phoenikia

Wow - I am not familiar with these. Do you have more detail and/or photos? I'd also love to see some photos, too. I've tried a tall Czech-style Pascha bread, but have never seen a white bread surrounding a yellow bread. Sounds perfect for Easter. ;-)

Interesting. I've been meaning to make a saffron bread or saffron cake. I've thought about making Swedish Lussekatter for St. Lucia Day in Dec, but never seem to find the time. Thanks for including the saffron cake link!

Dundas and Bathurst is close to Kensington Market, which offers lots of "ethnic" options- good Mexican (for TO-take with a grain of salt) at El Trompo and Agave & Aguacate http://www.blogto.com/restaurants/agave-aguacate-toronto , Jumbo's empanadas, Torito for tapas, Krepesz for Hungarian palascinta/crepes, Trini Doubles or Jamaican patties at Patty Queen. It's also fairly close to Chinatown (Rol San is the best bet for decent cheap dim sum, Chinese Traditional Buns is a good place for xiao long bao and other Northen dishes, although Mother's Dumplings is more upscale for Chinatown). Lai Wah Heen is the best bet for luxe dim sum downtown, and it's located just south of Dundas, on Chestnut, east of University Ave. Good Vietnamese (broken rice platter) at Pho Phuong, on Dundas west of Dufferin. Pasteis de Nata at Brasilia Bakery on Dundas near Pho Phuong (or at Golden Wheat, Rivera, Nova Era on College St).Churrasco chicken is also found along Dundas W, in the Portuguese area- haven't tried any of those, so I don't have a rec. College St/ Little Italy is a short walk from where you're staying, but better Italian can be found elsewhere. Not sure if you include Italian as ethnic, or not. Enoteca Sociale and Campagnolo get more love for upscale/interesting Italian than any restaurants on College St lately, although Negroni on College(mostly panini) has quite a few fans. You're also quite close to Ossington Ave, the current hip stretch in TO. Pizza Libretto has napoletana style pizza (go at lunch, to avoid line-ups), and Salt is a new tapas bar. Gandhi's offers East Indian curry wrapped in a WI style roti shell (large serving!), on Queen near Bathurst. Ali's on W Queen W, further w on Queen, offers more traditional WI roti. Prague Deli serves breakfast daily, including some E Euro specialties. I also like the huevos divorciados at Easy Restaurant on Queen W near Roncesvalles. For Polish food, Chopin and Cafe Polonez on Roncesvalles are great. Good combo platters available at both, with a slightly more extensive menu at Cafe Polonez. There's also some decent Ethiopian options (one on Queen W near the Drake Hotel, as well as one on College which I haven't tried), that aren't too far from where you're staying.

Bumping this old thread. Is anyone baking Easter Bread this weekend? I'm baking a Tsoureki(Greek Easter Bread) today.

George is another restaurant you should check out when you visit. Lorenzo Loseto is a talented chef who uses local and/or Cdn ingredients, and occasionally, in the past, some dishes have had some sort of molecular gastronomy influence. http://georgeonqueen.com/ Most chefs in TO's upscale, continental restaurants are using local ingredients these days. The main upscale restaurants that rely on imported ingredients would be the top Chinese and Japanese restaurants that are unable to source their products locally, and Chiado, which sources much of its seafood from the Mediterranean. I'm not sure you'll be finding much of an MG influence around town these days, outside of Colborne Lane. I didn't notice any dishes on the current Lucien menu that looked MG-influenced, and CL seems to also have less of an MG theme on the current menu. Sous vide was quite popular on menus a few years ago, but I haven't noticed it much lately. http://colbornelane.com/dining_room http://lucienrestaurant.com/

just thought I'd clarify that I ordered the fritto misto at Malena in November 2010, as well as in late April 2010. Liked the November version, which included perfectly fried calamari, spot prawns, crab cake & gigantes, much more than the April version which had included calamari, smelts/marides and softshell crab.Malena recently updated their menu, so I'm looking forward to another visit to try some new dishes in the near future.

beautiful photos! foods I enjoyed in 2010: chocolate espresso tart- from a cooking class taught by Chef Neil Baxter at Rundles in Stratford. huevos divorciados at Easy. fritto misto & grilled octopus at Malena. biftekia + maroulosalata at Folia Grill. various flatbreads & pigs' ears at Buca. maki at Yuzu ribeye steak at Globe Earth- surprisingly good for the pricepoint ($20 for the meat, sides a la carte) pea soup at Stadlandters' Christkindl Markt hungarian goulash on a potato pancake at Cafe Polonez greek omelette at Detroit Eatery (greasy spoon- don't expect a French-style folded omelette) outside Ontario: Momofuku Milk Bar's candybar pie in NYC fish tacos at Mercadito in NYC fish tacos in Santa Barbara chowder & fried calamari at Kitchen Galerie Poisson in Mtl padron peppers at Bonny Doon's Cellar Door Cafe in Santa Cruz breakfast pizza at Downtown Creamery in Healdsburg

