[Review PLUS a contest] Teara Lab, Japanese Fusion Sandwiches

Website: http://www.tearalab.com/
Address: 181 College St., Toronto, ON
When I went: June 2016
Rating: 4, $

Read the review and then enter to win 2 combo vouchers. The contest ends Thurs. July 14th, 2016

From the same management as Kaka, All You Can Eat Japanese Restaurant (read my Kaka ayce review), Teara Lab is a casual spot that specializes in Japanese fusion sandwiches. Yuzu, seaweed powder and wasabi mayo are some ingredients that can be found on the menu.

The restaurant is located by Prenup Pub and close to University of Toronto, making the restaurant a busy weekday spot for the students. As part of the “lab theme”, the decor is minimal with white walls and servers sporting white lab coats.

Their menu is simple with 5 sandwiches to choose from.

I tried 3 of the 5 sandwiches including:

The Soy Glazed Pork Belly Sandwich with kimchi, avocado, tomatoes, rinsed onions, seaweed, lettuce and mayo. The city is saturated with pork belly baos, so it was refreshing to see it in a simple bun. This has to be best pork belly sandwich I have eaten to-date with a tender pork belly, and a sauce that was not too sweet like many teriyaki sauces I have tried. This was my favourite sandwich at Teara Lab!

Pork belly sandwich

Next, I tried the Red Wine Braised Beef Sandwich with sauteed onions and mushrooms, havarti cheese, tomatoes, crispy onions, seaweed powder, lettuce and mayo. I could tell that the meat was cooked for hours in the red wine resulting in the tender meat and flavour! Save some of that bread to mop up the dripping sauce.

Red wine braised beef sandwich

And last, I tried the Yuzu Teriyaki Fish Burger with baked basa fish with yuzu, teriyaki sauce with havarti cheese, herb mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, herb mayo and dry seaweed powder. The sandwich is a good option for those who want a break from meat with a sesame bun as a pretty contrast.

Fish sandwich

Aside from sandwiches, the restaurant has a large drink menu.

I had the opportunity to try a drink from each category and the drinks are comparable to many great bubbletea shops in Toronto. They brew quality teas without the powdery consistency. I recommend the Okinawa Milk Tea, as the tea was fragrant.

Luckily I had my husband and daughter to share my delicious meal with, as I would have been full after 1 sandwich.

Now, it’s your turn to try out a sandwich with a friend for free.

CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED! The winner of the vouchers is @CHRISTINAgould (Twitter)

ENTER HERE to win 2 combo vouchers for Teara Lab

Contest rules:

* The contest runs from Tues. July 12th to Thurs. July 14th, 2016
* The contest is opened to Canadian residents only
* All winners must be willing to provide their full name and mailing address to receive their vouchers in the mail
* The winner will be chosen randomly from Rafflecopter. Mary’s Happy Belly will conduct quality checks before a winner is chosen
* The voucher expires Dec. 31st, 2016
* I will contact the winner by direct message on Twitter or Facebook
* The winner will be notified by July 16th, 2016 and must respond before the end of the day. Failure to respond in a timely manner means that another prize winner will be chosen. The winner will eventually be announced on the blog

I will also be running a contest on my Instagram page https://www.instagram.com/themary_tang/ (more ways to win!)

* Disclosure: The meal was complimentary but the opinions in the post are my own. I have partnered with Teara Lab for the give-away.