These Are Special Times

It's beginning to look a lot (more) like Christmas these days, now that my adorable little evergreen tree, adorned with mini pinecones and ornaments, sits decoratively in my living room while I sip on some spiced apple cider and listen to Sarah McLachlan (Wintersong), Michael Bublé (Let It Snow), and Céline Dion (These Are Special Times) sing about a river, a grown-up Christmas list, and chestnuts roasting on an open fire.

Though Christmas has in the last ten years been somewhat of a bittersweet occasion for me, the holiday season brings a lot of festive joy for many and, for me, still remains one of the most special times of the year—a time to be thankful for all our blessings, a time to cherish our family and loved ones, and a time to reflect on another year gone by and to look to the new one with a renewed sense of hope and optimism.

To all my loyal readers, both here and abroad, may this holiday season be filled with much love, hope, and happiness. As a new year approaches, I leave you with the following—a thought-provoking quotation that caught my eye while brunching at Luma the other day (and one that is discreetly engraved on the stainless-steel railing of the BlackBerry Lounge in the TIFF Bell Lightbox):

Don't just like. LIKE is watered-down love. Like is mediocre. Like is the wishy-washy emotion of the content. Athletes don't do it for the like of a sport. Artists don't suffer for the like of art. There is no I like N.Y. T-shirt. And Romeo didn't just like Juliet. LOVE. Now that's powerful stuff. Love changes things. Upsets things. Conquers things. Love is at the root of everything good that has ever happened and will ever happen. LOVE what you do.

Visual Eats: Boulevard Café

Tender, moist rainbow trout, contrasted with thick, rough bundles of chewy, difficult-to-eat bok choy and deep-fried yuca

Alfajor (caramel layered shortbread cake)

Boulevard Café is located at: 161 Harbord Street (Borden Street, between Bathurst Street and Spadina Avenue)

Visual Eats: The Gladstone Hotel

Piri Piri Chicken & Quinoa Salad: crisp marinated boneless chicken on a salad of roasted squash, figs, and quinoa with Portuguese salsa

The Gladstone Hotel is located at: 1214 Queen Street West (Dufferin Street)

Oliver & Bonacini

Peter Oliver and Michael Bonacini are the culinary masterminds behind a stellar group of restaurants that began with its now-legendary Jump (a favourite among business tycoons in the Financial District) and has since expanded its operations to include Canoe (perched atop the TD Canada Trust Tower, one of two renowned restaurants in the city—the other is 360 Restaurant at the CN Tower—offering a spectacular view of the Toronto skyline), Biff's Bistro (a modern Parisian eatery by the St. Lawrence Market), and Oliver & Bonacini Café Grill (five locations throughout Ontario).

The partners, also responsible for Soma Chocolatemaker in the Distillery Historic District, recently celebrated the addition of two new establishments with the opening of O&B Canteen, a fresh-market café and bakery, in August, followed a few weeks later by the upscale Luma, situated on the upper level of the TIFF Bell Lightbox—the new home of the Toronto International FIlm Festival and a striking architectural beauty that graces the northwest corner of King and John Streets.

Spinach Salad

At brunch recently at Luma, I ordered the spinach salad with shaved fennel and radicchio, alongside a serving of O&B's very own artisan toast with butter. Sprinkled with pine nuts and dressed in a lemon vinaigrette, the spinach salad would have been just as tasty with half the amount of sodium, but was of a good portion size and a light alternative that left ample room for dessert: warm pear galette with vanilla and ginger ice cream—a danish-like puff pastry that was good but nothing extraordinary.

Warm Pear Galette

I did, however, take quite a liking to the loose-leaf mint tea, which remained at just the right temperature in the handsome clay teapot sitting tastefully in the equally handsome dining room furnished with rich wood, leather and stone interiors, and designed with remarkable floor-to-ceiling views of the theatre strip along King Street West.

Although the menu at Luma is somewhat limited in selection, the quality and freshness of the ingredients, coupled with the exquisite presentation of the dishes, make this venue an ideal meeting place for brunch or dinner prior to catching one of a number of independent films at this swanky five-storey entertainment complex in the heart of downtown Toronto.

Luma is located at: 330 King Street West (John Street)

The Sultan's Tent

Charred Seafood Salad

Having frequented this establishment for quite some time now, I thought it only befitting to dedicate this next blog post to what my mentor and I fondly refer to as "The Tent"—The Sultan's Tent, that is. Located in the St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood, right across the street from the Flatiron Building, The Sultan's Tent & Café Moroc figures on my list of top Toronto restaurants and is sure to please even the most discerning diners among us.

