Notes on a Meal goes to Europe

Dinner in Barcelona

Hello to all our readers! The Notes on a Meal crew has finally returned to Toronto from a very epic European adventure and we’re full of ideas, posts and pictures. We’ve been quiet for the whole duration since eating and typing can get messy but we’re back and recharged. Over the course of the next few weeks we’ll be sharing recipes, pictures, tips and tricks for avoiding the usual tourist traps and more. Just as an overall thought, this trip has made us appreciate the multicultural nature of Toronto’s food scene. Although Europe has amazing ingredients and age old technique on it’s side, it believes in staying true to those traditions and is very closed to any change.

Of the handful of countries we visited, very few places offered the type of variety we take for granted here in Toronto and in North America as a whole. I’m not asking for the local rendition of pizza or a full English breakfast while in Spain but I feel that all xenophobic European nations need to embrace the influx of foreign immigrants that they each receive and celebrate these new found cuisines. For example, Prague has a very large Vietnamese community with a segregated school, a temple and a whole neighbourhood in town, however, there are very few Vietnamese restaurants to be found (mostly offering “Chinese or Thai” food). However, to it’s defence, the grocery stores in this Czech city had more international items than anywhere else we visited so people are experiencing new flavours and ingredients but only in the privacy of their own homes.

Anyway, I don’t want the readers to get the wrong impression about the culinary world of Europe. It has been and still is supreme. The ingredients are true in taste, food revolves around seasonal availability and gastronomy is a very large part of day to day life. Open air markets are predominantly used for fresh products (produce, meats and fish) while grocery stores mostly add the backbone of non-perishable food items. Bakeries are present in almost every block since fresh bread is a staple and a must with every meal. Locals go out for drinks and a meal/snacks on an almost daily basis and a meal is never to be rushed but enjoyed in great company. We can learn a few things from these traditions!

Ma Maison Cakes and Macarons – Spring 2013

Just another series of drool worthy cakes and macarons from Ma Maison…

Frozen raspberries in slow-mo

Things in slow motion look pretty cool.  Things that have been frozen in liquid nitrogen and then filmed breaking apart in slow motion look even cooler.  Here we have a beautiful clip of nitro-frozen raspberries being dashed apart.  The nature of the clip is purely instructional, but is stunning to watch.

OddSeoul, Toronto

OddSeoul is awesome !!!! That’s the best way to begin a post that will only boast the qualities of this amazingly hipster venue. Located at 90 Ossington St., behind an unmarked entrance, this is truly a gem on the strip serving great food, loud music and an overall good vibe. Brothers Leeto and Leemo Han, owners of Swish by Han (38 Wellington St. East) show their innate skills as restaurateurs in this diverse city of ours.

The place feels trendy and unfortunately looks like it’s own version of any other foodie mecca. Recycled materials, loud music, dim lights, industrial finishes, peeling posters, vintage boom boxes, bottles of homemade alcohol infusions, a DJ… all are words that can describe any food blogger’s top ten restaurants of Toronto. However, the mystique of having no street or internet presence is what sets this place apart for all the skeptics. But I’m not here to discuss the mundane details the decor of just another Ossington restaurant, what I really want to discuss is the food…

The grub at OddSeoul is a North American rendition of traditional Korean dishes so expect bold flavours, heat and an incredible variety of textures in every bite. Spicy deep fried prawns, steamed bun sandwiches, torched mackerel, bulgogi cheesesteak, kimchi pork fried rice, are just a few of the handful of dishes on the menu. What I suggest and have done almost every single time is to order the entire list of “snacks” (about 5-15$ each) and indulging yourself in an amazing culinary experince (this is recommended if you’re sharing with at least one more person, otherwise the entire list is waaaaay too much food). My favourite by far is the “Loosey” which is a homemade burger topped with kimchi mayo, orange cheddar, some sort of spicy something or other and served in a white bread sandwich. It’s messy but absolutely delicious, worth getting more than one!

Overall, OddSeoul is certainly my top restaurant in Toronto in 2013. The food is great, the music is booming, the staff is friendly, the atmosphere is intoxicating and it has a fairly inexpensive bill at the end of the evening. All in all, a definite recommendation on my part!

This just in: The Great Nutella Hiest of 2013.

In the small German town of Bad Hersfeld, thieves made off with $21 000 (CAD) worth of Nutella.  For those keeping score thats about 6 875 large jars or 27 000 000 calories worth.

With climbing food costs, large scale food theft has been on the rise. There have been many high profile incidents, including $18 million dollars worth of Canadian maple syrup stolen in Quebec,  six tractor trailers worth of cucumbers, tomatoes and frozen meat estimated at $300 000 in New York and a cross boarder cheese scam worth almost a million dollars.

