Chef Chuck Hughes from Chuck's Day Off in Ottawa

Last weekend, my foodie dream came true. I met Chuck Hughes, Montreal chef from The Food Networks's Chuck's Day Off.

I bough his book a week in advance, because I am a planner, and planners know how to get ready!
I went to Costco (Merivale) really early, about 1.5 hrs before he was going to start, to get a good place in line. And I did :) I think I was about 10th in line.

Tim's breakfast panini and coffee in hand, I made friends with a girl in line in front of me, and quickly realized that maybe my crush on Chuck wasn't so unique after all  :( hahaha

He arrives! My heart is racing, and beating out of my chest, I am so nervous to meet him! I hear his deep raspy cigarette voice and can't help but to release the 12 year old giddy girl with a crush in me. It's finally my turn!

What a gentlemen- he gets up and shakes my hand, "thank you for coming" he says. I answer nervously "my pleasure"... that sounds dorky, right away I regret saying it. Calm down girl! You've been happily married for 4 years and you have a 5 month old at home, get a grip!

"Nice necklace"... um, did he just complement me?.... delayed reaction..."Oh, thanks. Ya, it's a rope in the shape of a tied knot".
"Ya, I know. It reminds me of one of my tattoos" Then proceeds to show me the back of his right elbow (I melt). The tattoo has something written in rope. I was so nervous, I don't remember what it even said. Because, OMG, we are having a conversation!

Embarrassing but worth it-  "Can you sign it, from your boyfriend Chuck?"... he stares at me. I'm thinking, man I sound like a loser, but it's worth a shot! Whatever, he doesn't have to do it, I'm just putting it out there in the universe.

He signs my book, and one for my sister, it's for her b-day gift.

After all is said and done, Chuck gets up for the million dollar shot! What a nice guy. Thanks Chuck!

As much as I felt like a creepy stalker, I feel like we could be friends. He is really cool, chill and just a genuinely nice person, not yet ruined by his famous status.



Questions I would ask him if I had the time:
1- What is your camping cooking style: Ghetto hot dogs or gourmet eating?
2- Did you cancel the last book signing to make it to the Wu-Tang concert after this?
3- Would you like to hang out? I feel like we could be good friends. (After this question, he would quickly get up and walk away as he would soon realize that I am a crazy stalker who is trying to kidnap him, hahaha)

Chuck and I (sharing the same side puff in our hair) 

The squeaky wheel gets the grease! Thanks Chuck and Universe xox
You can't see it, but I am super shaky and nervous. I immediately headed over to the vegetable freezer to cool off! (True story) 

Chef Michael Smith in Ottawa

Good morning my O'Valleyers,

Last night was among my "top coolest things I have ever done in my life"! To some people, it may sound lame, to my fellow foodies... they would be more than jealous.

I attended the Ottawa Writers Festival- Chef Michael Smith's Kitchen with Michael Smith. What an experience if you are a huge fan.

I couldn't find anyone to go with me, so I went early to find out more about the event and purchased my ticket on site. $25 to get in, $10 for 2 wine tickets, $33 for his new cookbook.

I paired up with a nice lady that I met, who was also alone. It turns out that she is practically my neighbour! Ottawa is a small world!

So, because we are both early, we get amazing front row seats (by the mic and by the signing table). We each bought the new Michael Smith cookbook, so we can get it signed at the end of the night. And we did!

The host was trying to ask typical "Food Star" questions, but it was quite obvious that Chef Michael Smith had his own (anti-Food Network) Agenda. His "Jamie Oliver" like passion about locally grown food and nutrition literacy (he called it) was the topic for the night. He avoided answering gimmicky questions about his favorite meal or what he would whip up with lacking ingredients from the host's fridge. He focused on the irony of his cookbook, because he teaches us the importance of how to cook without a recipe. He talked about the importance and innate human behaviour of "gathering, preparing and sharing" food. His focus was about "who is at the table, not what is on the table". Lastly, he delivered his "Soap box" speech about the importance of knowing where your food comes from, knowing who has provided you with the food and supporting local farmers so you can tell the story behind the food you prepared. He had strong views, passionate arguments and touching stories. All in all a fabulous conversation!

The night ended with me asking a question about " We see chefs frying with olive oil, what is your stance?" The answer was clear, don't use your good olive oil to fry with, get a cheap one that is not cold press because you lose the quality when it burns.

I got my cookbook signed and tasted the local wine (Yummy shiraz from Navan!) and indulged in the appetizers prepared from his cookbook.

