shelora

Chef Moreno from Bis Moreno has a little surprise for those attending the 10 course tasting menu this Sunday, March 20th. If anyone here goes, please let me/us know how it was. Edited to add - the event is sold out.

"You can get smoked horse meat at Charelli's Delicatessen in Victoria." Thanks! Thanks to everyone for your tips. I'll most likely go for the fresh horse meat and hopefully obtain some fat as well for some serious frites.

"I was surprised when I asked about where I could find a copy at the Tourism Victoria building on the edge of the inner harbour that they did not know" Anyone with brochures at Tourism Victoria has had to pay and pay well, for that advertising space. I think they would like to keep it that way. We are always looking for new locations to distribute the magazine and this summer we will conduct another blitz. Especially the hotels. Thanks for your feedback.

Mad cow, avian flu, pesticides, Monsanto, GMO, the fear factor list goes on and on. Pretty soon you realize, we are all doomed. I've eaten organic produce that tasted awful and probably pesticide ridden carrots that tasted wonderful and vice versa. I also wash my fruits and vegetables before I eat them which may or may not do anything, - hey, isn't the tap water filled with chlorine?- but the bottom line is, we all have to eat. It's a whole lot better to eat fresh fruits and vegetables than fast food or pre-packaged meals and those high in salt, fat and sugar. Best bet where I live is to purchase food from local farms throughout the seasons. They may not be certified organic but the farms don't use pesticides and the food is super fresh. Another way out is to start a small garden in your backyard or deck. Keep the faith.

Thanks Food Tutor. I'm going to take your gauge with me to check against what I'm ordering and receiving. Wasn't there a time when pork was cooked all the way through? In the olden days? I don't get the pleasure of hacking through a med to med rare piece of pork. Anyone know the reasoning behind serving pork this way? What exactly is the esthetic?

After years of dining, working with and more recently writing about food, I've reached a point where I no longer enjoy undercooked food served to me in restaurants. I'm getting increasingly frustrated. I don't want risotto al dente - why is it 9 times out of ten served this way? I know it is a difficult thing to "hold" risotto and it is usually par-cooked and then cooked the rest of the way to order. But why al dente? I do not recall any recipe in any book that requires you to cook risotto al dente. The other day I was served pork loin in a wonderful gorgonzola sauce. The pork was undercooked with pink - making it hard to cut through and chew. Why? It was too late to send it back, so I left it for my partner who struggles with the concept of food left on his or my plate. On numerous occasions, I have sent meat dishes back, when they are too rare - I usually go medium - only to be presented with overcooked meat. Am I being punished? I don't enjoy dry overcooked food either. Is it the quality of the restaurants I'm frequenting? Is there some cooking technique or reasoning behind undercooking I've forgotten? Why not just serve the meat raw? I thoroughly enjoy sushi and sashimi and quality steak tartare. But food disguised as cooked when it is almost rare, I no longer enjoy. Have I lost my palate? Do I now only order braised meats and long simmered stews? Am I quickly heading down the senior's road of pureed foods only? Please help.

Whenever I'm in Vancouver I need to stop at the Santa Barbara Market on Commercial Drive. They sell fresh baby artichokes, usually all year round, and something I rarely see in Victoria. A big bag of those, some lemons and a jumbo can of Portuguese olive oil and I'm set. Looking forward to being there soon.

I recommend the talents of www.edible-vancouver.com to steer you wise and maximize your time. s

Indeed, aren't moles amazing? You sound like you are smitten. I wish I could see how you are approaching the blending task, but I will offer some of my experiences. You may not need a new blender, but a new blade. Any hardware store that sells kitchen appliances should be able to get you a new one. Sharp blades are essential. To get those blades working through the chilies, etc., you may need a bit of liquid to get things going. And I always find that there is a bit of a struggle between me, the ingredients and the blender. This takes the form of stopping and stirring the mixture around and then restarting, adding a bit more liquid and so on, until smooth. When straining the ingredients, the classic technique is to firmly tap the sides of the strainer. I have never been completely satisfied with that technique - could be lack of muscle - so I find stirring the mixture seems to helps it all through. You are always left with some debris in the strainer. For the longest time, I threw that out and poured in the next batch from the blender - since you are blending in batches, right? Over Christmas, my friend and excellent cook Reyna Mendoza told me to put those strained leftovers back into the blender and blend along with the next batch of ingredients to go through the strainer. I thought this was brillant. So that's what I do now. Anything leftover in the blender should not be wasted. Any stock or water you are adding to the mole, can be swirled around first with the blender leftovers and poured through a strainer. Waste is something you never want in any form of cooking. All the great cuisines of the world, Mexico no exception, utilize everything. My favourite example of this is the recipe for an agua fresca, from D. Kennedy's Mexican Regional book, that uses only the seeds of the cantaloupe. I've made it numerous times and is absolutely delicious. I'd always thrown those seeds away, but no longer.

Flipping through the realestate weekly yesterday and noticed two restaurants for sale. One in the Cook Village - sounds like the location of Rosie's Diner (ex. Cassis). 44 seats inside and 16 outside, the whole kit and caboodle available for $243,000. The other resto is in James Bay, 50 plus seating, westerly exposure. Requesting offers on $99,000. - is this an unbelieveable bargain or what? And James, I agree, there is great potential for the Railyards area that is being built up and for the small area on Craigflower. Merlin - the restaurant you are thinking of with the royal reference is the Princess Mary. A converted boat. I accept no responsibility if you go.

