Posted by Rebecca Zamon in events, events upcoming, vegetarian on September 5, 2008 at 2:37 pm

Some days, it feels as though there's hardly a way to disentangle one food trend from another - but fortunately, between locavores, flexitarians and those who staunchly eat organically grown produce, one long-held umbrella category will always welcome each of these, and it is all of these people who are welcomed to the Vegetarian Food Fair this weekend.

Now in its 24th year, the Vegetarian Food Fair has grown from granola roots to a Whole Foods-sponsored extravaganza, attracting over 125 exhibitors (80% of whom are representing food companies or restaurants) over three veg-filled days. "Vegetarians and vegans have become a really attractive market," explains Miskha Alarcon, Food Fair Coordinator and staff member at the Toronto Vegetarian Association, who put on the annual event. "This year, we're welcoming the most sponsors ever."

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in comfort food, restaurant review on August 21, 2008 at 7:32 am

Delux
92 Ossington Avenue
416-537-0134
Dinner for two, with all taxes, tip and wine: $120

It's a Wednesday night, and Delux is packed. The formerly dark, spare space of the Sparrow has been transformed into a white, spare space where booth and table seating for 36 is taken over by denizens, both young and old, of the Queen and Ossington strip. My only option is a seat at the bar, and I take it gladly, as it seems reservations are de rigeur around here.

The high seats at the bar prove comfortable enough, but also allow a tiny window straight into the kitchen, a bit disconcerting in a restaurant that isn't pushing the whole "open kitchen" concept. After a bit of a wait, our bartender-cum-server explains that a few of the menu items require changes due to seasonal availability, such as the parmesan gnocchi meant to accompany the roasted chicken, that has been replaced by the southeastern French specialty socca.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in restaurant review, sandwiches on August 8, 2008 at 4:44 pm

Gilead Café
4 Gilead Place
647-288-0680
Lunch for two with all taxes, tip and lemonade: $40

You can scarcely throw a rock in this city anymore without running into something with which Jamie Kennedy is involved. Not that anyone's complaining. Whether it's iconic cultural destinations (the late ROM, the Gardiner), dinner hot-spots (the Wine Bar), weekend morning jaunts (the Brick Works Farmers' Market) or rumoured getaways (Prince Edward County), Kennedy creates dishes that stem from local ingredients, but are inspired by his creative take on modern dining. Patrons have always been able to look forward to a long, delightful dining event that may bring any number of surprises to the table. Until now, that is.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in candy, chocolate, shops on July 25, 2008 at 4:56 pm

Xococava
1560 Yonge Street
416-979-9916

One of those secrets that no one ever tells you about Spain until you get there is that, in addition to tapas and bull-fighting, the country is crazy about candy. In train stations, in tiny beach towns, in department stores, it's easy to find a respectable selection of sugary goodness that would put any Sugar Mountain to shame.

Though the tapas at Chris McDonald's much-loved uptown restaurant Cava are influenced by Italian and French cuisine as well as Spanish, Xococava (pronounced "sho-co-ca-va"), its new next-door neighbour, plays firmly into the Spanish sweet tooth. Decorated with marble counters and a wall covered in broken dishes from Avalon painstakingly glued on by McDonald, Xococava opened a month ago. Taking over Mother's Sweet and Nuts, a candy shop whose owners had retired after years of serving the neighbourhood's kids from bins of confections, McDonald saw an opportunity to create an off-shoot of his brand that would speak to the same tastebuds, just a different audience.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in beverages, cocktails, events, events upcoming, spirits on July 18, 2008 at 2:59 pm

It took a while in coming, but you know summer has arrived when the urge to consume prettily coloured drinks in scarcely used glasses overtakes cravings for the staid go-to’s of less sunny months. But what to indulge in when the cupboard’s shelves only offer a bottle of Absolut? For inspiration, look to the Drinks Show, now its in fifth year of celebrating all things shaken and stirred, at the Exhibition Place’s Queen Elizabeth Building tonight and tomorrow. Put on by the Martini Club, Toronto’s cocktail institution, the Show is a lesson in drinking by the numbers—50 booths with 65 brands offering samples of 100 handcrafted cocktails at $2 a pop, plus $20 admission. From my experience the past two years, this results in a three-hour trip down alcohol memory lane, where the flavours and styles from my own personal drinking history mix with the next big thing, and introduce people to about 8,000 of their new best friends doing the exact same thing.

“Cocktails are all about sophistication, style, fashion and sex,” says Michelle Hunt, co-founder of the Martini Club. “On the entertainment side, cocktails step up to the plate. And it’s no longer about quantity versus quality—people really want to know what’s inside their drinks.”

