Mindy's Hot Chocolate :: Hello Weekend

peppermint ($7) :: peppermint hot chocolate

black & tan ($7) :: 1/3 hot fudge, 2/3 medium hot chocolate

the “o.g.” doughnuts ($13) :: brioche doughnuts, hot fudge, caramel corn

Came here for after dinner desserts and despite not being a huge chocolate fan, left pretty happy! Been wanting to visit for quite some time and came at around 8pm. There was 20 minute wait and the restaurant was pretty busy. 

Ordered the peppermint hot chocolate and the OG doughnuts to share with my friend who ordered the black and tan hot chocolate. 

Our waitress was super friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable. Prior to coming, my friends warned me that the hot chocolates ran on the sweet side so I narrowed down my choices between the dark and the peppermint hot chocolate. I told the waitress my dilemma and she recommended the peppermint hot chocolate since it was less 'heavy' despite the dark hot chocolate being more popular. Glad I took her advice. I was pretty impressed when I saw one of the guests at the table next to me accidentally drop his two marshmallows and our waitress appeared with two new ones saying that he shouldn't miss out on them despite them falling on the floor. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my hot chocolate and the housemade marshmallows. As per the recommendation of my friends, I ate one and put one in the hot chocolate (as putting both may make the hot chocolate too sweet). The doughnuts were pretty good but not amazing/memorable. I did enjoy the presentation of the doughnuts on the cutting board. 

Despite Mindy's being on the pricier side (especially for a single hot chocolate for $7-10), I would definitely return for desserts and possibly dinner! I saw another table order the burger and it looked delicious. For those who love online reservations, Mindy's also has OpenTable.

Mindy's Hot Chocolate
1747 N Damen Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
773.489.1747
website

Lisa Marie :: After Dinner Cocktails and Desserts with Taylor andTiffany

Bubble Sparx ($13)

tito's vodka, chambord, and freshly squeezed lemonade topped with grasshopper wheat beer

Deep Fried Panna Cotta

Elvis in a Jar

Lisa Marie is part of the Fidel Gastro's family - Fidel Gastro's being a food truck! I've eaten at Fidel Gastro's food truck when it came on the University of Toronto's campus for the first "Food Truck Friday" in the beginning of fourth year, which was one of the catalysts that lead me to indulge in trying new restaurants and starting up this photo diary/blog! With the slight bit of shared history aside, my friends and I came to Lisa Marie after having dinner, on the hunt for some late night desserts and drinks. Surprisingly, we were having difficulty finding a restaurant that provided some sweets and fun cocktails on the fly and ended up driving back and forth on Queen Street West. We eventually stumbled into Lisa Marie after recognizing the name from a few brunch Instagram posts.

George was our waiter/bartender for the night and he was extremely attentive to our needs as a table. He came around often to refill water and to ensure the drinks and desserts were enjoyed (as he recommended them to us). 

We tried one of the sweeter drinks, Bubble Sparx. Although, it's on the sweeter end of the menu, this drink is not for the faint hearted. It's definitely stronger than it appears. Perhaps it's cause I'm not a huge drinker myself (and was mostly peer pressured into having a drink :p) so I didn't finish my drink. I felt so bad when George was concerned that I didn't like his drink and graciously brought over some lemonade to ease the process hahaha.

On the sweeter note, between the deep fried panna cotta and the Elvis in the Jar, it was a resounding vote for the panna cotta with a close second finish for Elvis. The panna cotta was light and not overly sweet with a welcomed contrasting texture of the deep fried batter. The berry dip was delicious. The deep fried panna cotta is highly recommended. The Elvis in a Jar (which helped me with the conclusion of realizing that the restaurant was named after his daughter?) is their "infamous house dessert" which included a mixture of peanut butter cream (yes), cake/bread (sorry I forgot), and two sticks of maple bacon! The peanut butter cream was definitely interesting and worth a try. One thing was that my friends and I found that it was difficult to get the "full essence" of the Elvis in the Jar cause it was a little difficult to get all the components onto a single scoop. It was much easier to just eat the dessert from the top to the bottom instead of digging for the gold that the dessert required.

As a first impression of Lisa Marie, I'm definitely glad we tried it out and I'm definitely interested in trying out their brunch menu. I'm very certain that the girls and I will be returning for brunch especially when reservations (and on OpenTable!) are allowed for brunch (super rare in Toronto). The food and drink selection is diverse and creative. The environment is fun, cool, and laid back. The service was friendly and impeccable. According to George, they also have bingo night on Tuesdays and occasionally a live band playing. Just as a warning, washrooms are interesting - and definitely is a love it or hate it scenario with all the crazy graffiti, damp floors, and steep stairs. 

Lisa Marie

638 Queen St W

Toronto, ON M6J 1B4

647.748.6822

website