Adventurous Day in J-Town - Part One

Welcome to J-Town, the biggest Japanese shopping mall here in T-Dot!  This mall pretty much has everything you need.  They have a grocery store, a bakery, restaurants & cafes, boutiques, salon, and many more.  Click here to find out more about them.

Location: 3160 Steeles Ave. E. (Hwy 404 & Steeles Ave.)

Access: Along TTC bus route, private parking available

Variations of Sushi and Sashimi available, and lots of Uni!  As you can see, you can also buy Salmon and Tuna in bigger portions.  They came fresh from Japan and Vancouver.

Different lunch combos that you can get in the store.

Many selections of Wagyu!  Although they are very expensive, but it is worth it.

Turtle like bun at the bakery, adds a cuteness to this place.

Deep fried Atlantic Cod, Oysters, Tuna, Shrimps, Spring Rolls, and Cream Corn are available for under $5.

We would say the grocery store has everything that a typical Japanese would needed.  Shichimi Togarashi, Kewpie Mayo, Miso soup base, Curry, Wasabi, Tea, Bonito Fish Flakes, and variety of Kikkoman sauce, there are just too many to name.

Another shelf filled with Japanese spices.

The cafeteria at J-Town is very famous for their Curry Pork Rice.  Most people came here just for that.  Priced at $8, it is very reasonable, affordable and of course very yummy.

Overall, J-Town is an interesting place to be if you want to experience the Japanese lifestyle, get updated about Japan's latest and most popular trends or have a taste of some authentic Japanese food. 

Click here for our Shiso Tree Cafe review! Nomnomnom~*

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Con't Adventurous Day in J-Town - SHISO TREE CAFE

Location: 3160 Steeles Avenue East, Unit #1 (Hwy 404 & Steeles Ave.)
Access: along TTC bus route, parking available
Price: Avg $13 - $18
Blogsters' Rating: 3.5/5

Here comes the most important part of the day at J-Town... SHISO TREE CAFE!  We have heard numerous good reviews about this Japanese and Italian fusion restaurant, so we invited some friends and decided to give it a try.

Shiso Tree Cafe has a very warm and comfortable appearance, and the Japanese waitress are very welcoming.  The cafe is filled with small tables for two.  There is also one Tatami room available to accommodate bigger groups (picture on the right).

Their Lunch Menu is very simple and there are only three pages.  However, there are more than enough dishes to choose from and the prices are very affordable.

Their soup of the day was Russian Borscht.  The soup was perfectly flavored with the right amount of tomatoes, beef, and black pepper.  They have also added little pieces of Rotini in the soup for more texture.  The Shiso Tree Salad was not that fresh, but the homemade Wafu dressing made it better.  It had a strong sesame taste, which really opened up our appetite.

Shiso Tree is very famous for their Fresh Cut Fries, and out of the four available choices, we ordered two of them - Nori Fries and Okonomiyaki Fries.

Nori Fries is Tossed with homemade Wafu dressing and Japanese seaweed.  Those of you who is a fan of seaweed will adore the Nori Fries.  The garnish, the smell, and the taste.. it is all SEAWEED!  However, the Wafu dressing made the fries very soggy and mushy.  In addition to that, when the Nori fries started to cool down after 15 to 20 minutes, it had a fishy scent and taste to it.

The Okonomiyaki Fries is the most unique.  It is dressed with homemade steak sauce, Japanese mayo, bonito fish flakes and green onions.  The fries were very crispy.  The combination of the homemade steak sauce and Japanese mayo has a little sour taste and along with the green onions makes this dish very refreshing. The sourness also compensated for the heaviness of the oily deep fried goodness. 

For our main courses, we ordered the Okonomiyaki, Smoked Salmon, Tomato Clams, and Carbonara. They are all are served with spaghetti and came with half a slice of garlic bread.  The garlic breads were thick-cut and toasted very nicely - crunchy outside, and soft inside.  The pastas were cooked al dente,  perfect texture - firm to the bite and not soft.

Okonomiyaki Pasta - sautéed onions, bacon, and garlic, and dressed like an Okonomiyaki style pancake
The Okonomiyaki Pasta is exactly like the Okonomiyaki Fries except that it is served with spaghetti.  There was a generous amount of bacon pieces and bonito flakes in the dish. Overall it tasted very fresh and had a slightly sour aftertaste.

Smoked Salmon - Light cream sauce and dill
The Smoked Salmon Pasta came with a very heavy and rich cream sauce.  It is not light, like how the menu described.  Much like an Alfredo sauce, it is very filling.  However, the Smoked Salmon was a little bit fishy and too salty.

