Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Père Noël - whatever name you use for him, he's the man in red and white who will be delivering toys to all the good girls and boys tonight. And while he's very busy up at the North Pole getting ready for the big trip, the magic of Christmas has also allowed him to spend a lot of time at various locations in Toronto during the last several weeks, asking thousands of kids what they want for Christmas.
Earlier this week, Taste T.O. dropped by to see the big guy, and instead of giving him a list of toys, we asked him a list of questions which he was kind enough to answer for us:
You've got $10 to buy lunch - where do you go?
I've been working at the Eaton Centre while I've been in town, and I've found some good places around there. Chipotle (323 Yonge Street) makes great burritos - I really like the carnitas (pork) with black beans. The daily specials at Evergreen Thai Restaurant (175 Dundas Street West) are great too, especially the noodle dishes.
When I'm not working, I like to spend time down at Flatiron's Christmas Market (51 Front Street East), and then head over to Mustachio's in St. Lawrence Market (93 Front Street East) for a delicious eggplant sandwich. They're so big that they even fill up a fat guy like me! Ho ho ho!
The budget's unlimited, someone else is paying and the choice is yours - where do you pick for dinner?
I'm usually the one doing the giving, so having someone else pay would be kind of strange! But if I had to choose, I'd go with Senses (328 Wellington Street West) where I'd order their lobster bolognaise with truffles and a Kobe ribeye.
Not quite so fancy but still a great place to treat someone is beerbistro (18 King Street West). I love going on Saturdays for their weekly applewood smoked suckling pig special, with a pint or two of Durham Hop Addict IPA to wash it down. Chef Brian Morin is always on my 'nice' list!
Tell us some of the food shops you frequent when buying groceries to cook for yourself.
I don't do a lot of cooking myself - Mrs. Claus is a much better cook, I just take care of the eating (which is probably pretty obvious when you look at me!). We get the basics shipped to us up at the Pole, but the missus always asks me to pick up a few things when I'm down here.
She's been cooking a lot of Mexican lately, so I've been stocking up on chilies and other supplies at Perola's (247 Augusta Avenue) in Kensington - and I usually pop around the corner for some cookies at My Market Bakery (172 Baldwin Street), 'cause you know I love the cookies! I also like shopping at St. Lawrence Market, especially Domino's for oils, sauces and chocolate, Alex Farms for cheese, and The Sausage King for sausages.
And I should thank the folks at Pet Valu (1660 Bloor Street West & other locations) for special ordering Reindeer Chow for me. It can be hard to find around here!
When ordering in for a quiet night at home, what's your favourite place for take-out or delivery?
The Festive Special from Swiss Chalet, of course!
Oh, no, relatives are coming to Toronto from out of town - where do you take them?
My relatives are all big eaters (runs in the family, I guess...), so we'd have to go somewhere with big portions. Harlem (67 Richmond Street East) is a personal favourite - their fried chicken is the best I've had anywhere, and the servings are so large that even I have been known to leave with a reindeer bag.
Mrs. Claus likes a lot of Asian food, so when it's her relatives, we usually go to Pho Asia 21 (1208 King Street West) for the fantastic pho, and E-Pan (369 Spadina Avenue) for the crispy beef with sesame - it's fried in sweet sesame sauce until it caramelizes, so it's almost like beef candy.
Your favourite place to grab a couple of drinks and hang out where everybody knows your name?
Not to toot my own horn, but everybody knows my name no matter where I go. Ho ho ho! But when I'm going out with the elves, we like somewhere with a good beer list (elves are serious about their beer!), so we go to places like Rhino (1249 Queen Street West), Volo (587 Yonge Street) or C'est What (67 Front Street East).
What's coming up?
Well, I've got that "flying around the world to leave presents for all the boys and girls" thing happening tonight. I usually sleep for a couple of days after that, and then the wife and I head south to vacation for a couple of weeks - this year it's Mexico. After that, it's time to start putting together the new 'naughty' and 'nice' lists, and we also have to negotiate a new contract with the Elves Union, so 2009 will be a busy year. But hey, it keeps me out of trouble. Ho ho ho! Merry Christmas!
Tasting T.O. is a regular feature where we ask local artists, writers, musicians, foodies and other personalities about their favourite places to eat and drink in the city. If you or someone you know would like to be featured in an upcoming instalment - especially if you have an upcoming event, gig, release, etc. to promote - please get in touch.
