Hey Meatball - Toronto

Date: 6 November 2013



4 - 6 November was my hell week (my workweek is only three day long but you could put another day in there as I had to pack for my US trip and I hate packing). To celebrate my temporary exit from hell, I went to have really photogenic meatball spaghetti with my awesome Swiss friend, Alexia.



I've totally just discovered the stone/concrete robot as I think about what caption to write. Perfect.



Hey Meatball has a chalkboard sign on which they write/draw random funny things. Exploring the shop's Instagram geotag page, previous jokes include IT'S BALL-O-WEEN for Halloween and EVEN MILEY COULDN'T WRECK THESE BALLS with a wrecking ball doodle (referring to my guilty pleasure - Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus). On our day of visit, it was poking fun at the Toronto Mayor Rob Ford who had admitted to cocaine use.



Hey Meatball is a farm-to-table restaurant, all the ingredients they use are natural and are sourced within a 100 miles radius. I always appreciate it when restaurants use good ingredients. After all, you are what you eat. One point to note, this menu seems to be less flexible than the online menu? I guess you can always customise.



I do! I do!



Lemon sodas. Alexia was disappointed because it was supposed to come in a jar as shown on the website. Instead they served tap water in a jar... Well, at least this plastic cup could hold more soda than the tiny jar.



Annoying Orange, I've forgot about you already.



I had Spaghetti with Pork + Beef Balls with Tomato Sauce and Cheese.



I like the texture of the spaghetti, it was slightly flat and very dense. I was so full half-way through my pasta I added spicy salsa/preserve/hot sauce for some kick. There were three levels of heat, ranging from no heat to Oh God, which is what I had obviously. It was very spicy but it definitely made the dish and helped me to eat more.



Alexia had Polenta with Braised Rib, Sausage, Pork and Beef Ball with Bolognese Sauce. I stole a forkful of the braised rib and it was so tender, "fall-out-of-the-bone" tender. It was my first time eating polenta, not usually a fan of corn-based products (I love sweet corn though, I eat it straight from the tin), it was like mashed potato.


Rating: 4/5

Food: Who'd have thought meatball spaghetti could be this tasty? Confessedly I think I'm pretty good at cooking pasta, but I know I couldn't cook what I had here at Hey Meatball. Everything was fresh, the meatballs were cooked and seasoned to perfection, the sauce was delicious. I want to go back but there's simply too many places to try out before I leave Toronto! :(

Environment: Cool decor with a big open kitchen. I like the red chairs together with the wood tables, very simple but effective. The restaurant was a bit dark though that's why we chose to sit by the windows.

Service: It's a fast causal restaurant. You'd have to order at the counter. They'd take your name and call you by your name when your order's ready. There's limited service but the folks behind the counter/in the kitchen were all friendly. I like how they called you by your name instead of your order out loud. It's always better to be known as yourself than the girl who ordered meatball spaghetti...

Price: $15 for a massive plate of pasta made with good natural ingredients and heart, along with a big cup of natural lemon soda. Though Hey Meatball is self-service, I thought it was almost a bargain because you could taste the freshness of the ingredients. I have been long deprived of affordable fresh food in Hong Kong.


Hey Meatball
719 College Street
Toronto, ON
M6G 3C1
Canada

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