For more information about the Ottawa Writers Festival, click here.

Caribbean in Otttawa!

Time to Celebrate, Caribbean Style!
Carivibe- Celebrating Caribbean Culture in the Nation's Capital!

Saturday, June 18th 2011 at 12:00pm.
255 Centrum, Orleans, ON
Click on the image for more details!

I'll be there for the food, the music, the entertainment and the people!!
Sometimes I feel like I was Jamaican in my past life :)
Hope to see you there Ottawa!

Goodbye to the grace and cheese

Sad. Day.
Grace and the Kitchen and Serious Cheese are moving to Kanata.
442 Hazeldean Rd
OPEN SEPTEMBER 2011

They call it 5400 sqft of foodie pleasure. I call it a disaster for old Ottawa South.
Rumour has it that they will be expanding their cooking school, which sounds great, but not worth the drive out there, in my opinion.

Take advantage of their moving sale. They've got 10-30% off most things in the store.

On the other hand, I can't wait to see what replaces them!

Winterlude- give it a taste!

What I love most about Ottawa in the new year is looking forward to all the winter activities that I am supposed to be partaking in... if I can leave my warm cozy house.

My favourite thing in particular is the "Taste of Winterlude"

The Taste of Winterlude festivities begin Jan 27 to Feb 21 2011. Choose from a selection of top restos in Ottawa, and sample a featured menu for a great price! Looks like there are booking up fast, so step on it!

Taste of Winterlude features exclusive culinary events that highlight local chefs, sommeliers, winemakers and Canadian products.

I just came across their site today through a facebook ad... possibly the most effective ad for me yet!

I usually grab the TOW booklet from a participating restaurant and use it as "Checklist" of places I need to try. I also love using my Urbanspoon account that automatically keeps track of this for me :)

I haven't booked a restaurant yet, but I am looking at Murray Street as a possible option.

Let me know where you would like to go or if you have any recommendations!

Bon Appétit!

tom-mac and cheese!

This week has been one of those weeks that are just sooooo busy at work... you need to eat at your desk and stuff your face in about 2 minutes. And so I did :(

But since my week has been busy I had no time to do groceries, and so I bought my lunch! I swung by at Serious cheese... but I had no idea what to get.

The gentleman behind the counter was very helpful. As I was aimlessly gazing at the menu board, he was making a few suggestions. "How about Tomato Soup with a grilled cheese?" I said I am not a bread dipper. Then he says "What about drizzling tomato soup on your grilled cheese?" I said I hate mushy bread and things like hot chicken sandwiches.

THEN HE SAID... "What if I pour some tomato soup in your mac and cheese!!!!" I said... "Now you're talkin' ". (not exactly in those words, but you get my point!)

Here it is folks! He called it bloody mac n' cheese, I called it delicious. It was like a twist on a rose sauce. Delish!

Boy did it hit the spot!

Bon appetit!

For more info about Serious Cheese check out an older post of mine.

"...bake me a pie as fast as you can.."

Life of pie is their name. Baking is their game.

Finally a place where I can grab a coffee and a breakfast treat in the morning before I make my way to work.
I didn't have my coffee at home this morning, a ritual that I have been doing for a while now to save a few pennies. As I hopped out of the bus, I said to myself "I deserve a little treat, what a great way to try the new little bakery that just opened up around the corner!"

I have had their scones and cookies here before... stick with what you know! I grabbed a delicious tripple berry scone and a coffee. The coffee is excellent and the scone was still warm and moist inside. You don't need butter or jam, it has a great flavour and it's not too sweet, which is what i like most about the scones.

It's so refreshing to get a fresh local treat and coffee that doesn't have the green circle on it :)

Have a great morning!

A little history lesson:
Life of pie was originally located in the residential area of sunnyside and Bank in a mud room type enterence of a home. It was the size of a closet! Obviously this didn't stop "the pie lady" to grow her business and open her store on hustling and bustling Bank Street! Congratulations on the growth of your local business!

Check their website for the dynamic menu of freshly baked goods :)

domus in latin is house or home

I had the pleasure of finally making it to Domus, I called up some friends for my birthday and made the dinner plans. They were very accomodating and were able to set up a nice spot for us, even though the restaurant wasn't that huge.

