Category: Food / drink

Creepy … crawly … creepy … crawly … creepycreepycrawlycrawly …

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

Last night we decided to head (further) downtown for some shoppin’ and some eatin’ and a movie. We picked up a new backpack for me at MEC, had dinner and some new beer (both very good) at Smokeless Joe’s, and went to see The Descent (imdb | rotten tomatoes) at the Paramount theatre. Nellie and I were attracted to it by the good reviews it’s gotten to date, and by the reputation it’s garnered for being scary. We weren’t disappointed.

There were three parts: standard setup, claustrophobic tension and violent mayhem. It didn’t lapse into any silly horror movie clichés, nor into any female horror movie stereotypes (there were no major males characters). They used a few standard horror movie devices (e.g., panning shots as a person backs up toward a dark corner), but sparingly. All in all, I’d recommend it…if you’re ok with scary movies. Oh, and enclosed spaces; I don’t consider myself claustrophobic, but some of the scenes where they’re crawling through tiny passages made my freaking skin crawl.

Oh, and one final note: if you’re just going to talk with your two friends at cocktail-party volume throughout the entire film — as the trio of chattering assholes behind us did — do the rest of society a favour: wait for the DVD and watch it at home.

.:.

Then we came home and watched a schmaltzy, sappy, dorky movie…a Christmas movie, in fact: Noel (imdb | rotten tomatoes). I have no idea why, nor am I even sure why it was on our Zip list. Nellie thinks it was a film festival movie. In any case, avoid this one if you can.

[tags]descent movie, noel movie[/tags]

An evening of disappointments

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

Disappointment #1: Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (imdb | rotten tomatoes). In retrospect I don’t even know why I wanted to see this. I think I was sucked in by the preview, with the shot of the Kraken tentacles enveloping a ship, but even those special effects — which were very good, as was Davey Jones’ head — couldn’t save this movie. It was scattered and nearly plotless, it was only funny once or twice and it dragged on forever. That was three hours of my life that I could’ve spent watching squirrels waterski or something.

Disappointment #2: again…I don’t know what I was thinking. We decided to go to 7 West after the movie, even though I swore I’d never go there again. It’s just so convenient, and the food’s ok…but the service is just unbelievably bad. It’s like they train their staff to be inattentive. Granted, the guy we had last night was new to the job, but I don’t know why they’d leave a newbie to cover a whole floor. Things were ok at first — we got a bottle of wine and split a plate of pasta — but it took him half an hour to bring us the bill and then return for it, both times only doing so because one of us signalled wildly from across the room. Then, when he finally returned, he’d forgotten to bring a pen.

Normally I’d give the guy a break; everyone has service like this once in a while. But this has happened nearly every time we’ve gone. We seem to keep forgetting, I guess. Must write note to self on back of hand: avoid 7 West.

Fortunuately we’d had a much better dining experience earlier in the day when T-Bone treated Nellie and I to lunch at Fieramosca. Not only is their food a cut above anything at 7 West, they treat you like old friends.

.:.

Great article by Robert Ouellette in Reading Toronto this morning titled The Real Cost Of Suburbia. They expand on an op/ed piece in the Globe about the consequences of low-density housing growth:

“I fume when the water bill for our downtown home comes in when I know the amount of water used is a tenth of the billed amount. Where does the rest of that money go? Well, let’s just say it costs a lot to water those suburban lawns and keep their backyard pools filled and run the storm sewers all the way down to the lake where their waste closes once pristine beaches. For once I’d like suburban dwellers to subsidize me.”

Ouellette raises a the related issue of gas prices, one I plan to touch on in the next few days (when studying down-time presents itself):

“Ironically, it might be gas prices that finally force the end to the disaster known as suburbs. $3 per litre gas anyone?”

[tags]pirates of the caribbean, 7 west, fieramosca, reading toronto, robert ouellette, suburbs[/tags]

Bacchanalia

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

Haven’t…blogged…in…48 hours…must…catch…up…

Friday night five of us went out to a dinner organized by my lovely wife: we two, CBGB and T-Bone. It’s appropriate that T-Bone accompanied us that night; dinner was at The Fifth Grill (formerly just The Fifth, the top-notch Fench restaurant that started the Toronto careers of Didier Leroy and Marc Thuet, among others) and the menu item of choice was steak. We were meant to have a drink on the terrace, but it was blindingly hot outside, so the only place we could find a breeze was the smoking section. This simply was not on, so we took to our table a bit early.

