Roncesvalles Polish Festival

Last weekend was the annual Roncesvalles Polish Festival. This celebration of Polish food and culture drew in quite a large crowd with many live performances and samples of Polish cuisine from pierogies to blood sausage and kielbasa to borscht. As with most Toronto street festivals the other local merchants also had their wares out, so there was also a taste of other foods, from Australian meat pies to churros.




Pierogies 


Blood Sausage with Cabbage Stew






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Morton's The Steakhouse

Located at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Yorkville, Morton's is a little taste of the windy city in Toronto. Chicago is well known as a steak loving city, and it's great that Toronto has one of the few international outposts of the renowned Morton's of Chicago steakhouse chain.




Jumbo Shrimp Alexander 


The jumbo lump crab cake is some of the best crab cake around, with large chunks of tasty crab meat and not much filler.


Jumbo Lump Crab Cake


Cold Water Lobster Tail


Morton's uses USDA Prime beef, aged from 23 - 28 days, for some juicy, flavour filled and perfectly cooked steaks.


Chicago Style Prime Bone-In Ribeye 


Morton's has an excellent selection of desserts. Some of their signature desserts like their decadent Hot Chocolate Cake and their Upside-Down Apple Pie require some time to prepare so it's best to order those with your mains.



If you're in the mood for a classic, white linen, fine dining experience with succulent steaks, fresh seafood, and good wine, then Morton's should definitely be on your list.


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Morton's The Steakhouse

4 Avenue Road at Prince Arthur Toronto, Canada M5R 2E8
Phone: 416-925-0648 

Hours of Operation

Bar
Monday - Saturday 5pm - 11pm
Sunday 5pm - 10pm

Dining Room
Monday - Friday 5:30pm - 11pm
Saturday 5pm - 11pm
Sunday 5pm - 10pm

Toronto to get its own South African "National Braai Day!"

People always hear that Toronto is a multicultural CITY, and that's definitely true, but I also think of TORONTONIANS THEMSELVES as being multicultural by nature. People who live in Toronto like to learn more about other cultures and have a natural curiosity to seek out more info. And we're fortunate to live in the perfect playground where we have so many different cultural influences to explore right in our own backyard. Diversity our strength!

I've had a couple South African co-workers in the past but we didn't ever get to talking about food or celebrations in South Africa. So I was intrigued when I heard about National Braai Day, which is like South Africa’s annual day of celebration that happens Sept. 24; South Africans gather around fires, prepare a feast, and come together to take time out and celebrate. From reading the official website, it sounds sort of like Thanksgiving meets St. Patrick's Day. Heck, it even has its own patron saint: Nobel Peace Prize winner, Emeritus Archbishop Doctor Desmond Tutu! ("Braai" basically means "barbecue" in Afrikaans, by the way.)

Two Oceans, Nederburg and Flat Roof Manor reached out to let us know they are bringing the Braai party to Canada on Sept. 21 at Distillery District and they sent us some South African wines to try. We've cracked open the Flat Roof Manor Pinot Grigio and plan to get to the others later this month. It's a super easy-drinking wine. I like sipping away and using my imagination to place myself in South Africa in the middle of a Braai, smelling mouth-watering barbecue - but I won't have to imagine much longer because Torontonians get to have our own inaugural Braai day soon!

Yours in food,
-Stacey

El Catrin

El Catrin is a Mexican restaurant with a nice big patio and a roaring outdoor gas fire. It replaced the Boiler House in the Distillery District.












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Guu Izakaya

Here are some photos from Guu Izakaya, on Church St., just north of Gerrard. The best way to describe it would be Japanese tapas. It's essentially a bar with a lot of small tasty food items to go along with the drinks. A couple of interesting items we liked were the deep fried pumpkin croquette with a boiled egg inside, and of course my fav Japanese street food, Takoyaki a.k.a. deep fried octopus balls.


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Shawinigan Handshake

Jean Chrétien was definitely one of our more entertaining if not wacky Prime Ministers. I found this beer inspired by one the the stranger episodes in Canadian political history, the Shawinigan Handshake.






Talking about the Shawinigan Handshake incident at 2:35 below

Hanoi 3 Seasons

We checked out Hanoi 3 Seasons for an inexpensive night out. North Vietnamese cuisine offers a kick in the tastebuds, whilst feeling light yet satisfying, slightly different from most of the other predominantly South Vietnamese restaurants around town.

The Vietnamese Coffee, available either hot or cold is definitely a standout. It's really strong yet very easy to drink, with notes of rich mocha and a sweet creaminess to it.



Goi Cuon - Fresh Shrimp Rolls (Vegetarian version contains Tofu)  $3



Hen - Sautéed Spicy Baby Clams served with Crispy Rice Crackers $7



Cha Ca – Hanoi 3 Seasons - Hanoi-style Grouper with Dill & Shrimp Paste $11 Served with Vermicelli & Salad or as Soup



Pho Do Bien - Spicy Shrimp, Calamari & Mussels with Tamarind Soup $7.50



Café - Vietnamese Coffee (hot/cold) $3


Hanoi 3 Seasons is located at 588 Gerrard Street East at Broadview.
There is also a Leslieville location at 1135 Queen Street East.