The service was a little slow, but in their defense our group didn't show up at the same time so we heard the special of the day about four times!
I really like it when the servers know their wine and can recommend something that pairs well with your meal. I went for a Pinot Grigio, though he recommended the Pino Gris. I had the tuna staek with wild mushrooms, it was a bit sweet, but very good. I like the green couli it was served with, it added a nice freshness to it (I didn't ask what it was :()

My friends had the steak and elk steak and everyone really enjoyed it. For desert I had creme brulé, it was tasty but a little runny. Maybe it wasn't chilled enough.

Someone at my table ended up returning their steak which was over done. The server took it back without any hesitation and replaced it. Unfortunately our table didn't eat at the same time, but this didn't ruin our night.

Since this is quite an expensive place, I don't think I will eat here again, but I would recommend you try it.

Elk steak

Tuna steak

Steak

sushi is delish

So, I googled "Sushi Takeout Ottawa" and came accross Sushi 88 on Somerset, which is right in the heart of China Town! At first I thought they delivered... but note to self, take out doesn't mean delivery!! Duh!

We ended up eating our sushi there instead of picking it up. I had platter J6 which is called "Surprise me!" Boy oh boy, was I surprised to see a sea creature on my plate! I think it was octopus. It was light purple and had waves and what looked like tenticle. I only took the picture of my platter after I ate this mysterious creature... sorry. I recommend this platter, only if you are very adventurous, but the sushi was good and priced well.

The service was nice and the location was perfectly in front of the new Asian Arch they are buidling! The decor is very nice inside too... if this is important to you. Read about my asian arch post here.

This is the new arch that is being built on Somerset close to Bronson.

opa! pilos on montreal rd

If you are looking for really good authentic Greek food, try Pilos restaurant. It's a great place for family get togethers. Quiet, cosy and original decor, this place just makes you feel like you are having dinner at your inlaws.
The staff are really friendly and the food is amazing, it tastes like what Greek food should taste like!

The portions of course are typically giant plates and the prices are good for what you get.

I hope you get a chance to eat here.

...mmm.. I am hungry now :S

salt and pepper... garden

Great food in the middle of nowhere!

If you like good food and you are on Montreal Rd in the East end, look for Pepper Graden. There isn't much around there other than Pilos (if you are in the mood for Greek!)

It's not very cheap, but the food is very fresh and tasty.

I usually get the grilled vegetable salad which is quite filling (roasted potatoes, red peppers, goat cheese...mmmmm).

They also serve a great Brunch Buffet on the weekeds, I would check theire site for more details about this.

I don't have any original pictures, I just borrowed from their site again.

Have you been there before?

what's a stone face dolly?

Anyways, that's not important! What's important is that Stone Face Dolly's is an amazingly delicious restaurant on Preston Street, located in the heart of Little Italy! They don't serve Italian food per say, just amazing culinary combinations that make your mouth water! I can never make up my mind when I go there.
"I'll have one of everything please!" Is what I truly want to say.

The two times I have been there, I was on a business meeting. This is a good fit because there is lots of discussion time. Not because service is slow, but because it is always PACKED at lunch time. I think many people go there for business meetings. The food is also really fresh and I think requires a longer cooking time, which I am okay with. I would recommend a reservation though if you are short on time.

I don't have any pictures, but if I return I will definately share with you!
Please just trust me on this one, or just vist their site :)

mangia! mangia!

If you are downtown in Ottawa and looking for really good Italian food, made simple and delicious, I highly recommend Tosca. I discovered this place online when I was looking for a nice restaurant to take my frind out for her birthday last year. We returned again almost one year later and had a great time, as usual!

The prices are not very cheap, but well worth the portions, the food and the experience.

I usually know right away that I am going to have a great time when the waiter brings bread and water when you first arrive. In this case we were brought some bread with oil and balsamic dipper, black baby olives and pickled hot peppers (my fave!).

We started munching on this stuff and enjoyed a much needed cocktail. I think that was the pupose of our visit in the first place.

I had the grill calamary (NOT FRIED NOR BATTERED!!), it comes with a spicy tomato paste. DELICIOUS! It's always cooked to perfection, and the texture is not rubbery at all, it just slices perfectly in your mouth.

For my main course I had the Fettuccini domenico, which in hind site was allot to have with the calamary, but it made a nice lunch at work the next day! The fettuccini tasted really fresh, and maybe even home made. I asked them to serve it with rose sauce and they were more than happy to do that for me! They said, anything you want can be made rose!

My friend ordered the mussels, which were good. I am not a huge fan of them, but they were tasty and the portions were very generous!

Although I saved my leftovers, I WAS STUFFED! I hate and love that feeling both at the same time.

