It really is pretty remarkable just how many options exist in our fair city for global cuisine. We…read morewalked into La Pasiva around lunchtime on a weekday and were greeted warmly in a language that I absolutely do not speak. It was pretty great. After perusing the lengthy menu, we decided to share a couple of things: Our first item was a plate consisting of two hot dogs wrapped in ham and smothered in cheese atop a fairly substantial pile of french fries. This is certainly an interesting dish that would have easily been enough food for us. The cheese wasn't super hot by the time we got the plate, unfortunately, and the hot dog probably could've used some kind of sauce to cut through the saltiness of the wiener and the ham. Still, I can't say I didn't enjoy eating this and the kid in me would've loved it. We also got a dish that contained a salad with balsamic dressing, a pile of potato salad, and a thinly-cut piece of steak with a fried egg placed on top. This was definitely the clear-cut winner between the two plates of food, as the steak was tender and delicious and certainly improved by the aforementioned egg. The salad was also quite good, but the potato salad was much, much better. It was actually one of the better potato salads I've eaten in a while (and I don't know that I've ever eaten one where the potatoes were cut in small cubes). La Pasiva is definitely worth a visit if you're in the mood for trying something quite different from the norm.

Tasty food. It was my first time having Uruguayan cuisine, so I didn't know what to expect. I had…read morethe Chivito here, and it was quite nice! Generous fillings and lots of potato salad to accompany the sandwich. The price came to $20, which is a little pricy, but I still enjoyed my experience.

Full disclosure - we had already eaten lunch and only had one little thing - but it was so…read moredelicious that it deserves the full five stars. They were these sweet yellow corn fritters - and I can't remember what they were called. So simple and so good. See the photo, then go there and try them.

Review for one thing and one thing only- The Empanadas!!…read more Now Empanadas is a hard thing to review because different parts of south america have different styles to how its made. In this food court alone- you will find El Salvadorian , Colombian and this stand which makes my favorite ones - Ecuadorian. Not to take away from the Colombian styled empanadas that come in a corn and yellow shell. I love them as well. However this lady in this booth makes these fresh empanadas every weekend and they are so crunchy in the exterior but stuffed well inside. At $2 a pop. Cant go wrong!

Not a bad spot for dinner…read more I pass this place often on the way to work and I was taken in by the bright sign and the promise of good Colombian food, which I've never had. Note, this isn't the place to hit if you're in a rush or super duper hungry. Everything takes a while, from getting your drinks, to your food, to your bill. The Hubster ordered the Pechuga a la Cazuela con Arroz, Papas Fritas y Ensalada, which was chicken in a wine sauce with rice and fries. He really really enjoyed this. I ordered the Bandeja Colombiana which was a couple strips of steak, one strip of pork belly, a Colombian sausage, a fried egg on rice and plantains, avocado and salad. The meat was kind of overcooked. The steak was chewy and the pork belly was just hard. It was tough to eat. The flavour was there, though. The rice was great, as was the sausage.The beans were INCREDIBLE. The salad on both our meals was kind of wilty and the iceberg lettuce variety. All in all, it wasn't anything super special, but the portions were very good for the price. I'd be inclined to go back and check it out again.

Best Colombian food in the GTA. Since 2014. Too bad they moved to that hole plus Corona hit but…read morethis is the best Colombian Chef in the GTA.

. After a very long wait, the newly opened TTC Line 5 was finally there. I just wanted to hop on…read morethe Line 5 train and see where it could take us. Rincón Paisa already had many positive reviews on major platforms. Plus, I had never had Colombian food . On the storefront, a worker happened to see me taking photos outside and kindly welcomed me to take more. My family and I went into the restaurant. There were many signs showing it is an authentic one: 1. The indoor decoration has a strong Latin American vibe -- wooden furniture, flowers, Latin music, etc. 2. Couldn't understand anything on the menu 3. All customers and workers spoke in Spanish We were there to have brunch. I don't recall exactly which dishes we ordered that day; however, we were super full! The portions of their meals are huge. All the things on the plate were tasty. There were many different ingredients on the plate: plantain, eggs, chorizo, fried pork belly, ground beef, avocado, rice, beans, etc. A very good deal. We might have seemed too unfamiliar with the food, because I didn't even know how to eat Empanadas. After I ordered an Empanada and let the servers in the restaurant watch me eat it awkwardly, a server who I guessed might be the owner treated us to two pastries -- one looked like a ball, and the other was flat bread. I looked them up by AI, and they should be Buñuelo and Almojábana, two cheese pastries from Colombia. I hope it's appropriate, but Buñuelo may be the most delicious cheese bread I've ever had -- it's tastier than the main dishes . I think it's a beautiful local business. If you're curious and haven't had Colombian food before, definitely give it a shot .

