Oysters are often thought of as a celebratory dish, something reserved for special occassions, or an aphrodisiac. Fortunately due to some research we have done, they don’t have to be so sacred anymore! I decided to put together a list of places where you can find cheap (and sometimes FREE) oysters in the city. From a “buck-a-shuck” to a little bit more, here are some bars and restaurants where you can get oysters for cheap in Toronto:

Biffs Bistro Bar – (Downtown / Financial District /St. Lawrence Market)
Price: $1 per oyster
When: Daily after 5pm
What: Oyster special is available at the Biff’s Bar.
Where: 4 Front Street E

Big Daddy’s – (Downtown / Financial District / Entertainment District)
Price: $1.50 per oyster ($6 for 4 oysters)
When: During their “Voodoo Hours” (Monday4pm – close, Tuesday – Friday 3pm – 6pm & 10pm – close, Sunday 4pm – close) Big Daddy’s drops the price of their Chef’s Choice Oysters from $8 to $6.
What: The dish comes with 4 chef-selected oysters, fresh horseradish and housemade sauces. Continue Reading »

The food business in Toronto is currently in a rapidly evolving state with an increase in Street Food, Pop-ups & Food Trucks. Many of the businesses that are forming around these concepts are offering a great alternative to getting delicious food at a reasonable price. Unlike many of their brick and mortar competitors, these concepts are often much more creative with their menus and are offering some refreshing takes on old food favourites. Most of these businesses rely heavily on the use of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. Unless you are active on these social networks there is a good chance you might not even know about them!

Here are some of my favourite concepts that have become quite popular in the last few months:

Street Food

One of the trends that I am most excited about in Toronto right now is the rise of popular “street food” dishes from around the world. This concept can be found at both pop-ups and in food trucks but is also becoming popular in brick and mortar restaurants as well. I wrote previously about Banh Mi Boys, which is probably my favourite of these right now, but other restaurants have opened recently including Hawker Bar, a restaurant specializing in Singapore style street food.

Banh Mi Boys Tacos

Continue Reading »

Last week I was fortunate enough to be invited to a tequila tasting event for Sauza tequilas for bloggers and some mainstream media (one of the perks of writing a blog). The timing was probably not the best as I recently started a health kick and swore off drinking shots this year as a new years resolution (the most common way tequila is consumed), but when I saw there would also be tequila infused food and Mexican music I figured why not! I also have a pretty good collection of tequila in my house already so I was curious of different things I could use them for, whether it be food or a cocktail, so thought this would be a very educational event. Furthermore the event was being held at Reposado, a tequila bar I had really wanted to try after seeing how highly they were rated on Yelp making it a no brainer decision to attend!

My tequila collection (with the Hornitos added that I received at this event)

Upon arrival I was greeted by Brittany and Gosia from Praxis PR (the company organizing the event). I was told the first drink right when walking in was to do a shot at the bar, then the bartender would help me with another drink. I stuck to my resolution and skipped the shot and went straight for a cocktail. Continue Reading »

One of my favourite cities to visit that is relatively close to Toronto is Montreal. With the rising prices in gas it is becoming quite costly to drive there, especially if you are travelling alone or with 1 other person. During my trip there last weekend I decided to do some investigation into the cheapest ways to get from Toronto to Montreal.

Megabus (Bus)
Cost: $40-$90 Return Trip (depending on when you book and which times you select – prices may increase during long weekends and other busy times if you don’t book ahead)
Total Travel Time: 5h 45m to 6h 30m each way
Departing / Arrival Station: From Toronto Bus Terminal at Bay & Dundas to the Montreal Bus Terminal (1717 Rue Berri, Montreal)
Comfort: 6.5/10 Continue Reading »

Eating out at restuarants can be quite costly, especially if you are like me and want to try new places all the time! Fortunately, thanks to the Internet, there are lots of great ways to save money at some of the best restaurants in your city! Here are some of my favourite money saving tips for eating out:

1) Check The Daily Specials

Many restaurants offer specials to attract customers to them on the slower days of the week. This can be anything from 1/2 price deals, no corkage fees, specific item sales, drink specials and other promotions. Finding these deals can be time consuming as you need to check each restaurants’ website for their individual specials, but fortunately my friend Tiffany has made this easier on her site ShesSoSavvy.ca. If you look in the top right corner of her site you will see a restaurant specials search field that will list all of the daily specials for restaurants in a specific area of the city. Her site is exclusive to Toronto, so if you are reading this from another city in Canada you will need to actually check the website for each of the restaurants you are considering. Here is a screenshot of what you will find on She’s So Savvy:

ShesSoSavvy Example Screenshot

2) Group Deals Continue Reading »

Last week I was invited to check out a media party for the release of Kultura‘s new Spring Menu. I really didn’t know much about Kultura and thought it was another sub-par overpriced Toronto restaurant but as it turned out I was actually quite impressed with the food and the menu items (though slightly pricey in relation to places I typically review) weren’t as expensive as I had thought.

