Rose City Kitchen - Middle Eastern Lunch

Rose City Kitchen (RCK)
36 Toronto Street
Toronto, Canada M5C 2C5
T: 416-306-0440
This location is only open M-F (11am - 6pm)
http://www.rosecitykitchen.com/

Yum!!  Saw some pics of this place on Zomato (the Queen St. location) and knew there was one near work so I tried it out last week and it's a pretty good lunch box!  I originally wanted the steak but they ran out, so I tried halloumi cheese instead.

I got the Egyptian box which consists of a bed of brown rice, topped with red cabbage, eggplant/chickpea/date puree, corn, tomatoes, and your choice of protein.  The eggplant puree was slightly sweet and went well with the other items in the box.  It was a quite a balanced box in terms of nutrition as well.  The portion might seem small, but it actullay turned out to be filling enough.  (But I'm thinking of some men I know that would need an extra sandwich or side.)  I've mentioned before that I don't usually buy lunch on weekdays, but there are days when you just don't have the time or energy to make a healthy lunch and RCK does a good job at filling the need.



Note: price of the box meal I got $10, includes the tax.

This was my first time trying halloumi but I've heard good things about it, especially that it has a unique texture and it can be grilled so it can be an easy vegetarian substitute.  Personally, I thought it was okay...I'm all for different textures but I guess I prefer hard cheeses like gruyere, soft ones like unripened goat cheese, cheddar anything, and of course a melty baked brie is devine.  The halloumi was salty which balanced out the slightly sweet eggplant puree and initally feels like you might be biting into something like meat but I guess it ends there.  There wasn't a creamy mouthfeel afterwards like other cheeses and doesn't have the texture of meat, so to me I'd eat it but it wouldn't be something I'd crave.

Rose petal hot sauce and harissa ketchup are available if you need a bit more kick to your meal. And I'd definitely recommend the harissa ketchup on halloumi.  Several long communal tables are available for you to eat at which is nice.

I'd definitely go back to try their falafel and other boxes, but just have to go earlier to get that steak!