Has anyone been wowed in TO lately? I recently tried Queen Margherita Pizza and South of Temperence. Found Queen Margherita Pizza to be fine, but much preferred the more contemporary/innovative type of pizza served at Buca. Very underwhelmed by the food at South of Temperence, which seems to be more about scene than food or drink. Ordered the short rib sweet potato fry poutine (not good), the fish tacos (not traditional but the fish was fine,liked the jicama slaw, not sure why they would add cheddar to a fish taco), the seared ahi and avocado sandwich (which was welldone rather than seared)and an oversweet,not very tasty mojito. Pleasantly surprised by a tart & fresh tasting mojito at Nota Bene, but found the food quite average (lobster salad, followed by the octopus/scallops, and a shared order of frites). This is my 3rd visit to NB, and all visits have been pretty much the same. Had enjoyed the Wine Bar post JK two times in the spring and early summer, before Scott opened Beast. My visit last weekend was ok, but the food wasn't as tasty as what I experienced before Scott left. The frites were very average, more like chip wagon fries, the scallops were somewhat overcooked, the cheddar and apple salad contained no cheddar (which was brought in a cup after we notified the server), the fried calamari were ho-hum. I liked their current mushroom risotto, which was better than most I've ordered lately. The pavlova was sort of a deconstructed version- a flat meringue "cookie" served next to some sliced peaches and a spoonful of whip. Tasted fine, but I prefer the traditional approach. Our server was very attentive for the first hour, but was close to impossible to flag down in the last 20 minutes. Have to say the best tasting meals I've had in TO lately have been downmarket meals- a hot chicken sandwich with onions, hot peppers and green peppers at California Sandwiches on Dufferin, and a Greek omelette at Detroit Eatery.

Bumping this old thread, since I'll be returning to Saskatoon. Besides Weczeria, Truffles, Bliss and Calories, are any other somewhat upscale restaurants in Saskatoon focusing on local ingredients? Which restaurants could handle a group of 12-14 people? Thanks for any comments you might have!

Nice photo! Hope to try QMP sometime soon. Still haven't gotten around to trying Libretto's pizzas. I really liked the alici (white anchovy) pizza at Buca.

Thought I'd bump this thread now that the Stratford Festival has opened for its 2010 season. Had a great burger with Monforte curds and frites for lunch at Down the Street in May. Last week, I was happy with my 3 course prix fixe (roasted beet and Belgian endive salad with yogurt/horseradish dressing, seared scallops with peking duck/green mango salad and yuzu, and a rhubarb soup) at Rundles Sophisto Bistro. Hoping to dine at Bijou later this month, and at the Rundles Restaurant sometime this summer.

At least they remembered to put the address in their twitter profile ;-) While I'm sure jlunar has the address already, in case the updated website still lacks an address, Beast is located at 96 Tecumseth, just west of Bathurst, and south of Queen W.

Chris Brown worked with Pat for most of Pat's tenure (and at Avalon I believe). Highly skilled and just an all-around nice guy. GordonCooks, not sure if you've been following Chris Brown since Perigee closed. He is now the Chef at the Stop. I had a great dinner at a special event a the Stop a couple weeks ago, and even though around 30 people were served dinner at the same time, the salad (involving arugula,basil, black radish, raw artichoke,yogurt dressing) and dessert (lemon curd tart with preserved grapes and Italian meringue, with rhubarb sorbet) were better than what I've been served at most upscale TO restaurants over the last year. Highly recommend attending one of the special events at the Stop there if you happen to be in TO. http://www.thestop.org/events There is a monthly Food for a Change event- maybe the July 15th event would work with your itinerary (or maybe you're already planning to attend!) http://enterprises.thestop.org/food-for-change the Stop's twitter feed: http://twitter.com/TheStopCFC

Thanks Geoff. To get it straight: The fresh chiles you mention are available at the El Salvadorean places in Kensington, and also some Mexican-type cheeses. What is the K-W area of Ontario??? K-W is short for Kitchener Waterloo!

Perola Supermarket on Augusta in Kensington Market http://www.torontolife.com/guide/food/delis-north-and-south-american/perolas-supermarket/ carries some fresh hot peppers, in addition to the dried. Haven't bought any Anaheim or Poblano peppers there, but I understand others have bought poblanos at Perola's in the past. Have bought Scotch Bonnet and Habanero at some of the produce shops in Kensington. According to some older threads on another food site, poblanos can sometimes be found at Whole Foods in Yorkville, St. Lawrence Market, or Longo's. You could always check with a premium produce shop like Harvest Wagon to see if they could source poblanos or anaheims for you. http://www.harvestwagon.com/

Twitter feed for Scott Vivian's Beast: http://twitter.com/BeastRestaurant website for Beast: http://www.thebeastrestaurant.com/

You're in luck- there are several smaller farmers' markets in the west end that operate during the week. Sorauren Market (near Dundas and Sorauren) is on Monday afternoons http://westendfood.coop/ and Trinity Bellwood Market is on Tuesday afternoons, http://www.tbfm.ca/ . There's also a market which will be taking place near Sick Kid's hospital downtown on Tuesdays. I would think the Trinity Bellwoods market would have more selection. Definitely check out Monforte Dairy's cheese (from nearby Perth County) if you attend any of the outdoor farmers' markets! Here's more information on farmers' markets around Toronto http://wx.toronto.ca/festevents.nsf/farmers+markets?openform Kensington Market (which is a neighbourhood filled w ethnic shops, and where Wanda's Pie in the Sky is now located), and St.Lawrence Market (our covered market) are also worth visiting, and would be open during the week!

