Out & About #583 | Weekly Roundup: The Return of Smile Cookies

9/22/2019

A prominent portion of my childhood was characterized by Tim Hortons, or, more specifically, the items that I obtained via the Drive-Thru window. Comprising of my regular orders were Iced Capps, Yogurt cups with berries, and Fruit Explosion Muffins. Some months were dictated by Roll-Up-The-Rim, and other instances limited-time offers. The Smile Cookie was one of them.

It still is, to be frank. I love them dearly.
And how could you not? They're a fun, adorable twist on a classic - a decadent dollar treat with all proceeds going towards a charitable cause that's frosted fresh every day. Each cookie proves a unique surprise on its own.

As evident on this space, the Canadian cafe ranks near the bottom on my list of go-to spots. However, its status as a national favourite doesn't change. Throughout our Atlantic trip, which occurred around this time last year, these outposts were the only that emerged to be familiar. Even where McCafés were nowhere to be found, even when network signal was unavailable, and even when all other forms of life ceased to exist, Tim Hortons stood their ground. It just so happened that Smile Cookies were being circulated over the duration of our visit, reigniting my affection for the chuckle-inducing commodity.

Tim Hortons' Innovation Café at 130 King St. opted to kick off the annual launch with a bang: Custom Smile Cookies officially made their debut with the assistance of a few professional cookie frosters. The event was a one-day exclusive, and me - being just as fond of exclusivity as orangecane, didn't give the twenty-minute trek a second thought.

Dragging my favourite fangirl along, we found the cookie counter at northwest end of the establishment, made our two-dollar donations, and patiently waited for our chosen designs to materialize.
A poster positioned adjacent to the counter depicted twenty pre-determined possibilities, though customers also had the option of requesting a customized rendition. Monsieur Timothee was my favourite fangirl's pick; mine was the Studious Rocker - a piece that I had described to the baker with minimal adjectives, including only "glasses", "spiky hair", and "blush spots" as features.

The cookies were priced twice as much as the regular edition, but the products we received were well worth the premium, should you ask me. The clarity of the overall designs was indisputable - a sharp contrast to the questionably content expressions seen on the regular.

Our office later welcomed a box of gooey, warm Smile Cookies (not courtesy of yours truly).

Resuming our regular segment of visuals is a snapshot of my abnormally peaceful Saturday morning: a breakfast of a Matcha Latte and Ancient Porridge Oats (And yes, that is ice in the bowl, since scalded tongues are no fun.)

2) A Salmon Set from Mac's Sushi - single-handedly the best stop for quality sushi, friendly service, and optimal freshness.

3) Commencing the week with Strange Love's infamous Lovers Latte - pictured at varying temperature levels due to an order entry error on my part. Nonetheless, both were fabulous.

4) A seasonal Iced Maple Matcha Espresso from Hestia obtained as part of Ritual's $1 Food Fest that boasted balanced flavours but otherwise indiscernible notes of maple.

5) Descending concrete stairs in a daze somehow resulted in a sprained ankle, which consequently reduced my attainable range during limited lunch hours. An extremely leisurely stroll about the waterfront was made in place of my typical trips to the downtown core.

Sightings of plush beavers were made within the Pier 6 building - ridiculously fitting for our local BeaverTails/souvenir shop.

Brock St. Brewery in Whitby is next on the breweries-to-visit list.

6) More Smile Cookies were acquired throughout the week, some meltier than others.

Behold the "Joker".

(Apparently Pinkberry carries bubble tea now...)

This one's not too bad right?

7) Lahuna Poke

The King West poke stop convenient coordinates within the Brookfield-Union tunnel essentially ensures constant flow in traffic. Feeding Ritual rewards into the equation yields preposterously busy lunch peaks. Viewed from the shop exterior, the cashier appeared relatively unoccupied, however mobile orders were flying in on a sunny Thursday.

The Crunchy Bowl, the only item included as part of the $1 Food Fest, was an average-tasting compilation of a salmon poke bowl. Protein chunks were unseasoned and of a puny portion; sauces made up the majority of the bowl's flavour profile. The overall combination of elements wasn't bad, though nor was it innovative (with the exception of white tobiko). If not mistaken though, I did appreciate that its base of short-grain, white rice retained faint hints of being tossed in rice wine vinegar.

