Watched episodes 5 - 9 of Attack on Titan and...
Wednesday, 9 April 2014
Destiny is a bubble tea and snack franchise that can only be found in the Richmond Hill and Markham area. I don't go there very often, and as said in a previous post, I didn't expect to go here that day. Comparing Destiny to my local bubble tea joints is not the fairest comparison, as each place has its strengths and weaknesses. I would say my local BBT places are better in the main meal compartment, while Destiny has more variety and quality in their desserts.
The particular branch I went to didn't have the best interior decor (or rather, nothing spectacular in my perspective), so I neglected to take a picture of my surroundings. It may also be the fact that I was hoping for the super soft and comfy sofa like booth seats (that I so vividly remember from my first time at the Richmond Hill branch) only to be left with hard dull plastic ones.
From left to right: Hazelnut Latte, Green Tea Latte, Cappucino Latte?
That day was kind of chilly, so my parents and I decided to order a warmer drink. Being the green tea fanatic that I am, I was pleased that a latte form of the flavor was available at the bubble tea place. I don't know if I missed the fine print on the menu, but somehow I assumed that tapioca would be included (bubble tea ordering fail) so my experience was a bit lacking when I got my drink. Also, I think I got too used to the flavoring of the Matcha Green Tea Latte at Second Cup, because the one I got at Destiny didn't have as strong as a flavor. I wouldn't add sugar to it per se; maybe they didn't use as much Matcha Green Tea powder? I tried a bit of my mom's Hazelnut Latte and the taste was a bit on the tame side too. Hmm.
My dad decided to order a slice of cake for $5.99. I think he got the chocolate truffle one. While I didn't take a bite, I could tell it was incredibly moist and even looking at the photo now, I kind of regret not taking a bite.
I myself got tempted to order a slice of cake too. I opted for the cookies and cream slice. Again, this slice of cake was moist, the chocolate ganache layer on the top wasn't too hard or thick, and there wasn't too much cream, which was perfect in my eyes. I enjoyed every bite I had of this medium sized slice and even though I wasn't that hungry for dinner later that night, I'd say it was totally worth it!
Monday, 7 April 2014
Back in my university days, I discovered the novelty (what I'd like to believe anyway... I know Japan is way ahead of us, but in North America, this is still pretty new, in my opinion) of Snakes and Lattes. This was the first time I had ever heard of a place where you could spend endless hours playing board games in a cozy coffeehouse-like setting — that is, if you can get in first. The place has been so popular that sometimes, people would have to wait 2 hours just to get in. It's no surprise really. For only $5 admission and a plethora of board games in their library, who wouldn't want to hang out there?
Oh wait, we're not talking about Snakes and Lattes. We're talking about Castle. Let's just say that, last year, when I was eating Dim Sum with my university friends, I spotted a place that was also a board game café called Castle. It seemed relatively new, so I was curious. It wasn't until half a year (or so) later that I finally stepped foot into that place, with an excuse of "let's celebrate my late birthday with a small group of friends".
Off the bat difference between Castle and Snakes and Lattes is that Castle has more modern/minimalist furnishings. That is not to say that it doesn't look cozy, it's just that this café has a different kind of charm. I think it lies in the colour scheme that they used: pale turquoise and bright green to bring some energy into the room.
One thing Castle has that Snakes and Lattes doesn't have? Multiple comfy modern futons. From the recesses of my memory, I do recall S&L having around 3 - 4 armchairs and one futon near the front, but I think that's all they have.
I think it's also the juxtaposition of clean, minimal lines and handwritten lettering that add to the charm that is Castle. The handwritten lettering makes the place look fun and cute, which would appeal to younger audiences.
I'm always open to trying new board games, so after introducing my friends to Bang, I got introduced to Cosmic Encounters. This board game was about invading other alien races' territory by successfully attacking their armies. What's neat about this game is the massive list of character cards that a player could possibly choose from. I think I took a good 15 minutes just going through all the characters and studying the types of abilities they had that I thought would be beneficial to winning the game.
