Tsujiri Soba Bar, North York 2nd Fl Cafe

O-Matcha Platter

I finally got to try out Tsujiri's expansion into meals and it was definitely a good experience.  Located on the 2nd floor, the Tsujiri Soba Bar offers a different menu from the main floor drinks and desserts.  Although I enjoyed my meal (the broth was thick and savoury, noodles were al dente), the desserts definitely stand out in front.  My group tried out the O-Matcha dessert platter and the Mochi Mix.

Both desserts were very tasty and were not too sweet which is typical of Asian desserts.  Loved the different textures of each component within the platter and the matcha ice cream had a decent amount of matcha flavour.  The mochi mix also offered a contrast of flavours and textures however, it would be nice have a have slightly larger mochi pieces ;).

We also tried the noodles, below is the Miso Tsuke Soba, Sapporo Style.  Noodles are chilled but the broth warms them up.

Service was excellent and I liked how they offered hot or cold water as we were seated (it was pretty cold that day).  There space is very calming and it wasn't too busy for lunch on the weekend.  Next on my list - the afternoon tea set!

Visited: OCT2018

Tsujiri - North York location

Love this location!

I'm a bit biased though since I'm just a five minute walk away, and although I've moved away, it really is an upgrade from their downtown location.  The design is a bit more stylish and there is more space and seating.  When you're paying premium prices you expect a little more; a place to sit while having your matcha ice cream is much appreciated.  This post is actually long overdue as this was back when it was a balmy 18 degrees and not -30 degrees!  And I contemplated not posting because it just seemed too long ago but it was an enjoyable experience and after reading this blog post from sho & tell where she writes about preserving moments, reflecting on the past as a way to being alert, awake and aware, I decided to post.


If not for pictures, I don't think I would remember much of things that happened.  Also, I think Tsujiri is planning to open a second floor at this location which will likely serve food as there was a bowl of green tea noodles pictured on the sign hinting at the coming addition.  This post would be a good reminder to keep an eye open for this.



On my first visit I picked up a matcha latte.  The matcha was carefully whisked in a bowl with a chasen (bamboo whisk) before adding it to my latte which I appreciated.  It may take a little longer for your order because of this but they are preserving the way matcha is made and taking it a little slower is not a bad thing.  The latte wasn't too sweet nor too bitter, it was a pleasant matcha taste but I think I prefer slightly stronger tasting matcha.

 

On my second visit, my friend had ordered the hot matcha latte and also a matcha daifuku.  I'll only comment on the daifuku though.  The skin is extremely thin, I'm really surprised that it held the contents inside and didn't split open!  It's very soft and I would expect it to be somewhat chewy to be able to hold the filling in but it was on the softer side.  It was filled with matcha powder and a matcha cream filling, actually LOTS of cream filling.  I actually preferred having more mochi rather than cream. Taste was light though, and not extremely sweet which is how some people like it.

I ordered the matcha shaved ice with matcha soft serve. Nicely presented and enjoyed the flavours.  Sharable, but I could definitely finish this on my own!

I've also bought their matcha powder and sencha tea bags.  Both were on the mild side so it'll be nice if they could introduce a stronger tasting matcha. 

Here are some interior shots: 

Seating at the front

Dividing section between ordering area and more quieter seating

Back table and stools, beautifully lit.

Tsujiri in Toronto, A Matcha Tea Lover's Heaven

Ok, maybe not 'heaven' but pretty blissful if you're a fan of matcha tea, AND as long as you don't mind waiting in line for probably 30-60 minutes.  Tsujiri is a Japanese brand established in 1860 in Kyoto, Japan that opened their first North American store in Toronto, so it was no wonder that there were long lines!  Their menu is also quite diverse, offering Japanese tea beverages (you can get a variety of beverages that are not matcha), floats, soft serve ice cream, sundaes, shaved ice/kakigori, and pastries made using matcha tea.  

Last week I invited some friends to check it out as I get excited about matcha anything...

After a 30 minute wait, we ordered a few things to share...and after another 20 minutes got our orders.

A quick run-down:

Soft serve matcha ice cream...the matcha flavour is nice and strong and the aftertaste is slightly bitter but the kind of bitter that is expected and enjoyed...the best in Toronto.

抹茶冰期淋...抹茶味道夠濃和很好.  後味有點苦味可是這種苦是享受的種苦味.  我覺得是多倫多最棒的抹茶冰期淋.

Matcha chiffon cake sundae...chiffon cake was light but couldn't compare to the soft serve...there are corn flakes layered near the bottom.
Matcha cream puff...filled with whipped cream and matcha cream, enjoyed and at a good price point.
Matcha latte...good, but I would have preferred stronger matcha flavour....milk was nicely frothed.
Matcha shaved ice/kakigori...very good, the syrup drizzled on the ice was top notch...but quite expensive.
Mochi/shiratama with black sesame...chewy, but I thought it was just okay and something that can be made at home.

