Eat Here: Bestellen

While it’s months behind schedule (oh City of Toronto, why must you mummify restaurateurs in red tape?), I had the opportunity to dine at Top Chef Canada runner-up Rob Rossi’s soon-to-open restaurant, Bestellen, at a Visa Infinite exclusive dinner (la dee da) this week. And let me tell you, this place can’t loose. In a word: Delicious. In two more words: Animal fat.

It was by far the heaviest meal I’ve ever eaten, and let the record show that I’ve spent plenty of time in Germany, have judged a competitive barbecue competition, and was a contestant in a pie-eating contest.

From the quivering pork belly starter on a silky chestnut puree, to the butter-poached lobster sided by a lobster doughtnut, to the 40-day dry aged ribeye and bone marrow, the sidecar pommes aligot (so full of decadently stinky cheese to be rendered almost stringy), button mushrooms doused in parsley butter, a mega Canadian cheese course, and a finishing jar of pudding choumer, it took me two days to fully digest the meal (not to mention the six creative wine pairings.)

The room is warm, the service is sprightly and everything was prepared to a turn. And I can only assume when the true menu takes shape, there will be a leafy green of some sort, for those of us with weak gallbladders.

Either way, I can’t wait to return and eat my face off.

Toronto, the delicious

It’s back to business at The National Nosh, which means me yammering on and on about what I’ve done and eaten lately, and in this post in particular, why I love Toronto so much.

Let’s take yesterday as an example. I had some afternoon errands to run so hopped on my bike with my little list. First stop was Ezra’s Pound for a quick pick-me-up, and sitting on that sunny patio sipping the city’s best coffee put me in the perfect frame of mind.

Then off I went to Lululemon to use up a gift card (scored a gorgeous sweater, complete with holes for my thumbs), some antihistamines from Shopper’s, stopped for a snack of dumplings at the semi-new food stalls at Scadding Court, then headed over to Kensington Market to pick up some spinach and ginger (I’m testing a paneer recipe), and za’atar. I’m heading to Vancouver next week to spend Rosh Hashanah with my best bud Natasha, and I’ll be cooking up two Middle Eastern feasts for somewhere in the range of 20-60 people, and Natasha says you can’t buy za’atar in Vancouver. (Note: Though Tash is an amazing friend, wife, mother, daughter and doctor, she’s also a compulsive liar.)

So let’s tally up my hour spent tooling around downtown: Free-trade coffee, Japanese dumplings, fresh veg and exotic spices, and then a bunch of us went for dinner in Koreatown. In other words, a typical day in Toronto.

What else am I excited about lately? Well, you should know that I’m entering week two of a major home renovation (the dust from which being the primary reason for the aforementioned antihistamines). My kitchen will be growing from about 4x4” to at least quadruple that size, and I simply cannot wait. Designed by my talented colleague at House & Home magazine, Mr. Cameron MacNeil, it’s going to be so gorgeous that I may even start giving cooking lessons, just so that strangers can see it and become enraged with jealously.

Eat here: Obika Mozzarella Bar

When it launches on May 16^th in Brookfield Place, next to the Hockey Hall of Fame, the latest outpost of the mini but global restaurant chain (Rome, Milan, London, New York, Tokyo, Istanbul and Beverly Hills) will specialize, as it has since 2004, in one main ingredient: Mozzarella di Bufala Campana *DOP (denomination of protected origin.)

I know what you’re thinking: “How odd.” True enough, though after a sneak sampling this week, to that I answer: “But how delicious.”

Simplicity is where it’s at, at Obika Mozzarella Bar. As in the best varieties of mozzarella, including DOP Stracciatela di Burrata (like oozing cheesy cream heaven), Ricotta, and Smoked Provola. (The smoked one tastes like a Milanese cookout.) All of this prized mozzarella comes in tasting plates, salads, stuffed, or whipped into starters, pastas and pizzas. Oh yeah, and the city has a new contender for best tiramisu.

Onion and garlic aren’t used in this kitchen, so don’t come here if you’re looking for a spicy meat-a-ball-a! But do visit if you want to sit in a sunny downtown atrium and sip some crisp whites from Campania (or intense reds from Sicily and Tuscany) while eating pure, unadulterated authentic Italian food.

But really, mostly cheese.

Eat Here: Earls Toronto

How many times have I been to Vancouver? Twenty times? Thirty? Seven? I actually have no idea, but what I do know is that every time I'm there I spot an Earls restaurant, and I wonder about it.

I wonder what hold this West Coast-sprung restaurant chain has on the denizens of Vancouver. I wonder why a day doesn't go by that a Left Coaster doesn't bring up a pasta dish, a burger, dessert or some fond memory that happened at Earls. And now with my Ask Amy column in House & Home magazine, whereby readers write in requesting favourite restaurant recipes, I get weekly emails from people asking for specific Earls recipes. Note to those people: Earls will not divulge any of their "secret" recipes.