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in SOLE food, comfort food, restaurant profile on July 11, 2008 at 5:11 pm

Sequel
3362 Yonge Street
416-480-0996

Sequel is a restaurant on a mission. A local food, carbon-footprinted, biodegradable mission that takes all of the buzzwords from the past year and brings them together in the decidedly unexpected locale of North Toronto.

Mind you, you'd never guess it from walking through the glass-doored entryway — there's no smell of patchouli in the air, no vegetarian dishes being foisted upon patrons, nary a dreadlock to be seen. Neutrally toned walls hold images of benign landscapes, soft jazz plays in the air, wrought-iron banisters lead toward a second level and a wooden wine rack crawls toward the ceiling, a scene that hardly screams revolution. But look a little closer—at the Bullfrog Power, Green Enterprise Toronto and Local Food Plus (LFP) logos on the menu, the soy-based candles adorning the tables and the Green Shift take-out packaging—and the rebellion starts to show its roots.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in events, events upcoming on July 1, 2008 at 7:48 am

In a city touted for its multiculturalism by every tourism campaign and boasting citizen abroad, calling yourself the most multi-culturally based area in all of Canada is a tall order. But that's the word from the Wexford Heights Business Improvement Area, who is gearing up for this weekend's 5th annual Taste of Lawrence Festival with an eye toward attracting both visitors and locals alike.

Frank Greco, event manager for the festival, anticipates a crowd surpassing the 125,000 guests who wandered amongst the free musical entertainment, midway and street performers last year. In the "food vendor alley," as he puts, the focus has been on showcasing the flavours of the cultures seen throughout the area. "If you take a walk around here," he explains, "you'll see the retail look changing from one ethnic area to the other." So getting these business involved, along with some outside help, only made representational sense.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in mixed menu, restaurant review on June 13, 2008 at 4:35 pm

The Kitchen
1186 Queen Street West
416-536-7700
Dinner for two with all taxes, tip and wine: $110

I really wanted to love The Kitchen. I love the location, I love the look, I even love the generic name - when it came down to it, the only thing I didn't love about this five-month old spot on Queen West was the food.

Approaching to eat lunch on a sunny weekday afternoon, I'm greeted first by the construction workers busily erecting a wooden patio, likely in anticipation of the nighttime crowds the space is known to attract. But inside, they've prepared for summer as well, with the front and side windows-cum-garage doors rolled up to encourage a cross breeze that more than makes up for a lack of air conditioning. A surprisingly heavy décor is the theme in this galley-type space, where heavy window coverings and large, iron chandeliers overlook the 34 high seats strewn throughout, the majority of which seat patrons side-by-side at counters.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in charities, events, events upcoming on May 30, 2008 at 4:56 pm

Between food shortages (and their consequent price increase) around the world and local food diets that keep avocados from ever entering our dishes again, it's a relief to find a program that lets dining out turn into a good deed. Amnesty International's Taste for Justice, now entering its fourth year and taking place June 1st to 15th, helps raise money for the organization's Stop Violence Against Women campaign by asking restaurants across Canada to donate a portion of their proceeds to the cause. A separate "Dine In" option encourages homeowners to host dinner parties where guests donate money.

So what is the tie in between Amnesty's good works and eating out in restaurants? Nothing on the surface, per se, except that it does afford one's usual dining to become part of a larger whole. And taking a look at the restaurants involved, it also gives these businesses the opportunity to put their money, as it were, where their mouth is. It's no coincidence that many of those participating are the ones who tout a vegetarian-friendly, organically produced table setting.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in italian, restaurant review on May 18, 2008 at 8:07 am

Bar One
924 Queen Street West
415-535-1655
Dinner for two with all taxes, tip and a bottle of wine: $120

When a restaurant opens in an artistic, upwardly mobile neighbourhood, it stands to reason that only the most modern design elements will be on display, showcasing how on trend this place truly is. But what happens when that restaurant has been around a few years, and its trends — communal dining, glossy white tables, mosaic countertops — start showing their age?

Happily, in the case of Bar One, an 8-year-old spot at Queen and Shaw, the quality of the southern Italian dishes being put on the tables outshines the fads it was built to emulate. Eating there on a casual Monday evening that saw a steady stream of patrons throughout, my table encountered relaxed, but attentive service from the moment we were seated. Touting an only two-day-old change in menu (“not for the season, just because they wanted a switch”), the staples for which this restaurant/bar has become known remain — pizzas created with every imaginable (and region appropriate) topping, pastas offered by sauces and accoutrements, rather than noodle type, and antipasti that covers the gamut from green salads to seared scallops.