They offer a range of drinks that include houjicha and yuzu tea that I'm sure to try in the future, but most people were getting the ice cream, sundaes and shaved ice...they are fairly unique and are soooo instagramable that it's not a surprise people are willing to shell out $8 for a cup.  If you look at menus in other parts of the world (e.g. Taiwan), when you do the $ conversion, the prices are the same so it's not like they are overcharging North Americans, that is just what it is priced at.  And judging from the flavour of the matcha soft serve, you do get quality.

The staff were trying to be as efficient as they could and would tell people in line when something ran out so you'd have time to come up with a backup if that said item was what you wanted originally.

TSUJIRI

"Tsujiri assures you of the highest quality Japanese teas and sweets that create a more tasteful ambience and a moment of tranquility in your life"

- tagline on their takeout bag

I would like to think there is 'a moment of tranquility' when you sip or eat whatever tea product it is, but the experience could be less than tranquil when you have hoards of people crammed into the narrow space. Seating...almost non-existent.  Despite this, I would definitely come back!

Waiting in line to order...

Tsujiri

147 Dundas St. W. (West of Bay St.)

Toronto, ON M5G 1C5

Toronto FB Page

Why the occasional duplicate sentence written in Chinese?  

One of my goals starting in 2016 is to improve my Chinese language skills so this is one way I'm going about it.  
Please comment if you noticed I've totally messed up!  Thanks!

Moji Japanese Eatery

Karaage chicken udon

Food was a mixture of Japanese udon or donburi dishes and some desserts.  Small selection of drinks like fruit green tea or matcha milk teas for $2.  Spacious and feels like IKEA mixed with a bit of Japanese charm.  Lots of seating and bright lighting, different from other restaurants in the area which are packed tight with tables.

I had gotten the chicken karaage udon which tasted pretty good.  Udon was chewy and the karaage was well seasoned and tender.  Only difference is the batter used is similar to tempura and the mayo is mildly spicy.  We also got the pork curry udon and an order of takoyaki which were piping hot and very good!

They definitely tried to add a different look to their bowls, e.g. cantaloupe in the udon soup which I liked but others may find odd or not appropriate.  For me, the little bit of edamame, tofu and marinated egg that was added to the udon noodles were nice additions.  The food didn't wow but it didn't disappoint either.  Portions for the udon may be a bit on the smaller side for the price, but sometimes I like to think of it as saving room for dessert, lol!

Matcha and taro soft serve ice creams were average, would have liked more matcha flavour though.  Mochis were not that soft so I'd stick with the soft serve only.
抹茶和芋頭冰淇淋還ok, 多一點抹茶味就比較好.  麻糬硬一點所以我建議只點冰淇淋.

Servers were polite and were available when needed.  I'd come back to Moji, especially for a relaxed lunch.


Moji Japanese Eatery
8362 Kennedy Rd Suite U A6 (Peach Tree Plaza facing Kennedy Rd.)
Markham, ON L3R 9W5
T: (905) 479-6654

Why the occasional duplicate sentence written in Chinese?  

One of my goals starting in 2016 is to improve my Chinese language skills so this is one way I'm going about it.  
Please comment if you noticed I've totally messed up!  Thanks!

Matcha green tea at Uncle Tetsu's

Matcha Latte but also look at the plant behind...don't they look like little hearts?!

It was cold yesterday but I still decided to head outside to grab an afternoon drink.  On my way to ChaTime I changed plans and decided to stop at Uncle Tetsu's Japanese Matcha Cafe as I was thinking they would have hot beverages now that it's winter.

Sencha, Genmaicha, and Hojicha are also available.

Their drink's menu has been updated from the summer and included a matcha latte, so that's what I got.  

Average tasting, had a creaminess to it...it was the warm drink I needed.  However, the real reason I'm posting is because on the counter there was this really cute plant, it looks like the leaves are heart-shaped!  Gosh, perfect for Valentines or just so cute, it looks like an adorable desk plant.  Unfortunately, the staff didn't know what kind of plant it was (I will laugh really hard if I find out it's not real...now that I think about it!).  Closest thing I found online was a Hoya Kerrii.  

Message me if you know what it is :)

Nohohon Tea Room - Japanese Tea Drinks/Bubble Tea

If you're a fan of Matcha or other Japanese teas, you'll probably like to check this place out.  Serving iced drinks, they have matcha, homebrew hojicha beverages, and sencha tea drinks.  No powder is used to make the drinks which is nice to know.  The night before they had just got in dry tea retail packages and I of course had to pick one up too!

