Subway Trees

Some Torontonians may know this - or you may not...but there are trees growing in the tunnels between St. Clair and Summerhill stations. Those trees make me both happy and sad - they also have me completely perplexed. How in the world did they get there and how is it that they are still there? I mean, there's no sun there to speak of, and while there may be tons of water - I don't know - it's likely all street run off full of gross street stuff - and yet, there they are. Grey trees growing in the dark and swaying in the breeze of the subway trains flying by. In any case, this post has nothing to do with whole foods...actually, my life lately has had nothing to do with whole foods as I am struggling just to keep my head above water in everyday life. I am trying to find my foothold in this city, and doing everything I can to survive in the greyness of it...but it's summer now, so I am seeing some sun and that is shedding some light on the situation. Since last Friday I have been on a gastro-adventure of epic proportions and I thought maybe you guys would be interested in heaing about it. First, after months (like pretty much almost a YEAR) of solitary confinement, I have had visitors, and that means venturing outside. First, I have to tell you about a fabulous little middle eastern place that is way too close to my place for comfort...it's called Tabule and it is fabulous. Great labneh (strained/pressed yogurt like Greek style) that they serve as a dip with za'atar sprinkled on top....mmmmm....I still like my labneh as a garnish for things like awesome Lebanese kebbeh, or as an after-dinner sweet with honey and a sprinkle of pine nuts (or almonds) but the labneh dip is yummy too! I haven't had anything bad there yet and I have sampled pretty much the whole menu from my two visits there (I steal food from other people's plates! Hahahaha!) My guests (Hi DV and AMC!)gifted me with a beautiful BBQ cookbook by famed Québec chef Louis-Francois Marcotte - I cannot wait to try some of those recipes - like grilled apple and cheese sandwiches! MMMM! We also tried pur hand at making our own sangria, which I must say turned out pretty good - even though we winged alot of it (beacuse some people can't read recipes! hahahahah!)

I also finally had the chance to spend some time at the Bier Markt - the flatbread pizzas called FLAMMEKUECHES are pretty good - HIGHLY recommend the Smoked Meat one - mmmmm - It's the beer that makes the place! I really like the one on the Esplanade because the menu has a real Québec flare! And the beer - I tried about 12 varieties and they have over 100 (like with food, I will steal sips from other people's glasses too!) - I have some work ahead of me! Hahahahahaha! I love the Esplanade because it reminds me of Montréal - the outdoor patios, the vibe of the people - very very much like my hometown!

Speaking of which... I had to go to Montréal for business and along with that means business lunches and dinners :) The best part of work if you ask my general opinion! We went to a place across from our office called Vinizza for lunch....first I have to say I really liked the decor - any place that features a bright red Vespa behind the bar already has my vote!!! I am not a big pasta person, and this place serves either pasta or pizza (or stinky fish, as my coworker unfortunately experienced!) but I ordered an unassuming linguini style pasta with mushrooms and spinach - after one bite I realized that it was definitely no ordinary or unassuming pasta dish! OMG! It was divine!!!!!!!!! Service was great too! Upstairs was a book and DVD place called "Cheap Thrills" - ahhh Montréal, you never disappoint me when I need a smirk on my face!

That night, we went to a place in old Montréal called Garde-Manger (The Pantry for you Anglophones). Chuck Hughes, whom I've never heard of to be honest, owns it...I have always wanted to go to one of these chi-chi restaurants in Vieux Montréal - but often find myself down there alone, and am not brave enough to dine alone in higher end establishments- but my friend has taught me the art of bar-sitting - which is a way better way to do things for foodies because you get to chat with the staff who also give you treats and samples of stuff...plus you get the inside scoop and you even get to order stuff that's not even on the menu! This night, I ordered off the menu and had a GORGEOUS Bavette with a fried egg on top. Bavette is a cut of meat similar to...well I don't even know what it's similar too - it's new to me, and seems to only be available in Québec (where they also have Smoked Meat, Raclette and other meaty treats unknown to Ontarians!) It's like a single portion of roast beef, but more like a roast beef steak because it melts in your mouth! Mine was served with these potato croquettes and a gravy/sauce that is akin to heaven. I am serious - one bite and my whole body reacted! Holy smokes soooooooo good! The fried egg on top was a novelty to my dinner companion, but I am not new to egg on non-breakfast foods - being a HUGE fan of bimimbap (a Korean dish of rice, veg, sometimes galbi (BBQ meat), with spicy (burn your face off) red pepper sauce with an egg on top - it's their fast food over there - but I just love it! The next day for lunch we hit up Cavalli - The decor and vibe of this place is like the essence of Montéal bottled. Crazy colours (fushia and pea green) neon lights, banquettes, hot wait staff, open front - I guess you'd have to be a Montréaller to know what the heck I am talking about - but it even smelled like Montréal in there....craziness I know! I have a weird relationship with my birthplace - I don't miss it much until I am there for a few days then I always entertain the idea of moving back....weird I know! Anyhow, the ambience here was electric and distracting - especially because I was supposed to be paying attention to the meeeting. The food was pretty good - I had swordfish with a mango salsa...pretty good (but made me homesick for Bermuda wahoo!) I also had to have me some Smoked Meat so that night I hit up Nickles...which is owned by Celine Dion - I went there only because it was close to the hotel (I usually hit up Schwartzs for the BEST smoked meat in the world!!) and I also had to see what it was about because Mme Dion has just purchased Schwartzs and PROMISED that she would not turn it into a Nickles - and she had better not because Nickles honked on bobo! The meat was fine, but the bread was soggy so I had to eat my sandwich with a fork and knife! OH THE HUMANITY! The pickle was NOT kosher dill...and we won't mention the concoction they tried to pass off as poutine (and I have had me some really BAD poutine in my little life).

With my friend in town this weekend, we have had Thai at The Golden Thai on Church in Toronto - pretty good, service is great! And tonight we tried a new place called Terroni Bar Centrale...again with the Italian :) I had polenta for the first time in my life - but definitely not the last time! I also had something that I cannot for the life of me remember what it is called - it is basically an Italian rice ball - but they use risotto, and stuffed it with a lovely ragu with cheese and peas - either one of the appetizers wuld make a nice light dinner or lunch if you tack on a salad (which I did) - the place is a comfortable neighbourhood place and has a pretty impressive charcuterie selection - and a very impressive stock of Nutella! Hahahaha (tons of it!) This place is going to be VERY VERY VERY dangerously bad for me for a few reasons - a) they have a bar singles can sit at (and a nice patio too), it's pretty affordable, nice wines, and it's practically next door to the sewing school where I;ve just signed up for an 8 week course - bad bad bad....I can see myself stopping in after work for a bite before my 6:30 class every week - thank goodness my favorite place down by my painting class is just a little wee coffee shop (with yummy green tea!) I hope this switch on topics is cool with you guys - I am sad to say that I have strayed from a whole food lifestyle (because FOOD was the main part of my day and I just couldn't keep up with the shopping and cooking and planning) but I really missed blogging on here and my good friend (Hi Daniel) told me tonight to just write about 'whatever' so here I am!!!! XOJ