Anyway, before heading down for the show, we were planning to just wing it and randomly choose a place to eat along King street. This almost never happens with me because I'm all about looking up restaurants and their menus online beforehand. But for some reason, that night, something came over me and I was feeling lazy / spontaneous / adventurous...?
I haven't been to the King & University / Spadina area for a long time; as in, even though I have heard of O&B Canteen and knew I was going to try it sooner or later, I didn't know that the TIFF Bell Lightbox was at King & John (I obviously did not go to see any TIFF movies LOL). So when my boyfriend was driving on King, the brightly lit O&B Canteen caught my eye immediately and right away I said "Lets go there!" I have heard tons about O&B Canteen and was happy that I finally get to try it, unexpectedly too =)
O&B Canteen is like...a canteen! A fancy version of it while still maintaining the elements of a typical canteen: food items listed on the walls, the simple lines of the chairs and tables all located on one side with the open kitchen stretching out the whole way on the other side, the brightness of the restaurant (no dim romantic lighting here!), the ability to see the whole room even when you're sitting down - all elements of a canteen/cafeteria.
After about a 10-15 minute wait, we got a table.
Hm...what to drink?
My boyfriend got a Stella Artois and I had a glass of Malbec, Canale, 'Black River', from Argentina. I think it was my boyfriend's first time drinking beer out of a glass like that.
Chicken Liver Parfait - Cumberland Sauce, Pickle, Baguette.
I really enjoyed this liver parfait.
It was sooo smooth and also very light. The liver taste was very prominent and strong.
I also liked the pickles on the side. There wasn't enough baguette to finish the parfait so when our mains came, our server offered us more baguette =D
Turkey Burger - Mushroom, Swiss Cheese and Cranberry Campot. Burgers are the Chef's Special on Saturdays at O&B Canteen.
This is one gourmet burger! For me, it is the cranberry compot and the bun that made it look and taste so gourmet. I actually liked the turkey, it was moist and not dry (unlike most turkeys I eat). The cranberry, mushroom, and cheese goes well together too. Not too keen on the bun though since I think it makes the whole thing more like a "sandwich" than a "burger" (not a big deal though). This burger was small; If it wasn't for the liver parfait I would still be hungry.
The salad was really amazing. Forgive me, but I forgot what kind of salad it was and what was in it, but I just remember that it was good =)
Steak Frites - Mushrooms, Onions, Salsa Verde
My boyfriend thought the steak was decent. I had a taste and have to agree as well; it was just a very average piece of steak. His main complaint though was actually the ketchup. The ketchup is house-made with a bit of curry taste to it, so not your typical Heinz. I didn't mind it but at the same time did not care for it, while my boyfriend really disliked it.. He asked our server if he can have some regular ketchup but was told they didn't have any. I think restaurants in general should really consider stocking up some plain ol' regular ketchup for those who do not enjoy their house-made ketchup. Just a thought.
Soma Brownie, Vanilla Ice Cream
Loved it. Moist and chocolaty. Big scoop of creamy vanilla ice-cream too. Ahhh sometimes simple desserts, like this brownie with ice cream, can be so much more satisfying than fancy desserts .
My favorites that night was the Chicken Liver Parfait and the Soma Brownie. The turkey burger was good but I will not order it again, the same can be said for the steak. I wish I ordered the Gallo Mussels from the "Plates" list (saw someone having it and it looked really good). I don't
think I would go back to O&B Canteen for dinner, but I wouldn't mind trying their breakfast or brunch. But then again, I have sooo many brunch places I want to go to still, which ranks higher in priority and preference than O&B Canteen at the moment.
think I would go back to O&B Canteen for dinner, but I wouldn't mind trying their breakfast or brunch. But then again, I have sooo many brunch places I want to go to still, which ranks higher in priority and preference than O&B Canteen at the moment.
Oh yes, something funny happened. I got a text from my sister-in-law in the middle of dinner, asking me if I'm at O&B Canteen. Looking around, I thought she was walking outside or waiting for a table but couldn't see me clearly or something. After a few minutes she texted back and told me that she was in the car and stopped at the lights at King & John, and thought she saw me. And the crazy thing is we weren't even sitting by the window. This just shows how bright and clear the windows at O&B Canteen are. So beware when you eat at O&B Canteen, EVERYONE CAN SEE YOU =D