I got their new drink, Furano Fields; matcha tea flavoured with lavender milk.  The matcha was good tasting, not too sweet, and was hand whisked.  You could taste the lavender but it's subtle and not overwhelming.  Of course I didn't know Hokkaido is known for lavender as I always think of Hokkaido as the place famous for their milk and in the winter crab, so I had to check out some info on the place. Here is a site with nice pics and travel info.  I'll definitely be back to try their other teas like their hojicha homebrew or the ume sencha which is more unique.

Not sure if they have any hot beverages as I didn't see it on the menu or missed it, but in the winter it would be a great option to have. 

The space is quite open with a bench on one side and it's more of a take-out type place (too bad, a sit-down place would be awesome).  They sold vegan oatmeal cookies which I was really tempted to get, but I decided I'd try one next time.  The owner(?) was really sweet, taking the time to explain a little bit about the teas.  She didn't have nice bags yet for the retail dry tea leaves and apologized for it; it's nice to have but wouldn't stop me from coming back.
 

I picked up a package of Sencha which is actually by Momo Tea in Toronto, an online retailer. So glad to have been introduced to this retailer as my initial impression of the tea is that it's quite good. Would definitely buy more tea from here as the prices are also quite reasonable.  When I first opened the package the scent was very strong, loved it!  Brewed myself a small cup and the taste was as expected, green and grassy but stronger than other places I've purchased Sencha from.  I also was able to brew it 3 times (didn't try a fourth though) and it was just a lovely way to spend a morning. 

Brewing at home

 

 

Nohohon Tea Room

467 Queen St. W.

Toronto, ON

http://www.nohohon.ca/

T: 416-603-2366

 

 

Petit Nuage - The cutest LITTLE patisserie ever! Plus interview with Stephanie, owner and pastry chef.

Petit Nuage
707 Dundas St. W.
Toronto, ON
https://www.facebook.com/petitnuagetoronto

Ok, this is definitely the cutest LITTLE patisserie in Toronto!  Only about 80 square feet, Steph (the owner) offers a good selection of macarons, other pastries, and beverages at this little shop.  Located at Market 707 in the Scadding Court area, Petit Nuage ("little cloud" in French) is housed in a shipping container turned shop.  Yes, shipping container!  From the look of Petit Nuage you'd never know.

My first visit, I stopped by for an iced matcha and macaron.  The iced matcha was made first by whisking the green tea matcha using a traditional Japanese chasen or bamboo whisk.  Sugar is customizable but I liked it the way it was made.  Strong matcha flavour, but not strongly bitter.

The macaron I selected was her signature macaron called "Nimbus" which is a marshmallow and elderberry macaron.  It ended up being a flying nimbus in my case (so embarrassing), flying right off the table due to the wind and Steph graciously offered me another one - so sweet.  It was very light, like a cloud and the elderberry is unique; really reflects the patisserie!  The macaron had a nice crisp shell and was not too sweet which I enjoyed.

I was quite impressed with this patisserie that I knew I had to ask more questions than usual, and so here is a mini interview with Stephanie, the owner and pastry chef at Petit Nuage.

When did you decide to open this space?

I was working part-time at a hotel, for two years, and it was always part-time work so I started to consider my options.  The next best thing was to open my own space and I came across this little spot.  When I first started, the space looked really different.  Last August, they gave me the unit very suddenly as my first application didn't get accepted.  I only had a few weeks to buy a fridge and set up!

In the last 3 or 4 months I reconfigured the space.  I used to have a bit of seating across one side, but it was a bit awkward because it was so small.  Got rid of the seating so I could add in more prep space and offer drinks.

Where did you study?

I studied at George Brown College (the pre-employment baking program) for a year to give me solid basics and the rest was creativity, experimental, and my hotel experience definitely gave me the bulk of my experience as we did a lot of production which allowed me to dabble in a lot of different work.

What inspired you to go into pastry work?

I was actually studying psychology for a couple of years but hated it! So I thought, why am I wasting my money and time? I decided to drop out, work for a year to save up, and enrolled in George Brown. 

What have you really enjoy about opening the patisserie?

Creative freedom.  I have no restrictions. If I want to make something new for the day, I'll make something new.

Advice for wannabe entrepreneurs?

Do lots of research!!  Don't go jumping in willy-nilly.  You've got to look at everything from every perspective; financial, design, marketing - marketing is very important, can't stress that enough!  The look and design will dictate your clients.  Good design is important and you need to invest and hire the right people. 

Evaluate yourself too.  Are you talkative?  Can you multi-task?  You'll be at the back and front of the house so you'll need to be a people person.


