April 2013 has been a whirlwind. A trip to San Fran, Ottawa and work that kept me so busy that I almost forgot that I was chosen as this month’s Random Dinner Night host! Thanks, Linds for the gentle reminder!
What is RDN? Created by the awesome coco*a, RDN’s rules are simple:
1. The host will provide an intersection and time to meet
2. The host will lead us to a surprise dinner location of their choosing
3. Everyone will have a great time!
4. The next month’s host will be determined by draw (if available from the official RDN hat)
Not only has RDN allowed us to explore Toronto’s eclectic food scene, it has also given us something to look forward to every month of the year.
Where did I take our hungry RDNers on this occasion?
Did you know that April is National Grill Cheese Month? Wikipedia says it is! So how could I let the month pass me by without a taking my friends to my newest find Hair of the Dog and their Butter Chicken Grill Cheese Sandwich. (FTDubz!)
Hair of the Dog is a gastropub just north of Church and Carlton. We were seated on their sunny and cosy second floor and our waitress was very quick to get our drink selections.
We all started off with a beer prior to ordering.They have an interesting mixed drink called Frulirium that a few of us decided to try. It’s a mixture of Delirium and Fruli and while most of us liked it, it did remind some of us faintly of cough syrup. I went for straight Delirium which went straight to my head! At 8.5% alcohol I can see why the brand went with pink elephants.
Our meals came and were demolished quickly. I managed to snap these shots before we cleaned our plates.
I had a Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp appetizer to start. I’ve had many a bacon-wrapped thing before, from water chestnuts to hot dogs, but never shrimp. It’s so simple and very delicious:
KT’s Thai Steak Salad: While the salad part didn’t wow, the steak was perfectly done, and the star of the dish:
Vanessa’s Southern Fried Chicken looked divine. It came with a nice serving of mash potatoes, veggies and the cutest mini corn bread muffins:
And of course the delish Butter Chicken Grill Cheese Sandwich. If butter chicken were lacking in any department it would definitely be the crunchy grill cheese vehicle. Whoever thought of this combination is a genius.
Hair of the Dog is open every day of the week including Saturday and Sunday brunch. They have something called “Easy As Pie” that looks really good on their brunch menu so I’ll have to come back.
Can’t wait for next month’s RDN from Paul who has already proclaimed it to be “epic”. How could it not be with friends like these?
