chowow's Profile
Good Food in Hamilton?!
Very good recommendations to try, bogie. I've only had Gate of India from your list and I can attest to the intensity of the Bangalore Pall. No doubt its insanely hot, but its also a great curry experience.
Mississauga advice for a Monday night coming up very soon - NEED YOUR EXPERT OPINION
+1
Bistro Narra is a great recommendation.
Toronto Wedding Venue Help!
We were married this past September at One King West Hotel and Residences. It was absolutely stunning and we had incredible food. As foodies we were extremely involved in menu development and everything was served absolutely perfect - trust us.
Our menu was a duo starter of parsnip soup with smoked pancetta with a harvest waldorf salad; a risotto parmesan cake with putanesca on roasted tomato puree, sorbet; NY strip (which is actually thick cut and halved which is more like a tenderloin at NY price) or Chicken w/tarragon cream sauce or veg pastry all with beautiful fall veg bundle & potato; trifle for desert.
Appys we were told were great, (allthough we didnt have any) some of the hits were mini shepards pie & mini club sandwiches.
At no time was there a line up for the bar - with 120 guests.
Service was impeccable. Staff is great - we had an astronomical amount of special requests, all of which were well accomodated (ie: scotch available at the bar, special beers, etc.).
As far as the venue - if the 1920's is what you want, well there you have it. A perfect balance between antique and modern. An added bonus is that 1KW has some of the best priced hotel rooms in the city which makes for an easy transition from bar to bed for guests.
Pricing is reasonable and you can take it wherever you want - we upped the premium bar, had bar service through dinner (not just wine), added extra courses, increased # of apps/pp during cocktail etc. But if you stick to traditional 3 course, 3 apps/pp during cocktail, standard 5 hour bar you should be as close to a per person cost as a convention centre / hall wedding. Thats as cheap as it gets.
I also would say to stay away from the whole 'save money by bringing your alcohol' venues. This turns into a huge headache. With pretty much everyone you know at your wedding that day, you need someone to bring it in...and then haul it out! AND I have been to numerous BYO weddings (eg: distillery district) where something runs out - no more vodka, no more ice, whatever, its something.
Good luck, we did serious venue hunting - all the ones listed on this thread and more - and this was the best combo of value, venue, and food quality.
Scotch offerings at the lcbo
Agree with Cam about the A'bunadh. Especially given your dad's dislike of phenolic tastes. The A'bunadh Batch 30 (this specific batch. You'll see the batch number on the packaging) won a Malt Maniac Award this year.
Gift certificate for a wine-knowledegable Toronto restaurant
I don't this Superior is there any more. I'm pretty sure its an Arabic restaurant called Paramount in that location.
i want to surprise the hubby with a great single malt for christmas
I'm not sure if this will help, but I did a quick search on wine-searcher.com and found a place called Wally's Wine & Spirits and they have a selection of Gordon & Macphail Speymalt MacAllans (no 1970, but 1971 and 1972).
Here's a link to my search result (hope it works):
http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/speymalt/1/usa-90210-200
Good luck!
Food to serve with Scotch
Here's a good YouTube channel that has a lot of videos about pairing food with malts. I hope it helps.
http://www.youtube.com/user/SingleMaltTv
WhistlePig Rye Whiskey
Nice review sku. I heard they were using Canadian whisky on an episode of whiskycast (I had to rewind the podcast to make sure I wasn't hearing things). I'd like to try it because it gets great reviews, but its not available in Canada. Imagine that!?! Cheers.
Spain's Michelin Restaurants: What do they cost?
This is a common question within most of the threads and one I know I had when I was planning my trip to Spain. I hope this will help others plan their meals and I hope people will update this thread as they go. The prices are per person and exclude tax and tip. So here we go...
Arzak - 170 Euros for the tasting menu
Martin Berasategui - 165 Euros for Martin's 'Greatest Hits' menu
Mugaritz - 120 Euros for the tasting menu
Prices as of October, 2010.
Best restaurant in Mississauga
Like scuba89, I've been going to the Apricot Tree for a long time too and it's easily tops in Mississauga. Not having dessert items available indirectly speaks to AT's quality. Franz makes all the restaurant's desserts and ice cream himself and has a repertoire that would make your head spin. AT's menu is awesome because it's driven by product quality not quantity. If you want all items all the time, check out your local chain restaurant.
-----
Apricot Tree
1900 Dundas St W, Mississauga, ON L5K1P9, CA
ISO Luxardo Gourmet Maraschino Cherries in toronto
I also love the Amarena Fabbri cherries. They're usually quite hard to find too, but I saw them just yesterday at the Highland Farms in Mississauga.
After the famous names, what is the best restaurant in San Sebastian?
Went to Ni Neu last month and it's an excellent recommendation. They do a very reasonably priced three-course lunch that's tough to beat. Enjoy.
Origin - review
I’ll plus 1 the good reviews and say I’d definitely go back. My wife and I went a few days ago and it hit all the points we like in a restaurant (good food, great service, cool atmosphere). Like others have said and based on what we ordered, there were some gem dishes (tostones+guac, fior di latte, dulce de leche) and some meh ones (Spanish fries, calamari). I think there are enough positive elements to this place to make it worth the hype and patronage. I wish them luck.
Mexico One Plate at a Time
I agree that she's totally annoying. I feel bad saying that, but I actually have to close my eyes when she's on. The next time you watch an episode, pay attention to her eyes and facial expressions while Rick is talking. I guarantee it'll drive you crazy!
El Bulli 2010 Reservations
elBulli will not release information about the 2011 season until at least December. Their policy is to not consider the following year until the current year is completed.
