Indochine Eats

On Friday, I finally wandered through The Stockyards at Keele and St. Clair. On the one hand, it's good that this industrial area has been re-developed. On the other hand, this outdoor outlet mall-esque set of shops, surrounded by multi-level parking garages, seems wastefully incongruous in Toronto's urban setting.

For lunch, I stopped at Sweet a la Mode. Donald Duong, the Vietnamese-Canadian owner and pastry chef of this spot used to run defunct Dessert Trends on Harbord St. I even had his freshly made croissants back when he had a wedding shop on Dundas St. Well, it was a good thing I stopped by today as this restaurant was closing at the end of the month for unspecified medical reasons.

I opted for a French version of the banh mi, a wild mushroom and brie baguette ($14) and a Tiramisu cup ($6.50). The baguette was rich and tasty but the decorative squirts of balsamic vinegar made it messy to hold the bread. The tiramisu was smooth and light. Bonus points: you can eat the chocolate container too. If Sweet a la Mode wasn't closing, I would certainly be back to try more dishes and maybe even their High Tea events.