"I agree about the parking, but there are tons of side streets around, and I would assume most of their traffic would be from the neighbourhood. Bottom line, I think there is enough." Let me tell you there is not enough parking. We live in between the Village and downtown. The vast majority of users to the Cook St. Village - especially on the weekends - live elsewhere in the city. So the parking is at a premium. Even those that live within walking distance, need to use their cars to go grocery shopping or drop off their laundry. It's a nightmare around here. When the lantern festival swings around,everybody wants to park closeby. During the week, our street is utilized by government workers not willing to pay parking fees on the existing lots closer to their work. Even though the sign says residential parking only. With the condo going up in the village I hope that are working some parking into the mix. It will only get worse. That said, I'm really forward to some change and chaos. And I like your restaurant idea, waiterblog. The other place in the village that does a huge business, is the greasy fish and chips and breakfast joint. Victoria is a huge lover of breakfast, greasy, big portions, crap coffee. Fry it and they will come. They are being slated for closure when the condo begins. I don't know what the customers will do. Know of anyone with a breakfast cart? You'd do a cracking business. s

1. Tapatio, salsa picante 2. Soy sauce 3. Mustard

I returned recently from Zihuatanejo in Guerrero Mexico with 10 kilos of the local sea salt. The regional salt there is hand harvested and sundried and is by far the best salt I have ever had. It is slightly citrusy and has a gentle salt taste from start to finish. Some salts hit you hard and dissipate quickly. This salt is magic. It's available in coarse and fine at the local market. S

Nice diversion, boys. Do you think Nikuya Meats is getting the horse meat locally? If anyone cares to check the Toronto forum, there are some interesting takes on serving horse meat at La Palette. Dang, I want some.

Thanks. Great! Oyama has been added to my list. So far seems like horse tartare is the most popular dish available in Toronto and Montreal. Served mostly in French style bistros. Are Vancouver-ites that squeamish about eating horse that is has to be listed in a different language? Actually it does sound more interesting.

"If you want to try to at home Whitehouse meats in St Lawrence Market will get it for you if you special order it. " Thanks. Do you know where they are getting the meat? Locally? Have you ever cooked with it at home? S

Excellent fun article by Maeve H, thanks for that. And it has been a secret desire of mine to consume frites done in horse fat. Montreal has it going on. Horse tartare seems to be the most popular preparation, yes? Have you ever cooked horse at home?

Thank you all for the great info. You are all beautiful. If we see boar, bison, deer, and elk on menus, why not horse? Appreciator, is it because horses are pets to so many that you are having a hard time with the concept? I must say I would have a hard time with dog or kitten on any menu. So far. I've put the call out to the other Canadian forums, just to see who is eating horse in Canada. I'm kinda excited about this new menu option. Vancouver and Nikuya meats, here I come. Nwyles, would you ever consider serving horse as a special?

Does horse meat appear on restaurant menus in Montreal? I have put out the query to all the Canadian regions. If you've eaten it, how was it served and did you enjoy it? Thanks, Shelora

Do you know of anyone serving horse meat in Toronto restaurants? If so, how are they serving it? Anyone tried it? Shelora

Hello, There used to be a meat vendor/butcher out on Hastings that advertised horse meat for sale. This was some time ago. Does anyone know if it is still there and where it is located? If not, is there anyone still offering horse meat for sale in Vancouver, B.C. or on Vancouver Island and how to get a hold of them? Neigh whinny, Shelora

"a place in Cook Street Village would be a little goldmine - no joke. " Indeed, Mr. Waiterblog. No joke indeed. I know I sound like a broken record, but I did another condo count this morning and we are up to 8, count 'em, 8 new condos in the works, being built, or applying for permits. This is in a 4 block radius, north south and west of my place. Cook St. Village in particular has a nice development being slated for opening sometime next year. This location is where the current VQA liquor store is (Hi there Glenn Barlow!) and they will have new digs that include plans for a deli. Please for the love of good food, can somewhere hear our plea for more great restaurants in Victoria. Cook it and they will come. The franchises already know something is in the air. Why else would Cactus Club open recently in downtown Vict.? They transformed a very ugly corner of Fort and Douglas into something appealing. Rumour has it that Earl's is moving in closer to Government St. from their current location near the old Bay building. The vibe is very similar to the one experienced in Vancouver after Expo. The rumblings of change. Come on you entrepeneurs, we are dying for more inspired food choices. And I love Howie. He's loud and Pag's becomes a magic place when he is in there chatting to everyone or talking dirty. Too many people in Victoria have corks up their bums and I'm in desperate need of a Vancouver hit. Shelora

So sorry, Andy. Correction noted. Which reminds me of a joke. Q - "Where are the Andys?" A - " At the end of the wristies." Best regards, Shelora

"Mulato chiles....They are also known as Guajillo chiles." Mulato chilies are close in appearance to a chile ancho but with some flavour differences. Guajillos have a tough, smoother skin not crinkly like an ancho. There are others much more versed in these differences than I. I'm sure they will come on board. Chile identification can really screw with your mind. S

Well put Kaffirlime. I think it's bogus to NOT taste what the heck it is you are writing about. The food critic's samples listed by you and Lynes were truly strange - the dissertation on wibbliness particularly disturbing. I'm keeping them close by as examples of what not to do. There should be awards set up for this sort of stuff. S