Hibiscus - Part II

I'm the type of person that needs to do things when I first want to do them, otherwise, those tasks, those places to go, those foods to eat don't usually get done, seen, or eaten.  There are always exceptions to this as my heart still holds onto certain loves and desires, but that's for another post.

Anyway, back to Hibiscus.  Part one of this post was a brief post on the iced matcha latte.  I really wanted to go back to try the salad & soup combo or the buckwheat crepes.  So, the first Sat I had a chance, I was there!

The place is small, so even arriving at about 2:45pm on a Saturday, we had to wait for a table.  I didn't mind the wait but it was obvious they were definitely short staffed!

What we ordered:

Soup of the Day:  Ginger Squash

Salad:  Mix of quinoa, lentils, squash, tofu, dried cranberries, mixed greens, broccoli, shredded carrots, seaweed*, seeds and nuts, and a raw cracker.

*The clear noodle like item was crunchy so I'm guessing it is a type of seaweed.

The soup was balanced and was simple but good.  The salad with all it's components made it interesting and all the ingredients were fresh.  Dressed with a vinegarette of some sort, it was light but I didn't mind.  Maybe to some it may have needed a little bit more flavour in the dressing. It's too bad they don't have a little more selection in terms of different salad options.

Crepe:  Mozarella, spinach, mushroom buckwheat crepe.

I was quite interested to try the buckwheat crepe as this would be a first.  It is a little harder than your traditional crepes but the texture was okay and the taste of buckwheat was light.  Decent amount of fillings in the crepe and you can't go wrong with the combination!  Cheese, mushrooms, and spinach, always a winner in my books!

Dessert:  Dairy-free ice cream.  Two decent sized scoops:  pistachio and an almond chocolate.  The black sesame was on the sparse side so we decided to choose something else, it also wasn't the typical dark black colour of really good black sesame ice cream.  Maybe, if it was darker in colour, I might have been swayed.

The ice cream was good but it definitely cannot replace traditional ice cream.  Lots of nuts were added which is a bonus if you like nuts and the flavours did come through.  Interestingly, I thought the almond chocolate tasted like rum cake to me...

I quite enjoyed the meal as the food was fresh, simple, and healthy.  It also helps that I had good company! I'd definitely return for the healthy eats and relaxed atmosphere, but because of the potential wait time for a seat , it might not be the best option when you're really hungry!

Hibiscus
238 Augusta Avenue, Toronto, ON M5T 2L7
Kensington Market
416-364-6183
Hours: 11am-6pm, Closed Tues