What makes this heist somewhat different is that it comes on the heels of two other large scale food heists within months.   Late last year, a trailer full of Red Bull was stollen and less then two weeks ago, $25 000 worth of coffee was hijacked.  The Guardian UK reports that all three crimes may be the work of one insomniac.

Thanks to The Guardian for this one.

 

HAPPY VERSION 3.0 NOTES ON A MEAL!!!!

Hello all and Welcome back!

Thank you very much for sticking by us through the transition and we here at Notes on a Meal hope that you enjoy version 3.0 as much as the past few. It’s been an amazing journey and a whole lot of fun eating, critiquing, enjoying and learning about all things food. We’d love to hear from feedback about the new site, any questions or comments you may have and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @notesonameal

The Bristol Yard, Toronto

After so much hype around this tiny little restaurant, I was very excited to have a meal at the Bristol Yard (146 Christie St.) and after almost 6 months of trying we got in for brunch. The restaurant is only open for a handful of meals in the week (Wednesday evening, Friday dinner, Saturday and Sunday) and with only 20 seats inside, you can see why it’s so difficult to get into. All the great food blogs of Toronto have been raving about the British comfort food served here so I had really high expectations.

The little restaurant has the atmosphere of a neighbourhood staple, small but well laid out interior makes the place very cozy and welcoming. The decor is simple yet interesting, with portraits of British celebrities covering the little wall space available in the tiny room. The two big windows allow for a lot of light while the wood planks lining the floor and ceiling make the entire venue as comfortable as a cottage. The music is great, not too loud and the giant portrait of the Queen on their menu board makes the place more”authentic” (for lack of a better descriptive word).

To be perfectly honest, the food was pretty disappointing. It was bland, served cold and we waited close to 45 minutes for the grub (this last complaint would have been overlooked if everything else was up to par). I had the Bristol breakfast which was their rendition of eggs Benedict. The sauce was not the usual Hollandaise but a very thick and gummy (cold) bechamel, the poached eggs had mostly solid yolks and the smoked home fries were just greasy burned potato bits that barely resembled hash. My plate came garnished with six (I counted) wilted baby spinach leaves and a thick slice of a mushy “grilled” tomato. At the same table, we also had the pleasure of trying the “Fully Monty” menu item, which boasted in serving up mostly fried hangover cures. This dish was very impressive when it reached the table, covering most of the giant platter with homemade sausage, bacon, baked beans, fried mushrooms, two fried eggs, toast, home fries and the dreaded grilled tomato. To start, everything was cold, the sausage had been deep fried only to render all the fat out of it until it morphed into a crumbly farce of grey meat, the beans tasted as if they were canned and the mushrooms were simply greasy. The best part of this entire brunch was the bacon which was served in thick slices and was cured with the rind still on allowing for a great, chewy mouthfeel.

My least favourite part of the meal (and yes, there’s worse than the cold food) was the general unsanitary condition of the place. Had they been open 24/7 for the past 30 years, it’d be more excusable but this was just a lack of care. The cloth our table was wiped down with was rancid beyond belief so our first few minutes at the table were unfortunate. All the glassware had fingerprints and even lip remains on the rim, the coffee pot was mostly solid yellow from a lack of cleaning (some vinegar and baking soda really cleans that up) and this is just to name some observations. Probably worse than the unwashed dinnerware were the dirty outfits of the staff. The waiter’s pants were filthy, covered in numerous stains that couldn’t have possibly come from the first two hours of this particular shift. However, the chef’s pants were even worse!!! Correction: The person we saw in dirty chefs pants was not the chef, but was, perhapse, the dishwasher.  Having worked in the kitchen for a few years myself, I know how easy it is to just let yourself go and get messy. It’s a matter of having pride in stepping out into a dining room full of those you’ve just fed with your head held high and an immaculate appearance. This cook’s appearance just screamed disaster in the kitchen! Correction

Price wise, the whole meal was reasonable. Three people with coffee and tea came out to about 40$ which is a much better deal than some of the other sought after brunch venues of Toronto. Overall, my brunch experience at the Bristol Yard was a fairly poor one but having heard better reviews on their pies, I’m willing to give them one more try. Hope they can redeem themselves!

Paleo diet – week 3

Before I go on talking about this week’s dessert specialty, I will admit that we caved in one day this week and destroyed a pizza. It was honestly the worst thing we could do since it really upset our stomachs but it was entirely necessary (hangover, rainy day, injuries,various other excuses, etc). Other than that one gluttonous meal, we’ve been following this diet as religiously as possible so it shouldn’t affect our end results. Now that I got that off my chest, I’ll let you guys in on our Paleo chocolate mousse recipe which can also easily be turned into Paleo Trifle recipe.

