Hawker Bar (permanently closed) and Yogurty’s

I have a confession to make.  Each time I go with a food trippin’ with TitaFlips a.k.a Diona Joyce, we almost always end up trying two restaurants in one outing.  We never really plan on being that indulgent but it seemed to me, when there was no devil’s advocate to stop eating, Diona and I would always be doubling the fun at each food trippin’ that we do.  Last Wednesday ended up that way (again!) when we visited Hawker’s Bar.  We only planned to try Singaporean street food after Diona closed Kanto.  But because we set out to be adventurous with our choices of food, we had the perfect excuse to visit Yogurty’s too.

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While waiting for Diona finish  and close Kanto, I was snacking on my favorite lechon kawali.  I should have not done that but ah well, my resistance was non-existent while I sat there and be subjected to the smells of Diona’s food.  Since I know that Hawker’s Bar were tapas-like in size and some of the dishes were meant for snacking, I didn’t really mind.  Best of both worlds, always worked for me.

It was surprisingly easy to find parking when we got to Ossington and to be close to the restaurant was a big plus as the weather was bitingly cold.  Walking in, I liked the coziness of the choice of hardwood bar tables and trunk stump bar stools.  Most of the tables were already occupied with earlier patrons.  I have seen images of Hawker’s Bar Menu, which was handwritten on a corrugated board.  It was said this was to pay homage to the street vendors of Singapore.  (Note to self:  This coming summer, my family planned to converge and have a reunion at Singapore.  I have to ask my sister Ishy to get me to a legit Singaporean street food vendor).

Looking over the menu, I decided to try Son-In-Law Eggs and Chili Salt Tofu while Diona opted for Singaporean noodles.  When the food arrived, we were instructed to eat the eggs with one bite as the egg was soft-boiled.  I did exactly as what I was told and was rewarded with a burst of creaminess in my mouth.  The chili salt tofu was best eaten drizzled with lime and made to sit a minute to let the citrus soak in.  As we waited for that to happen, I tried Diona’s Singaporean noodles and was that mighty spicy.  I have really been losing my tolerance for spicy dishes when I left GlaxoSmithKline.  No more regular biryani’s and samosas to practice on.  I was staggering the noodles and the chili tofu to give myself relief from the heat.  The chili tofu had the element of heat on its own but its soft silken center toned it down as you bite each cube.  The chili salt tofu was my favorite of the night.  I could literally eat another plate of it as it was surprisingly packed with flavor at each bite.  Finishing the meal as much as I could, I know I have to find a way to cool me down.  Diona came up with the idea to go to a gelato or ice cream store.  Might seem weird to eat ice cream when the night is so cold, but was really utmost necessary at the time (insert big convincing smile + batting eyelashes here…LOL.).

Nearest one we could find along our way home was Yogurty’s at Bathurst and Bloor.  The restaurant was brightly lit beckoning you to go inside.  It was surely made to cater to someone with a big sweet tooth.  Rows and rows of toppings were available for toppings and the same could be said with the variety of frozen yogurt.  The place was set for self-serving, allowing customers to come up with their creations to pacify their sweet cravings.  I am not too adventurous with sweets so I kept my recipe conservative, my frozen yogurt of vanilla and pistachio and topped it with Butterfinger bits and red velvet brownie cubes.  My creation looked so sedate beside Diona’s as she piled it up with gummies, lychee balls, M&Ms, chocolate marsmallows, chocolate shavings and brownies on three different frozen yogurt flavors.  LOL.  Before driving home, I took several spoonfuls and I could feel my tummy cool down.  See?  Wasn’t that a good justification for eating frozen yogurt?