After that, it becomes a blur of meat and wine; I had grilled tiger shrimp to start (others got mushroom ravioli and the tuna ceviche), and I went big on the steak: the 18 oz Delmonico. That’s a ribeye on the bone, and the chef’s opinion was that the bone counted for at least 2 of those ounces, while I would estimate that the fattier cut accounted for at least another ounce of waste, so I justified it to myself as a 15 oz steak. CBGB both got the New York strip, T-Bone got the bison ribeye and Nellie got the Filet Migon; while the flavour of my steak was excellent (thank you marbling!), GB and I had a bit of Nellie’s filet and agreed that the texture was impeccable. We were also allowed a choice of toppings on the steaks (I abstained, but others got scallops, shrimp and foie gras) and sauces (we had one of pretty much everything, but my favourite was the brandy peppercorn).

Did I mention our plan to becomes vegetarians?

Anyway, dessert was next; we took our time, imploring our stomachs to digest faster and make some room. CB and Nellie split a cheese plate, while T-Bone and I split the roasted hazelnut dacquoise with praline ice cream (GB got one for himself; he still had room for it, having found the willpower to stop eating his steak). It was good, but not great; however, they had written — very expertly, I might add — “Happy Birthday” on the plate in chocolate (it’s my birthday today, and was T-Bone’s birthday yesterday) and our server somehow snuck up the piano player and had him sing to us.

After all that food, I was ready for hibernation, so we took the back elevator down to the street…which was filled to overflowing with club-goers. We said our goodbyes and jumped on the subway.

.:.

Yesterday was a bit more low-key: CBGB came by post-karate and we popped over to the patio at The Pilot; thankfully the beer was cold, ’cause even in the shade it was microwave-hot. We sweated a while, bought some cookies from The Dessert Lady, got CB an icy drink from Starbucks and walked over to the Cumberland Theatre where we watched An Inconvenient Truth (imdb | rotten tomatoes). It’s less a movie or documentary, and more a very well-done Powerpoint presentation; I consider myself reasonably well-informed about the environment, so there wasn’t too much new for me, but Gore did manage to present it in a very compelling way. Hopefully a few folks will see it for whom it’s news.

After the movie we all lounged around our place for a bit before calling the Biryani House (the small one around the corner, not the fancy one at Wellesley) for some Indian food, and scarfed it down as we watched a few episodes of Arrested Development. It was a fun day with them. As Nellie and I were pretty wiped we just watched a movie — Derailed (imdb | rotten tomatoes) — after they left and fell asleep.

.:.

Speaking of food: I’m liking the new Chowhound design…especially the RSS feed for Ontario (which seems to mostly be Toronto)

.:.

Today — my actual birthday — been a nice one as well. Nellie took me to brunch on the patio at The Duke, bought me some gifts and is now busy in the kitchen making me a cake. How good is my life? 😀

[tags]fifth grill, didier, thuet, dessert lady, an inconvenient truth, biryani house, arrested development, chowhound, kickass wife[/tags]

Finally, it has happened to me, right in front of my face, my feelings can't describe it

Dan Dickinson

In amongst working, running and studying today I forgot to blog about last night’s Canoe experience. I shall start from the beginning. Well, not really; the beginning would be three years of frustration and missed opportunities to dine there, which have been well documented here.

T-Bone decided not to come with, so at the last minute we called around to see who’d be interested. In the end our friend MS came with us and we all arrived around 8. The view from the restaurant is a large part of the reputation, and it didn’t disappoint; we sat at the bar for a few minutes and took in the view of the lake and the islands. The restaurant itself is just as nice.

