Happy New Year!
無題 (whatever) December 31st, 2006
In less than 4 hours, it will be 2007. Listening to some soft music and going to prepare for tonight’s party - It’s going to be my first time counting down at a club. I’m sure it would be a fun night. Believe it or not, so far I’ve only drunk less than 3 cups of alcohol this holiday. Maybe I’ll get drunk tonight - just feel like it.
2007 is just another year… when you start thinking that way… just another year and another year and another year… that implies you’re getting old and numb about the passage of time. Time flies in ultrasonic speed. Suddenly one day you look at the mirror and think… “What the hell did I do in the past 10, 20 years?” Hope by that time I would have a good answer to that question.
Wants > Time
Therefore, goals should be set, and greater determinations and discipline will be needed to achieve the goals. Most importantly, self-searching will continue. Know thyself.
Moxie’s
西餐 (western), 飲食 (m-food) December 29th, 2006
(After all these years…) Finally I was there @ Moxie’s. Remember I wrote about my previous attempts to visit Moxie’s. I had never been able to go there. One time while waiting for a table @ the Fairview Mall location, all of a sudden the fire alarm was triggered and everyone had to leave.
The other night, TL and I came to this location near Yonge and Sheppard (yeh, you know where the Extreme Fitness is - the restaurant is right above the fitness center.) It was a Friday night. When we walked in we saw two long tables of female customers… I was wondering what kind of event it was or… was it a women’s club’s dinner or something like that?
Anyhow, enough of my nosy-ness.
We were brought to a big table which could seat 4-5 people. The servers were very friendly. The waiter highly recommended the items on the festive menu on the first page - limited time offer. Usually, for the first visit, I would try the normal items on the menu. However, since it was around Christmas time, we ended up ordering everything from the special menu.
Here’s what we ordered:
- Stuffed mushrooms with crab meat and cream cheese - appetizer - so-so. Nothing spectacular.
- Fusion Shrimp salad - oh… I loved the wasabi sauce. It was really appetizing. You may find the portion a bit too small, but it was just right for me for that night since I had a BIG lunch. 3 shrimps + veggies + some sauce… costed about $12.
- Seafood pasta (for RL) - had a bit of that. Tasted not bad; right portion for my normal appetite.
- From the wine menu we also ordered a Chardonnay.
Compared to the one at Fairview mall, I really liked the atmosphere at this location. The dining area was quite large. I felt that it would be a great place to hangout with my girl friends. Didn’t have a chance to try their normal menu items, but from what I heard, the food is so-so there. Don’t know if you’ve noticed that Moxie’s is expanding… There is one opening @ Yorkdale, another one opening @ Scarborough Town Center. Hope they will be good. (at least don’t be like the Montana’s [Steeles/Don Mills location] that we’ve been to a few days ago - the service and food were unacceptable.)
At the end, we also looked at the dessert menu. We were tempted to get a piece of cheesecake, but we were too full and the cake was too big of a piece. Maybe next time. 
FYI: Moxie’s Classic Grill
The location we went to:
#105, 4950 Yonge Street,
North York, ON., M2N 6K1
Tel: 416-226-3217
Love Actually…
生活 (m-life) December 27th, 2006
Went out of town for a few days… It was a relaxing trip. Believe it or not, although I’ve been to Niagara Falls many times, I have never been to Niagara-on-the-lake nor St. Catherine, the two towns close-by. Listening to music, driving around the region, finally I could feel the festive atmosphere.
The Falls, The Patisserie, The Lake, The Vineyards, The Small Town, The SkyWheel, The Lights - good time and great memories.
Finally, I watched the movie Love Actually. I remember seeing a lot of people putting this movie down as one of their favourite movies. Quite a while ago, I played it and started watching it, but don’t know why (maybe it wasn’t Christmas –> wasn’t in the right mood) I stopped after the first 10 minutes. It was pretty good, might not get my 5 stars, but definitely a very warm holiday movie.