Paleo Chocolate Mousse
1 1/2 tbsp honey (depending how sweet you want your final product to be)
2 tbsp cocoa (unsweetened)
1 can of coconut milk (as close to organic as possible and definitely not low fat)

-Set your coconut milk in the fridge (literally put the can in the fridge overnight) and gently skim the fat (white) portion out, separating it from the coconut water. This is the “whipped cream” that actually froths up when whisked
-Warm up your honey and about 1 tsp of coconut water and dissolve your cocoa
-Mix it into your coconut fat and using an electric whisk or a whipped cream dispenser (N2O chargers) froth it up
-Pour into serving vessel and set in fridge for at least an hour

*Paleo Trifle
1 portion of Paleo Chocolate Mousse
2 Paleo cookies (see last post)
Berries

-Simply alternate layers of the three ingredients in whatever vessel you’re serving this in. Chill for at least an hour in the fridge and devour without sharing!

Paleo diet – Week 2

Two weeks into the Paleo diet and we feel great. Some weight has been lost but most importantly we’ve survived the first (and hardest) half of this diet. Our energy levels have returned to normal and we’re definitely not as “hungry” all the time. We’ve even taken to talking about regular food with only slight increases in our salivation levels. Regardless, I’ve personally found it to be very challenging to withhold from eating desserts so I’ve began experimenting with Paleo sweets. This is just the beginning but so far I’ve managed to make some pretty edible items. It sounds silly but when you’re refraining from using sugar, flour and butter, well, there’s nothing really left to bake with. But I have the solution:

Paleo cookies – Dairy, Gluten and sugar free

2 very ripe bananas, mashed together
2 TBSP coconut oil, melted
4 TBSP honey
1 egg (recipe will work without it but it’ll be drier in consistency)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups almond flour (or coconut flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

-Mix the wet ingredients together, add the dry. Use an ice cream scoop to place dough on baking sheet, flatten with thumb
-Bake at 325 for 15 min (depending on thickness) until golden in colour
*These cookies have very little rising power so you can place them fairly close to each other

A few variations can include orange zest and shredded coconut as a substitute for the flour or any other ground nut. They’re very easy to make and can literally be taken from craving to consumption in about 30 min.

Enjoy!

A few upcoming changes

Just want to give all our readers a little heads up that our site will be undergoing some annual maintenance and a slight make-over. If things are a little strange for a little bit please bear with us and we promise to try to make this process as painless as possible. Keep reading and remember to love your food.

New Year’s Resolution

Since it’s January and the holidays were exactly as expected, gluttonous when it came to food, it is time for our weight loss resolution of 2013. I researched all sorts of diets and really struggled with deciding what goodies I actually wanted to give up. Luckily, in the middle of my procrastinated search, our new gym offered us a 30 day weight loss challenge. We have just embarked on the Paleo Diet and are going back to our hunting and foraging roots for nourishment. Each day gets awarded a point based on our religious following of the rules and in conjunction with our final weight loss we are awarded prizes for our good behaviour. I sure hope the prizes are food cause I’m starving on day 4 of the month.

Basically the rules are simple, if a caveman would eat it then we’re also allowed to do the same. All meats (unprocessed), fruits and vegetables (except those that can’t be eaten raw) are allowed. Grains, dairy, processed sugars, excessive salt, legumes are all out! We can eat as much of the allowed grub, both raw and cooked but get docked points for anything that cheats the rules. Although we get docked for simple things like ketchup on our omelettes and a simple glass of wine, we also have bonus points for taking our vitamins or sleeping at least 8 hours a night.

So far, the biggest challenge is general fatigue. The meals we eat are filling but meat and vegetables hardly give us the energy that sugar and breads did. I have come to terms with the fact that I’m addicted to sugar and I have to put that addiction on hold for the next few weeks only to see some results. I know that radical diets like this usually lead to a relapse but I think if I keep the general rules of this regiment long after the challenge is over with some slight alterations I can save myself from that problem.

I will keep you all updated as to the progress and put up some recipes for those that want to join me in the fun. Also, if you’re interested in a little more research check out thepaleodiet.com.

For the love of cupcakes

Ever had a dire need to devour a cupcake in the middle of the night and felt way too lazy to bake your own?! Well in a few select cities in the world, you could just go around the corner to your nearest Cupcake ATM and quench that craving. Sprinkles Cupcakes, founded in Beverly Hills, has been installing these treat dispensers all over the US (so far New York, Washington DC and Chicago). Their concept is simple: insert your credit card, choose your flavour and enjoy your dessert. The cupcakes are restocked twice a day and the machine holds about 600 at a time so there’s very little chance of you not receiving a freshly baked treat. To make things even more exciting, the machine also carries a special cupcake flavour for your dog. Price wise, the cupcakes are only 50 cents more than they are in store and this is attributed to the “ATM fees”. I personally cannot wait until we get one of these babies in Toronto!