The food was as good as promised: my salad was very good, my pork tenderloin with apple bacon dressing was superb, and my molten chocolate cake with pistachio ice cream and spicy chocolate sauce from Soma friggin’ near made me cry. For drinks we asked the waiter to recommend a wine; he came back with a rosé and, given the look of shock on my face, had to explain rather quickly. He claimed it went well with both my pork and the pasta the ladies had ordered, so we have him the benefit of the doubt. It did, in fact, go reasonably well with the wine, and though I still would’ve rather gotten a lighter red, it made for an interesting story. I went to Canoe and had me some rosé.

Overall, the meal was amazing, the view is spectacular, and the service (except for some slight comic relief whenever the serving staff appeared) was extremely good. Our server — Mark, if I remember correctly — handled our meal and our questions perfectly, even giving us the restaurant’s number and telling us to call him in case we ever wanted advice about wine, even for a meal at home. This, of course, was just manouevering for a tip, but it was well played.

We’ll be going back, unliciously. Mission accomplished, Canoe.
[tags]canoe restaurant, summerlicious, did i really use a ce ce peniston lyric in the title?[/tags]

"Yes, absolutely…what?"

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

As I lay on the couch last night, trying desperately not to feel like crap, Nellie popped in Shopgirl (imdb | rotten tomatoes). It was better than I thought it would be; I’d heard poor reviews when it first came out, and the trailers made it look like more of a cliche than it turned out to be. I’d say “elegant” is a pretty good word for it, perhaps “minimalist” fits as well. However, I’m doomed to always associate it with light-headedness and mild nausea.

.:.

I’m feeling better this morning, but hope to feel even better by tonight as we have dinner at Canoe (finally!) with T-Bone and I don’t want the experience to be muddied by, you know, feelings of impending death.

[tags]shopgirl, canoe[/tags]

Queasy

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

Well, we’re an unhealthy bunch here at the Dickinson ranch. I felt a little wonky all day; around 3:30 I felt fully wonky and left work, came home and laid on the couch until Nellie arrived. We had a summerlicious dinner tonight with some friends and I didn’t want to miss it, but didn’t really feel up to eating. I was actually a little dizzy until we got to the restaurant (Goldfish) and I had some bread and water. Now that I’ve eaten (it was pretty good, but not great) I feel better, but still just a little off. Nellie, on the other hand, started feeling nauseous toward the end of dinner and got progressively worse. I’ll just be happy if we can make it through the day sans vomit.

.:.

A phrase I never thought I’d type: Mogwai will be on the Miami Vice soundtrack.

.:.

More than 200 dead in Lebanon now, including several Canadians. The Guardian seems surprised that western powers haven’t intervened, but they shouldn’t be. The US has always back Israel very heavily; they won’t move to stop any Israeli attacks (within reason), and no other western or european country will do anything unless America makes a move first. Or perhaps what seemed in the Guardian like surprise was just veiled criticism?

I just bought a copy of Munich yesterday and began watching it today. I wonder if Ehud Olmert struggled with the moral justification of his reciprocal response as much as Golda Meir struggled with hers? I’m amazed anyone runs for political office in the middle east, knowing that you could — and probably will — have to make decisions like that.
[tags]goldfish, mogwai, miami vice, lebanon, canadians, israel, ehud olmert, golda meir[/tags]

8 oz. USDA Prime Beef With Brie de Meaux, Grilled Porcini & Shaved Summer Truffles

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Last night kicked off this year’s Summerlicious fun. For the third time in as many years we went to Bymark, accompanied by T-Bone and #4 (as I believe he’s known). Let’s face it, we were there solely for the burger; it was as good this time as it had been in years past (I didn’t miss the foie gras). It normally costs $37, so you’d expect it to kick ass…and it does. Every time. The only bad part was that, due to our late reservation, we didn’t get to the burger until about 10:30 at night, so this morning when I woke up I could still feel the burger’s in my stomach.

We also got to try some Francis Coppola wine, followed by a bottle of Pacina. If a bottle had come out labelled “Brandino” or something it might’ve freaked me out.

.:.