HIDDEN GEM ALERT!!! Was walking around the block to kill some time before an appointment and…read moredecided to pop in because I've never had Colombian food before. I ended up grabbing some empanadas and holy shit these are tasty. They were so fresh and crispy, I got one chicken and potato empanada and one cheese. The chicken one was wrapped in a corn dough and the cheese one was flour I think but both were really, really good-- and cheap! $2.50 per any flavor. They have tamales here too, I'd like to come back to try them. The interior is also very clean and the decor is so cute. Guy with the tattoos and stretched ears at the front was also really nice. I wish I had more time to try a dish!! I saw other peoples' food and it looked so tasty. Great portions and beautiful dinnerware as well. Will definitely be back and highly recommend for a quick bite :)

They get 2.5 stars…read more Bandeja paisa: steak was decent, crackling was so-so (pretty crispy but not that moist or flavourful). Sausage tasted decent but slightly dry. Egg was a bit overdone & arepa was decent though somewhat crispy  Beans were decent. Plantain was so-so (not crispy or sweet). Pork tenderloin was pretty tasty but tough & dry especially for a tenderloin. Rice was decent, with a slight flavour, but a bit mushy. Plantain was crispy. The restaurant interior was decorated quite nicely but was very warm (in summer) & service was disorganised & some servers didn't speak English well so communication was sometimes difficult. I asked if the pork tenderloin had a sauce; they said no but it came with a tomato & peppers sauce. They also billed me wrongly.

Incredibly delicious food, authentically Colombian, big portions, and amazing value for money. The…read moreseafood dishes are filled with various different kinds of high-quality seafood to the brim (more protein than rice). All the staff are so friendly - from the waitstaff to the chefs / owners and kitchen staff, everyone in the restaurant seems to exhibit the Latin American hospitality and friendliness. The place feels homey, cozy, and festive with the music in the background (from the TV screen on the wall), and big photos depicting different places in Colombia along the wall. Ambience is very laid-back and casual, with amazing food that tastes homemade and authentic. It took a while for the food to cook and come out (about 40 minutes) - mostly because of the Cazuela de Mariscos (seafood soup) that took the longest to cook. It was also during a very busy time on a weekend. They seemed to have a constant flow of incoming catering and take-out orders (a good sign), and the restaurant itself was packed. All / most mains come with coconut rice, salad, and tostones (fried plantains). As for drinks, you can order freshly squeezed juices in either water or milk. We ordered the fresh strawberry & blackberry juice in water, as the one in milk would make it more like a smoothie. Each juice order comes in a jug (whether it be a small or large jug). This came as a surprise to us - really good value for such a large volume of juice ($6 for a whole "small" jug that turned out to be quite big, enough to refill each glass a few times for 2 people). The juice itself tasted fresh, natural, and refreshing. Dishes that we tried: 1) Filete de Tilapia con Camarones (grilled tilapia fish fillet & shrimps with coconut rice, plantain, and salad) - Big pieces of fish and lots of small shrimps, in a very delectable sauce. 2) Arroz Marinero (seafood rice with plantain & salad) - Loved this dish. The rice was a bit soupy which I liked. It was a bit like a soupy paella (including the rice) - very delicious and packed with various kinds of seafood. 3) Cazuela de Mariscos (seafood soup with coconut rice, plantain, and salad) - Very creamy soup, like a chowder. I'm not a big fan of chowders / cream-based soups in general, but others liked it and said this was good. 4) SIDE: Ensalada (House Salad) 5) Arepa de Chocolo con Queso (sweet corn dough with cheese) All of the main dishes were EXCELLENT - loved the mixed seafood (fish fillet, shrimps, octopus, squid, etc.). There was so much seafood in every dish. In most places, you get more carbs / rice compared to the protein. Here, it was the opposite. The coconut rice was a bit dry but it's decent - good to soak up the sauces of the main dishes. The salad is just shredded cabbage and carrot with big sliced tomato. I was a big fan of the salad dressing (some creamy mayo-like dressing), but luckily the dressing was only at the top of the salad (the bottom part of the salad remained fresh and crunchy, which I liked). We ordered the Arepa de Chocolo con Queso for to go. It was different than the Venezuelan arepa that I'm used to. The Colombian arepa seemed to be sweeter and more buttery. It probably would've been better if it was eaten right after it was freshly made, and while it was still warm. There was a lot of cheese in the arepa, giving it a nice salty and savoury contrast to the sweet corn dough. After you're done the meal, you go up to the counter to pay (instead of having the bill brought to your table). Great food overall - I would not hesitate to come back.

So so so soooooo good and in my personal opinion better than their competition!!!…read more I would highly recommend coming here their pupusas are insane!!!!

compre 10 pupusas revueltas para llevar hoy agosto 27 2024 a la 7:00pm. Las pupusas estaban con mal…read moresabor como a aceite rancio no pude ni comer la mitad de una, tan mal sabian. pague $62 más taxes, por ese precio se esperaria una buena calidad. Este lugar tenia buena reputacion y calidad, pero ya no mas. Trate de hablar con la encargada y la persona que contesto el teléfono no le dio importancia diciendo que la dueña no se encontraba.