The nimbus macaron, how did it come about?

I thought it would be cute to have a macaron named after the store or relating to the store.  I grew up watching Dragon Ball Z and Goku's cloud is named Nimbus so I thought it was cute.  The elderberry is from a family that makes local jams and they had elderberry jam which I thought was unique.  I like to offer flavours that are not too common. 

How do you stay creative?

I like to do things based on season so I'll offer items based on seasonality.  Everything is also based on my personal taste and I create flavour combinations that I would want to try.

On your facebook page, you mention artistic services, can you elaborate?

Oh, yes.  Last year I made Christmas and birthday cards and I would also sell other artists' work, like the artist that designed the macaron boxes. (Me: love them!)  I'll do custom cards but need advance notice. 

I really enjoyed my first interview.  Thank you Stephanie for sharing!

The packaging is so cute!  Luv the artwork.

Afterwards, I treated myself to more macarons and a matcha cream puff.

I really enjoyed the jasmine apricot, the jasmine flavour really stood out and paired well with apricot.  The yuzu honey, strawberry basil and key lime pie are seasonal and out of the three, the yuzu honey was my favourite.  The basil was really strong in the strawberry basil macaron which I thought was great because this was the first time basil strong enough in a dessert, but my sister who had the other half thought it was too strong for her.  Key lime pie was also nice and the pie crust flavour was really incorporated in the macaron.  The HK milk tea macaron also had great flavour.

These French style cream puffs were coated with an even layer of the crispy pastry crust coating and filled with creamy matcha pastry cream.  I ate this very, very quickly!

Enjoyed the flavour of the cream puff, the matcha is light and won't be as strong as the iced matcha.

Macaron display (half of it anyway) - the macarons are all beautiful pastel shades which I luvd!

All the colours and decorations are so well thought out and really give you a feeling that you're in for some very good desserts.  I CAN just imagine the lovely space that foodies and dessert aficionados would flock to if she ever opened a larger store front with seating.

Decor - sooo cute.

This shipping container houses multiple shops!  Petit Nuage is in the centre.

Follow her Facebook page as selection varies by day and sometimes she'll post specials or have a special dessert available that day.  Most recently is a matcha roll cake!!

Maman Toronto - Cute French Styled Cafe and Lunch Spot in the Financial District

Maman (Toronto)

100 King St. W Toronto, ON M5X 1B1

First Canadian Place, Upper Level Food Terrace

647-879-3642

http://mamantoronto.com/

Open: 7am- 6pm

 

Yes, it‘s true...there's a cute French-styled cafe and bakery located in the financial district!  Originally from New York City, they serve light lunches, baked goods and a selection of espresso based drinks and teas, I predict it‘s going to get very popular.  Located on the new upper level food terrace at First Canadian Place, this place stands out among the usual vendors in terms of decor and food choices.  Decor alone is worth the visit!



Communal tables inside

Soon serving cocktails!

Now that they've got you in the door, their baked goods also are pretty decent.  Actually, their lavender loaf cake is really good! 

Food Menu (Unfortunately didn't get a shot of the drinks menu)

They have some croissants, tarts, and a few other sweet treats on offer as well, but their loaf cakes really stood out.  Two were on offer when I went, a pistachio and the lavender.  I'd usually opt for pistachio but thought I'd try something different.  The cake was very moist and was just the right amount of sweetness and my first impression was that it was pretty good but I luckily saved half for later (it's quite filling) and when I ate the second half, I realized it was more than pretty good, it was really good!  Why, you ask?

 

Pistachio cake



Because, as always, I'm a sucker for matcha-anything and they had an iced matcha tea on their beverage menu so although I was going to get a basic tea (they carry Sloane Teas), I changed my mind at the last minute and got the iced matcha.  The matcha was okay but I think the matcha flavour overpowered the lavender. When I had the cake later, the lavender flavour was more apparent and it wasn't excessive.  The cake was also still quite moist hours later. 

The iced matcha as I mentioned was okay, but I'm not sure if I would get again.  Their lemon thyme madeleine was quite good as well and would be a nice mini treat if you weren't looking for something too heavy.

Iced Matcha Tea

The only thing that I would recommend is the drinks menu should be visible from the front door as well.  The menu is actually at the front of the line so as you're moving through the line and picking up your food items, you can't see the drinks menu until you get to the front where payment happens.  So then, you end up holding up the line if you haven't quite decided on what you'd like.  They have two staff up front so that helps, it just a small thing but it'd be nice to see what is available for beverages earlier.

 

I think the next time I'll try their salads and quiches; that would really tell you if it'll survive as a lunch spot.  Overall, a great place and there is nice seating outside as well!

 

Outdoor patio