Toronto Food & Wine Festival 2015

Amidst food and wine enthusiasts alike, I found myself soaking up the ambience that radiated at the world-renowned Evergreen Brick Works during the 2015 Toronto Food and Wine Festival. Setting afoot this venue for the first time, I was in awe of my surroundings – traces of rustic-industrial, country-chic and Mother Nature enveloped the entire vicinity.  As someone who is fascinated by both street art and food, I found that this Don Valley gem was the perfect location in marrying these two. Already recognized as the first organization to start building gardens across Canada, the Evergreen Brick Works also champions the coming together of community and food.  At this inaugural event, I witnessed first-hand how this was showcased – just as their motto advocates – with “good food, happy people, and a healthy city”.

Atop the media preview tour that I was there to participate in, we were greeted by our hosts, who gave us the general overview of the then forthcoming event. Spotted in the crowd were celebrity figures Roger Mooking (Everyday Exotic), Brad Long (Restaurant Makeover) and Gail Simmons (Top Chef).  I saw glimpses of how the three-day long event was planned to unfold.  Different sections of the Brick Works devoted to various special mini events, such as cooking classes and demonstrations, and Chef’s Talks, were primed and well-equipped. Lights strewn across in rooms, picnic tables and benches scattered throughout, and food and wine vendors abound, the place seemed ready for the throngs of people waiting to be entertained.

After the tour, with my plus one by my side, we hopped from one area of the Brick Works to the next. Our first stop was a Tutored Tastings session.  For that particular hour, author and wine connoisseur Ana Fabiano presented the history and offerings of Rioja.  Sipping on the five Rioja samples prepared for the audience, the wanderlust in me perked up at the vision of Spain and its vineyards on a screen across of me. Imagine being in the presence of the real deal – how majestic would that be?  Meanwhile, my friend immediately favoured the Faustino V Tempranillo Rosado 2014.  Had she been able to, she would have bought a bottle of this red wine then and there.  I can tell you that the greater part of our wine consumption for the day involved this brand (which continued on to the next part of the agenda).

Heading onward with our food adventure, we proceeded to the central hub of all things food and wine that weekend.  Dubbed as the Grand Tasting Pavilion, it acted as the epicenter of the main event, where the space was abundantly occupied with food and wine stations endorsing the vendors’ respective products.  Following is a sample of this vending population.

Appealing to those craving exotic and unique flavours:

Bombay Street Food

Of Indian origin, this Sev Puri is “a delicious, savoury staple of Mumbai street food.”  Akin to a tostada, crispy puris are topped with potatoes, tamarind and coriander chutneys and fried noodles.

Little Sister

Serving Indonesian fare with this Babi Guling – Balinese roast pork, pickles, peanuts on an ice berg wedge, my palette recognized a celebration of spices.

Black Angus

If you are hunting for some game meat, cupped within is their game toast featuring elk, water buffalo, caribou, and venison.

Dirty Bird

Popularized at the Kensington Market location, this chicken and waffle had a sweet and spicy sauce accompaniment that tickled the tongue.

El Catrin

Chorizo, potatoes, caramelized onions, and a special green sauce all fit in this one bite-sized mouthful.

Rasa

Easily one of my favourites, this simple but hearty piece of shawarma slider with hummus, tabouleh, feta, tzatziki, and pickled things left me both satisfied, but gluttonously wanting more.

Tori’s Bakeshop

Niche to organic and vegan eaters, this seemingly innocent baguette crostini layered with cashew chevre and smoked beets with Maldon Salt packed a delicious punch to my taste buds.

Pulse Restaurant

Quack Taco - this Singaporean duck ensemble, adorned with bamboo intestines, pickled beets, and Pulse’s special samba sauce, deservedly claimed its RSVP’d spot in my belly.

For some seafood fare:

President’s Choice

Bringing a taste of the ocean, a Nova Scotia scallop was atop a bed of butternut squash risotto, topped with pumpkin seed oil.

Reds Midtown Tavern

Scallops, shrimp, cucumber, tomato, sweet onion, and Serrano chili were served with chips

Mata

This swordfish ceviche with corn, cucumber, tomato, passion fruit dressing, and taro chips mirrored in taste the vibrancy of its colours.

