June 2014 – Tiana Feng

Tony Moly- Egg Pore Shiny Skin Soap

June 30, 2014Beauty, ShoppingLeave a Comment

My latest addition to my Tony Moly collection is this Egg Pore Shiny Skin soap. These came in an adorable egg-carton like package.

The eggs come in white and brown. The white is for day and the brown is for night. There aren’t English instructions on the package and searching online has a few variation of uses. You can use these as normal face soaps (just lather and rinse). However, I like to use them like a mask. I lather and leave them on for 10-15 minutes before washing off. The brown one is a bit stronger so it doesn’t need to be left on as long.

After using them for a month, I have noticed that my pores are a bit smaller, and my skin looks smoother. The soaps are not recommended for sensitive skin as they can be very drying at first. A good moisturiser after washing is a must.

When I first started using these, I broke out a little bit, but that is a result of all the deep dirt coming to the surface. After a while, my skin is looking great. The soaps look like they will last a long time too.

You can also watch my first impressions in this video.

Barkbox- June 2014

June 29, 2014Pets, Shopping3 Comments

Another month, another Barkbox! I think I’m just as excited as Teddy to see what goodies are inside.

These Healthy Dogma Banana Chips ($7.95) look just like the human kind. They are grain and gluten free. Unfortunately, Teddy is strangely allergic to bananas so we will be giving this to another dog friend. I wish there was an option on Barkbox to mention allergies/sensitivities. Bananas are the only food we’ve ever seen him have a problem with.

The other snack in the box was the Primal Freeze-dried Beef Liver treats ($5). Teddy is absolutely in love with these.

One of the best part of Barkbox is there careful consideration of quality toys. This frog from Pet Qwerks is so adorable!

By far the best item in this Barkbox was this Baboon butt from Silly Bums ($20). It’s hilariously random but Teddy hasn’t stopped playing with it since. It squeaks and crinkles. It’s more durable than it looks at first glance.

Want to join Barkbox? Use our link http://ruv.barkbox.com/x/beaUr6 and get 10% off!

Bar Neon

June 28, 2014Food, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a Comment

Bar Neon is a comfy tapas place on Bloor between Dufferin and Lansdowne. We walked in not knowing what to expect prior to the visit. I ordered a fruity drink (forgot what was in it) and Nash had an Old Fashioned.

The first item I ordered was the Fried Calamari ($8), which came in a generous portion and was nicely seasoned.

I also had the Lamb Chop. It was tender and delicious, I just wished there was more of it!

Nash had a classic burger and feta fries which were very addictive.

Bar Neon’s food was tasty, just keep in mind that it is a tapas restaurant so most of the dishes are small. The atmosphere is very laid-back and easygoing and they also have a big projector playing the World Cup games!

The Steady Cafe & Bar

June 22, 2014Food, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a Comment

We were having dinner with a vegan, so we decided to look up a place that served both meat and vegan options. Toronto has a variety of creative options, so I figured that it wouldn’t be a bad idea and we ended up at The Steady. There were a lot of gluten free options, but I wish there was the option to have ALL THE GLUTEN. For instance, the fish tacos ($7) I ordered, came out a weird unappetizing cardboard colour. The shell itself was hard and dry. It was unfortunate because the fish inside it was actually quite good.
Thankfully, I also ordered the Tequila Pine Burgerette ($7) with tequila glazed pineapple, apple slaw, and spicy mayo. It was tasty but I wished it was more than just a burgerette.

The others at the table tried the Portobello Pot Pie ($7), sweet potato skins and tostadas. The pot pie wasn’t worth the price as it was puny and contained what looked like frozen vegetables. My friends thought the tostadas were much better than my tacos (and were also gluten free). The loaded baked potato skin was less a skin and more of a baked sweet potato with beans.

There are a lot of great restaurants for vegan/vegetarian eats in Toronto but this is one that I don’t think I will be coming back to.

Fried Shrimp and Friendship @ Farmer’s Daughter

June 14, 2014Food, Restaurant Reviews2 Comments

Farmer’s Daughter near Junction may be one of my favourite new eats. The seafood restaurant is the “daughter” of Farmhouse Tavern which is located right across the street. I haven’t actually been to the tavern yet, but I’m sure that will change soon! The daughter restaurant is still fairly new and open only for brunch and dinner on certain days.

