20150712 Toronto Trip: Messini & Chatime

We had brunch earlier at Pho Dau Bo. Andrew and I had a free day, so we called our cousin, JT, and met her at Vaughan Mills. We browsed through a few stores and then made our way to Chatime.


There are so many choices! I went with the usual grass jelly roasted milk tea. Andrew wanted to try something new. Hilarity ensues.

Jack Astor's Lansdowne: Zomato Meetup

Have you been to the redeveloped Lansdowne Park recently? Do you remember what it used to look like? My memories are a bit foggy. I vaguely remember going down for the SuperEx and going to 67's games. Gone are the empty lots. Now there are places like Whole Foods, Lindt Chocolate Shop, Winners, and Cineplex Cinemas. Among the new shiny establishments, Jack Astor's can be found by the Aberdeen Pavilion. Earlier this week, I had the privilege to be invited to the third Zomato Meetup in Ottawa.



Once we were all introduced to one another, we went on a brief tour around the restaurant. We learned that Jack Astor's has added more of a local feel at both their Lansdowne and Hunt Club location. At this specific location, they have coasters that feature local personalities, arena lights that used to light the old Civic Centre, pictures and memorabilia of Ottawa's sports history. Don't be shy to ask the staff if you're curious about the decor.

The Hintonburg Public House, Gelatini Gelato and Claustrophobia

To celebrate Andrew's birthday, we went to Claustrophobia yesterday. The idea behind the different game rooms is that you are "locked in" a room and have to find clues to unlock keys, which would hopefully unlock the final door within the time limit. Lucy, Jimmy, Richard, Andrew, and myself, did the Hostel-themed room. Lucy was the only one who had an idea of what to do. We were all lost and just spent the first few minutes looking for clues and writing them down. The ball got rolling once Andrew found a big clue. We solved the code and opened the first safe, which contained a key to unlock more clues. Without giving anything away, we got out in 35 minutes which was the May record for the Hostel. It really was thrilling as every combination was unlocked and it satisfying when we finally got out of the final door.




We walked down the block to The Hintonburg Public House for an early dinner. We were a bit disappointed how small the Ploughman's Plate was, but the flavours and textures were good. We really enjoyed their crunchy fries with their house ketchup and Beau's Beer Battered Fish & Chips with House Tartar Sauce. We were pleasantly surprised to find crunchy nubbins underneath the pile of fries. Our favourite! Lucy's Pink Fuzz from Beyond the Pale Brewing Co.
was bright. Jimmy inhaled his juicy medium-well cheeseburger.


Looking to satisfy our sweet tooth, we drove down to Preston Street and went to Gelatini Gelato, which is located beside the soon-to-be-opened Roberto Pizzeria. The pistachio was extremely creamy and nutty. The other flavours were refreshing. It was wonderful.

Happy Birthday Andrew!

~*~

Claustrophobia
984 Wellington Street West
Ottawa, ON
613-899-5170

Sens House

It was Saturday, April 11th, 2015. The Sens were playing their last game in the regular season against the Flyers and only needed one point to clinch a playoffs spot. The same Sens were 14 points back of the last wild card spot back in February and quickly picked up steam to become the NHL's hottest team. Richard and I made plans to head downtown and watch the game with friends. There was some nervousness leading up to the game, but once it was game day, nervousness turned into excitement.


Are you a hockey fan? Do you have a team you cheer for? Where will you be watching the playoffs this year?

Kid's Night: Central Bierhaus

Thinking back, I don't think we've ever had just a kid's night out. One of us was usually in another city or even in another country, so it made it tough to organize one. Now that we're all in Ottawa, we found time and got together for dinner and the Sens game.

Since the Canadian Tire Centre is in Kanata, we were trying to decide where to go for some good food. Richard suggested Central Bierhaus that's located in Kanata Centrum, right by the Landmark Theatre. It was coincidence that Chris Neil, a current Sens player, actually owns the establishment.


When we arrived for dinner, we were promptly seated and took a look at both the beer and food menu. The Central Bierhaus has an impressive selection of beers from around the world (Belgium, German, Ireland, and Japan to name a few).


To quench our thirst, we went with the Pilsner Urquell (Czech) for Richard, Erdinger dunkel (German) for Andrew, and Kronenburg Blanc 1664 (France) for Lucy and myself.


To fill our stomachs, we started with the traditional sausage flight (platter) which was served with bacon saurkraut and three mustards from McGarrigles. Then we got the giant soft pretzel, confit maple pork belly, and lobster poutine.






It was too much food. The confit maple pork belly was curiously dry. The lobster poutine was alright. The stars were definitely the sausage flight and the pretzel. When I had a piece of the pretzel, it was like an epiphany. "Ah, so this is what pretzels are supposed to taste like." I'm definitely coming back for more pretzels. No question about it. When I asked Richard how authentic they were, he surprisingly remarked that he never had any pretzels in Germany. When it came to snacks, he preferred the currywurst over pretzels.