The service is really great. They were very patient with us and helpful to make our selection.

I really hope you get to try this one out!

F.Y.I. I was looking into their space for a function last year and noticed that they have a cute little private room available. I know they also book parties there too.

I appologize I did not have my camera with me, so I borrowed some pics from their website :)

Infused with flavour

Yesterday, I went out to lunch with some girls at work, and I suggested we go to Infusion. It's located in the heart of the Glebe.... I can't beleive they don't have a website though! Here is there Urbanspoons page.
Anyways, it's not about there website, it's about their food! It's always so fresh, flavourful and constantly changing with their speacials of the day.
It's not really fancy inside... Until they installed a chandelier!!! Those who know me well, know that I have a soft spot for them.
I like how the napkin rings are hose clamps... it gives the place its eclectic feel.


I like it when you can see the chefs cooking. It gives the real Bistro feel, and you can see that they are not spitting on your food, wiping their nose with there hands or dropping stuff on the floor before it goes on your plate! (I hope these are all myths about others restos.. I hope!)

For Lunch I had the Infusion Club with half fries and half salad. OMG! It was delicious. The best part is that creamy herb/garlic mayo heaven dip!! So worth the garlic breath all afternoon. Gawd I was thursty that evening!
So the I had a huge full breast of chicken in that sandwich served in 3 slices of delicious focaccia bread. The salad and fries were very good too.
My friend had the lamb salad, which was ENORMOUS!!! She seemed to like it but could not finish it! I think she had a hard time getting to her lamb steak... it's hard to cut aroud the little T-bone. They are hard to eat, but I just find them so cute :)

If you are looking for a place with good food, and a no fuss attitude. I highly recommend Infusion! Plus, you need your little boost for the walking you will be doing around there!

Bon appétit!

a social place

Last night I had a reservation at Social. I had never been before and wanted to try it out. They have a birthday coupon emailing list that you can subscribe to on their site. So it was a perfect opportunity to redeem my free desert coupon and try a new place!

The buidling and decor are spectacular! Beautiful art hanging on old brick walls, chandeliers and drapery hanging everywhere. Chandeliers are like jewellery for decor. I mean you can wear a nice dress and have makeup on, but your jewellery is what makes you sparkle!

We were greated by a very handsome waiter at our table, which is always nice:)

We both started off with a glass of Rosé (Domaine Roncée, Chinon AOC, 2009). It was very fresh and so perfect for the hot weather. We aslo tried a delicious peice of multigrain bread and butter.

The menu is simple and straight to the point. They offer you minimal selection but using a distinct variety of proteins for each dish. I had the duck confit with green mango salad and my friend had the pan roasted salmon with quinoa and greens. My duck was very well flavoured and very well cooked. The mango salad was fresh and herbal and the cashews gave it a nice crunch! The jus poured on my duck had an orange essence to it which was tart and fresh, it paired well with the dark meat.

The salmon was cooked to perfection and had a nice crispy skin which was not wet on the plate.

It was cooked medium rare (their recommendation).

And for desert, I had my favorite... Crème Brulée, and my frind had the chocolate desert. This is definately one of my top best crème brulée's that I have had. I love it when the vanilla beans are all sunken at the bottom of the ramekin. The sugar crust was crunchy and hard, which is perfect! And the texture of the cream was soft and creamy.

We were there on a Tuesday night, and it was PACKED! Which is a sign of a very good place. They aren't even affected by the construction on Sussex! The food was really tasty and the portions of meat were enormous. Definately a place to make your man happy if you are going out for a night on the town. I wish I was more dressed up, but we went right after work, so I tied my hair differently and slapped on some lipstick.

I will definately go back or recommend it for a function. They have lots of different private spaces that have a unique decor to them and that can accomodate different parties.

I hope I haven't made you too hungry :)

Bon appétit!

happi hour

Last week, my friend and I had hair appointments at the Loft on Elgin Street, which you can read about here.

Since our appointment was after work, we decided to kill some time and have $5 cosmo and half price Nachos at the Standard. These were probably the best nachos I have ever had... and I have had the ones at the Royal Oak lots of times. They had home made colourful chips, delicious chicken, loads of good cheese and home made salsa (cut up tomatoes).

Oh ya, don't have more than one drink before you get your hair done... it's not a great idea. Thankfully it wore off :S

Bless happy hour and the good conversation it comes with!

This was no standard place. Great location and decor. Friendly and helpful staff. But most of all delicious food and drinks!

