Pickle Barrel… A restaurant that I’ve been to many times. Can’t even remember which location was the first one I visited. Barrel of Pickle – what an interesting name. The first few times I went, instead of “pickle”, I ordered their pastas and mussels, which were not bad, especially I found the mussels reasonable priced at that time. (Not too sure about that now.) Now, instead of the main course, I usually order their all day breakfast.
Was chatting with a friend the other day and talked about the ideal breakfast on a sunday morning. My answer was… something similar to the big breakfast from McDonald’s – should be nicer, but that’s the combination: English muffin with jam, scrambled eggs, sausage, hash browns, I can put them together as a sandwich or eat them separately. Also, a cup of apple juice please. What a nice Sunday morning… if I could lay in bed, feel the sun, listen to some songs (e.g. Cest si bon, Dans mon ile, or La vie en rose – J reminds me of that.) once in a while, it’s heaven. *Definitely need the sun… I don’t like gloomy mornings* Then, go out and walk around, or go workout. Nice.
Enough of my day-dreaming… I’m such a dreamer – not a thinker coz I don’t think I’m very logical (outside of work).
Last Friday afternoon, my colleagues and I went to the Pickle Barrel @ Markville. Just like a lot of the other smaller chain restaurants (I’m not talking about McDonald’s/KFC here), the look and feel of different locations vary. The one near Leslie/Cummer I believe is one of the earliest locations. You can see that one is frequented by a mature crowd – more elderly patrons. The food, I think is somehow tailored to their taste – very home-y, just like the one grandparents would make – usually cooked with more oil. This Markville location is “normal” – not too greasy. But when I compared the egg benedits here vs. the ones there, I could see a big difference – how they looked and how they were made. The bottom line is… they all taste good! So it’s ok. 🙂 This Markville location is modern and very mainstream… afterall it’s located inside a mall. The service was good. The food – I liked my egg benedicts – picture 4-5 (argh… maybe I was really hungry that day or… maybe I’ve been eating a lot lately *oh no!!!* I find this dish wasn’t filling enough.) The Miso Salmon Burger – last 2 pictures (Miso marinated Atlantic Salmon fillet grilled and served with a light wasabi mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion and crispy noodles on an egg sesame bun. Choice of fries or citrus and mixed nut couscous) was ok according to my colleagues. The taste was too light but the salmon fillet was huge! The other stuffs were average. You can tell it’s a fusion dish.
Originally, I didn’t plan to write about this place since I tend not to write about chain stores. However, when I look at the pictures, oh… they are just lovely and colorful. So, wanna share with you.
FYI: Pickle Barrel: Visit their website for locations and more info
Hey Marz… I have been to this particular pickle Barrel a few time already, but have only an average impression. The last time I went was about 3 weeks ago. Service was badddd! 🙁 I suspected the most likely reason was that most of the summer-jobers had gone back to school, and that forced them to train a new bunch of people again. Foods are okay. After all, Pickle is never famous for their food. It’s good that they change their image in recent years because my friends and I always associate this restaurant with old retired peoples… However, I DO miss their Chicken-in-a-pot (a Jewish dish) very much. They took it out of their new menu…. 🙁
You mean the one @ Markville right? I find the food there ok; won’t say it’s bad. The all day breakfast is comforting though. I usually go to the one @ Yorkdale or Leslie/Cummer. haha old retired people… Never tried the Chicken-in-a-pot :p
Yeah, Markville Mall…. Maybe the chef had a bad day or something…. The food we had last time weren’t that great. I guess accidents happen! 😛 I like all day breakfast! Oh, do you know any place that I can have REAL British style breakfast. Pork Sausages, bacons, Eggs, and tomato sause beams… Yummy!
i’ve been to the one in toronto a couple of times too, and i’m lovin’ it!
not sure where I can get REAL British style breakfast – if you Buqing knows, let me know 😉
mad dog, welcome to Toronto… you should come here again.