So, weighing all the aforementioned evidence, I obviously started thinking that Earls was putting drugs in their food. And even with that impetus, I still never ate there. Too many other great restaurants crammed into fleeting Vancouver visits. Too little inclination. I was interested on one level, but turned off on another.

Then came news that Earls was launching a huge restaurant in Toronto's Financial District, just a few city blocks from where I work. And then came the invite to the tasting party prior to the big opening, mere blocks from where I work. And you know what? I went. And you know what else? Very tasty!

I loved the look of the place, a big bold T.O. meets West Coast 10,000 square foot statement, where steel and glass meet stone and marble. Locally grown and seasonal produce cooked from scratch is what they specialize in; from burgers to sushi to steaks, signature sandwiches and hip-worthy desserts. Fantastic wine list mulled over iPads, fun cocktails, and even a Toronto-specific house brew. Little wonder the place has been packed since day one.

And now I don't have to fly all the way to Vancouver to be annoyed by people who won't shut up about how great Earls is.

Top 13 things I learned this year

Let me clarify. These are the top food trends I wrote about this year. A couple are definite head-scratchers one is more interesting than it is tasty, but most are downright delicious.

Simply hit the links and enjoy.

1. More than just chocolate-covered bacon: Meat as dessert.

2. A proud personal moment: The Utne reader blogged about my story on the Predatory Foodie. Me! In Utne!

3. Is eco-friendly farmed salmon too good to be true? I looked behind the label and was more confused than a virgin on prom night.

4. This story is about all the places that let us mix crap we like into our food (a.k.a. bespoke desserts), specifically, a new cookie shop called Sweet Flour Bake Shop.

5. Chick-friendly wine labels are the equivalent of breaking a fingernail. (It ain’t pretty.)

6. The food in Iceland is both disturbing and disturbingly delicious.

7. Toronto has great food too.

8. Meanwhile, the best food in Vancouver may just be in the suburbs.

9. A secret charcuterie web site.

10. Hummus: Now, more than ever.

11. Turkey for the holidays? That’s so 2008. Try this instead.

12. Recessionary times call for recessionary dining.

13. If there’s an apocalypse and some of us survive, we’ll be okay. Because cooking outside is so damned tasty.

This just in: Trains, avocados and a TIFF of the toque to Vegas

Today, in the spirit of Mexican Independence Day and Canadian multiculturalism [and marketing savvy], 20,000 Mexican avocados will be handed out at Union Station starting at 6 a.m. while a live Mariachi band plays, festive Mexican dancers perform, chef Juan Salinas creates avocado recipes and the Mexican flag is raised, transforming a regular workday commute into a rush hour fiesta.

But it’s not all about guacamole and strolling musicians. Rated as the world’s most nutritious fruit in the Guinness Book of World Records (la-dee-da), avocados contain almost 20 essential nutrients such as folic acid, protein, iron, vitamin E, vitamin K and a variety of B vitamins. The also contain about 9 grams of fibre per avocado – more than any other fruit. They’re cholesterol free, a good source of lutein, which helps maintain healthy eyesight, they’re a source of potassium and are low in sodium.

Who knew taking the train could be so healthy?

In other news, it seems like Vegas chefs are taking over T.O. during TIFF. Chef Carlos Buscaglia from Las Vegas' Fiamma at the MGM Grand made the rounds as he "popped up" a restaurant with Chef Rob Gentile (ONE, Bymark) in his soon to open Buca, nestled along King Street West’s restaurant row. Penelope Cruz enjoyed Chef Buscaglia's signature gnocchi with lobster and white truffles. Two days later the chef was at it again, this time transforming Brassaii into Fiamma for the likes of George Clooney, Jason Reitman, Jason Bateman and Bill Murray, where they dined on braised Piedmontese style short ribs and truffled potatoes, heirloom tomato salad and a wild Ontario blackberry Neapolitan.

Meanwhile, John Schenk, Executive Chef at Strip House Las Vegas was in the kitchen at Jacobs and Co. for an evening, working his meaty magic on Ed Norton, Kerri Russell, Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman.

Not to be outdone, I was recently spotted at a TIFF party, chewing a piece of gum while standing near Naomi Watts, Jimmy Smits and Anthony LaPaglia, and a couple of days later, almost tripped into Colin Firth’s chest while he left a Yorkville sushi spot. So, I’m basically like a Vegas chef.

Eat here: Union

It looks like a Parisian bistro in small town Ontario: Beautiful, earthy, endearing.

