietnamese spring rolls were crispy and flavourful. Once we finished our first course, our mains sent the same message. The veggies and ingredients looked absolutely fresh and delicious. Plates were colourful and bright. 

So what kind of score did those bright plates deserve? Well, here's what we all had to say...

Carrie: 3.5 forks. For me, on this night, everything tasted yummy, but my main course was JUST warm (hot centre, but that didn't seem to last long), so it was slightly disappointing. The toppings were obviously fresh, which was really nice, and even better was the fact that the chicken was NOT battered. I have had an equivalent to this dish in a number of places, and the chicken is always battered. A great change. Other than that, I'm not 100% sure why I couldn't score my meal higher... I just had to stick with my gut.

Tonia: 5 forks. Tonia said, plainly and simply "I enjoyed it." She said that things were flavourful and fresh (there's that word again!!), and that she feels as though Ly's place puts a unique twist on common Asian dishes.

Todd: 5 forks. Todd's sentiment: "Delicious as usual". The coconut shrimp are homemade and have a delicious and perfectly balanced dipping sauce. Also, Todd stated that "fresh fish makes [him] feel healthy"... Todd is not a runner, but apparently eating this meal made him feel "ready to run"... pretty darn impressive!

Jordan: 4.25 forks. Jordan liked the noodles in his dish a lot, and he was most impressed by the fact that there were a bunch of different flavours that combined nicely - sweet, spicy, and some cumin. All of that said, Jordan didn't feel completely blown away, though, stating that "nothing caught his attention that much". 

Kendra: 4.5 forks. Kendra has given a lot of high scores, and while this score is also high, it didn't quite meet her "5-fork standard". She didn't get a wow factor during this visit, stating that the spring rolls were on par with other places (I definitely raised my eyebrow to that, since that was the best part of my meal), and that she has had Pad Thai at other restaurants that she has enjoyed more. Still, though - 4.5 aint too shabby.

Samer: 2 forks. Sadly, Samer was not overly impressed with his meal at Ly's Place... In fact, his meal was generally disappointing other than the flavour in the shrimp fresh rolls. The chicken was not very tasty, there was too much rice in his fresh shrimp rolls... Once again, the shrimp saved the day again - these 2 forks were awarded to the shrimp that was fried instead of boiled, which added flavour that was much needed.

Benoit: 2.5 forks. In Benoit's words, the ribs were "different" as they were about the same thickness as thick bacon and has many little bones to work around. For Benoit, this meal was just "okay" and the vegetables were not as flavourful as he had hoped. 

So - some ups, some downs... but an overall score of 3.8 forks. Really not too bad; but I will say that I expected a little better based on previous visits. I certainly would not hesitate to go back to Ly's Place - and I would be willing to try just about anything... including the really thin ribs and the sweet and sour chicken that was a little cold. 

Next week, we are off to a well-known (especially to the students in the city) Kingston restaurant - Copper Penny. Have you heard about their special fries? Oh - you will.

Bella Bistro

Before I get to the "meat and potatoes" of this blog entry (that was a shout-out to my childhood menu), I have a couple of things to address. First, another big thank you to my Coun'y girls for yet another gift card that I was able to use this week! Love it. Secondly, I'm really late writing this time... Now, some of you may not have even noticed because you are checking this out for the first time, or perhaps you check in from time to time when you can. I do like to believe, however, that some readers are "regulars" of the blog and have been waiting on bated breath, thinking "Do I need to light a fire under her arse to get her writing?! Where's the review for the week?!"  Truthfully, the fire would have been helpful, but in reality - things just got really darn busy. Luckily for me, I'm not getting paid to write this... I may have been fired for missing deadlines by now!  Anyway, no matter which "reader category" you may fall into, thanks for the support!

And now for what you really came here for...

While we have visited a large number of restaurants nestled in Kingston's downtown core (and we will very certainly visit a large number more), it was a nice change from what has become the ordinary during our adventures to head west to Collins Bay this week. 

"What's in Collins Bay?", you may ask? Well, outside of the "can-be-expected-'cause-every-town-has-'em" stops like Tim Hortons, a marine store, a legion, an antique shop, a self car wash & vacuum station, gas station and a hair dresser... a wonderful little restaurant called Bella Bistro sits next to the only stop light in Collins Bay on Bath Road. Although it sits near the shore of the Bay, sadly, Bella Bistro does not have a waterfront view for patrons inside... And while parking can be a bit of a pain (for starters, the restaurant shares its lot with a diving store, and additionally, there just don't seem to be enough spaces for this busy spot) there is always the lot across the street, and once you're inside, the hassle doesn't seem so bad in the end.

