As the prevalence of "NO SUBSTITUTIONS!" clauses on menus grow, it's getting harder to customize your dish in this town. Now, while I can hardly blame the eateries for wanting to cut back on stress for their chefs, not being able to add or leave things out can really cut down on your dining options.

Sweet Lulu (859 Queen St W) appears to not only understand this dilemma, but actually embrace the notion of letting diners pick and choose. Their 5-step menu makes for countless combinations of noodle or rice bowls just as you like 'em.

Stopping in for dinner last night with a friend, we order up:

Dish A -

1) steamed jasmine rice +

2) green curry +

3 (curry means skip to #4) +

4) vegetarian

5) -

Dish B -

1) wheat noodles +

2) thai +

3) shredded ginger + lemongrass +

4) chicken breast w/ vegetables +

5) cashews

Both dishes were made fresh while we waited and arrived steaming and delicious. "Dish A" was technically wrong in that it had rice stick noodles instead of rice and tofu with veggies instead of vegeterian, but i didn't even complain 'cause it was just really good.

"Dish B" was right on. The only complalint would be that it was a bit oily. Still, the spicy goodness didn't last long in the bowl.

A bonus with choosing the green curry was that there was so much curry milk left over that we took it to go and had a great sauce for today's lunch.

Oh, and lastly, before we left, another group of people sat down and started raving about the "rice ribbon" noodle option.. apparently we "missed out" big time, so we'll have to stop in again to try that out with a whole new combination.

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Sweet Lulu - 859 Queen St W