Oddseoul Review

Last Friday I was out for a night on the town with my friend Jo. We had started the night at No One Writes To The Colonel and enjoyed several cocktails but were looking for a new place to try. We wanted to continue drinking great cocktails but were also starting to get hungry when one of my favorite bartenders in Toronto, Robin Wynne (of Fynn’s of Temple Bar) suggested we check out Oddseoul on the Ossington strip. We had no idea what to expect, but he gave me a list of 4 different menu choices and said, “Thank me later”. Since I trust Robin’s opinion with the drinks I order, I figured he probably knew a thing or two about great food too, so on our way we went!

Oddseoul Toronto

Oddseoul Toronto

At first we passed right by the restaurant, as the front is quite inconspicuous. Located at 90 Ossington Ave (tucked between Levack Block & Delux), Oddseoul is a combination bar with food that specializes in Korean-American cuisine. The restaurant was started by owners of the popular Korean restaurant Swish By Han. The menu consists mainly of extras which are basically snack type dishes that range from $5-$7 with some larger lettuce wrap type platters (ssam in Korean) meant for sharing that are $25. Continue Reading »

Khao San Road Review

After spending last Saturday night at Khao San Road‘s annual Songkran event (more on what is probably the best event I’ve EVER been to in Toronto in a future post), I was surprised to see that I hadn’t done a review for them on this blog. Khao San Road is without a doubt one of my favourite restaurants in the city, and by far my favourite spot for thai food. So, why is it so good? Here is my review of Khao San Road from going there on many occasions:

Khao San Road Logo

THE RESTAURANT:

When visiting Khao San Road, one thing to know is this restaurant is POPULAR and that means they are BUSY! The restaurant is not particularly large, and holds maybe 30-40 people. I’ve waited up to 2hrs for a table before, and if you go on a Friday or Saturday night during prime time, expect a similar wait. If you don’t like waiting, you have a few options. Either get there right when they open, put your name down and head somewhere nearby for a drink, or order any of their items for takeout (assuming you can get through on the phone).

If you do manage to get a seat, the restaurant is very laid back and not stuffy whatsoever. Enjoy the old school hip hop tunes that play (some say a little too loud) throughout the restaurant while you are dining. Continue Reading »

Best Credit Cards For Canadians

Picking a credit card can be a daunting task! There are so many different cards out there, and so many different features that you may or may not even need. This guide is intended to make it easy for Canadians to figure out which credit card is best for them.

Every bank and major retailer these days has their own credit card. Personally, I prefer to hold as few cards as possible, but in some cases it is worth signing up for a store credit card, but cancel it immediately after reaping it’s rewards.

Before getting started with picking a new credit card, it is important to ask yourself a few questions:

Step 1: Background Credit Card Questions

canada credit cards1) Why do you want a credit card?

You used to need a credit card to make any kind of online purchase. Fortunately, nowadays there is an alternative: a Visa Debit card. I only discovered this a few weeks ago when I walked into my bank and they offered to upgrade my debit card to a Visa Debit card. It offers all the features of the regular debit card, but now allows you to make online purchases as well.

If the reason for getting a credit card is you need some extra money, there are much better ways to get some. Consider talking to your bank about a loan, borrow money from a friend or go out and get another job! Using a credit card is NOT a good way to get some extra cash as that money comes at a high price! Do you really want to pay $120 to borrow $100?

If your main reason is the perks, then this article will be better suited towards you. The main reason I have my credit card is because I get FREE money for buying things I would have bought anyway. I use a TD Canada Travel Rewards card because I like to travel a fair bit, and because it gives me cash rewards that I can redeem towards future travel. Continue Reading »

Boston Pizza Pizzaburger Review

On April 1st, 2013, Boston Pizza announced the launch of their newest product: The Pizzaburger. In case you missed my last post (where you can even win 1 of 2 $50 Boston Pizza Gift Cards), the Pizzaburger is a half-pound prime rib beef burger wrapped in hand-pressed pizza dough and baked to order. It comes in 2 different ways, either with pepperoni and bacon or a five-cheese version.

When I learned Boston Pizza was going to launch the Pizzaburger, I was a bit skeptical, but also very curious to try one. I agreed to help spread the word with Boston Pizza as long as I could try one and write an honest review about it on launch day.

So, once the official announcement was made, I went to my local Boston Pizza armed with a $50 gift card and ordered both versions of the Pizzaburger to share with my girlfriend. If I was going to write a review, I felt it was important to try it both ways.

Boston Pizza Front & John

Boston Pizza Front & John

The Pizzaburger is listed on the menu for $14.99, which includes your choice of side. Though the menu only shows fries, caesar salad or house salad, our waiter advised us that you could actually get a much wider variety of sides (some with an additional cost). This is $4 more than their regular burger, but considering you get a burger wrapped in pizza instead of just a bun, the cost seems justified. I opted for the caesar salad (if given the choice between this and fries I am taking a caesar salad 100% of the time considering most places charge an extra $2.50 or so for the upgraded side). Continue Reading »

Boston Pizza Presents: The Pizzaburger

After a week of videos showing PIZZA + MYSTERY INGREDIENT inventions, Boston Pizza has just announced on their Facebook page that they will be launching a new menu item: The Pizzaburger.

The Pizzaburger, is a half-pound prime rib beef burger wrapped in hand-pressed pizza dough and baked to order and comes in two varieties:

–    Pepperoni and Bacon Pizzaburger: Half-pound prime rib beef burger wrapped in a pepperoni pizza. Stuffed with bacon, pizza mozzarella and Boston Pizza’s signature pizza sauce, topped with even more pepperoni and pizza mozzarella and then baked to perfection.
–    Five-Cheese Pizzaburger: Half-pound prime rib beef burger wrapped in a cheese pizza. Stuffed with pizza mozzarella, cheddar, feta, asiago and pizza sauce, topped with parmesan cheese and baked.

Boston Pizza Pizzaburger

Pizzaburger from Boston Pizza

First, the head chef at Boston Pizza tried to combine pizza and a salad. Personally, I don’t think this one worked because the lettuce would get quite wilted in the process and not be so tasty: Continue Reading »