Bella Bistro is, as stated by their website (found here) a "friendly, casual neighborhood bistro serving pizza, pasta, paninis and more". It is a cozy restaurant that is kind of like a spiffed-up diner (one look at the tables and you will agree). The decor and atmosphere certainly don't "demand anything of you" (perfectly stated by Jordan)... which truly isn't a bad thing. The fact that tables seemed to re-fill as quickly as they'd emptied during our visit and that no matter when I seem to drive by, there is always a full parking lot and a large number of happy patrons inside... I'd bet that ultimately, this restaurant does exactly what it needs to with food alone. Feeling comfortable enough to sit and chat with your friends long after your plates have been cleared while staff start to close up around you is just a bonus. Not that that happened to us... er... no... not us...

There isn't anything overly fancy about the menu at Bella, either. The really nice things about that: it doesn't take a year to read the menu because while it offers a good variety, it isn't too expansive and what they do, they do REALLY well.  When they call themselves a "true local gem", they aren't pulling your leg.

What did we order? Check it out:

Carrie: starter caesar salad; classic all-dressed pizza (pepperoni, mushrooms, bacon, green peppers, onions, olives, tomato sauce, mozzarella). White chocolate raspberry cheesecake for dessert (after all, I can't seem to resist cheesecake!).


Todd: The soup of the day - sweet potato peanut soup; Cubano sandwich (pulled pork shoulder, house made BBQ sauce, avacado, arugula, red onion on a sesame bun) with poutine as a side.

Kendra: calamari fritti to start (deep fried calamari with lemon wedges and lemon pepper aioli), Cubano sandwich with sweet potato peanut soup as a side.

Jordan: curried lamb burger (one of the evening's specials; with a crispy pork topping, lettuce, red onion and caramelized apple aioli) served with fries.

Tonia: starter caesar salad; California pizza (smoked chicken, sliced red onion, basil pesto, sun dried tomato, feta cheese, parmesan cheese and mushrooms - which Tonia asked to have removed). Creme brûlée for dessert.

And here is what we thought about the food and our experience: simply wonderful. Bella Bistro really is great - from the service (we had a very good server who is referred to as "McLovin'" on the receipt, and she was spectacularly attentive and friendly), to the comfort of being there, to the taste of all of the food... things really were great. "local gem"? I certainly think so. And a couple of fun facts about the restaurant that make it even more special? First - there are daily $10 lunch specials as well as "rotating" nightly specials (e.g. 2nd pizza half off on Monday and Tuesday, specialty burger nights etc.). In addition to this, the restaurant prides itself on using local products as often as possible. Local business supporting local business; not too shabby, in my humble opinion.

Scores:
Carrie: 4.5 forks. The caesar salad was delicious - crisp, fresh lettuce and very bacon-y (and when do I turn down something that bacon-y? Never.). The size of the salad was nice, too... Often, I find that I feel disappointed with how much I pay for a starter salad - it is mostly lettuce after all - but at Bella, I felt like I got my money's worth.  The pizza was also delicious - and salty, which I definitely love, but may not be for everyone. The cheesecake? On top of it being baked fresh that day, it had REAL raspberries in it. Not just a raspberry sauce or raspberry drizzle... REAL raspberries. Ultimately, a whole lot of things went right with my meal.

Todd: 4.5 forks. Todd loved the soup of the day, and he said that the Cubano sandwich was "muy delicioso". While the poutine was good, Todd didn't feel that he "needed it" (often an affliction I have with food, too - the ol' want versus need dilemma).  Further, Todd thought it was important to state that "McLovin' rocked [my] world in a non-sexual way". I have to agree with you there, Todd.

Kendra: 5 forks. While it may seem by this point that Kendra is just handing out 5's all willy-nilly; she put a lot of thought into this score, and genuinely enjoyed every aspect of it. Her pomegranate tea was nice and sweet (Kendra said it was a good match because she herself is a little fruity... Todd interjected with "I'm fruitier", and suddenly the conversation made the tea even better). The calamari is the best that Kendra has had in Kingston since she moved here and the soup was "awesome". As for the Cubano, Kendra thought it was really tasty - and while she was tempted to take off the red onions, she decided not to, and was really thankful in the end as they added good flavour.

