It’s tough to decide whether Toronto is more obsessed with doughnuts or cupcakes these days, but the doughnut side is about to get a boost: a new made-to-order doughnut shop is opening at the El Gordo food court in Kensington Market next month. Named Lightweight Mini-Donuts, it will serve doughnuts in three flavours: cinnamon sugar, icing sugar and a combination of the two.
Appassimento is a traditional Italian winemaking technique that concentrates flavour by drying the grapes for several weeks before fermentation. This version is a deep ruby colour. It has a spicy plum and raisin bouquet with a woody, struck-flint note. Its rustic, plum flavour is full-bodied and mouth-filling with sweet fruit and supple tannins.
After 14 months at St. Clair West’s acclaimed seafood restaurant Catch, chef Nigel Finley has been lured to a new opportunity as chef de cuisine at The Chase Fish & Oyster, an upcoming restaurant in the financial district.
To the romantically inclined, spring means robins, flowers that you can’t tell the difference between and endless days of warm sunshine. Reality often lands closer to what we’ve experienced this week: slate-gray clouds and rain blown by vicious winds. For days like today, we still need warming, stronger beer like the maibock from Les Trois Mousquetaires.
The city’s latest hotspot for Thai cuisine is Church Street’s Sabai Sabai. Inside, against a hodgepodge of memorabilia from the motherland, chef Nuit Regular’s patrons mow down on lesser-seen Thai favourites such as morning glory stir-fry and fried fish in tamarind sauce.
For the past two years, chef Steve Gonzalez has been combing the city for a spot to open his own restaurant, and he’s finally found a place. He isn’t ready to reveal the exact location yet (for what it’s worth, it will be in the west end, three blocks from his house), but we do know this much: when the restaurant opens, it will serve Latin American street food, and there won’t be a taco in sight.
Hogtown has a less-than-progressive relationship with innovative street food, but that hasn’t stopped a band of street food entrepreneurs from attempting to transform curbside eating culture.
This red blend of Syrah, Cinsaut, Mourvèdre, Grenache and Petite Sirah has a smoky nose of black fruits. Expect plum and blackberry flavours with a spicy savoury note and a finish of toasted herbs and dark chocolate. It’s on sale at the LCBO until the end of the month.
The LCBO’s featured brewery this season is Brasserie Dupont, and all four of the special release beers are worth a taste. The Moinette Brune is a nice Belgian brown ale, and the Monk’s Stout is interesting, but it’s the Cervesia — and especially the organic Bière de Miel — that stand out.
Ella’s Uncle, a tiny boîte of a café that has been dishing out scrumptious scones and caffeinated beverages on Dundas West for the past seven years, quietly opened a Bloorcourt outpost last month. Co-owners Mike Craig and Jen Hedley aren’t messing with a good thing — the prices, drinks and snacks are all the same. The only major difference: with a whopping 10 seats, there is actually room to lounge.
Farmhouse Tavern has been turning heads with its elevated farmhouse cuisine since last June, drawing eager diners to the up-and-coming Junction ’hood. Noted as one of the city’s best new restaurants, the rustic spot offers a rotating, meat-heavy menu with curious monikers like “Threesome” and “Fancy Salad” demanding full explanations from the tireless servers.