For the sweets-inclined:

Green and Black

This UK-based chocolatier serves organic and fair trade chocolates – my plus one particularly fancied their dark chocolate with peppermint oil.

Holy Cannoli

Holy cannoli, it’s chocolate praline cannoli!

Tito Ron’s

Biting into this deep-fried coconut bae lumpia oozed with an explosion of coconut-caramel fusion.

Cluny

Mimicking the daintiness of its name is this rosewood wildflower honey & Riesling Savarine.

More than just wine was represented at the event to quench that thirst:

Just Craft Soda

Flavour combinations include Lemon & Lemongrass, Apple & Ginger, Pear & Vanilla, Cherry & Cinnamon, and Peach & Habanero.

El Catrin

Make no mistake – this tiny glass of margarita was a potent one.

Fire in the Rye

This rye in a can is best served chilled.

Lemon Lily

A Night in Paris tea with a floral aroma

Leaving Evergreen Brick Works with our stomachs full, that day of celebrating food was indeed a great and memorable one worth replicating.

- Pedestrian Pat

*All pictures taken by Pedestrian Pat

Parlor Foods & Co.

King Street West in Toronto has now become one of the most reliable streets when it comes to discovering the best and trendiest restaurants this city has to offer. With top restaurants lined up side by side as far as the eye can see it is no wonder why this street has been notably coined “Restaurant Row.” I was recently invited to try the food at a fairly new restaurant called Parlor Foods & Co on this very street around the corner of Blue Jays Way and King Street West and my experience there was nothing short of amazing. 

Closing in on their 1 year anniversary this coming November, Parlor Foods & Co specializes in local cuisine with an ever changing ingredient driven Canadian menu. Their slogan is even “True North Strong” so as soon as you step into this barn boarded restaurant with a tree trunk inspired doorway, you know you will be in for a real treat that only Canadians will know and truly appreciate.

My guest and I arrived at our designated time and were sat at a table just in front of their outdoor patio where we were were then immediately greeted by the bartender Japhet Bower and one of the co-owners of the restaurant Jason D'Anna who both graciously took care of us the entire night.

What came out first to start our dinner were two of their signature cocktails, the Smoked Maple Manhattan ($14.25) and their Sangria ($11). The Smoked Maple Manhattan was a complete joy to receive as the cocktail is quickly put together right in front of your eyes at the table. The concept of an open campfire comes into play where pieces of dry wood are torched and then the cup is placed over the smoke to create the smoky, nutty flavour this Manhattan has (check out my video below!) Their Sangria on the other hand was a nice compliment to the smoky, hard liquor of the Smoked Maple Manhattan where this brought a refreshing and colourful cocktail to the table through the cucumbers, watermelon, sprite, dried Ontario Rose, and shaved fennel that topped it all off.

How to get the smoky taste infused in your cup for a cocktail.

Next up was their signature Charcuterie Board ($19). I admit, I came in that night not a huge fan of charcuterie. To me eating essentially cold cuts was not exciting nor something that blew my mind taste wise, but boy was I ever proven wrong here at Parlor Foods. The charcuterie was presented to us like a piece of art, placed on this beautiful slab of wood where all the meats, pickles, breads, and sauces all served a purpose, not one ingredient out of place. Their selection of in-house cured meats included Nduja, Veneto Salami, Mortadella, Horse & Pork, finished off with some pickles, smoked maple syrup, grainy mustard, and fresh bread. It was fun to also try to pair different ingredients together, different combinations with each bite creating various flavours in your mouth time and time again. This is the one dish I have been recommending to all my friends now over and over to order here. Loved it!

Up until that night I have never eaten bone marrow or horse before. This quickly changed when we were served with another signature dish of theirs, Horse and Bones ($25), a dish that has been on their menu since their opening. The bone marrow is accompanied by a horse tartare on top where the escabeche and egg marries all the ingredients nicely together creating a very unique dish I have yet to see anywhere else. Potato crisps are served on top of the tartare and should be used as a vessel to eat all of the ingredients together at once. It took me a quick second to wrap my head around eating horse meat, but that skepticism quickly faded after the first bite with delicious flavours all around.

