blogTO:Eat & Drink Feed

Toronto Gourmet Food & Wine Show

lauren — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:10:00 -0500

The Toronto Gourmet Food & Wine Show is on this weekend at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. I checked out the official opening last night, and I will say this: if you plan on attending this weekend, you better put your game face on.

Between the good old fashioned grape stomp, celebrity guests on the Food Network stage, 23 tutored tasting sessions, a mixology pavilion, a Portuguese culinary extravaganza and almost 200 exhibitors there is tons to see, taste and do.

The Edible City of Toronto

lauren — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:57:00 -0500

The Edible City: Toronto's Food from Farm to Fork is a new tasty morsel added to the the popular Toronto-centric uTOpia series. It's an interesting little compilation dishing out essays "on peaches and poverty, on processing plants and public gardens, on rats and bees and bad restaurant service, on schnitzel and school lunches."

The publisher, Coach House Books, has three essays available for preview on their website and The Torontoist featured various excerpts on their website last week. After reading and enjoying them I decided to check out the This Is Not A Reading Series event/book launch held at the Gladstone on Sunday afternoon.

Celebrating the Day of the Dead At Harbourfront Centre

lauren — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:37:00 -0500

This past weekend the Harbourfront Centre hosted a festival in celebration of the Mexican holiday Dia de los Muertos or the "Day of the Dead."

The Day of the Dead (actually traditionally held over two days on November 1st and 2nd) is anything but depressing. It's generally a holiday meant for festive family gatherings and parties to commemorate those that have passed on, and has been celebrated in Mexico for thousands of years.

At the Toronto rendition, the Harbourfront Centre rocked out music, dancing, food, arts & crafts, and more in honour of the holiday.

Cask Days At Bar Volo Bring Out the Caskheads (and Great Local Brews)

lauren — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:02:00 -0500

After having a hopping good time this summer at Victory Café's Summer Cask Ale Festival, I jumped on the opportunity to check out Volo's Cask Days, their 5th annual cask ale festival.

Seventy casks from 40 brewers have graced the Yonge Street watering hole over the last week, and the festivities officially wrap up tonight with $5 pint night.

50 Essential Bars: Ronnie's Local

jessica — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 09:33:00 -0500

We head back to Kensington for our latest essential bar. A summer favourite for its front patio, this bar also makes for a worthy fall/winter retreat thanks to its good selection of beers on tap and definitely off the tourist-track sort of vibe.

Today's bar: Ronnie's Local

Photo by Yellow Bananas

Trick-Or-Treating Not Just For The Kiddies

lauren — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:07:00 -0500

So you're too old to get all dressed up and go around stockpiling candy in an old pillowcase on Halloween. Not to worry, you can do your trick-or-treating at a variety of fun-loving bakeshops across the city. There is a great selection of cookies, cakes and other goodies to satisfy even the most mature sweet tooth out there.

Writing Hot Erotica & Eating Sweet Cupcakes

lauren — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:13:00 -0500

What do you get when you mix smutty writing and extreme cupcake enthusiasm? You get Rachel Bussel (renowned erotica author and cupcake connoisseur), who was recently in Toronto promoting all of sex, sugar highs and buttercream frosting.

Over the past weekend Ms. Bussel hosted both a 'cakehead' meetup at the Drake and a writers' workshop at sex shop institution Come As You Are.

50 Essential Bars: Samovar Room

jessica — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:30:00 -0500

Located behind the Winchester Hotel, our latest essential bar embodies old-world Russian glamour. One of the must-do drinking experiences here is to enter the large, wood-lined freezer behind the bar where you'll be provided with fur coats and hats and served food and vodka a la Russe.

Today's bar: Samovar Room

Chocolate Ball Goes Retro But Stays (Mostly) Pure

June — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 10:03:00 -0500

The 50's-themed Chocolate Ball held at the Palais Royale on Friday was the final event of a week of activities in conjunction with the 4th annual Toronto ChocolateFest.

From savoury to sweet, liquids to frozen treats, the ball was a deliciously indulgent evening. Foodies and adventurous eaters satisfied their taste buds while raising money for a charitable cause. All food stations were sponsored and all funds raised from tickets ($150) to the silent auction were donated to the Ava Rose Fund, a chairty supporting neurosurgery research at Sick Kids Hospital.

Wine Style Tasting for Coffee? Trying Out Cupping(!) at Te Aro

rickmcginnis — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 09:08:00 -0500

I drink a lot of coffee. Not as much, I'm sure, as my wife, and nowhere near as much as fellow Canadians, whose thirst for java in all its forms means that major coffee franchisees can open on competing corners from each other, and no up-and-coming urban neighbourhood has truly arrived until it has at least one stylish, serious shop selling latte with artful little swirls etched in foam.

Te Aro opened last spring in a former garage in Leslieville, a neighbourhood with no shortage of coffee shops. Given this saturation, owners Jessie and Andy Wilkin decided to offer coffee tastings to educate their customers on what goes into a cup - and showcase their beans. I managed an invite to the first test run of the tasting - or "cupping," as it would more properly be called - as a way of addressing the fact that, for all of the java I down, I don't really know much about the stuff.

50 Essential Bars: Double Deuce Saloon

jessica — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 09:47:00 -0500

Our latest essential bar only opened in August but already it has carved out a niche as a quieter alternative to The Drake, The Gladstone and other nearby watering holes. There's no live music here and no bouncer. But there are 12 beers on tap, good snacks and a dive-bar-chic vibe.

Today's bar: Double Deuce Saloon

50 Essential Bars: Swirl Wine Bar

jessica — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:35:00 -0500

Located above a pet supply store in Leslieville, this essential bar is secretive, unusual and classy. One of the true delights here is the menu. Operating without a kitchen, the chef has created a selection of pates, spreads, and even desserts that are stored and served in tiny Mason jars, available for $6 each.

Today's bar: Swirl Wine Bar

International Chefs Day Brings Pumpkin Pie and Other Seasonal Street Eats to Toronto

lauren — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:05:00 -0500

International Chefs Day isn't officially until tomorrow (Oct 20) but this past crisp and sunny fall Saturday was when Toronto got to celebrate it at Yonge-Dundas Square.

For $2 or $3 apiece, chefs from across the city sold their culinary creations in celebration of their profession while supporting the non-profit Second Harvest.

The Toronto Environmental Alliance Launches Cultural Food Guides

lauren — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:15:00 -0500

This week the Toronto Environmental Alliance (TEA) launched four cultural food guides highlighting where city dwellers can buy locally grown ingredients for Chinese, South Asian, Middle Eastern and African Caribbean cuisine.

A Friday Night Drinking English Ales with Older Men and Josee Chouinard in a Dark Room

christopherjamesdeboer — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 19:39:00 -0500

Foodies, Philanthropists and some local entrepreneurs all got together Friday night to rub elbows, grease some wallets, and help out some much-in-need Canadian Athletes from the CAN foundation. Add a healthy set of wine, beer and Scotch pairings to warm the rain soaked evening up, and some local delicious treats mingled in-between sips, and you have one well-rounded event. The charming historical Campbell House was the setting for the foodie-fueled fundraiser, its small intimate hallways and corridors proving to be a good way to get to know other guests quickly.