So far, this is the only one that has fully met my expectations in every aspect of satisfaction…read more The interior is cozy and charming, the service is excellent, and the menu offers a great variety. The food--oh my, the flavors and presentation are outstanding. Please go there; you will not be disappointed!

Definite recommend! I ordered the Maracuya drink and pork chop milanesa plate. the address was…read morelisted wrong it's on finch and milvan. 2481 Finch Ave. West

Aquarela Restaurant was absolutely not on my radar at all, but when the suggestion was made to…read morecheck out a joint specializing in authentic Caribbean food, I had absolutely no choice but to say yes. We arrived in the small, unassuming plaza in which Aquarela is located at around noon on a recent Saturday, and after attempting to find the entrance and walking up the very sketchy stairs, we made our way into the restaurant. Even though we were welcomed in, it didn't seem like they were expecting any customers that early, as many of the chairs were still up on tables and there were people making deliveries and setting things up for the duration of our meal. The fairly unpleasant ambiance proved to be completely irrelevant once we received our food, however. We had decided to share a couple of items, the Mofongo ("Deep fried plantains mashed with a house garlic sauce & chicharron de puerca. Served with your choice of meat.") and the Pollo Al Cibao ("Stewed chicken, reduced to a fine sauce, served with rice and your choice of tostones or beans."), although we certainly weren't expecting such huge portions. (Honestly, one of these dishes probably would've been enough.) I absolutely have to single out the Mofongo. I've never eaten anything quite like it before, and it's absolutely incredible. It's got this really deep, pronounced garlic flavor that's nothing short of irresistible, while the various delicious accompanying components only enhance the experience. The Pollo Al Cibao is perhaps not quite as memorable, but it's nevertheless a top-tier stew that I could've eaten all day. I can't really see myself eating inside Aquarela again, but I'd be more than happy (and excited) to grab takeout someday.

Aquarela Restaurant just looks so dark from the outside, and trust me it is much darker in the…read moreinside. Having a drink here with the loud Latin beat music from a Live DJ does make me feel I am back on an Caribbean Island somewhere.. Unfortunately the beers here are limited to "Canadian Domestic" and Corona or Heineken. And I could not find my Caribe for 99 cents each! Aquarela aside from being a neighbourhood watering hole, it also serves authentic Dominican & Latin American Cuisine. We shared: Tostones ($3.50) - soft and moist and addictive Chivo a la Monte Cristi ($11.50) - Stewed Goat in an Oregano Sauce made to a taste of Monte Cristi Served with Rice - Goat is soft and tender and the seasoning is really subtle without being overpowering - A popular dish in Northern part of Dominican Mofongo ($11.50) - Deep Fried Plantains Mashed with a House Garlic Sauce and Chicharron de Puerco Served with A Choice of Meat - Served in a pilon (wooden Mortar) is really nicely presented - The shrimp is on the smallish side but I do love the mushiness of the plantains and the sausage gives it an extra bite and the smokey taste Watching reruns of the Blue Jays 1993 final games when they won the World Series while dining was just a really strange experience for me... But it can be worse, watching reruns of the Leafs 1967 when they won their last Stanley Cup! Here at Aquarela, one can find a taste of the Caribbean. Warm hospitality, loud music, good food. If you prefer a more family environment, they do opens during lunch..

I knew the Downsview Merchant Market had an international food court, but I didn't know they also…read morehad food stalls outside where the other merchants were. This is one of those stalls. It's down row 7, if I recall correctly. They do have a couple of tables outside where you can sit, but brought our food back to the food court and ordered stuff from other stalls too! This is where I had my first tamale and the best pupusa I've ever had, not that I have that much experience with pupusas. The tamale was $2.50 and had chicken in it. The corn dough portion was slightly fluffy and very tender. I thought it'd be chewier. It did have a nice corn flavor though. The chicken was a nice addition, but the chili sauce was what made everything better. We had to wait 10 minutes for our pupusas because unlike the tamales, these were made to order. They were also $2.50 each and had cheese, pork, and beans inside. We ordered two. I left my dad to wait for them and went to the food court to get other food. When I came back for my dad, I found out he had already eaten one of the pupusas. Wow. My mom and I split the other one. I was sorely tempted to get more because they were so good! Super savory and hearty and comforting. A tad too salty for me, but not salty enough for me to stop eating. The man inside was really friendly and helpful explaining everything to us. Amusingly enough, he called my dad, 'papi'. Cute of him. This isn't exactly close to home, but I want to come back. Until then, I'll dream of pupusas.