The Street Meat ($18) came up next to our table and it was a duo of savoury summer sausages on buttermilk buns, fresh slaw, pickles, pickled jalapeno, and ball park mustard. This is not your average hot dog you can find outside at the street vendors and it really packs the heat. If you cannot handle spicy, I would recommend you avoid this dish as the pickled jalapeno really brings the heat and spiciness to this dish. Of course you can always pick them out yourself with your hands after so do order this at your own risk for all the spicy averse people.

The last main course that we were served for our dinner was their BBQ Short Ribs ($26). This dish was perfection. The short ribs fell very easily off the bone and beaming with flavour from the peach and rye glaze. My favourite part of this though was the corn & scallion grits layering the bottom of the plate which was creamy and smooth with each bite. My version of comfort food right here. This dish was then finished off with sauteed broccoli, Iceberg lettuce, and crispy onion strings.

Last but not least came the dessert and it was certainly worth the wait. Their Daily Doughnuts ($8) came out fresh from the oven as it was still very warm to the touch with a crunchy, outer exterior. Depending on the day and what the chefs at the back end of the restaurant are inspired by, the flavours of the doughnuts do and will change. Ours that day was a play on peanut butter and jelly and it was superb! We were also then given a scoop of their made in-house Parlor Ice Cream ($5) with the most creative, tasty, and awesome of flavours, whisky! Right? I couldn’t believe it either. It has a very settle alcoholic taste to it so don’t worry about getting drunk off of this, but the whisky flavour is there and it tastes incredible and surprisingly blends in perfectly as an ice cream flavour. I really hope one day they start selling their homemade ice cream in take-home containers for us because I will be the very first person in line to buy it.

Parlor Foods & Co just hit all the right notes for me. It’s just simple Canadian food done right. A fine dining experience in a casual, laid back atmosphere. I mean where else can you eat bone marrow and horse tartare while sipping on the finest cocktails all the while cheering for the Blue Jays to win the World Series on their big screen TV. It just doesn’t get any more Canadian than that. When I get asked to recommend a Toronto restaurant to either family, friends, or other foodies, there has always been one restaurant on the top of my list which was Richmond Station. With this past experience here at Parlor Foods & Co, I think it is safe to say that a new player is in town which has sky rocketed to the forefront of my list of favourite Toronto restaurants. Don’t be surprised if you hear Parlor Foods & Co come out of my mouth when you ask me for a restaurant recommendation. All you have to do now is just go. You won’t regret it.

333 King Street West

M Closed T-W 5:00p - Late
Th-F 11:30p - Late
Sa 3:00p - Very Late
Su Su 4:00p - 11:00p

Taste of Toronto 2015

Another year has come and gone which means another Taste of Toronto has graced this city once again. In its second year in Toronto (as well as my second year in attending), it has proven to be one of the best and most popular food festivals in this city. If you’re interested in checking out my experience last year and for a more in depth look at what Taste of Toronto is all about, you can read my blog post about it here.

Taste Festivals have been happening in cities all around the world for years and is considered to be the world’s greatest restaurant festival. The festival concept began 10 years ago in London, England, and has rapidly grown into an international event with festivals in 20 cities around the world including Dubai, Amsterdam, Milan, Moscow, Melbourne, Dublin, Mumbai, Sydney, and Johannesburg just to name a few. Everywhere it goes, Taste represents a foodie’s dream come true: delicious food created by the city’s greatest restaurants, world famous chefs, superb drinks and outstanding entertainment, set in stunning outdoor surroundings.

Taste of Toronto had nothing short of any of that this year with many of the top Toronto restaurants participating in this year’s event. Many of the restaurants from last year have all come back such as Richmond Station, McEwan Group, The Harbord Room, Patria, and Guu. Among the new restaurants who participated in this year’s line up which also brought in some star power was R&D (owned by Eric Chong who is the winner of Masterchef Canada Season 1 and Alvin Leung, one of the Masterchef judges), and Morimoto Toronto (owned by Iron Chef and Michelin-starred mastermind Masaharu Morimoto who is set to debut signature dishes from his first highly anticipated restaurant venture in Canada). 