Jordan: 4 forks. Jordan was pretty impressed with Bella. He made special mention of the calamari being really good, and said that based on the burger specials, it was nice to see that the restaurant had "more to offer than the average burger joint" (the fact that there was even a lamb burger being offered was a perk).

Tonia: 4.25 forks. Tonia said the caesar salad was good - she liked the "hefty" size. Tonia said that her score may have been affected by her mood... She couldn't decide between a pizza or a sandwich, and may have been slightly jealous of the fries around the table... but all in all, her pizza was good. The creme brûlée was good, but the score for it suffered slightly as well because the top was a little overdone, so it tasted burnt. 

OVERALL SCORE: 4.45 forks.

Pretty darn good. That score leaves me wondering yet again whether or not we will ever be disappointed in the food on our adventure. I certainly hope not... but in the mean time, kudos, Bella Bistro. I will be seeing you again.

Kendra raiding the candy dish on her way out...

As for our next adventure, Todd is away in Cuba (jealous) for a week, so we have decided to put a hold on the dining tours... After all, we certainly can't continue without one of our regulars!  This is probably also a good thing, as without the break, I would be SIGNIFICANTLY behind in writing. So I guess Todd's trip is a win-win. :)

We will be deciding our next location upon Todd's return (we like to keep the suspense for everyone alive). Until then, dig in and enjoy. Maybe you should pick a restaurant from the adventures thus far! 

Mango

I need to take the time to make a huge shout out to my Coun'y Girls for contributing to my adventures this week. Very thoughtfully, they picked 4 restaurants from our adventure list and gave me gift cards for my birthday over the Christmas holiday... Mango happened to be one of them. I love saving money (which perhaps you wouldn't know based on this adventure in itself), and saving money on eating out - even better. So... the gift cards were VERY apropos. Cheers, ladies.

Another shout-out this week goes out to our fellow adventurer, Kendra, who celebrated her birthday the day after our weekly outing. We were so happy to enjoy some laughs on the eve of her birthday. Check out the picture of "Ruffles" below, who had a seat at the table in her honour... 

Mango is a quaint little restaurant known for its Thai and Pan-Asian cuisine. While I couldn't find a website for the restaurant, one quick Google search and I did find something very valuable - reviews galore. Whether people leaving comments were "townies" or "out of towners", the general consensus is the same: the food is good, the price is right, and Mango is worth the trip. Now, you may be wondering if the reviews skewed the results of our "fork ratings"; but to be very honest, I don't ever look up a restaurant until after we've been and made our own decisions. 

Some of the quotes from online are definitely worth sharing, though:
"I've been there twice already with large groups, and this place doesn't disappoint"
"Food was fresh, service was good"
"Some of the best Thai food in Kingston" (hard to do given the number of restaurants offering Thai!)
And my personal favourite: "The staff were wonderfully pleasant - maybe it's a Kingston thing".

That quote definitely got me thinking... the scores so far on this adventure have been quite good. Much better on the whole than I think I would have predicted, that's for sure. And it leaves me to wonder - how many other cities are this lucky? There are so many restaurants in this town, and we have been quite happy with pretty much all of the ones we've been to thus far.  I truly don't believe that every city can offer quite the same dining experience. Nice for me - not so nice for the wallet or weight :)  But maybe it really is a "Kingston thing".

When you enter Mango, you are greeted by a water fountain wall feature that sets the tone for the type of evening it is so easy to have there: relaxing, at ease, laid back and just plain nice. Certainly, there isn't anything overly fancy about the restaurant (arguably the water feature is the fanciest part), but whether you come with a friend, a partner, or as part of a group, I think that you will be comfortable here. As with other weeks, we definitely notice when we feel we can sit and chat for extended periods of time - and the atmosphere and staff at Mango definitely let us do that. Simple, yet beautiful pieces of art hang on the wall to add to the decor, and an exposed brick wall keeps the restaurant feeling warm. What could make the place look a little better? Nicer tables and chairs maybe... I'm not sure how I feel about napkins placed under chair legs to keep them from wobbling... But I suppose it is better than eating at a wobbly table. Ultimately, though, as long as I have somewhere to put my butt and plate, I'm not going to be too upset. 

And how was the food? Well - let me tell you what we ordered.