As for the sausage flight, we got one each of a German bratwurst, Oktoberfest, German frankfurter, smoked italian, hot italian, and honey garlic sausage. It seemed like they ran out of the weisswurst. I didn't like the two italian sausages or the bratwurst. The latter seemed to be overcooked and became dry. The bacon saurkraut did its job of being the palate cleanser between each bite. I know others would disagree with me, but I enjoyed how subtle the bacon was.


Once dinner was over, we headed over to watch the Lightning against the Sens game. This pic was from the first intermission when the Sens were still up 1-0. The team couldn't keep up with the Lightnings and lost by a final score of 4-2. Despite the loss, it was still a great night with all the siblings!

~

Hintonburger and SuzyQ

I would like to buy a hamburger.

I would like to buy a ambuger.

I would like to buy a hamburger.

Eyould like to buy a am-berger.

I would like to buy a hamburger.

I would like to buy a damnbuger.

I would like to buy a hamburger.

I would like to buy de hambeduh!

I would like to buy a hamburger.

I would like to buy umburger!

I would like to buy a hamburger.

DEM  BURGUH!

Appreciation Lunch

Since our company was swamped leading up to Christmas and following the holidays, we didn't have any parties or lunches until quite late. The management organized a lunch for us earlier this month. Most of it was purchased from Costco.




There were plates of cold cuts, cheese, sandwiches, veggie platters, crackers, bread, fruits, drinks, and cake.


One of our assistant managers even made a mean vegetarian tortilla soup.


V and I ended up making ourselves simple prosciutto sandwiches. The apples made a great palate cleaner. But as I'm writing about this now, it reminds me of a prosciutto, goat cheese, pesto, apple panini I had years ago in Toronto. Ah that was one mighty fine sandwich.


Strawberry shortcake and chocolate layered cakes for dessert.

Anyway, most of us were exhausted both physically and mentally from the crazy holiday crowds. The appreciation lunch came at the perfect time.

Visiting the 3 Brewers

Full disclosure:
I don't enjoy alcohol. I rarely drink for that reason. Watered down juice is my beverage of choice. That or water. I can't tell if beer tastes good or if wine tastes good. I just don't drink enough and I'm perfectly fine with that.

When JL suggested that we should either go to 3 Brewers or Mill Street I wanted to try both actually, but I wanted to try the 3 Brewers more. Mainly because they had liege waffles on their menu. Okay, that was the only reason.


We met at the Kanata location right after I finished work. It was a long week and a long day. I didn't have a big appetite. We agreed to order and share some things, like the 2lbs of honey BBQ wings. They were great wings! The sauce wasn't overly sweet, the wings were still crisp and juicy inside. We were all really fans of them.




We also shared the star platter which had potato skins, mozzarella sticks, and spicy onion scoops. The spicy onion scoops were the star. Think of spicy onion rings. That's essentially what they tasted like.

We chased all of the salt and grease down with some cold beer. IPA for myself, blonde for JL, and the white beer for CA.


After all of the savoury things were polished off, we looked at the dessert section of the menu and discussed. We got the coffee and dessert combo which included a slice of cheesecake (CA opted for the strawberry drizzle), cup of coffee, and chocolate mouse (underneath that whipped cream).


And I couldn't have left without having their liege waffles. It was a sweet end to a fun night. I'd definitely return to the 3 Brewers. Have you been there yet?

Revisiting Buster's

Last week, I brought Mom to watch the hockey game. Since the food at the Canadian Tire Center is crappy and overpriced, we went over to Buster's Bar & Grill. With the purchase of a meal or drink the ride on their shuttle bus to the game was free.


Mom settled for the special of the night: Buster's Burger with fried mushrooms added.

I already knew I was going to get wings after my second visit to Buster's. Were they going to be crisp and juicy again? Or was that a fluke?


The 1lb medium wings were remarkably spot on!


We quickly ate what we could, put away the leftovers, and then hopped on the school bus to watch the game. The Sens ended up winning 5-4 in a shootout.

~

On another visit, Andrew and I headed over to Buster's after a long day of work. The bus ruined our original plans to go for some chicken at Zaki. The main reason I suggested Buster's was because it was near the Lincoln Fields bus station. It would be much easier to bus home after we ate.

I was craving something comforting. Their special of the day was lasagna and a salad for $6.99. Tempting. But I find lasagna only tastes good when we make it at home with our simple meat sauce.


Hot turkey sandwich is a special dish that's close to my heart. I knew that the gravy would probably be from a can or made from powder. I was hoping that I was wrong. But if I was right, I was crossing my fingers that the gravy wouldn't be offensive.

The dish didn't live up to the name of hot turkey sandwich. It was warm at best. After a two bites, I sent the plate with the waitress to get it heated up a little more. Once it returned, it was easier to eat even though it was only a tad warmer than when I originally started to eat. The gravy was probably from a can. It was on the sweeter side which was a bit odd. I still found it comforting though.


Andrew didn't know what to get. He was either going to go for the fish and chips, cacciatore chicken parmesan, or breaded chicken parmesan. The random number generator decided that the cacciatore was the one tonight.