8) ToPresso

The Liberty Square plaza at Hwy 7 and Town Centre Blvd isn't particularly known for having original business ideas, but, alas, its prime location guarantees a steady flow of traffic, in spite of the nightmarish parking situation (both garage and ground-level). I've visited this corner of Markham on several occasions: Tendou (now Pâtisserie Kirin), dessert kitchen, miss lin, and OneZo, growing increasingly dubious about the rotating assortment of offerings each time. Even Miss Lin the second time around was outright depressing.

That said, nothing but good words have been circulating about ToPresso, the commercial tower's most recent newcomer. With a BOGO coupon in hand - and circumstances demanding caffeine refuel - I took to the ten-seater for their Almond Cream Cold Brew, the apparent fan favourite.

It was smooth, and of a substantial portion as well. Although, at a whopping $6.10 after taxes, I can't quite justify the full price of the beverage. 20 ounces of creamy nuttiness was a solid pick-me-up, though potency was on the lower end of the spectrum.

An interesting point to note was the presentation of the menu: the in-store version supported listings in English and Korean, while the promotional flyers and coupons in English and Simplified Chinese. The reasoning behind this language preference remains unknown to me, but perhaps it was executed in attempt to pay homage to its origins while catering to the surrounding demographic.

The café witnesses unthinkably high volumes around the typical 10 AM coffee break, however, it transforms into (reverts to?) a tranquil work area once the crowds disperse back to their respective work locations. Windows extending towards the ceiling permit plentiful natural illumination, emitting a sense of nostalgia. The presence of artificial potted plants and an installment of false white roses amidst brick finishing and wooden accents was a cool contrast. A stable, password-secured Internet connection was another wonderful addition to the mellow atmosphere.

Temporarily placing aside sightings of mini flies and crawling beetles, I quite enjoyed my time here, along with the azure-toned straws. In regards to their range of beverages - and the new Walnut Cheese Bagel and Maple Syrup Cheese Bagel additions - I must admit that I retain my reservations, especially at such steep price points.

Washrooms are located on the ground floor of the building, outside the establishment itself.

9) Pumpkin Ale is apparently a thing. Apparently, so are spooky edition brews. And I'm all for it.
10) Attempts to source the exclusive London Fog from DAVIDsTEA and Beau's Brewery returned fruitless. I shall have my hands on the seasonal Earl Grey Latte Ale next week, but, for now, I'll settle for drowning my sorrows in a leaning tower of Vanilla Soft Serve - no longer only a loonie.

11) I swung by the Dragon Lion Dance Festival at Celebration on a particularly scorching Saturday afternoon.

Majority of the non-food vendors were of zero interest to me - politics- and religion-related topics were the focus of southeast corner. There were a few interesting offerings from award-winning food truck Los Vietnamita, First Markham Place's Eggette Hut, as well as Mississauga's very own Ice Q, though prices were steep, failing to reflect their portion size.

I didn't stick around long enough to catch the Lion Dance at 2 PM, however I did chance across the intriguing craft of sugar art.

12) Sikgaek is almost synonymous with Korean comfort food at this point. Oh, and makgeolli cravings too.

13) Forgotten photos from last week's lunch visit.

After my first experience of the O&B chain, I can wholeheartedly declare that I shall never set foot in a chain restaurant again (while circumstances permit).

14) Green Tea Baumkuchen

There's just something about slow Sundays and the desire for sweet treats.

Attempting Cooking Tree's Green Tea Baumkuchen was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Originally contemplating another trial batch of Matcha White Chocolate Chip Cookies - with greek yogurt chips as a healthier alternative to chocolate - I had verified the availability of unsalted butter prior to commencing the baking expedition.
But seeing as The Night Baker was slated to make a comeback at the coming Thursday's Royal Bank Farmer's Market, I opted to hold off.

Instead, I began craving cake. Thus, cake was made.
Without almond flour on hand, I took to grinding up a handful of roasted, unsalted peanuts, which, admittedly, were less prominent in the batter than expected. Nonetheless, my utter lack of preparation resulted in large air bubbles and a relatively coarse batter.

Suprisingly, the final product was moist and actually quite tasty. Even cake scraps were decent.