Here are some pictures I found around the net:

The Symposium Cafe, Waterloo

I know we’re supposed to stick to the Toronto food base but this restaurant was so memorable that I had to put up a little post about it. Little did I know, before my Google research, that the Symposium Cafe is a chain of licensed cafes that spans from Mississauga to London (Ontario). Their website mentions that they pride themselves on having “a unique and exciting concept of upscale, casual dining” but unfortunately there’s nothing upscale about this entire place. If I had a rating system I would certainly give this restaurant  2 out of 10 for the simple fact that it didn’t give me food poisoning (which I somewhat expected after our meal) so we ate something my body recognized as grub.

Before I get into the nitty gritty of my meal at The Symposium Cafe, I’ll skim over the decor. The walls are littered with giant Renaissance paintings, fake painted tiles and a plethora of plastic plants draping from every elevated surface possible. You would almost expect the chairs and couches to be enveloped in a thick plastic protector and Nonna to emerge out of the kitchen to bring you your meal. It’s sad, not welcoming and a little bit overbearing if you ask me. However, take all of this with a grain of salt since the Symposium Cafe does have 14 locations so there are a lot of people that enjoy this level of excellence.

And then there was the service… We arrived in a big group (10 to be exact) so the expectation of a slower meal was already there but what we received was beyond belief. We actually served ourselves to menus after 20 minutes of waiting for a someone to acknowledge us. An hour later and after about 10 requests, we finally got some drinks on the table (not necessarily the right ones but something) in the dirtiest water stained glasses imaginable. About an hour and a half after sitting down, our breakfast began coming to the table one plate at a time! The servers all seemed highly inexperienced, lacking knowledge of their own products and just generally disorganised. If it wasn’t for the general fatigue (or hangover) at the table, we would have walked out within the first 10 minutes.

Of course I saved the best part of the visit for last: the food. Brunch as a meal in a restaurant can generally go one of two ways: good or horribly horribly bad! I’m sure you can imagine what we endured. The poached eggs were hard boiled, the Hollandaise sauce was out of a bucket (mostly mayo), the omelettes were dry and flavourless, the “breakfast potatoes” tasted like fish sticks and that’s just a quick recap. My favourite part of all of these dishes was the garnish that the kitchen decided to decorate our plates with: dead lettuce. The leaf was so far past it’s expiration date that it had already morphed through the limp stage of its life and began to crisp up along the edges. I’m sorry to have to pick on such a detail but I was shocked that someone would actually put that on a plate. Overall, the food was a direct translation of the Sysco (frozen food supplier) brunch catalogue with the added bonus of a careless group of talentless chefs in the kitchen. But, maybe I don’t know what a “classic gourmet meal” looks like since they do have 14 locations throughout Ontario.

As a quick recap, the food was below par, the service lacking and the decor imposing and somewhat intimidating. I promise to avoid the Symposium Cafes like the plague and I do apologize if I offended anyone with my review.

Thanksgiving Dinner

Just after Thanksgiving is over in all of North America, we can look back at the epic meal we got to share with those near and dear to us. If you get hungry or want to join our meal squad, drop us a line and the Notes On A Meal crew will definitely sign you up for whatever event we may be cooking up in the near future (get it?!!? cooking up!!…. I know, real lame). Anyway, the dinner was aimed to remain as local and seasonal as possible with an unbearable amount of food for everyone (mostly for the leftover turkey and stuffing sandwiches the morning after).
Here’s the menu in short:

– Butternut squash soup with a cracked black pepper Chantilly Cream

– Turkey (good ol’ fashioned oven roasted Rowe Farms bird)
– Ginger glazed ham – this year we did a maple syrup and ginger beer baste and had the pork on the BBQ for 4 hours
– Mashed Potatoes – loads of butter and cream of course
-Homemade sausage stuffing – Sage and Rob’s rustic house made sausage
– Gravy – the “creme de la creme” of turkey goodness involved a 15L stock reduction to merely a litre of concentrated  Thanksgiving flavour
– Green and Yellow beans – simply sauteed with garlic and lemon zest
– Brussel Sprouts – finely shredded and roasted with bacon and a little maple syrup
– Glazed carrots – honey and butter glaze
– Creamed corn – simple, sweet corn
– Pickled beets – yellow, red and candy cane beets pickled with star anise, ginger, pepper and fennel seed

– Pumpkin Pie
– Apple pie with creme anglaise
– Mixed fruit pie – Fresh figs, black cherries, apples, pears, peaches and probably the kitchen sink as well
– Ma Maison’s wonderful macarons and Valrhona chocolate mousse cake