One difference I’ve noticed right off the bat from last year was you needed to purchase your crown card when you load up your money onto it, whereas last year it was free. It only costs an extra $1 so it’s not a huge deal, but something that caught me off guard a bit when I was charged that extra loonie. I also asked them whether you were able to bring in your old crown card from last year to use instead of buying a new one and the answer was you were not allowed. Hopefully with the extra cash raised from this, it can be put to good use when organizing Taste of Toronto next year. 

Here’s a look at all the delicious food I’ve tried at this year’s event. Note that the currency at this food event are called crowns and each crown is worth $1.

Los Colibris

Tostada de Pulpo Grilled Octopus - Basil, Jalapeno, Coriander Oil. Cost - 10 Crowns

The Drake

Grilled Lamb Ribs - Harissa Yogurt, Pea Tendrils. Cost - 8 Crowns

East Coast Fish Fry - Crispy Oysters, Jail Island Haddock, Tartar Sauce. Cost - 6 Crowns

Richmond Station

Station Burger - Beet Chutney, OKA Cheese. Cost - 10 Crowns

Funnel Cake - Vanilla Ice Cream, Stewed Fruit. Cost - 6 Crowns

Morimoto Toronto

Toro Tartare - Caviar, Sour Cream, Wasabi, Dashi Soy. Cost - 10 Crowns

Uni Carbonara - Quail Egg, Smoked Bacon, Parmesan. Cost - 8 Crowns

Weslodge

Fried Chicken - 5 Day Slaw, House Jalapeno Hot Sauce. Cost - 8 Crowns

Byblos

Charcoal Grilled Lamb Kofte - Lavosh, House Pickles, Toum, Green Schug. Cost - 6 Crowns

Little Sister

Babi Panggang Roasted Pork Belly - Fresh Chili Sauce, Bean Sprout, Red Onion Pickle. Cost - 8 Crowns

Winner of The Everyday Foodie’s Best Dish of Taste of Toronto 2015?

Morimoto Toronto’s Toro Tatare! 

Taste of Toronto has always impressed me with how well the festival is organized and the sheer talent it is able to attract with the vendors participating. Hopefully sometime in the not too distant future I may even be able to attend a Taste festival in another country across the world, but for now I am completely satisfied enjoying it in my own backyard. Looking forward to next year to see what Taste of Toronto 2016 may bring!

Nota Bene - New 4 to 7 Menu

An upscale, fine dining restaurant offering food for $4? Now you don’t hear that statement everyday. However, Note Bene which was named Canada’s best new restaurant in 2009 by Toronto Life is doing just that by launching their new 4 to 7 menu meaning that from Monday to Friday between 4PM to 7PM, you can get bar snacks for only $4! 

Even with its affordability of just two toonies, don’t automatically think the food is cheap, because what you can get on this menu should by all accounts be priced higher. From what you will see below, Executive Chef David Lee has crafted bar snacks that are simple yet refined with touches of gourmet elements that will bring you back to the fine dining ambiance that Note Bene provides. 

Below are the 10 bar snacks that only cost $4 if you drop in between 4PM to 7PM on the weekdays, and then only $7 from 7PM till close. Please note that this menu is not offered on weekends. 

Cumbrae Farms Beef Sliders

Harvarti Cheese + Maple Bacon

Salt Cod Fritters

Kimchi Mayo

Truffle Popcorn

Parmigiano

Burrata Pugliese

Grilled Miche, Olive Oil

Calamari A La Plancha

XO Sauce + Coriander

Calabrese Olives + Cheese

Rosemary + Garlic

Shoshito Peppers

Lemon + Maldon Salt

Porcini Arancini

Truffle Aioli + Parmigiano

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Smoked Oyster Mayonnaise

Belly Buster Slider

Pork Belly, Frites, Ketchup, Pickle

No meal is complete without some liquid gold.