Here are the details and remember to check back closer to year end:
http://www.elbulli.com/reservas/index.php?lang=en
El Bulli 2010 Reservations
Has anyone not heard anything at all? I had to send a follow up email on May 5th because I hadn't heard a thing and I couldn't stand the suspense any longer. I received a response the following day from Luis saying that all the reservations had been filled. Is it possible that they would not respond to all reservation requests whether positive or negative? I'm a little put off because I think if I didn't ask, I could have been waiting for a very very long time to hear from them.
So I went to The Keg and ordered a Manhattan...
The glass issue is definitely a preference and I understand a cocktail glass is the most authentic vessel, but my shock was more so caused by the novelty of the cocktail glass they used. The size was ridiculous! Apologies for not being more clear.
My specification was for a 3:2 ratio of rye to sweet vermouth, with a dash of bitters if they had any, stirred over ice and served in a rocks glass with a cherry garnish. It was perfect in the sense that it tasted a million times better than the original.
So I went to The Keg and ordered a Manhattan...
For those of you that don't know, The Keg is a chain of steakhouse restaurants operated predominately in Canada with a few outposts in the United States.
Attempt #1: The waitress comes by with our drink order and proceeds to set a martini in front of me. I asked what this was (I seriously thought she put someone else's drink in front of me) and she said it was my 'Manhattan'. Without even tasting it, I asked her to take it back and to please ask the bartender put it into a rocks glass.
Attempt #2: After the liquids had been successfully transfered to a proper glass, it was now time to taste. Oh boy - this isn't good! The bartender must have shook the cocktail to death because it was a big watery mess and it had ice shards all through it.
At this point, I'm starting to get annoyed and I realize that I'll have to address the issue directly with the bartender. When I tell him that I cannot drink what he's served and that I'd like him to remake the drink for me, he tells me that what he served is their 'spec' recipe and if I would like it another way, I'd have to specify. He also said that I'd have to remember to make this special request each and every time I order it.
Attempt #3: Perfect!
My main point is, where does a restaurant get off modifying a classic cocktail so significantly without changing what they call it? I mean, if I ordered a ManhattanTini it could understand. But I didn't. I ordered a Manhattan!
Did anyone receive a special bottle for XMas?
Christmas and my birthday are pretty close together, so between the two occasions I received bottles of Lagavulin 16, Highland Park 18 and Aberlour a'bunadh. Not a bad year.
Best and Worst Food, Beverage, Restaurant -Related Ads in 2009 -- or EVER!
The absolute WORST has to be Kraft's new commercial for Kraft Singles. The advertisement calls the product "America's cheese" and says something about "only in America could something like this be invented". Yuck! I'm not American, but it must be embarrassing to have such a disgusting product marketed toward your patriotism.
Murphy's Beer Wanted in Toronto!
Not Toronto, but I was driving through Streetsville in Mississauga last night and saw lots of Murphy's advertisements outside of Cuchulainn's Irish Pub.
Best Theatre District Toronto
If there's a performance on at the Four Season Centre that same Saturday, Nota Bene offers a three course pre-theatre menu. The menu is quite good and its designed to get you in and out before the show.
Houston's Steak & Ribs...why didn't I listen?
That smell!!! I know exactly what you're talking about. I used to take Wellington on my way home and I would make sure my windows were up and my a/c was off when I passed the restaurant so I could avoid inhaling that wretched stink. I vowed never to eat there because of the smell and based on the O.P.'s experience, it was a good decision.
Uhockey reviews Canoe
Thanks for your great reviews uhockey. I really enjoyed reading them. I first came across your blog about a year ago when I was planning a trip to the French Laundry and I was quite nervous, as a Torontonian, to learn you were planning a trip to our fair city because your reviews are well thought out and you call a spade a spade. Thankfully, your eating adventures were substantially positive and we look forward to your next visit.
Choice of Theatre district restaurants
Instead of starting a new post, I'd like to get suggestions for a similar topic...
For tonight, something near the Royal Alexandra Theatre (Queen to Front and Spadina to University) that's consistently good, not Indian, Thai or the like - we eat these too often, has a decent vegetarian option and is not too casual. Unlike the OP, we're not restricted to specific restaurants.
My first thought is Nota Bene, but I'm not sure I want to spend that kind of dough on four dinners. Any and all suggestions welcome. Thanks.
Brunch in S. Etobicoke, Port Credit or points west?
An option in Port Credit would be Breakwater Restaurant at the Waterside Inn. A little more nice/formal, but a great place for food. You may want to call and confirm that brunch is served on a Saturday.
In Oakville, you could checkout Stoney's. This is a decent place in the west end and is much more on the casual side of things. They run a Sunday brunch, but breakfast is available daily.
While you're in Niagara, do yourself a favour and consider the Hillebrand Winery Restaurant for Sunday brunch. We went last weekend on a recommendation from our hotel and it was out of this world! Their brunch is a three course meal which consists of starter, main and dessert for $45pp, which included non-alcoholic beverages.
-----
Stoney's
323 Kerr St, Oakville, ON L6K3B6, CA
Breakwater
15 Stavebank Rd S, Mississauga, ON L5G2T2, CA
fresh butter?
I just went for a walk around the Farmers' market that's held on Wednesday afternoons near the Rogers compound (Bloor East and Huntley St.) and there was a dairy vendor selling three types of crafted butter. Their selection was salted, unsalted, and a whey butter. The lady shared that they're organic Amish dairy farmers from just outside of Stratford and imo, their products looked excellent.
Special Birthday Cake
I'm pretty sure the Franz you're talking about now owns The Apricot Tree in Mississauga along with his wife Ester. I know for a fact he worked at the Movenpick restaurants after he was recruited from Austria to work there in the 80s. His desserts are still unbelievably good and I consider them to be the best. Keep me posted.
-----
Apricot Tree
1900 Dundas St W, Mississauga, ON L5K1P9, CA