I would also recommend Pho Phuong on Dundas W near Brock http://www.blogto.com/restaurants/phophuong They have some other food on the menu besides pho, including broken rice dishes, and crab. There's a Portuguese bakery across the street that serves decent pasteis de nata (custard tarts), too. Leah's on St. Clair West at Wychwood (near Christie) has lots of N American baked goods- squares, butter tarts, crumbles, etc, and it's a short walk to the Wychwood Barns, where a farmer's market takes place on Saturdays. For good burgers that are closer to you, you might want to consider the Harbord Room on Harbord, or Nota Bene on Queen just west of University. I like the Harbord Room burger a little more than the Globe Earth burger, which I like a little more than the Nota Bene burger. All these burgers run somewhere between $15 and $19. If you're looking for a good burger that is under the $10 mark, I've been happy with the burgers at Craftburger on King West (which is set up more like a fastfood joint than a restaurant). I like the avocado & blue cheese burger at Craftburger. http://www.craftburger.com/

James Chatto's blog: http://jameschatto.com/

Beautiful photos! Too bad about Toque. Although I enjoyed my dinner at Toque last fall, I liked my meals at Le Montee, APDC and the now-closed Bronte better. Hope you have a good experience at APDC tonight. Loved their take on the lobster roll, which was topped with foie gras, and served on challah. Also liked the marinated smoked sausages (Saucissettes fumées marinées) & pudding chomeur. Be prepared for massive portions. Looking forward to seeing the photos ;-)

Most of the appetizers/antipasti were in the $8-$12 range. The pastas were mostly $16-$20. The polenta with veal/ricotta meatballs and sausage (which was more substantial than the pastas) was $26 IIRC. We didn't order any primi, but I think they were in the $24-$30 range. Our group of 7 ordered 7 alcoholic drinks, around 4 appetizers, 3/4 sides, 4 pizzas, 3 pastas, 1 gnocchi, 1 polenta and 3 gelati, and the bill came around $500 including tax and tip. I thought the price was fair, and I think my dining companions did, but I have other less foodcentric friends who think Buca is expensive for what you get. The portions are more along the lines of what one would expect in an upscale restaurant/osteria in Italy, rather than what you'd expect at a trattoria. This isn't the place to go for a hearty Italian meal in TO. The portion sizes are similar to what I'd expect at Zucca, the Wine Bar or Globe Bistro.

Got a chance to try over a dozen dishes at Buca while dining with some friends. The pizzas are unlike any other pizzas I've tried- very crisp, light dough- with interesting toppings such as mortadella or ramps or white anchovies. Liked the pigs' ears and grilled radicchio. Good to see so many seasonal and/or local ingredients, such as ramps, fiddleheads, softshell crab and rhubarb on the menu. I'll definitely be back, and look forward to trying more dishes on the menu.

I'll be visiting Montreal in the near future, and would love to hear about any restaurants serving innovative contemporary cuisine. On past trips, I've enjoyed visits to Toque, APDC and Le Montee. I also have tried Europea and Rosalie, but found the food mediocre, so I haven't returned. I haven't had a chance to try Le Club Chasse et Peche or Joe Beef yet, but they've both been on my wishlist for a while. My dinner at Bronte in October was one of my favourite meals in 2009, and I was disappointed to hear that the restaurant had closed. What is Joe Mercuri doing these days? And how is the new Accords? http://accords.ca/

Have any of you dined at Buca? If you have, which dishes would you recommend? I've heard great things about their flatcrust pizza, as well as their gnocchi and pastas. Although no menu is posted on Buca's website: http://www.buca.ca/ , their twitter stream: http://twitter.com/bucatoronto often mentions daily specials that sound innovative and/or interesting. Thanks for any comments or suggestions.

Finally had a chance to try Braise this week, and I was pleasantly surprised. The space is beautiful, and the servers were friendly and courteous. Braise is charging Toronto prices at dinner (Mains cost as much as $39, and the 7 course tasting menu costs $75, which is a lot for a London, ON restaurant). The lunch items are all under $18. Braise menu: http://braise.ca/food/menu/fall_pm_main_menu.pdf'>http://braise.ca/food/menu/fall_pm_main_menu.pdf Really enjoyed the smoked trout with frisee and horseradish vinegrette. I didn't like my main of spaghettini with walnut pesto and arugula, but will be back to try other items on the menu. Most people at our table enjoyed what they ordered, although both soups (one white bean/bacon, and one French Onion) were described as too salty. Which is interesting, since the soups I've ordered at the nearby Abruzzi have generally been undersalted. Heard very good things about their hamburger, as well as the fresh donuts (4 flavours on one plate). Braise also has sitting areas with couches and coffee tables, so it's possible to just go there for drinks, if you aren't in the mood for lunch or dinner. Looking forward to trying other dishes at Braise. http://braise.ca/