Carrie: Hot and sour soup to start; beef with oyster sauce and rice noodles
Todd: Vegetarian spring rolls, vegetarian Malaysian curry with rice
Benoit: Orange chicken with rice noodles
Samer: Fresh shrimp rolls to start, ginger chicken and shrimp skewers
Tonia: Vietnamese spring rolls, Malaysian curry with chicken and rice
Jordan and Kendra: (get ready for it... they wanted left overs for lunch) Vietnamese spring rolls to start, green curry with chicken, mango chicken with coconut sticky rice, and hot house Pad Thai (it really was as much as it sounds like!)

If you'd like descriptions of these dishes or others, please click here. Just be prepared to have your mouth water.

Servers did a great job of ensuring that our glasses stayed full (even if it's only water, it is really nice not to have to ask for a top up), and appetizers arrived in good time, much to the delight of our hungry bellies. The main dishes, however, arrived in staggered fashion, which was disappointing. All of the meals but Samer's arrived at pretty much the same time, however, they also didn't have rice noodles ready, so I had a hot meal placed in front of me long enough to cool off significantly before the noodles arrived, and other dishes cooled as well while we waited politely for Samer's dish to arrive as well (after all, we certainly don't come as a group to dine alone...).

Outside of timing, however, there wasn't a hole lot else wrong with what we were served. Was it everyone's favourite? Certainly not, but generally speaking, things were quite enjoyable all around. Interested to know our scores? Well, I'm dying to calculate a total score, so let's get to it!


Carrie: I loved every aspect of my meal. The soup is certainly spicy - which isn't my cup of tea, typically - but good for anyone ordering it to know... and in spite of the spicy nature of the soup, I still loved it. I'm so glad that I didn't shy away from it for fear of being "out-spiced". The beef dish was flavourful and delicious - and if you love mushrooms, then you certainly get them here! Overall, I liked what I had a lot. 4 forks.


Todd: Todd is a self-proclaimed "tofu lover" to begin with, and the vegetarian Malaysian curry was definitely satisfying and delicious. His rolls weren't quite as good - slightly bland, and Todd noticed that the restaurant served them with a different dipping sauce than in previous visits, and he wished it hadn't changed. Overall, though, yummy. 4.5 forks.

Benoit: Benoit hadn't ever had something like this before, and sadly, he wasn't impressed overall. To him, the dish was quite sour tasting, and for someone who considers himself a "simple eater", this was a little "weird" for him. Benoit's score as a result: 2.5 forks.

Samer: Samer stated that his shrimp rolls were spectacular (for those of us who know how much he loves shrimp, this was not surprising), and further, that the shrimp in his main dish were amazing (also, not surprising)... But unfortunately, the rest of his dish was "forgettable". Samer said that he "looked for flavour, but just couldn't find any", and when he offered for me to try, I couldn't say I disagreed. There was a bit of flavour when the sauce first hit my tongue, but beyond that, not much. For Samer, the shrimp absolutely saved this dish... and the fact that things were served on a stick. "Anything served on a stick always tastes good". 3 forks.

Tonia: For Tonia, everything was delicious, and the spring rolls are now known as "some of [her] favourite in town". The curry was very flavourful and yummy - but there were a smidge too many bamboo shoots. 4.75 forks.

Kendra: 5 forks. While Kendra is becoming known for giving really good scores, she said she just "really, really liked it". The curry was nice and hot, the mango chicken was surprisingly tasty - which is what ultimately put her score to top marks. The Pad Thai was also really good - some of the best Kendra's had in a while.

Jordan: 4.75 forks. Jordan wasn't sure why he felt the need to remove .25 forks, but he just felt he needed to go with his gut and refrain from a perfect score. He really enjoyed the spring rolls. The Pad Thai had a nice balance of flavour - perfect amount of heat and spice. Jordan really liked the mango chicken and thought that there was a good amount of "nice big meaty pieces". The curry was really hot, which was just fine by him. "That'll put hair on your chest for sure... if that's your thing, get it".

Overall score: 4.07 forks. Given that this kind of food just wasn't one person in our group's "cup of tea", I'd say that is a pretty darn impressive score. Moral of the story? Go to Mango. Take your friends. Try the curry if you want hair on your chest, and the skewers if you like stuff on sticks. Mostly, just enjoy.  We know you will.

Next week, we hope for as good (or better!) a score from Bella Bistro in Collins Bay - the west end of Kingston. Fingers crossed!!

Good chopsticks, too - not the ones you have to
rip apart and hope for a good split... You know what I mean -
don't deny it.

Ruffles for the Chip-Loving-Birthday-Girl!