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Whether you celebrate the slaves’ escape from Egypt, the resurrection of Christ or the annual arrival of Cadbury eggs, these seven restaurant events—with Passover- and Easter-themed menus—can help make next weekend memorable.
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Just Opened: The owner of Globe Bistro brings Kevin McKenna’s fresh and local dining to Rosedale with Earth
(Photo by Signe Langford)
Word on the street is that the space at 1055 Yonge is cursed. It’s had a long history of failed restaurants—Tabla, Plakutta, Rosewood Grill, Roxborough’s, Cucina, Arlecchino, Emerald Thai, L’Actuel, Trata, Rosedale Oyster—places that came and went, sometimes before the ink had dried on the lease. Misty-eyed locals still reminisce about Cibo, the last decent thing to happen to this space, and it closed in 1992. Now, Ed Ho, owner of Globe Bistro on the Danforth (and former Bay Streeter, who, like a certain Alaskan, went rogue), has moved in with his latest restaurant, Earth. And Ed Ho doesn’t scare easily.
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Toward a better booze-scape: seven egg-infused creations boost Toronto’s cocktail comeback
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For years, Torontonians returning from Chicago and New York brought tales of their cocktail adventures—stories typically followed by complaints about the dismal state of mixed drinks in their hometown. Well, that’s in the process of changing. Professional mixologists are increasingly common at bars and restaurants in this city, and they have been leading something of a cocktail comeback. Such Gatsby-era classics as flips, fizzes and sours are popping up everywhere, and crafty bartenders have revived the use of eggs to froth up these bold creations. We decided to look into the practice and found some of the city’s more inspired egg-infused cocktails.
Squash season is upon us: five of T.O.’s top chefs show us how they’re treating fall’s star fruit
(Photo by Andy Roberts)
For Toronto chefs worshipping at the altar of fresh and local, squash is the ingredient of the moment. Cowbell’s owner and chef, Mark Cutrara, tells us that the locavore movement has led to a better infrastructure for getting Ontario-farmed versions to cooks, who are doing more than just puréeing the fruit for soup. Culinary innovators around town are transmuting squash into ice cream, gratin and gnocchi. We look at five delicious dishes from five Toronto menus that make the most of this year’s bountiful squash harvest.
1,000 Tastes takes over Yorkville
While many foodies went to Yorkville’s Toronto Taste last weekend, others gathered at Harbourfront for 1,000 Tastes of Toronto. Part of the Luminato festival, this event also showcased many of the city’s top restaurants, each offering gourmet street food at $5 a pop. We caught up with some of the chefs and restaurateurs who helped add spice and flavour to Toronto’s multicultural milieu, one plate at a time.
Last call for Fiddleheads: Now we eat them, soon we won’t
Heady times: Fiddleheads come but once a year (Photo by Foodista)
The season’s first locavore love affair is about to come to an end. Fiddleheads—the fern fronds harvested for only one month each spring—have been popping up on menus throughout the city recently, but experts advise that the coming weekend (and the onset of stem-shrivelling summer heat) will likely mark the end of the veggie’s short season. Even the most optimistic predictions have the Polkaroo of plant life on Toronto plates for another week. We scavenged for details of what five of the city’s top chefs are doing with the of-the-moment ingredient.
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Globe Bistro’s Kevin McKenna and Eigensinn Farm’s Michael Stadtländer serve up an epic eat-local dinner
It was gastronomic ecstasy at the elegant “eat local” Globe Bistro Wednesday night, when Eigensinn Farm’s Michael Stadtländer made a guest appearance to heat up the kitchen with his former student, Globe chef Kevin McKenna. A portion of the proceeds from the lavish seven-course wine-paired feast go to the Toronto East General Hospital Foundation. “That’s where I’m going to go after my first heart attack from pork,” owner Ed Ho joked. We were relieved that lamb was the order of the evening.
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Loss of appetite: It’s a double whammy for restaurants as their Bay Street backers go broke
The centre of the universe: Bay Street goes gastronomical (Photo by Jim U)
There’s no question that investing in a restaurant is a high-risk venture. That said, many of the city’s swankiest downtown dining rooms are partially owned by investment-savvy Bay Streeters—those who should be the first to spot a bum deal. Czehoski, Centro, Six Steps and the aptly named Bottom Line are just a few of the dining establishments fed by Bay Street assets. It is no coincidence, then, that Toronto’s golden age of culinary evolution matched up with a golden age of culinary investment. In the boom times, an underperforming investment (even if it was a restaurant) was compensated by market gains. But when the TSX started to slide last year, restaurants got a double whammy: not only were expense accounts drying up, but so was investment capital. Suits who diversified into the restaurant industry suffered, too, prompting us to ask, why keep investing in restaurants? Read the rest of this entry »
Tip of the Isberg: Coca’s fate is in the hands of its one-time chef
Nathan Isberg ponders his future (Photo by Renée Suen)
When we asked whether Coca’s surprise shutdown signalled closure or reincarnation, we didn’t know that its management was wondering exactly the same thing. The now-shuttered restaurant will either reopen as an entirely new enterprise, or not at all. But there is some good news. If the spot has gone downhill since losing its signature chef, Nathan Isberg, it might make hipsters swoon again: estranged from Coca since an unceremonious split from investors back in November, Isberg was surprised to get a call asking him to come back and shape an entirely new venture in the same space. Burned by bad politics and immersed in new endeavours, though, the young chef now faces a dilemma. His choice may decide the project’s ruin or renewal.
Toronto’s hidden brunch gems
School's blueberry pancakes (Photo by Renee Suen)
Some brunch spots may be worth a long wait, but lining up can be the least desirable activity for a weekend morning. We’ve put together a list of alternatives for those who’d rather get served than queue up. Our picks, organized by neighbourhood, after the jump.
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Recessionary gratuities: Is 2009 the year of lousy tips?
Thanks for the tip (Photo by Wade from Oklahoma)
What to tip at recession time? This is the latest question in the never-ending gratuity debate; and since the market went south, it appears to be striking a nerve in Toronto and elsewhere. The New York Times‘ etiquette authority, Frank Bruni, wrote about it on his blog recently, sparking chatter about servers getting stiffed during hard times. Apparently diners are not just ordering less food, but they are then dialling down the percentage of their cheques left for gratuity. The recession effect—Bruni calls it a “double whammy”—is being felt closer to home, too. Toronto servers have been reporting paltry pourboire during the downturn. “Before the crisis, money was getting thrown around, but now people are more careful,” says France Salmon, who has been serving for over 10 years at celeb sanctuary Bistro 990. It seems even stars can be guilty of skimpy tipping (we’re looking at you, Madonna). With everyone else getting their bonuses trimmed and salaries frozen, is it all right to be less generous with the gratuity? Read the rest of this entry »
