Hello and Happy New Year! Here’s hoping that 2019 is a good year for all.
The holiday season is extra special for us because there are, not one, but, two birthdays to celebrate in there, in addition to all the other good stuff.
(My man Nick’s birthday came first. Unfortunately, he was sick on the day, so we kept it quiet with gifts and cake at home and a promise to go out for a nice dinner once he was feeling better. It was one of those lingering colds that’s just clearing up now, so we still haven’t made it out for that, but we will.)
The second important birthday person in our lives is our dear friend Julie. She and I went to a restaurant that neither of us had been to before, where we had a delicious meal accompanied by a nice relaxed stretch of time to talk. It was great!
Rosalinda is a Mexican restaurant in Toronto, located at 133 Richmond Street near University Avenue, which comes with a “not easily noticed from appearance” surprise … it is completely vegan.
Before you have a chance to think, “Well, I’ll just stop reading now because I’m not vegan”, please hold on, because neither are we! That didn’t stop us from enjoying every bit of our experience at this beautiful place. And now, I’m glad to have a place to recommend and go to with our vegetarian friends.
We began with cocktails, a Margarita for Julie and a Polo Loco for me, which was reminiscent of Rum and Eggnog with the eggnog replaced with horchata which is a Mexican drink made from rice.
↑ To eat shared a plate of “Veggie Fritters with a tamarind-ancho dipping sauce.” ↑
↑ Julie chose the “Crispy tofu and Rice Bowl, with salsa macha, edamame, seaweed, avocado and chipotle-lime vinaigrette.” ↑
↑ I had the “Mushroom Pozole Bowl, with pasilla, hominy, nappa cabbage and onion.” ↑
↑ I’d mentioned we were celebrating a birthday when I’d made the reservation, so Julie’s dessert came aptly presented. Actually, we shared the Spice Churros with cinnamon sugar and chocolate banana caramel, and also shared a piece of Tres Leches Cake with grilled pineapple, mezcal caramel & coconut cream. ↑
All the delicious food was brought to us by a charming server, and was had in the loveliest of settings. We were there on one of the shortest days of the year, so it was completely dark outside, in addition to being drizzly, but I can imagine how beautiful this grand room must look when it’s still light out, with its long wall of windows facing the setting sun. I’ll definitely have to go back sometime to see that.
Thanks for reading, xo loulou