Oh wait, we're not talking about Snakes and Lattes. We're talking about Castle. Let's just say that, last year, when I was eating Dim Sum with my university friends, I spotted a place that was also a board game café called Castle. It seemed relatively new, so I was curious. It wasn't until half a year (or so) later that I finally stepped foot into that place, with an excuse of "let's celebrate my late birthday with a small group of friends".
Off the bat difference between Castle and Snakes and Lattes is that Castle has more modern/minimalist furnishings. That is not to say that it doesn't look cozy, it's just that this café has a different kind of charm. I think it lies in the colour scheme that they used: pale turquoise and bright green to bring some energy into the room.
One thing Castle has that Snakes and Lattes doesn't have? Multiple comfy modern futons. From the recesses of my memory, I do recall S&L having around 3 - 4 armchairs and one futon near the front, but I think that's all they have.
I think it's also the juxtaposition of clean, minimal lines and handwritten lettering that add to the charm that is Castle. The handwritten lettering makes the place look fun and cute, which would appeal to younger audiences.
I'm always open to trying new board games, so after introducing my friends to Bang, I got introduced to Cosmic Encounters. This board game was about invading other alien races' territory by successfully attacking their armies. What's neat about this game is the massive list of character cards that a player could possibly choose from. I think I took a good 15 minutes just going through all the characters and studying the types of abilities they had that I thought would be beneficial to winning the game.
Can we just take a moment to appreciate the lovely artwork done for this game? I almost felt like I was looking at World of Warcraft or some other well done sci-fi/fantasy game promo artwork...
Anyway, I think what makes the game most interesting is having had the choice of playing this character:
This little guy is like the number 4 card on steroids in a Crazy Eights card game. It was funny playing against one of my friends who also had the ability to switch stats and commands around, making it a mental cat and mouse chase game. Sadly I didn't have the beginner's winning fluke like I usually would; still an interesting game nonetheless.
You can't go wrong with a classic to make your afternoon worthwhile. Although I don't play Cards Against Humanity often, it amuses me every time I do because of the sheer absurdity some people come up with in their choice of cards. Anyone with a sense of humour can enjoy this game, especially those with a) a dirty mind, b) chuckle at racist jokes and c) has a good general knowledge of pop culture and politics. It isn't called "the card game for horrible people" for no reason, haha.
I didn't order this slice of cake. My friend did. It was for $5.99 and he said it was good. I guess I'll take his word for it?
I don't know if it's just my darnedest luck, but every time I order a new latte I haven't tried, it always tastes burnt (only exception to that is the Pumpkin Spice Latte I had at Starbucks, otherwise that claim is still true). First it was the Nutella Latte at Snakes and Lattes, then it was the Candy Cane Latte from Second Cup and now it's the Hazelnut Latte at Castle. There's an added sense of disappointment in that the foaming of the latte is just white and brown, nothing special. I got spoiled from Snakes and Lattes expecting to see a face or elegantly done leaves seeing as they do latte art all the time. If Castle had a skilled barista that had the capability of doing latte art, I would put them on the same level as Snakes and Lattes when it comes to their food.
Then again, who knows, maybe the next time I go to Snakes and Lattes, I won't have a burnt Nutella Latte. I'll dream of the day that happens.
One thing's for sure though — Castle is more expensive in the long run. They charge $2.50 an hour as their admission fee. It only takes you two hours of board game playing time to catch up to Snakes and Latte's fee. So if you compare the duration of stay to the differing admission fees, Castle would be more expensive if you plan on staying for longer.
Saturday, 5 April 2014
Let us take a break from all the Asian food I've been posting so far and look at some Italian food! The first time I had heard of Vesuvio was when I went to Amadio's Pizza. While waiting for the freshly made Hawaiian pizza my boyfriend ordered, my eyes scoured around the walls, scanning numerous awards and newspaper clips. It was on one of the newspaper clippings that I saw that Vesuvio was ranked number one in the GTA when it came to pizza, so I quickly jotted down the name before carrying on with my night...