Please note that these images are from the Standard's website as I did not have my camera.

lunch on a terrace

If you are looking for a great little place to have lunch on a terrace and watch passers by on a quiet but entertaining Wellington Street in Westboro, try Caffé Mio.

A small Italian caffé with tasty, simple fare.

Maybe it helped that the weather was perfect, and I was with great company and conversation. We shared the Pollo salad, and Caprese Cotto thin crust pizza. We top it all off with a delicious Lavazza Capuccino and herbal tea for my friend.

The Pollo salad was really fresh and had lots to offer: dried cranberreries, apricots, roasted red peppers, chicken, tomatoes, cucumbers, goat cheese and walnuts. Mmmm

The Caprese Cotto had a tasty thin herbal crust, with prosciutto, tomatoes, bocconcini. It was a paired nicely with the salad.

Do you have any gems that you would like to share or suggest that I try?

lazy rainy sunday brunch

So, what do you do on a lazy rainy Sunday morning? I used Urbanspoons in the morning to look for breakfast in Westboro.. this is what it recommended, The Wellington Diner. In the reviews it said to expect a long wait on the weekends, we were lucky to get a seat right away.

It was a great place. Great food, great service, great coffee, great location. It's nice being served by a younger yet professional crowd. Here are a few pictures. It looks like a red barn.

Lots of seating, upstairs and on the main floor. We were lucky to sit right at the front window of the restaurant. In Paris, you pay for that kind of real estate!

Below are some pictures of historical Ottawa milestones.

I love taking pictures of the menu! In fact, I didn't even have a chance to open the menu. We both ordered the breakfast special... see below!

All I can say was "wow!". Such an interesting combination, and so tasty. Towards the end the gorgonzola was all I tasted, I think there was a bit too much of it. It's hard to nail the Benedict's, but they sure hit the head!

The great part of being in Westboro was being able to take a little stroll after breakfast. I finally went in the consignment store HUSH. It's really pretty in there and they have some amazing finds.

Have you been to Westboro? How do you like Westboro? Do you think it's missing something?

An excuse to break plates and say OPA!

No plans this weekend?

Why not try The OTTAWA GREEK FEST! It's on from August 12-22.

I have gone this year, but I have gone in the past. I must say it's nothing compared to the Danforth Toronto Greek Fest, but it's still something fun to do. I am sure the Greek community is much smaller in Ottawa than in Toronto.

One thing I looooove about this event is... THE FOOD TENT!! obviously! (if you can find a seat!!)

I love the spanakopita, the meat, the baklava and most of all those juicy honey balls!!

The entertainment is really wild too!

Have fun this weekend.

I probably may nt have a chance to go, but do tell me all about it!!!

mmm... Indian mush!

Tonight I had some "Indian food in a diaper" as me and my sister like to call it. (Reference from movie Anchor Man).

The one thing I like about Indian food is how cozy it can be. There are all sorts of great combinations of "mush" (as me and my sister like to call it) to try.

It's a great way to have loads of vegetables, but I am not sure how "low fat" the dishes are with all that butter and coconutty goodness!

There is a new place on Bank street that recently opened Namaste, and I wanted to check it out.

We had a great time with the girls, laughing our heads off in this intimate, yet tacky place. We got great service and stuffed our faces! And the entire bill was $67 for 4 people. What a great deal!

Here are some pictures of what we ordered. I can't remember the names, I should have written them down.

Today was definitely a sharing day! We ordered a bunch of dishes and had a bit of everything. That's really the best way to try all the "mushes".

We were brought some of these lentil chips, they were very light, tasty and crispy.

The waiter also brought us complementary appetizers, "they are basically veggie burgers" one of the gals said at our table. Some kind of curry fried onion cabbage ball! There was a nice sweet sauce that came with it too.

We ordered rice, NAN bread (mmmm so fresh), curried vegetables, eggplant, butter chicken, and a spicy shrimp dish.

To finish our meal, we were served a lovely cup of fresh fruits in a bowl.. complementary!

I have to say, it's really nice going somewhere and being given free stuff. It just makes your experience that much more enjoyable. I wonder if this was his strategy... am I that obvious when taking pictures?

I should mention that you have to be in great company when you are blogging about your meal in a restaurant... not everyone will wait for you to take a picture before you dig in!

No one is going to want to eat out with me anymore, if I keep this up.

"Wait- don't touch it, let me take a picture... for my blog!"- Me