There were peppers, mushrooms, and onions underneath that blanket of cheese. He inhaled his ginger ale and dinner, although he argues that the pace was his normal speed. He's probably right. I'm a terribly slow eater.


I tried some of Andrew's dish. Then with the small piece of cheese left I made a little poutine.

The unassuming bar and grill inside the Lincoln Fields Mall has now been added to my rotation of restaurants. Perhaps it has become a pre-Sens-game meal.

Oven Baked Chicken Stuffed with Ham and Swiss

Andrew and I were going to make some breaded chicken stuffed with ham and swiss cheese. We couldn't find the breadcrumbs, so we just made the chicken without it.

We baked the chicken in a pan and then once the chicken juices ran clear, we took the chicken out to rest a bit. I was thinking about making a gravy or something but the pan drippings wasn't that flavourful. Then I remembered that you could reduce pan drippings to concentrate the flavour.


The pan drippings were poured into a small pot and simmered down. I should've stopped reducing at this point.


But I thought it needed a couple of more minutes. When I checked the drippings again, it turned into a chicken pan dripping paste with the fat floating on top. At that point, we could've made a gravy but we just used a little with our chicken.


We rarely reduce pan drippings, instead, we usually just use the drippings in the sauce. By reducing the drippings, not only does the flavour get concentrated, but the oils will separate which will make it easier to scoop out.

The chicken with the pasta didn't taste great together. It felt like the chicken fell into the plate/bowl of pasta. They were good separately though.

Ottawa's 1st Annual Poutinefest

Sparks Street has really been stepping it up lately with the sheer amount of food festivals being hosted this year.  Most people know about Ribfest, usually held in June, but the organizers also brought many of the same vendors back in October for Ribtoberfest.

Screen shot from Sparks Street Mall.

The newest addition to the food festivals on Sparks is Poutine Fest, going on NOW!  Although not completely necessary, I (Lucy) bought a $20 poutine pass that gives you five samples from the participating vendors.  They'll be great for sampling and figuring out which poutine we'd like to dine on, though it will probably mean that we'll be lining six times instead of just one or two.  These passes are sold in a small tent on the east side of Metcalfe and Sparks (block 1).  Otherwise, the vendors are selling the regular sized poutine at regular prices.

Poutine Fest is on now and runs until tomorrow night.  Check it out before it's gone, and make sure to vote for your favourite vendor!

Christine here:
Based on what I've heard, the lines are worse than Ribfest. It's probably because it's the first year for the event. But I think that Sparks Street will be more packed since there are vegetarian options too.

So here's my plan of attack. Depending on how busy it is, I might get the Poutinefest pass where you pay $20 and get five 8oz-small poutines from any of the participants. With that pass, I'll try to get poutine from 5 different places. I'll try to get one regular poutine (cheese curds, gravy, and fries), one with chicken gravy and, finally, a poutine that has unusual toppings. We'll see how that goes. Worse case scenario, we'll just go somewhere else for poutine.

I hear that there's also churros and mini donuts available for dessert too!

For those who have been to Ottawa's Poutinefest, what was it like? Which poutines were among your favourites?

Elgin Street Eats: Pizza and Gelato

CL and I were finally able to get together after multiple failed attempts. The wait was definitely worth it.


We met up at Slice & Co. for some pizza on a cold windy autumn evening. I've always wanted to try this place. It was always packed full of customers throughout the NHL playoffs and the summer. Their patio looked really enticing.

The original plan was to check out El Camino. They weren't open that day though.




The pizzas we got were tasty. We both ordered Italian hand-tossed pizzas. They also had Chicago deep dish, California thin crust, and New York pan pizzas on their menu too.

Topped with tomato sauce, capers, red onions, olives, chili pepper, and mozzarella, the puttanesca pizza had a great combination of flavours. The bottoms of the pizza held nicely too.

CL liked her salsiccia pizza pie. There was tomato sauce, sausage, mushrooms, onions, chili pepper, mozzarella, and CL asked for olives. We both liked that the pizzas weren't overloaded with toppings.


We packed up the leftover pizzas and continued our conversation at Pure Gelato, just a block or two away.

I didn't know that they make crêpes, panini, and even hot food items. Good to know.




There were so many flavours to choose! I wanted 80% of them that night but ended up making a fancy peanut butter cup flavour combination of peanut butter and Ferraro (as in Ferraro Rocher). Definitely a winner! CL went with just the lemon which is never a bad choice -- I actually got it last time.




The two flavours that I got would've tasted perfectly fine by themselves. But they were meant for each other. Their friend, the waffle cone, unfortunately wasn't invited that night.

After we left Pure Gelato, I walked over to Lucy's place to chill with Richard, Andrew, and Lucy's fur baby for a bit.


They were actually just pulling into their garage when I got to their apartment. The three of them split a $40-something sushi platter. It sounded like it hit the spot.

The sushi pictured above was actually what was left of the platter. It was that good.

~*~

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