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The Belgian Brasserie

March 3, 2015BlogLeave a comment

THE BIER MARKET, 58 The Esplanade, Toronto Chef Michael Cipollo has a personality larger than life, an amazing sense of conviviality and a palate that pleases only those who appreciate good food. At only 40 years of age, Cipollo is corporate chef for the chain of seven Belgian inspired Bier Market brasseries that all aimed to please the nuances of its individual neighbourhoods throughout Ontario and Quebec; that means each are different in menu offerings and culinary cultural. My favourite Bier Market happens to be on The Esplanad and that’s where I found Michael. If you’re not familiar, a […]

Have Your Cake & Eat It Too

February 25, 2015BlogLeave a comment

Take a look at wedding cakes on the web and you’ll see just how far we’ve come from traditional slabs of iced fruitcake. That’s not to say the evolution of wedding cakes has always gone in the right direction. I found a wedding cake made into a full-sized (5-foot!), likeness of the bride; another was a 36-inch in diameter hamburger wedding cake complete with fondant replicated lettuce, onion, pickles and special sauce. I found a cake where the bride figurine on top is holding a fishing rod and the hook is caught in the pants of the groom and […]

Is That An Espresso Cup in Your Pants?

February 15, 2015Blog, cuisine, food, local food, lynn ogryzloLeave a comment

When I started writing this story I asked almost everyone I met if they’d ever taken anything from a restaurant. You know, a napkin, a glass, or packets of soy sauce. Almost unanimously the answers began with, “yea, I took…”. Restaurant thievery as it turns out, comes with a lifetime of boasting and bragging rights which were not that difficult to pry out of the thieves I spoke to. Take David Dunbar for example. His life of crime began a few decades ago when he began taking spoons from restaurants. All over the world, wherever he dined, he pocketed […]

Charcuterie, more than just meat

February 2, 2015Blog, culinary tourism, farm fresh food, food, local food, lynn ogryzlo, The Ontario TableLeave a comment

Throughout Toronto down the Golden Horseshoe and into Niagara, the mere mention of Pingue Prosciutto inspires mouths to water in anticipation of the best-tasting cured meats around. Curing meats, whether European-style or North American, is not new, but the trade of artisanal charcuterie-making in Ontario is. Niagara Food Specialties or Pingue Proscuitto as the locals call it, is Ontario’s largest producer of cured meats, but it wasn’t always that way. Mario Pingue Sr. made prosciutto and various sausages in his cantina, a small room carved out of the Niagara escarpment in the little village of Queenston. This natural stone […]

Bring On The Cold, I’m Roasting Inside

January 31, 2015Blog, culinary tourism, farmer, local crops, local foodLeave a comment

We are all connected to the seasons. That’s why we crave light salads and chilled watermelon in the summer and root vegetables and roasts in the winter. As I pull the collar tighter around my neck on this frigid winters day, I can feel my body craving savoury foods. Isn’t it wonderful that when we begin to crave certain things, Mother Nature is right there to provide them for us? Winter is the time for root vegetables; farmers have long ago picked the last of the potatoes, carrots, squash and onions from the fields. They all go together in […]

The Travelling Apron

January 28, 2015BlogLeave a comment

It was my first Christmas in Toronto. I had a few new friends, acquaintances and colleagues. I had no idea what to expect. There was the occasional bottle of wine gifted my way, cards left at my doorstep and the one totally unexpected gift from Solveiga, my new Toronto friend with a wonderful sense of humour that I am learning very quickly, has no boundaries. Her gift was a usual holiday themed bag with tissue paper reaching out from the top. I tucked it next to our little 2-foot Christmas tree. What was inside was anything but usual. On […]

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