Cava

Pares Balta - Penedes, Spain

Stella Artois

If you’re in the area after a long work day in downtown Toronto, definitely drop by for these bar snacks. What I would suggest is to come down with a friend and order the whole menu! Since it’s only $4 per dish, to have all 10 items you are only going to have to pay $40. I split the entire menu with my friend and in my opinion the portions are perfect for two people to enjoy. 

I just wanted to thank Nota Bene for inviting me down to try this menu out. It is extremely refreshing for a well established, fine dining restaurant in the city to still cater to the customers who are on a tighter budget, but still appreciate good food in an upscale, sleek, and contemporary setting. Now I’m just hoping this trend catches on and other restaurants start creating $4 menus. One can only hope right?  

Village Juicery - Cold Pressed Juices Review

By now you may all have heard about this juicing trend that has really caught on with the masses, especially those who are health conscious and want to live a clean and healthy lifestyle. The concept of juicing has been around for ages so that is nothing new. If not yourself, you probably know a handful of people who owns their very own juicer at home; a fun do-it-yourself kitchen appliance where you throw in your fruits and vegetables into the machine and within minutes out comes a cup of freshly squeezed juice. 

Over the past few years, the concept of “cold pressed” juices has spread like wild fire. Traditionally, juices that are not considered cold pressed (basically the old school way of juicing) utilizes a fast spinning blade within the machine to separate the juice from flesh through what is called centrifugal force (a motion tending to move away from the centre). The problem with utilizing this fast spinning blade is as it spins, it generates heat. This heat destroys some of the enzymes in the fruits and vegetables you are juicing causing some of the nutrients to be destroyed as well. 

So what does “cold pressed” actually mean? Well as the name suggests, the juicing process does not generate any heat to maximize on all the nutrients it can extract from the fruits and vegetables. It extracts juice by using hydraulic pressure crushing, squeezing, and pressing the fruit and vegetables for the highest nutritional yield having very little exposure to oxygen. Since the fruits and vegetables are literally being crushed the living day lights out of them using sheer force, heat does not get generated and more of the fresh ingredient’s nutrients stay in tact. 

One of the companies in Toronto on the forefront of this cold pressed movement is Village Juicery who call their juicing community their “Villagers”. Village Juicery believes in increasing access to raw, plant-based nutrition and a focus on keeping everything local, from their produce suppliers, industry suppliers, and the charitable organizations they support. In fact, it is almost hard not to notice just how local their business is. On every one of their bottles, a sticker is firmly placed on its cap that says “Made in Toronto.” As a loyal admirer of my city I grew up in my entire life, I can truly appreciate how much love and devotion Village Juicery has on this great city. 

Now onto the good stuff, the actual juices! The Village Juicery delivered to my very own door step their line of 100% organic cold pressed juices. I received 7 of their cold pressed juices and 1 of their handmade nut milks in my package. Once you open the cardboard box, you will see that each glass bottle is neatly compartmentalized by dividers to ensure that the glass does not shatter as it gets delivered to your door. 

The one thing I love when I received all the juices is on each of its bottles, it prints out on the front all the ingredients so you know at a quick glance exactly what you will be consuming. On the back of each bottle also comes with a fun description of that specific cold pressed juice which gives you a better understanding of the different nutrients and benefits it has. At the very bottom on the back of the bottle also shares with you a breakdown of “What’s Inside” as each cold pressed juice has 3 types of ingredients, fruit, root, and green. The percentage by weight of each ingredient is shown so some of the cold pressed juices will be more fruit centric, where others will have a higher percentage of vegetables mixed in. 

Here is a breakdown of all the Cold Pressed Juices I tried.

Be Active

60% Fruit; 40% Root; 0% Leaf

Although there is a high concentration of juice in this one, I found this juice to be the toughest for me to drink. The taste of ginger is extremely strong and leaves a burning sensation in your mouth. I’m not a fan of ginger to begin with which makes Be Active my least favourite out of all the cold pressed juices I tried. I know ginger is supposed to be really healthy for you, but I think I’ll move on to the next one…

Be Radiant

20% Fruit; 80% Root; 0% Leaf

Although the ingredients in this one is 80% root, there is no ginger in this one which is fine by me. The vivid orange colour to this juice comes from the carrot and sweet potato. Carrot was the strongest flavour throughout with a settle hint of apple in it. I liked it but didn’t love it. 

