RED CROW COFFEE 

211 James Street South, Hamilton, Ontario (905) 521-2124, for hours of operation see there website provided below.

Went to Red Crow with my son Tom for their Brunch and a coffee.  He had been here before and suggested we try their brunch.  It included a selection of omelettes, so we both selected their mushroom and potato omelette.  We were going to order an americano coffee, but Bob at the counter suggested we try their Red Crow version.  It was very strong and satisfying version that was just the way Tom and I like our coffee.

 The Brunch selections were written in a blackboard, and today the omelette selection was $5!  

It was accompanied by a nice salad, watermelon, and a multigrain toast.  It was a tasty brunch that was not greasy, but very tasty and good value for $5.  There are a variety of seating choices and it was quite full on a Victoria Day holiday Monday.

We sat at a bar table at the front window overlooking James Street South.

The inside is typical of many independent coffee bars.

The menu is posted on a board:

We found Red Crow friendly, inviting and reasonably priced.  The Red was a great coffee and we will definitely return.  It has a relaxing atmosphere and a good variety of food choices.

http://www.redcrowcoffee.com/

THE EXPRESS ITALIAN EATERY WESTDALE 

1034 King Street West, Hamilton, On., (289) 389-2008, Sun. - Wed. 11:30 - 10:00 pm, Thurs. - Sat. 11:30 - 11:00 pm

Went to the Express, in the Westdale Village in Hamilton, early on a Saturday evening for a light dinner.  It is a relatively new establishment in Westdale, that serves wood oven pizza in an open kitchen, panini, soup, salads, pastas etc..  It is licensed and the house red was only $6 a glass.

It has a quaint bar area

and a variety of seating, including a window view of the village.

There is a wood oven and take out service.

I checked the menu. 

I chose the Muffaletta panini.  It included salami, mortadella, prosciutto, arugala and provolone and came with a soup or salad for $12.

The soup was prosciutto and potato, it was rich but quite salty (because it contained large chunks of prosciutto).

The panini was crisp and quite thick with rich meats.

By the time I was finished the restaurant was filling up.

All in all it was a nice meal.  The service was efficient, the food was tasty (albeit very salty) and the prices were reasonable.  There is another much larger Express located at the other end of Hamilton in Stoney Creek on Grays Road.

http://www.expressrestaurant.com/

DESTINGO 

741 Queen Street West (just west of Bathurst Street), Toronto, On., (647) 748-3113 Breakfast, Brunch, Lunch, Dinner, No reservations.

There is a new restaurant in the Queen West area between Bathurst and Ossington that has a wonderful large patio right on the street.  It is called Destingo and is a great place to sit, sip wine (they have a nice selection of reds and whites), eat and people watch.  It has taken over a space that was once a furniture store. 

We arrived on Saturday at about 6:30 and took our time, sipping wine and talking before ordering dinner.  They don't hover over you and allow you to take your time here.

We began by ordering a couple of bottles of California Cabernet Savignon and took our time.  We ordered a plate of brushcetta, they were delicious but small - only three pieces.

We were getting hungry after a while and decided to order some mains.  After we placed our order a platter arrived with an unusual cranberry bread with butter, it was delicious.

My wife, Tom and I ordered the Caesar salad to start.  It was a typical caesar that could have been a bit larger, but it was tasty.

Mark my son (http://www.markallenrealty.ca/) ordered the beef carpaccio which was a nice presentation and quite large.

For mains my wife and Tom ordered the veal.  It was delicious, but could have been a larger serving.

I had the chicken piccata and it too was delicious, but also could have been a larger serving since the chicken was very thin.

Mark opted for the gnocchi and they were very tender and perfectly tasty even though the presentation was rather bland.

Although this restaurant is quite new, the owner and the chef are quite experienced and it shows.  The food is quite good, the new waitress was very pleasant and the overall feeling was very relaxing - especially on the wonderful patio.  Some of the patio seating does not appear comfortable but we did not mind.  Overall a good experience (even though some portions were quite small) and we will probably come again.

http://destingo.ca/

HEY LUCY RESTAURANT 

440 Bloor Street West, The Annex, Toronto On., M5S2N5 (416) 967-9670 

Went to Hey Lucy after wandering through the annex on a late Saturday afternoon in May.  It is located on Bloor Street just west of Spadina.  

It has a large patio on the side and the clientele is quite mixed.  It has a variety of seating including booths, a long bar with funky bar stools and high tables.

The menu is quite simple and consists of typical apps, sharing plates, pastas, sandwiches and wood oven pizza. 

We started with calamari fritti.  They were nicely cooked and spiced and were delicious.  

We shared a nice bottle of Valpolicella Classico.

For his main my son Thomas selected a panini which consisted of turkey, ham and bacon on a crisp fresh bread.  It was accompanied by very tasty sweet potato fries and a spicy mayo.  It was a satisfying combination.

I selected a penne with large shrimp in a rose cream sauce.  The shrimp were large and very good, the sauce was smooth and the penne were rather ordinary.  It was accompanied by a garlic crustini and a copious addition of ground mozzarella.

I spoke briefly to the chef who explained the complexity of the wood oven which was the centre of the open kitchen.  He said it could cook pretty well anything very efficiently and quickly.  You could feel the heat of it several feet away from the kitchen.  Next time I will make a point of trying one of their wood oven pizzas.

http://www.heylucy.ca/

BRAVO PIZZERIA AND GRILL 

5438 Ferry Street, Niagara Falls, On., (905) 354-3354, Open for Lunch, Dinner and Late

Went to Bravo on a beautiful Thursday in May for an early dinner before going to donate some money to Fallsview Casino.  It is actually a short walk from the casino to Bravo.  It has a large and inviting patio and a large parking area.

The inside is clean and upscale.

We decided to start with a nice Venetian Passimento wine and bread.

Although the bread was stale, the olive oil with Italian herbs saved it.  

We ordered calamari fritti and they were very tasty.

We both decided to try the pan fried grouper with papaya chutney, balsamic reduction, root vegetables, asparagus and fingerling potatoes.

The grouper was perfectly cooked with a tasty spicy chutney that added to the flavour of the grouper.  The main was light, clean and very satisfying.  We decided to try their deserts.  My wife had the cannoli (we had no idea that it included two of them) and they were delicious.  I had the tiramisu and it was gigantic but very light.  They were both delicious and we would recommend either.

two large and delicious cannoli

a giant but light tiramisu

I completed the meal with a choice from their cocktail menu, it was called the Little Italy.  They also have a very large beer selection by the way.

The Little Italy

It included averna and angustura bitters which help digestion and was a great ending to a nice filling meal.  We will definitely return to Bravo in the future!

http://www.bravogrill.ca/