The slogan “Fried shrimp and friendship” is plastered on their signage outside and on a neon sign inside. Obviously, we had to try the fried shrimp ($9). I totally felt where their slogan came from. The shrimp was so good I wanted to hog them to myself, but I love Nash enough that I would share. You would only share these shrimp with a good friend.

The Heart N Soul ($12) was a beautiful beef tartare with salsa verde served on a beef bone with goat cheese, an egg and more.

The Octopus ($20) had a squid ink vinaigrette, sunchokes, a creamy sauce and more. There was a lovely crunch paired with tender octopus. I loved that the ink wasn’t just for aesthetic but a part of the complex flavours.

I had an (alcoholic) drink but I forgot what it was. It was a rather tasty cocktail that I believe was apple tinged.

Since dinner was amazing, we couldn’t resist finding out what the $6 desserts where. There were two that night and we ordered BOTH because YOLO. Anyways, the first was an icecream sandwich made out of ginger cookies and chocolate mousse icecream.

The second was a homemade lemon rhubarb twinkie with homemade marshmallow. Let’s just say we were very glad to have ordered both desserts.

We hope Farmer’s Daughter changes their menu up once in a while (there menu was relatively small) but I can’t wait to come back for brunch and see what else they have to offer.

I Went on a Food Field Trip

June 12, 2014June 12, 2014Food, Snacks, Street1 Comment

Last week I attended Field Trip Music Festival for both days and since I wasn’t shooting it, I got to enjoy the music and of course, eat my way around. Here are some photos (from my camera and phone) of most of the things I tried.

Reuben Sandwich and Fried Mac n’ Cheese Balls from Food Dudes.

Seared Ahi Tuna and Octopus tacos from Buster’s Sea Cove.

A popsicle from Augie’s Ice Pops.

5 Cheese + Mushroom and Butter Chicken Hot Bunzz

Iced Coffee from Detour Coffee, which used to be the Manual Labour Coffee truck!

Fusion Pierogis from Saucy Pierogi.

Margherita Pizza from Bread Heads

“The Canadian” meat pie from Kanga

Mojito gelato fom Boreal Gelato

Bubble Cake with Icecream from Penny Lou Lou

In conclusion, the food was delicious and oh yeah, there was some awesome music too but I’ll talk about that somewhere else.

New Projects- SOCAN

June 7, 2014Life1 Comment

Hi everyone! I didn’t have much time to blog last week because I’ve been adjusting to a new work schedule. For the next four months, I have joined SOCAN as their New Media Specialist. I love the team I work with.

This week we launched the 2014 SOCAN Songwriting Prize. Until July 3rd, fans can vote for their favourite song of the nominees and enter for a chance to win a SONOS Wireless sound system. Nominees include PUP, Alejandra Ribera, Wake Owl, July Talk and Louise Burns. Go listen to all the songs because they’re all great and cover a variety of different styles. Let me know who you’d vote for.

Rose City Kitchen

June 1, 2014June 1, 2014Food, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a Comment

Easy lunch breaks and pre-concert hunger brought me into Queen West’s Rose City Kitchen a couple of times. The snack bar serves fresh sandwiches served in a half-cut pita bread. It is recommended that you get more than one each time if you are hungry, or at least one of the available sides. Sandwiches are only $5 each, so ordering multiple won’t hurt the wallet too much. Pictured above is the Greek sandwich with chicken. The ingredients include tzatziki, cucumber, red onions, tomatoes, lettuce, oregano, garlic oil and haloumi cheese. It was very flavourful and I loved the haloumi. Everything tastes very fresh as it’s all made to order. Be prepared to wait at least 10 minutes for food though, so it doesn’t work well if you are looking for something super quick.

Sorry for the ugly photo, but this was the Egyptian I ordered one day for lunch take out. In it was eggplant, red onions, chickpeas, dates, cabbage, lemon juice and garlic oil. Of the two sandwiches I’ve tried so far, I enjoyed the flavour combination of this the most.

Just because sandwiches are the main focus, doesn’t mean their sides weren’t worth trying. These home fries were crispy and generously seasoned. It is guaranteed that if you eat one, you will be addicted!