My first impression of Vesuvio was that it was a very comfortable space. It had its fancy metal wine racks that had flourishes reminiscent of the Victiorian era; it had its fancy lighting on the way down to the washroom, and it had those clean white drapes near the back. The comfortable and cozy part comes from the fact that it has exposed brick tiling for its wall, making the place look raw but not too 'in-your-face'. The restaurant also had kids' paintings on display, which made the place even more charming.
We started off with bread — pretty standard, and it wasn't overly salty, which was nice. They gave a choice of two white buns and two multigrain buns, for the more health conscious folks.
The pasta for that night was the carbonara. I haven't had it in awhile so why not? I've mostly been eating fettucine or just spaghetti and meatballs, so this is a nice change. However, this particular dish was quite creamy, so I was thankful that I only took half, or else I would not have had the empty stomach space to try their pizza.
And the main attraction — the Vegetarian pizza. I don't know if it's normally like this, but when I get pizza from a restaurant that is allegedly "fresh" from the oven, I would expect it to be really hot. I know that I took awhile to finish my portion of carbonara, but I don't think my pizza would turn lukewarm that easily. Even my boyfriend found the temperature to be cooler than usual and he had the pizza slices way before I did. There is one redeeming factor though, and that is that the taste was pretty good, as the olives served as the tipping point in making the experience different than other vegetarian pizzas I've had. It's funny, because I normally opt to have an olive-free pizza (I can tolerate them, but they're not high on my preferences list) and yet with this one, I'd feel like something is missing if the olives weren't there.
Overall, Vesuvio is a decent Italian place, and if I were to go there again, I'd probably try their other pastas instead. I wouldn't consider it the best pizza place in the GTA though. I guess I'm still on the hunt for that :P
My first impression of Vesuvio was that it was a very comfortable space. It had its fancy metal wine racks that had flourishes reminiscent of the Victiorian era; it had its fancy lighting on the way down to the washroom, and it had those clean white drapes near the back. The comfortable and cozy part comes from the fact that it has exposed brick tiling for its wall, making the place look raw but not too 'in-your-face'. The restaurant also had kids' paintings on display, which made the place even more charming.
It took me awhile to settle on what kind of pasta I wanted. Vesuvio had a good variety for decent prices, with the Linguine Di Mare being the most expensive one.
The pasta for that night was the carbonara. I haven't had it in awhile so why not? I've mostly been eating fettucine or just spaghetti and meatballs, so this is a nice change. However, this particular dish was quite creamy, so I was thankful that I only took half, or else I would not have had the empty stomach space to try their pizza.
And the main attraction — the Vegetarian pizza. I don't know if it's normally like this, but when I get pizza from a restaurant that is allegedly "fresh" from the oven, I would expect it to be really hot. I know that I took awhile to finish my portion of carbonara, but I don't think my pizza would turn lukewarm that easily. Even my boyfriend found the temperature to be cooler than usual and he had the pizza slices way before I did. There is one redeeming factor though, and that is that the taste was pretty good, as the olives served as the tipping point in making the experience different than other vegetarian pizzas I've had. It's funny, because I normally opt to have an olive-free pizza (I can tolerate them, but they're not high on my preferences list) and yet with this one, I'd feel like something is missing if the olives weren't there.
Overall, Vesuvio is a decent Italian place, and if I were to go there again, I'd probably try their other pastas instead. I wouldn't consider it the best pizza place in the GTA though. I guess I'm still on the hunt for that :P
Wednesday, 2 April 2014
I got suckered into watching Attack on Titans instead of writing a food post...
That scene though. I didn't cry, but I did feel really bad :(
That scene though. I didn't cry, but I did feel really bad :(
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