Home Sweet Home

I've always believed that it's not what you do or where you are but rather the company you keep that decides how much fun you have. My most recent trip certainly underlined that for me.

My honey had me meet him in Toronto again but this time, with a twist. Rather than doing the hotel thing the way we typically do, he rented a small house for us to share. It was a great opportunity for us to relax and feel like homebodies. It was also a chance for us to cook together again, something we haven't had an opportunity to do since I had visited him in California. After meeting up at the airport, we headed to the hideaway in Newmarket. It was a lovely lil home - living room, bedroom, washroom and kitchen. We dropped off our bags and headed out for a bite at the Lion & Firkin. Back at the hideaway, we called it a day. The following day, after tending to some business, my honey took me to The Stockyards for a late lunch. If you want funky, quirky and offbeat with a side order of some of the bestest food you can imagine, this is the place to visit. It's a small place, crammed with what I gathered was a very loyal clientele who are more than willing to wait patiently for seating to become available. There are a few places at the front of the joint but mostly, you'll find yourself plopping down at the long counter that faces the grill or at the long counter that faces the wall. (Any thought of lingering is counteracted by the fact that you're seated on stools while rubbing elbows with strangers - it's definitely an eat-and-vacate kind of place. For those not wanting to soak in the atmosphere, they were also doing a spirited take-out business.) While waiting to be seated, we decided on what to order, cutting down on the already short waiting time to receive your food. I went with the Butter Burger, described as 'bone marrow blue cheese, red wine butter, onion frites, and butter lettuce'. My honey had a Pulled Pork Sammy ('slow smoked, BBQ sauce, and slaw on a store-bought squishy'), with a side order or cole slaw and fresh cut fries. (They also sell old fashioned pop in glass bottles. I had a black cherry pop, possibly the best I've ever had in my whole life.) The food was beyond fantastic. This is a place definitely worth visiting ... and then revisiting! Once we were done, we crossed the drizzly street and popped into World Class Bakers. (They don't have a website but can be found at 690 St Clair Avenue West.) The place is a gem, offering both baked goods and hot meals and sides available for take out, or, if you have the time, you can consume them on site in the café/bistro area.) Definitely a place I want to revisit on an empty stomach! We then headed to the supermarket to pick up some foodstuffs, where we encountered a guy who took the idea of 'dashing out to the market to grab something real quick' to a new level. Mock turtleneck, loafers .. and pyjama pants!

She looks really impressed at the addition of dress shoes to his sleeping attire!

We headed back to the hideaway, threw on some dinner music and started on supper. Being in no rush, we took a couple of slow dancing breaks before finally settling down to our repast ...

Stuffed chicken breasts and sautéed vegetables ... and vino, of course!

Sunday - a lil more work and then supper at Al Casale. My salmon was really good but my honey's linguine with lobster was to die for! Another lovely meal and a terrific evening, made all the better for the company I kept. The next evening was another evening in. On the menu, succulent souvlaki brochettes, fabulous tzatziki sauce (both from Copari Meats, a Newmarket butcher), Greek salad, garlic bread and a bottle of wine. Hopa! The next evening, Tuesday, we hit the movies. Arriving early, we settled into a theatre where there were five other people. There were only two guys there, my guy and another dude. We watched as people drifted in - all women and in groups of anywhere from 2-5 at a time. From time to time, a guy would walk in with his girlfriend or wife but when all was said and done and the theatre was filled to capacity, there was a grand total of 7 men there. It was weird! Anyhow, the film was Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close. While it was a great film and one I would strongly recommend, I was completely blown away by Thomas Horn, a 12 yr old actor who plays the 11 yr old son in the movie. This kid is a veritable wonder to watch. He so totally carried this film that you forgot Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock were also in it! It's incredibly unfortunate that he wasn't nominated for an Oscar because he is so deserving of the award. Go see it. Go see it! GO SEE IT!!! After the movie, we went over to Moxie's for a late dinner. The waitress was a chirpy lil thing who wafted back and forth on a cloud of 'Hot Couture' perfume (her pronunciation, not mine) and insisted on making us her version of Appletinis, which was nice because she made us an extra large batch! Wednesday was 'empty the fridge cuz we're having leftovers' night - scrambled eggs with sun dried tomatoes and basil, pork brochettes and salad. Scrumptious! 

And he does dishes ... how perfect!

Thursday night, we ventured into the city for an evening at Lee, where we celebrated Winterlicious, a winter foodie celebration. We started with butternut squash soup with cucumber ginger and cinnamon wildflower honey, followed by pot stickers with salted chilies. We went on to feast on slow braised beef with sour cream, served with potato leek purée and crispy shallots followed by ginger and onion crusted mahi mahi, aloo gobi croquette and lemongrass vinaigrette. We ended with a warm chocolate banana cake and a crème brulée. The experience was really nice (the food was great) but the evening was marred by the simple fact that the noise level at this place is simply deafening. Thursday's on a Friday is quieter than this place was! As more patrons arrived, the noise level went up; the people in charge would then raise the level of the music, which would then force people to speak even louder. Reading lips would have been a much appreciated talent, because it was near impossible to hear what was being said from across the tiny table. A pity.

The next morning, my honey left the hideaway for work but promptly returned from Tim's with a tea and toasted bagel for me. What a sweetie! We left later that day for our flight back to Montreal, where once again, the flight attendant fawned over him while almost ignoring me. (*batting her lashes at my guy* Can I get you something to drink, sir? Diet Coke? I just got back from Paris - they call it Coca Lite there, so I'll call it Coca Lite for you, ok? *barely glancing over at me* Oh yeah, do you want something?) Charming! Arriving in Montreal, we pick up the rental and head to the Omni, a trip down memory lane for my guy, who worked there three decades ago during its existence as The Four Seasons Hotel. We headed over to Prince Arthur Street (which is really quite sad and lonely street on a windy, winter evening) and dined at Mazurka. After starting with a bowl of kapusniak (it was excellent), we dove into plates of perohy, plyatsky, bigos, holubsti, and a kobassa-type of sausage (the stand out was the plyatsky - fluffy and crisp and totally delectable!) Add to all that a healthy serving of sour cream and you had two very happy people. (Note to those never having been to Mazurka - the décor isn't trendy, the service is very basic but the prices are cheap by today's standards and the food is just like your baba used to make. To that point, there was a baba sitting toward the back of the restaurant who gave us the once over in the way that only Eastern European babas can do and then promptly hopped up to hustle into the kitchen as soon as we gave our order.) Back at the hotel, we stopped for a nightcap at the hotel bar, where my fellow reminisced with the barman. The following day, we made a quick stop at Zytynsky's to see Angel. After explaining that we were headed to visit my guy's babcia at the Polish home, she made us up a lovely lil take away of deli meat and some rye bread, which Babcia inhaled after we got there, leaving her supper to be ignored on the tray. (If you don't shop at Angel's, you are missing out on some exceptional Ukie treats ... and the feeling of coming home as soon as you walk through the doors.) After a lovely visit with Babcia, we picked up Julia and met Jordan and Érika for dinner at Arahova. The evening was a lot of fun but would have been made more so had Kevin and Myriam not been too ill to join us. Oh well, next time!

Sadly, the next day, Sunday, was also flyday. And now here's me, counting down to the next adventure!