Any plans I had of sleeping in a bit late this morning came crashing to a halt at exactly 7 AM when some yahoos started running jackhammers across the street. It was so loud the cats freaked out and hid in the den, and even closing the double windows couldn’t drown out the sound. I could even hear some guy out his balcony yelling, “Hey, shut the fuck up!!!!” at the jackhammering dudes, but to no avail. If anybody couldn’t hear, it was them. Anyway…it seemed a little early for such nonsense. Surely there’s a bylaw I could reference if I weren’t too lazy to complain…

.:.

After staying pretty much quiet for the whole offseason, the Canadiens have finally made a move or two: they dumped Richard Zednik before signing Mike Johnson and Sergei Samsonov. Zednik-for-Johnson is a good equation; adding Samsonov gives them more depth at centre, but it sure as shit doesn’t give them more size. They might be going for some sort of record; has any team ever started the year with 4 centres under 6 feet? If they dump Radek Bonk I believe they’ll manage it (’cause no way on God’s green earth is Mike Ribeiro 6 feet tall).

The Raptors have made some minor moves as well, adding two European players (Jorge Garbajosa and Anthony Parker) and signing John Salmons this afternoon. And, of course, there was the trade for T.J. Ford a while back.

.:.

If you watched The Daily Show last night you saw Ted Stevens, the Senator from Alaska, make a fool of himself trying to explain net neutrality to Congress. As this ABC article says, “It’s too obvious that this man has no idea what the Internet is exactly and no idea about the issues behind Net neutrality. It seems like a miracle that he can even find the crapper.”

You can hear the pitiful shilling here. By the way, dig how he pronounces “Deutsche”.

.:.

Also on The Daily Show last night: Shawn Wayans, star of the upcoming Little Man, which appears to be a right piece of shit. It has a 20% rating on Rotten Tomatoes right now, just slightly worse than the 22% sported by You, Me and Dupree.

.:.

Finally, and obviously most troubling, is what’s happening in the middle east. Israel didn’t want their soldiers to be kidnapped, but they’ll certainly sieze the opportunity to go on the offensive. The US will obviously back Israel should anything escalate, just as Syria and Iran will back Hezbollah activity in Lebanon. The question, in my mind, is whether Saudi Arabia and/or Egypt would intervene if Israel moves more aggressively into Lebanon, or even against Syria. If the US found itself trying to decide between Israel and Saudi, all while fighting a war in Iraq and rattling sabres at Iran…it could get even messier (if that’s possible).

[tags]summerlicious, bymark, francis coppola, pacina, canadiens, richard zednik, mike johnson, sergei samsonov, anthony parker, john salmons, daily show, ted stevens, net neutrality, little man, dupree, israel, lebanon[/tags]

"Jim Henson knew his place"

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

For the sake of my waistline, I really need my family to stop visiting Toronto. Last night we took another brother and his wife to Fieramosca — our second visit in as many Saturdays — and left the place stuffed, as always. The staff actually ribbed us a bit, saying “OK, see you tomorrow night!” as we left. Smartasses. I had the salsiccia e quaglia alla griglia, a sausage & quail plate that TimmyD got last week (which I just had to try), my brother had the linguine di mama ninetta (a favourite of T-Bone’s), and the ladies shared the seafood pasta for 2. The hostess Mani (sp?) gave us some Tiramisu to keep us busy while the ladies had their after-dinner glass of Amarone. 3.5 hours later, we managed to waddle home. Oy.

Sadly, we didn’t get to spend much more time than that with them. They arrived mid-afternoon, after trying to deal with some lost luggage, and after we got some food into them the ladies went shopping while my brother and I sat and Starbucks and caught up on things. Then we popped down to Henry’s to find them a new digital camera (and may have found one ourselves: the Canon S3 IS), swung by the condo to have a look, strolled down to Front Street and then came back up on the subway (fighting for seats with Indy fans) to relax before dinner. While relaxing we put it on Just For Laughs — there was really nothing else on — and saw a very bizarre, very funny ventriloquist act by Nina Conti…it was weird to see this beautiful woman do a surrealist comedy act with a smarmy monkey. Anyway. Good fun, but it’s too bad they could only stick around for half a day.

Now then…to find a salad…

[tags]fieramosca, henry’s, nina conti, molson indy[/tags]