Be Calm

20% Fruit; 0% Root; 80% Leaf

Being that I have rarely juiced before, especially with using vegetables, I was a little bit hesitant to try this just because I was afraid that with the majority of the drink being composed of leaf type ingredients it may be too overpowering to drink. I was completely wrong and it became one of my favourites. The pineapple counteracted the taste of just pure vegetables perfectly. The combination of pineapple, fennel, and mint really created a soothing effect within my body as I drank it. 

Be Nourished

50% Fruit; 0% Root; 50% Leaf

The perfect balance between fruits and vegetables giving you an even nourishment on both sides. This is a gentle introduction to anyone who is not a fan of green juices as the two types of apples prevalent in this juice gives it a sweet and fruity flavour, while you are still consuming equal amounts of vegetables with every sip. I would definitely recommend this one. 

Be Strong

30% Fruit; 10% Root; 60% Leaf

The most unique tasting juice of the bunch for me. The red cabbage is definitely the star of the show in this juice with its dominant flavour profile. You would think that the taste of cabbage may be unpleasant, but it wasn’t hard to drink at all. The familiarity of apple juice is present as well which makes this juice just as easy to stomach as the others. 

Be Clean

10% Fruit; 0% Root; 90% Leaf

My favourite cold pressed juice of them all which surprised me since the majority of the ingredients in this one is vegetables with very little fruit. The vegetables chosen in this juice is not overpowering as the likes of celery, kale, and lettuce all have a very subtle taste to begin with. The splash of apple mixed in made this juice very pleasant to drink and the fact that I enjoyed a juice dominated by vegetables makes this one a home run for me. 

Apple Cider

The classic apple juice, cold pressed edition. Nothing hard at all about drinking this one if you’re a fan of just good ole’ apple juice. With the apples being cold pressed, you get even more nutrients in this one, not to mention its also unfiltered with no added sugars. 

The Handmade Nut Milk which I treated it like a dessert. 

Be Happy

What a perfect name to this drink. It truly was a joy to drink because it tasted so damn good. It’s a sweet, creamy, decadent drink with the primary flavour of this being cashews and a hint of maple syrup. The only thing bad about this drink was that the bottle was so small! If I could drink this everyday for the rest of my life I totally would. 

Many other cold pressed juice companies use a technique called HPP (High Pressure Processing) which is a cold pasteurization technique where products are subjected to a high level of isostatic pressure. This pressure will extend the shelf life by 10 times, but in doing so killing bad and good bacteria along the way. As seen on every bottle, Village Juicery firmly believes this is not a viable solution for our well-being as bacteria plays a critical role in digestion and are needed to support proper nutrition. That is why they will never use HPP and their cold pressed juices are best consumed within 3 to 5 days of pressing to ensure maximum nutrition. 

Also keep in mind that if you keep the glass bottles after you finish the juice, you can return the rinsed bottle to a Village Juicery store for a discount at your next purchase! Myself, I’m keeping several of them at home for future use. My only qualm with it was that the fonts used on the bottles are all stickers so with a little water on it, sometimes the stickers would start to peel off leaving a slightly sticky residue on the bottle. 

All in all I’ve had a wonderful experience with the cold pressed juices from Village Juicery. As a food blogger, often times I am eating tons of fatty, greasy foods for the sake of a picture so being given the opportunity to cleanse my body and re-fuel it with organic, nutritious ingredients was certainly welcomed with open arms. 

If you think you are ready to go outside of your comfort zone and try some of these cold pressed juices, you can visit their flagship store in Toronto in the heart of Little Italy (540 College Street). Many other retailers across this city also carries their cold pressed juices which you can find their locations here. Thanks to Village Juicery I’m feeling rejuvenated, healthy, and ready to take on anything that comes my way. I am definitely proud to be considered now as one of their Villagers.