Tomato Clams - Marinara, white wine, and clams
The Tomato Clams Pasta has a sweet and sour taste.  The Marinara sauce was made of tomato, garlic, herbs, and onions.  The clams are much smaller than what we have expected but there was a generous amount of them.  In addition, you can definitely taste the wine in this dish but it is not overpowering at all, and it helps to bring out other flavours.

Carbonara - Bacon, garlic, and white wine

The Carbonara also came with a heavy cream sauce, coated evenly on every strand of the pasta.  There were a good amount of bacon on the dish.  With the Parmesan cheese and freshly grained Black Pepper,  the Carbonara is like Heaven on Earth!

After all, our favourite food at Shiso Tree Cafe was the Okonomiyaki Fries.  The service was slow in general, possibly because they were lacking waitstaff.  We had a little incident with the Carbonara when one of our friends found a tiny strand of sharp metal in the dish.  We believed that the metal piece came from a can and got mixed into the pasta. After we notified the waitress, she apologized and had the chef make us a fresh bowl of pasta. If the metal incident did not happen, we would have given a higher rating. Overall, we enjoyed dining at Shiso Tree cafe, and would recommend it to other friends.

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Toronto's Latest Obsession - Uncle Tetsu's Japanese Cheesecake

Uncle Tetsu's Japanese Cheesecake
Location: 598 Bay Street (Bay & Dundas)
Access: Along TTC subway and streetcar route (Dundas Station); street parking available
Blogsters' Rating: 3/5

Uncle Tetsu made their debut in T-Dot!  This is their very first store in North America.  There was a huge hype about their Cheesecake for the past month and it is still going.  We heard from a lot of people that we have to wait in line for at least two hours to get the cheesecake and as expected, we waited in line for an hour and a half.

Here's the lineup when we first got there (picture on the left).  

A sneak peek inside the store through their little window while we are still outside waiting in line.  Their Madeline station is right up front and the Cheesecake station is at the back of the store.

The above picture was taken when we were right at the door.  The first thing we noticed was the beautiful smell of eggs and butter throughout the whole store.

Currently there are two things available on their menu.  The six-inch Cheesecakes were priced at $8.88, and they are limited to one per person.  Madeleines were $2.22 each, and they are buy three get one free.  In the end, you can purchase everything for $17.55.

One of their friendly staffs making the Madeleine batter and weighting it constantly to make sure measurements are correct.

Meanwhile at the Cheesecake station, they are pouring in batter in the cake pans, getting ready to bake their next batch.

Here's our batch of Cheesecake!  

Finally, they sealed their logo onto each cake with a press stamp, and they are ready to go home.

We heard that the Cheesecake taste differently when it is warm, compared to when it is cold.  So, the first thing we did right when we got home was chilling half of the Cheesecake in the fridge, and eating the other half while it is still warm and fresh out of the oven.

Cheesecake while it's warm:

The Cheesecake literally just melts in your mouth.  It might look like a sponge cake at first, but when it is in your mouth, it is so light and fluffy that it almost seems like you're eating foam.  In general, the taste of the Cheesecake wasn't that special, since it is mainly made out of four common ingredients: milk, butter, eggs, and flour. 

Cheesecake while it's cold:

After the Cheesecake has been chilled for sometime in the fridge, it has a denser texture.  Even though it is denser, the cake still melts in your mouth.  Chilling the Cheesecake also enhanced the milk and eggs flavours.  In addition, it has a smoother and creamier finish.  Unlike the New York Style Cheesecake (which is rich, dense, sweet and filling), it is light and not too sweet, and we believe even if you finish the whole cheesecake, you won't feel bloated at all.

Madeleine Honey Cake:
The Madeleine Honey Cake taste just like another honey cakes, and it has a slightly tougher and rougher texture.  However, Joyce finds it extremely buttery as the butter rubs off onto her hand and her fingers are covered in a buttery grease as she's eating the cake. Overall, the Madeleine is not bad, but it is not worth to wait an hour and a half for it.

Here's a little footage of the store, enjoy!

Also come check out round 2 at Uncle Tetsu's Japanese Matcha Cafe !

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Faceshop White Seed Exfoliating Foam Cleanser [Beauty Review]

White Seed Exfoliating Foam Cleanser

Volume: 140 mL

Price: $14 CAD

Blogsters' Rating: 5/5

When it comes to cleansers, I always like to use a fine exfoliator. With the many exfoliating cleansers that I've tried, it's hard to find one with the right texture, consistency and hydration. A rule of thumb for me when it comes to picking a cleanser is that it has to leave the face feeling clean and fresh yet it can't be drying out or stimulating my sensitive skin.

Why I purchased this over other cleansers?