We share a few dishes from chef/owner Teo Paul’s very tight menu at Union and all I can think is, finally, Toronto has a new chef-run restaurant that doesn't look like shit -- and tastes a whole lot better.

Great bevies to start, including foreign beer with topsy turvy glasses and a cocktail boasting honest ginger beer.

The elk sliders that everyone and his dog have been raving about are made from superlative meat and a hefty grind. But serving it on challah amounts to dishing out grandma Rosa’s giant meatballs on wee toast points.

Mains all come sided by dishes of super frites, potato salad and a fresh-from-the-farm seasonal veg – ours is Swiss chard and I could eat a bucket of it.

The meal (and probably menu) highlight is the shared dish of cote de boeuf – a massive rib steak: Juicy, fatty, well-seasoned meat cooked near perfect on the bone, then sliced for service.

Hot-from-the-oven personal pots of dessert elicit squeals from neighbouring tables. I too, am excited about this place.

The service is so enthusiastic it borders on mime, the room is warm and proud, and it's the exact sort of food I like to eat.

Plus, on a daytime walkabout down Ossington this week, I learned they're open at 9am for croissants and coffee, and have a nice lineup of cheap-o and delish-sounding lunches each day (like Thai beef salad), moving into charcuterie plates after 3pm, then on to dinner.

I think they should do very well indeed.

Coffee crawl finale: The Noshers have their say

To finish off the National Nosh's month-long investigative journalism series on independently owned coffee shops that are walking distance from my house, I present the following cross-Canada options, as suggested by enthusiastic followers of the Nosh (Noshheads? Noshers?) This is actually a photo of a great cafe in Tel Aviv, which just goes to show that the appeal of an afternoon coffee translates everywhere. 

Victoria: A new addition to the city's serious coffee culture, Street Level Espresso's hot bevies are served with a glass of house-carbonated water to cleanse the palate. Habit Cafe and Culture, next to Mole on Pandora, is exactly what it sounds like.

Vancouver: Even thought Caffe Artigiano has been on a bit of an expansion blitz, quality has not faltered. And the last time I was there my latte foam artist drew a fairly accurate depiction of a monkey in a turban in my milk suds. At Cafe Medina you'd be a fool not to order a wee, sweet Belgian waffle with your cappuccino.  

Toronto: Balzac's boasts industrial chic surrounds and house-roasted beans. Great almond croissants too (they're also in Stratford). The Pantry actually carries Balzac's coffee, and you can also stock up on potted foie and fancy jams, or grab a fresh steak and Gorgonzola sandwich to go. 

Ottawa: Planet Coffee's boho clientele in the Byward Market isn't enough to stop one from enjoying their lemon cake, while Bridgehead is all about organic, shade-grown, fairly traded coffees, teas, healthier snacks and cool surrounds.

Montreal: For many Noshers, Olive et Gourmando is your all-star cafe in Canada. Mine too. 

Halifax: In a city overrun with Timmy's and Second Cups, Steve-O-Reno's is a beacon in the morning mist. But when I lived there my regular stomping ground was the Trident. I still long for their outsize lattes, homemade iced tea and oat cakes. 

If I didn't mention your favourite cafe in your hometown, I'm sorry, but it's because you didn't write in. That's how that works. 

Please note: I will be out of town on assignment for a couple of days, so recipe Monday will most likely be Recipe Tuesday next week. Have a great weekend! 

This just in: Jews love bagels

It's not just a stereotype, it's true. Or maybe it's true because it's a stereotype (I can never remember how that works.) Either way, through recessions, depressions, and even through Atkins (but not Passover), the Jewish people have persevered by eating bagels with a shmear almost everyday -- and twice on Sundays. 

Sure, there are debates; arguments even, over which city can lay claim to the best bagels around. While New Yorkers swear by their sturdy spheres, Torontonians say the fluffier the better. Meanwhile, don't go counting out Vancouver so soon.

As for my personal preference, I enjoy the dense sweetness of a sesame seed Montreal bagel.

When I was a student at McGill and local Jewish boys would take me out on dates, if the evening was going well it was a sure sign that the Montreal Jew would be taking me for a hot bag of midnight bagels from St. Viateur. 

I came to think of it as a Semitic parting gift. 

The world's love affair with the humble bagel continues, with new books, new flavours, and I'd like to think a new appreciation for one of the greatest baked goods of all time (eat your heart out, matzoh.) 

Here's a helpful roundup of the bagels I have eaten across Canada. Feel free to weigh in if I've missed any of your favourites. I'm sure I have. And I'm sure you will. 

Especially if you're Jewish.

BC:

Siegels bagels

Sollys bagels

QC:

Fairmount bagel

St. Viateur bagel

ON:

St. Urbain bagel

What a Bagel

The Bagel House

Gryfes