Christmas Banquet
生活 (m-life), 西餐 (western), 飲食 (m-food) December 20th, 2006
Finally, it’s mid of the week - Wednesday. I guess many people are in the malls or going to the malls, trying to do their last minute Christmas shopping. And I’m still in the office right now… finished some reporting, still more to go. Work never ends. Just felt like posting something though. Last Friday, I was at the EY Banquet @ MTCC. (Thanks SL for inviting me - we just haven’t seen each other for so long… you’re always in the States these days!!!) Haven’t dressed up for quite a while; it’s nice to do so once in a while So we were there @ 8pm. It was open bar. However, by the time we arrived, most of the booze (e.g. Martini and Vodka) were gone! Anyhow, the banquet started shortly after our arrival. We sat at one of the 250 round tables. There weren’t a lot of speeches … which was great but just kinda unexpected. Dinner quietly started with a cream soup and some breads. It was ok. I like the breads though… Munching on them…
The next dish was a cranberry and marinated pear salad. I would say this dish was the best of the whole night. After that, we had the entree… Yup, I know what you are thinking and you are right… The stuffed chicken was quite dry. Actually, it was very dry. We did not have enough sauce either. So I couldn’t finish the whole piece of chicken.
After the entree… I was very excited about the dessert. It was a chocolate cake… with a top layer of mousse, and garnished with some berries. I found it ok. Not bad. But most of the people at the table didn’t quite like it.
Also had a cup of black coffee… alcohol & coffee. Yah. I think I wasn’t in a good mood that night. I felt sorry that some girls thought I looked really serious and didn’t dare to talk to me. Oh well… I can’t put on a smile 24/7. I was tired. At the end, music was played and people started going to the dance floor. I always find the clubbing type of dance doesn’t go well with the elegant dresses… so I didn’t do a lot of dancing either. Of course, there were moments when they played the soft slow songs. Those are the moments when all the singles wish we had a Significant Other to dance with. lol!
Since none of us could finish the entree, except PH, we went to the 24 hour Korean place, Owl, on Yonge and filled up our stomaches.
The food was much better there! Forgot to bring my DC, therefore I used my cell phone to take these pictures. (Not very good quality… so bare with me :p)
Xacutti [sha koo tee]
西餐 (western), 飲食 (m-food) December 18th, 2006
JK and I have been talking about having brunch together since 1+ year ago. Finally, this time we were there w. our dining buddy MR
Xacutti (pronounced as sha-koo-tee) is located near College and Bathurst. Entrance on the right side where you normally go upstairs. Although on the website it says the building was built almost 100 years ago (1908), the company has definitely done a good job revitalizing and making use of the space. We didn’t visit the lounge, Bird, upstairs. Maybe another time.
When we arrived at 12:00pm, the main dining room didn’t seem to be too packed. However, we were told that the expected waiting time would be about 45 minutes. We decided to wait - of course! we were there to try it out. Not gonna give up that easily. We were led to the waiting area at the back, were people could read some newspaper, chat with friends and enjoy a complimentary smoothie shot. Of course, if you want, you can always order some coffee/tea while chillin and waiting for your table.
I really love this. Wake up around 10-11 on a Sunday morning. (Yup! it’s still in the morning. Not 3pm when half of the day has already gone.) Feeling the sunshine through the long ivory-white-color curtain, then go out and enjoy the crisp air (+ a nice brunch).
After about 45 min - didn’t seem that long since we were chatting and having a good time waiting, we were brought to a table. Looking at the brunch menu, there were so many items that I wanted to try! There were also two drink menu! (wine & cocktails… it was just a bit too early for me to drink those.)
Here’s what we ordered:
- Orange Juice, a tea that’s equivalent to Earl Grey (it has a beautiful name but I just can’t recall now), and a Grapefruit Juice
- Eggs, homefries, smoked bacon + toasts
- Bombay scrambled eggs with green chillies, toasted naans, and mango chutney + 1 side order of Italian sausage
- Blueberry baguette with maple syrup and cream
- Banana brulee french toast with maple syrup and butter
I love my “Bombay scrambled egg” - very Indian fusion, but tasted good! The sausages were so-so though. Blueberry baguette was heaven! ~ They put blueberries on both sides of the bread… add a bit of cream and a bit of syrup on it… YUMMM! the Banana brulee french toast was good too! Overall… the bill came to $80 before gratuity. It wasn’t cheap, but I would say it is worth the try. I’d like to go back again and enjoy other dishes.
FYI: Xacutti
503 College Street, Toronto, ON.
Tel: 416-323-3957
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