M'Hancha

Specializing in Northwest African cuisine with a French Mediterranean influence, this beautifully adorned restaurant serves a sumptuous array of traditional dishes amidst a regal yet cozy backdrop—an elegant setting that momentarily transports you to a time and a place evocative of a sultan's palatial grounds. In fact, upon entering the establishment, you can't help but admire the luxurious hand-woven rug (a gift from the King of Morocco, no less) that graces the right-hand side of the wall and lends itself well to the restaurant's lavish interiors.

There are so many tantalizing items on their lunch, dinner, and dessert menus that I'm reluctant to steer your attention to those I consistently gravitate towards. However, here are some notable mentions that will perhaps whet your palate and provide you with a glimpse into what you can expect:

• Charred Seafood Salad: seared shrimp, scallops, and calamari, served over a bed of lettuce and drizzled with Champagne vinaigrette and a saffron emulsion (as I find the saffron emulsion, loaded with a tad too much mayonnaise, a bit overpowering for what is otherwise a light, refreshing appetizer, I always request that the chef go easy on this component)
• Grilled Vegetable Pita: seasoned grilled vegetables, broiled with Swiss cheese and served with fig jam and cardamon yogurt
• Mango Salmon: pan-seared fillet, topped with mango salsa and served with saffron basmati rice and Moroccan root vegetables
• Seafood Royale: seared jumbo shrimp, scallops, mussels, and calamari, served over a bed of saffron rice in a hearty lobster broth
• M'Hancha: crisp pastry roll, wrapped around slivered almonds and honey-enrobed raisins and sprinkled with powdered sugar and cinnamon. Consider this the sexy and much more sophisticated version of the classic Cinnabon roll. Mmm ... one of the most gratifying desserts ever.
• Mint Tea: Moroccan loose-leaf tea, sweetened and steeped with fresh mint leaves—so soothing that you'll end up sipping several cups of this before you'll want the bill to arrive.

The menu speaks for itself, doesn't it? Bon appétit!

The Sultan's Tent & Café Moroc is located at: 49 Front Street East (Church Street)

The Food of the Gods

One of my favourite reads comes from celebrated American pastry chef David Lebovitz, whose Living the Sweet Life in Paris is a personal collection of humorous anecdotes inspired by his years of living as an expatriate in Paris. For those feeling nostalgic or yearning for a taste of France, you'll find several cultural references mixed in with his signature tongue-in-cheek humour, along with a number of tempting recipes sprinkled throughout this well written memoir that are sure to keep the pages turning and have you coming back for more.

And ... if jetting off to Paris isn't in your immediate flight plans, there is, of course, another option of living the sweet life closer to home, thanks to an artisan chocolaterie tucked away in Toronto's Distillery Historic District. Yes, indeed, Soma Chocolatemaker is where you'll frequently find me wandering off to on a lazy Sunday afternoon (or just about whenever the urge arises) to indulge in its exquisite assortment of dark-chocolate truffles, scrumptious nuts and biscuits, refreshing gelato, or Mayan hot chocolate.

At Soma, you'd be remiss if you left without a bag full of goodies. Some of my all-time favourites include the wild cherries and slow-roasted almonds tumbled in dark Peruvian chocolate (64%); the light, crispy, wafer-thin almond chips; and the heavenly (read: orgasmic) crunchy spiced pecans. These handcrafted treats are such a pure delight that it's no wonder that an entire package is easily (and very often) consumed in just one sitting. Best of all, they're produced from high-quality, organic Fair Trade cacao beans, they're preservative- and junk-free, and they're made right before your eyes through the viewing windows of Soma's micro chocolate factory.

Now that the holiday season is upon us, there's also a variety of gift baskets and limited-edition X'mas 2010 collections for family, friends, and loved ones. There's the Ultimate Bowl of Plenty for the serious addicts in your life, there's also the Dark Chocolate Lover's Basket for those who prefer the darker side of indulgences (or are simply too posh for milk), and then there's the boxed triumvirate: the Revo(lution) Box, the Exploration Box, and the Elixir Box.

Yes, this is Huxley's Brave New World of chocolate, where "there is always soma, delicious soma, half a gramme for a half-holiday, a gram for a week-end, two grammes for a trip to the gorgeous East, three for a dark eternity on the moon ... "

Soma Chocolatemaker is located in Building 48 of the Distillery Historic District at: 55 Mill Street (between Parliament and Cherry Streets)