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The comprehensive index of every blog post, magazine story and restaurant review that appears on Torontolife.com
Rain, Rain: Come again some other day (Photo by Henry Faber)
In June, the redesigned Rain will be unveiled, with a new name (Ame, Japanese for “rain”), a tip-to-tail renovation and some fresh entertainment value. Club king Charles Khabouth (Tattoo Rock Parlour, Spice Route), who has been shaping the party scene since the first bodysuit trend, has teamed up with co-owners and Made to Order stars Guy and Michael Rubino to give the Mercer Street digs a new do.
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Lily Allen fights with dairy (Photo by Douglas Cason)
• British pop star Lily Allen is fined $2,000 for starting an ice cream fight in her dressing room after performing at the Phoenix Concert Theatre on Wednesday. Hey, at least it wasn’t mashed potatoes. [UK Sun]
• Dough makers: Jamie Oliver steals the title of U.K.’s richest chef from Gordon Ramsay. To make matters worse, Ramsay didn’t even make the list of country’s 2,000 richest people. [Evening Standard]
• Grocery giant Metro boasts higher than expected earnings, and is confident shoppers will be cooking at home for at least another two fiscal quarters. [Financial Post]
• Nova Scotia’s Ecology Action Centre releases a guide to ordering sustainable sushi. The dolphin maki-roll is a no-go? [Metro]
• UK’s The Guardian unleashes the long-awaited backlash against the gastropub trend and asks readers to construct “the perfect English menu.” [Guardian]
Is this the great grilled cheese comeback? (Photo by Robyn Lee)
• Is it just us, or is grilled cheese the new poutine? The kiddie comfort food takes centre stage at this weekend’s Grilled Cheese Invitational in L.A. and at Toronto’s own Good Food Festival, which kicks off today with a celebrity grilled cheese competition. [L.A. Times]
• Reach for the Skyy: Statistics Canada reports that Canadians are buying almost five per cent more booze since the recession hit—unsurprisingly, cheaper brands are selling best. [Globe and Mail]
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Rob Gentile will open Buca in late May (Photo by Mary Luz Mejia)
Mark McEwan protégé Rob Gentile has left the fold of his mentor’s Yorkville restaurant, One, to open a place of his own later this spring. The former executive sous chef proudly declares that Buca will be “unico” in a city that’s fixated on pizza and pasta. “Our focus will be on artisanal techniques from bread-making to the salumeria curing method. It’s more or less sticking to the simplicity of what Italian food should be,” he says.
Inspired by Italian enotecas, Gentile created a menu that reflects his Italian roots with such dishes as striped clams stewed with tomato and cured pork; pasta alla carbonara prepared tableside with farm-fresh eggs and house-cured guanciale; and house-made salumi. A glass-enclosed room will showcase the curing meats, many of which the chef prepares from family recipes.
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Saintly partners: Giancarlo Spataro and Adam Graham
For the past two years, trendspotters’ eyes have been fixed on the Ossington Avenue strip. And now the ’hood is getting a fresh infusion of talent from the downtown core. The boys behind King West bistro Brassaii are opening The Saint, a new gastro-pub at 227 Ossington, in mid-April. The forecast feel? Swank style meets community comfort—that is, if the community embraces it.
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In Paris, even the dogs know good bread (Photo by Amy Paul)
The barn floors are in, and Union is feeling like a French tavern. There is something about the way Paris eats and feeds itself that I’ve always wanted to capture in a restaurant. I wanted to build something from what I saw in the taverns, tabacs and cafés I used to frequent; something that would lift me up and give me refuge. I saw them as fuelling stations: the warm lights, the mirrors, the marble bars, the vested waiters, the coffees, the demis and the wine—the bustle and the clatter of it all. Just being there makes you hungry.
Media types invade Ultra (Photo by Chloe Ellingson)
When Ultra Supper Club announced that it was relaunching under the name Ultra, it was hard to believe that much would change at the Queen West club. Sinking well over $500,000 into a facelift during a recession is gutsy, and by 7:30 last night, the club was packed with critics prepared to judge whether the investment had paid off.
Gordon Ramsay yuks it up on The Hour (Photo by Brian Corcoran, 2009)
He came, he saw, he plans to conquer. Yesterday evening on CBC’s The Hour, Gordon Ramsay confirmed rumours that he will open a restaurant in Toronto. While the chef is reluctant to divulge details—he’s still in the planning stages—he says that he is definitely looking to expand his culinary kingdom north. Ramsay reports that he’s already scouted two sites in town for his first Canadian location. The date of the opening is still unclear, but it looks like the place will be 12 to 18 months in the making. Why so long? With satellite operations all over the world, Ramsay wants a real hand in this one. “We want to invest directly,” he explained, rather than work remotely. “I want to do it properly.”
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Teo Paul mulls his menu (Photo by Robert Brodey)
My friend Ten Gallon asked me the other day how I was holding up. I said, “I am getting nervous, but I’d be more nervous if I wasn’t nervous at all.” I’ve been trying to get the menu done. I’ve known it for a while, but now I have to put it down on paper. I want a menu for us to rally around, something simple and strong—a building block. The thing is, I haven’t done a restaurant menu in a few years. It’s different now. I have to explain it. Read the rest of this entry »
Hard times, great coffee (Photo by Jim U)
Is it just us, or are independent coffee shops becoming as common as month-long Boxing Day sales? We counted a minimum of 10 newbies that have opened around town in the past six months. For east enders, there’s Hank’s, Simple and Broadview Espresso, while the west is now home to Zoots, Belly, White Squirrel and Lit. Moroco Chocolat is somewhere in between, and Isabella’s is soon to open in Greektown. For Toronto’s newest kids on the block, the barista business might just be recession-proof—can’t say the same for Starbucks. No matter how bad times get, some things are sacred: we’ll forgo the Fendi and avoid the Vuitton, but we’ll still loosen our belts for a good brew and a fresh croissant. Jamie Kennedy, who opened the café Hank’s last year and is always near the top of the city’s food chain, says that it is full steam ahead for coffee houses. “Let’s face it—there’s a vibrant café culture in Toronto, and no recession is going to stop that. The big-buck dining out will take a hit, but a coffee and a croissant is a whole other ball game.” Read the rest of this entry »
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