Kultura Spring Menu

Just to be completely clear and upfront, all the food and drinks I received while there were complimentary and I am in no way letting this sway my opinion. Also, I am not sure what portion sizes are usually like as we received hors d’oeuvres versions of each of the dishes. Continue Reading »

With March break right around the corner you might be looking to take a trip to “escape” (probably not the best choice of word considering the winter we’ve had here in Toronto) the winter blues. Before you go rushing out to your local travel agent (sorry, but they have the worst prices from my experience and unless you need their knowledge they are a waste of time), here some cheap travel tips for booking travel online within Canada.

Before I get started I will try to explain why I think I am qualified to write this kind of article. During the last 6-7 years I have spent a lot of my free time traveling around the world. Most years I have ended up taking between 3-5 trips all over the place including the USA, Caribbean (including cruises), Mexico, South America and Europe. Since there is nothing more that I hate in the world than being ripped off, I have spent extensive amounts of time doing research for each of these trips just so that I can get the best prices. I travel at all different times of the year so I am familiar with the high and low seasons and often will book my travel around these things (because my schedule is flexible it allows me to do so).

Here are some of my best tips when it comes to booking travel online: Continue Reading »

Last month I wrote an article titled Toronto Cheap Eats January 2012. My goal is to keep this as a regular post with this blog, so I have decided to do a round-up of some of my favourite cheap eats in Toronto that I have had over the past month.

Seor Ak San – Chinatown

I first discovered this Spadina gem after reading many great reviews about Seor Ak San on Yelp. I am a huge fan of dol sot bibimpab (a Korean style stir-fry served in a stone-pot) and when I heard they were known for their version of this dish I decided to give them a try. Since my first visit just a few months ago I have already returned for a second visit. They are most well known for their Pork Bone Soup and their various Bibimbap dishes ($8.95-$9.95), so I tried both. Both dishes were very tasty and one of the great things about Korean restaurants is you get a number of side dishes (banchan) included with your meal. My only complaint is their dishes lack spice, so order things extra spicy to try to compensate. Total price for 2 was just over $19 with a drink! (I will do a much more detailed review for them soon!)

Pork Bone Soup ($6.95)

Stone Pot Bibimbap w/ Bulgogi ($8.95)

The Overdraught – Union Station Continue Reading »

Up until last night I had never even heard of a place called Chefydrew’s so this was probably the last place I would have expected to be writing my next review about. To be honest, I hate the name and their menu screams out “avoid” to me. I really only stumbled across the restaurant after my girlfriend gave me a free $10 on Groupon’s  “Now Deals” (a section for deals that must be purchased and used the same day). When I saw there was a restaurant with things like Curry Goat, Jerk Chicken, and Oxtail (note I am a huge fan of Jamaican cooking – it’s probably my favourite thing in the world) I knew it was going to be an easy choice. After doing a quick search on Google for some overall very positive reviews I decided to give it a shot.

Chefydrews is located at 255 Dundas St E in the Toronto Downtown core (about a 5-10 minute walk from the Eaton Center). I arrived to the restaurant around 8:30pm which is quite late for most people and have to say the area is not one of the nicest in the city to be in late at night. From the outside the restaurant didn’t really look like much and it was almost empty inside but I figured I would still give it a try. Upon entering the restaurant it was as I had expected, empty other than a few staff hanging around by the bar chatting. I took a seat and waited for a menu to be dropped off. The interior was pretty basic, almost a bit bright for my liking, but I was here for the food so I could care less what the place looked like.

Chefydrew's Inside (Pic from their Facebook Account)

After waiting about 5-10 minutes without anyone coming over I started to get concerned and a little annoyed. I chalked this up to the laid back nature of most Caribbean people which is one of the nicest things about the islands, but when you are hungry it is quite the opposite. It wasn’t until another person entered the restaurant as me at the same time (there to visit the owner) left that I had realized what had happened. They had thought I was with him and was just sitting down waiting for him. Andrew (aka chefydrew himself) came by and was very apologetic for the confusion, which I completely understood. Regardless, it was time to eat, and Andrew handed me the menu to look over. Continue Reading »

A few weeks ago I was invited to come check out Pachuco restaurant, a new Mexican spot in Toronto, for their “blogger preview”. In exchange for getting some exposure they offered to comp 2 items on the menu per table that attended. They label themselves as a “Modmex” restaurant, though I am not too sure what that means exactly other than a guess that they are trying to do a modern twist to traditional Mexican dishes. As a huge fan of good Mexican food, I decided to check them out and went with my girlfriend Amanda.

The restaurant is located on the Danforth in the basement of the owner’s other restaurant, Embrujo Flamenco (at Danforth and Broadview). Upon entering I have to say that they have done an excellent job on decoration and the place has a cool, trendy vibe to it that a lot of the recent popular restaurants have been going with (ie. Chalkboards, Things That Light Up, Slightly Dark, Lots of Wood etc.). Here are a couple of shots on the inside:

Pachuco Inside / Bar

"Musician, Poet & Crazy" a reference to this movie

Up first was our drink order. Since I was driving that night I opted for their Hibiscus Lemonade (as I drank a fair bit of a similar drink called Jamaica on my last visit to Mexico) and Amanda went for a Mojito. Continue Reading »