The first time I encountered this product was when I received a sample of the White Tree Snow Exfoliating Cleanser in the summer of 2014. I absolutely loved the texture and finish of it and went on a hunt for the full size. However, I had no luck after going to several locations and learned that they might not be returning to the stores. Until my recent visit to Faceshop, I found out that they phased out the White Tree Snow cleanser and launched the White Seed line with this exfoliating cleanser that has the same formula.

What it does?

It's a skin brightening cleanser that exfoliates the skin with very fine beads. It also leaves the skin feeling hydrated and smooth.

Texture

Comes out in a thick paste with a pearly lustre, contains very fine beads (or seeds) that exfoliate the skin very well. Consistency of the paste, density and size of beads are perfect for me. Lathers and foams as it's worked through the face. Just a pea size amount of product is enough to lather up the whole face.

Scent
Very mild natural plant-based scent. Overall a pleasant smell that's not too overpowering.

Finish

Skin feels clean and smooth yet it doesn't feel dry after exfoliation like a lot of other exfoliating cleansers I've used. Skin feels hydrated yet not sticky or greasy.

What I don't like about this product?

The only thing to watch out for when using this cleanser - Avoid getting it into your eyes! Because of its brightening ingredients, it did sting my eyes and made them tear up quite a bit the first time I used it. 

Will I purchase it again?

Yes. I'm happy with the texture, price and performance of this cleanser and will definitely purchase it again.

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Luxurious Coffee Break at Duo Pâtisserie & Café

Hello from Blogsters! We invite you to come indulge in the heaven of  French pastries and coffee with us today at  Duo Pâtisserie & Café !

Location: 4230 Commerce Valley Dr. E (Hwy 7 & Hwy 404)

Access: along VIVA bus route, parking available
Price: Avg  $3 - $8 
Blogsters' Rating: 5/5

On a lazy Friday afternoon, Janet brought Joyce to a new local cafe. With clean and minimalistic interior arrangements, the small cafe has a few dine-in seatings available. Joyce got excited soon as she saw the pastries on display! There weren't a lot of selections on the day we went but that eased up our indecisiveness significantly because we wanted to try everything! 

Coffee- Cappucino/ Flat White ($3.50)

Absolutely loved their coffee. Beautifully crafted, served with simple latte art, it was rich and aromatic with just the right amount of espresso and milk.  

Honey Twist ($2.50)

Wanting to try something simple and sweet, we decided to go with the honey twist. The pastry was light, flaky, rich in buttery taste with a sweet honey glaze finish that was toasted to just the right level of crunchiness.  

8 ($2.75)

Janet's Personal Favorite

As its name suggests, this pastry is shaped like the number 8 with custard fillings. A slightly fuller and sweeter version of the Honey Twist. It is comparably less crunchy than the Honey Twist but nonetheless very yummy!

***Friendly Reminder: Since DUO has a limited pastries and cakes offering each day, they close the cafe as soon as they are sold out.***

  

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Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel Cream [Beauty Review]

Hydro Boost Gel Cream (For extra-dry skin)

Volume: 47mL

Price: $20 CAD

Blogsters' Rating: 3/5 

Hi everyone! For my first beauty product review, I will share with you my most recent purchase from the new Hydro Boost line from Neutrogena.

The Hydro Boost line launched in 2015 and this gel based cream is one of the three products among the eye gel-cream and water gel. Hydro Boost contains three potent moisturizing ingredients which include Hyaluronic Acid, Glycerin and Olive Extract. It claims to be a moisturizer for extra dry skin with intense hydration power while being able to quickly absorb into the skin with its gel based properties. 

When it comes to moisturizers, there are a few factors that I always have to consider. With extremely sensitive and dry skin, I need to use very hydrating products that do not contain irritative ingredients (such as alcohol and abrasive chemicals) especially living in a cold and dry climate. However, I really dislike the sticky and greasy residue that some products leave on the face. For these reasons, I decided to give Hydro Boost gel cream a try.

Texture: As a gel based product, this cream is very lightweight, easily absorbed by the skin and does not leave any sticky or greasy residue behind. It leaves the skin feeling fresh and is wonderful under makeup since it doesn't clump. 

Hydration: Although it is marketed for the extra dry skin, I will have to say that this isn't the most hydrating moisturizer I've used. It would be a good moisturizer for spring or summer when it isn't extremely dry and would make a good moisturizer during the day. But keep in mind this doesn't have SPF so do remember to apply sunscreen. 

Packaging: I'm not a fan of the tub packaging for hygienic reasons. Maybe a small spatula would help. 

At $20 for 47mL of products, I wouldn't call it a steal. The hydration level isn't as intense as I expected it to be either. However, the refreshing texture that this product offers does add some points to it. For a lightweight gel moisturizer, the Hydro Boost does a fair job. 

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