I was looking forward to this past Wednesday. Here was the plan: visit the downtown Fresh Wednesday's farmer's market in the morning, then head over to Princess Margaret Hospital for my doctor's appointment (well, this I wasn't looking forward to) at 10:45, and then off to 5th Elementt for our 1:30pm lunch reservation. This was one of many restaurants that was participating in the city of Toronto's annual Summerlicious event. Wednesday was actually the only day that I was able to go for a Summerlicious lunch (I didn't want to go for dinner), and it just so happened that I had a doctor's appointment downtown that day. So it worked out so perfectly! Here's what went wrong:
I ordered the Vegan Tofu Beni (pictured on the left), and my mom got the Western sandwich wrap lunch special. I was torn between the vegan tofu beni, or the peanut butter and banana crepe. Since the tofu was someting unique to Karine's, I decided to go with that.
My mom really enjoyed her wrap too (on left). There were nice chuncks of tomato and tons of eggy goodness wrapped inside.
1. Toronto labour strike--Fresh Wednesdays were cancelled
2. My doctor's appointment went WAY overtime and we ended up leaving at 2pm. We saw that doctor for like, 5 minutes, and all he said was "okay, nice to meet you, everything seems fine, see you in 3 months." I was actually really annoyed and pissed off beyond belief because apparently we were "saved" until the end because we were new to the clinic. And apparently he likes to spend a bit more time with new patients so that we can ask questions and he can talk to us thoroughly. Yeah, okay sure buddy.
After we left the hospital almost 3.5 hours later, we walked along Baldwin St, where my mom told me that Bodega was where she used to live! The entire street consists of townhouses that have been converted into shops/restaurants/cafes. I can't believe she used to live in the house that is now Bodega! I wanted to eat there just because of the weird coincidence! We walked around looking for a place to eat and finally decided on Karine's, a quirky little place located in the Village by the Grange. It specializes in vegan, vegetarian, and all-day breakfast foods. It also is environmentally-friendly, since they encourage customers to bring their own take-out containers, and they also serve their food on ceramic dishes and mugs that can be reused.
I ordered the Vegan Tofu Beni (pictured on the left), and my mom got the Western sandwich wrap lunch special. I was torn between the vegan tofu beni, or the peanut butter and banana crepe. Since the tofu was someting unique to Karine's, I decided to go with that. The servings were very generous, and mine came with a side of fresh fruit (grapes, watermelon, strawberries...mmmm), salad, and some pita with some awesome garlicky dip. The baked tofu was set atop a vegan patty, and the entire thing was smothered in tomato sauce. It all tasted good, I just think there was a bit too much tomato sauce.
My mom really enjoyed her wrap too (on left). There were nice chuncks of tomato and tons of eggy goodness wrapped inside. So, even though I am really disappointed with not being able to partake in Summerlicious (which ends tomorrow, by the way), at least I found a cool new place to eat!
mm sounds delicious, too bad i'm allergic to soya products!