So the lovely challenge here was to send myself to 5 different eating locations around Toronto using the Ritual native app and eat meals that pertained or at least was fitting to have during the Autumn season. Here we go…
1.) The One That Got Away
Order the fried Halibut wrap with a side of salad and a guava pop! This marked the taking of my Ritual virginity. Allow me to attempt to string together a coherent explanation as to why I got this.. When I think of Autumn… I think of sweater weather…and fishing on a boat on a crisp, golden afternoon (not that I’ve ever gone fishing before… LOL.) Which lead me to believe that getting fish and chips would equate to good meal to have in the Autumn. I came pretty close to getting fish and chips but opt. for a fish wrap instead.
The fish tasted good here– would go again. It honestly beats any form of cooked fish from Joey’s, Moxie’s, Grand Electric or Wilbur (I still love your free little salsas, Wilbur!) In a nutshell, my fish wrap resembled how good the lobster and baja fish tacos served at El Catrin in the Distillery tastes.. but that’s just me!
581 King St W, Toronto, ON M5V 1M1
2.) The Loving Hut
For those of you who are vegan or vegetarian: this is a must go-to. I ordered the Spicy Tango and orange creamsicle vegan cake. Honestly, I had wished I ordered Pad Thai instead but I decided to be a little too adventurous and grabbed the ‘Spicy Tango,’ despite the server encouraging me that it wasn’t the most popular item on the menu. 😅😅 The entree wasn’t terrible, but I guess now I know that soy bean curls really isn’t my thing.
As for the cake, what I thought I saw was carrot cake which seemed appropriate to have in the middle of Autumn, aside from pumpkin spiced cakes.. was actually an orange creamsicle cake. I found myself eating more of the cake with my white jasmine tea than my soy curls.
140 Spadina Ave A101, Toronto, ON M5V 2L4
3.) Balzac’s Coffee Roast Cafe
Nothing beats a nice cup, or should I say bowl?.. Of vanilla latte and a nice almond-nutella croissant. Perfect hit in the spot for early, brisk mornings. No complaints, no regrets, just happily caffeinated and content.
1 Trinity St, Toronto, ON M5A 3C4
4.) Fusaro’s Italian Kitchen
I mean… the food in the photos don’t just look great, they taste amazing as well. For me, I tend to eat more carbs during the colder days. Could it be, it’s because I’m trying to gather more than I need and then hibernate? Quite possibly… Or just because the taste and idea of Italian food sounds really warm, cozy and inviting to me. I also have my two girlfriends I work with to back me up on this one.
We ordered the Grosso Panini (salami, capicollo, mortadella, provolone, Italian cole slaw, hot giardiniera, house mayo), Pasquale Pizza (freshly crushed tomatoes, fi or di latte, spicy salami, sautéed onions, asiago), Alla Vodka Pasta (penne, bacon, green onions, creamy tomato vodka sauce) and I got myself a vanilla latte as well… because why not?
*Note: I would like to make a point for anyone who happens to make drink orders from Ritual to remember to click on the drink size after selecting the drink on the menu. I made the mistake of not choosing the size after picking the kind of drink I wanted and went ahead to pick the flavour and additions like cream or milk. Because I forgot this part… my drink order ended up processing as a side of milk and vanilla with no actual latte.
My girlfriends and I pretty much inhaled almost everything on each plate. Enough said.
294 Richmond St E, Toronto, ON M5A 4S8
5.) King Rustic
The name of this restaurant kind of did it for me. I like to be where the rustic and charming nooks and hidden gems are during the Fall season I suppose. This place was on the way home from work and the menu sounded like they do great Italian dishes too… Surprised yet?
During this time, I actually used the Ritual app to do pick up after a long day of work. Normally, I would call in advance after ordering to request to sit down instead. The packaged food was nothing short in the taste and goodness. I had half the burger and fries the next day and it still tasted great– lots of flavours, and lots of avocado to enjoy. I’ve had my fair share of burgers but this one honestly takes the cake.
I ordered the Manchego Burger (lean ground chuck, fries manchego cheese, chimichurri, aioli, avocado, pico de gallo, garlic mayo, argula and on a bakers bun) that comes with a side of beautifully season sweet potato fries as well as the Raspberry Bliss salad which consists of sautéed mushrooms, red peppers, toasted walnuts, cranberries, goat cheese, crisp raw baby spinach, raspberry vinaigrette… Since there was a little hiccup with the Ritual app: I had originally ordered the ravioli on the menu that happened to be sold out, (during this time frame, I didn’t receive a notification that it was sold out until I got to the restaurant) the staff at King Rustic were kind enough to toss in an amazing butternut squash soup along with my re-order. I’m a huge fan of butternut squash, let alone in soup form where it allows me to drink it like water.
926 King St W, Toronto, ON M5V
To end this review, I would like to conclude that King Rustic’s food really stole my heart in terms of taste and atmosphere (had the opportunity to scope out the place during my wait for my re-order.) I had the food over the span of three days since it was a fairly large amount for me to personally finish– despite the timing, the meals were still pretty awesome. Other than what’s mentioned above in my previous blurbs… food ordering was definitely made easier, quick and efficient through Ritual.
Thanks to Ritual for cutting the line and waiting time– not to mention helping me make walletless transactions.
This is a sponsored post by Ritual Co. (Thanks Sarah!)
All Photography done by yours truly.