Category: Friends

Post Lily

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I wanted this post to be about Leaning Post winery’s 10th anniversary party yesterday, about their delicious wines, and Ilya and Nadia and all the nice people who work there, and the amazing library wines (2013 Lowrey Pinot, 2013 Wismer Chardonnay, etc.), the yummy food, and so on. Unfortunately the drive there and back was a nightmare of traffic and we spent twice as long in the car as we did drinking wine. It’s hard to be enthusiastic about these events that are ostensibly under an hour away when you know your soul is going to be crushed by the Gardiner.

Still, it was fun to try that 2013 Pinot again. Pretty sure the last time I had it was eight years ago at Barque along with three other winemakers producing Pinot from the Lowrey fruit.

This morning’s activity was a little closer to home: breakfast at White Lily with Matt & Lisa on a crisp, sunny fall day. Makes me think this whole car thing is a scam.

Latesommar

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I have to say, the week or so that we’ve been (prematurely) back from New York have been pretty amazing, weather-wise. Even though Lindsay’s lingering sickness has kept us from fully taking advantage, it’s made for some beautiful days on the back deck, and out and about.

We’ve also had a bunch of (somewhat hurried) friends & family visits, like Lindsay’s friend K, drinks with old colleagues, drinks with new colleagues (patio!), a drive-by with other colleagues, a beer at Beerbistro (patio!) with my friend Matt, and a visit from brother #2 and sis-in-law which has thus far included lunch at Slowhand (patio!), some fun bottles of wine (backyard!), brunch at Avling, and coffee from Maha’s Café.

I start my new job next week, so this September of vacation — ending as beautifully as it has — has felt pretty nice.

Busy backyard season

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I haven’t been writing them up, but it’s occurring to me now how filled with visitors the house & backyard have been since we got home from Ottawa. A full-week visit from N+J. Another full-week visit from the sister-in-law, and a chance to meet her business partner. A full-Sunday throwdown with six friends & a lot of meat a while back. Visits from V and her new gorgeous doggo Xena, including last night when we watched Idiocracy (imdb | rotten tomatoes), a movie I’ve been meaning to watch forever, but which hasn’t aged super-well.

It really is such a luxury & privilege to have that space, postage-stamp-sized as it is. Now we just need to have it tended to.

Carismatic

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Last night, after many foiled attempts, we had dinner out with M+LK at old neighbourhood haunt Carisma. It was a nice little catch-up, with excellent service (including a discovery that our server was an active birder who also just got back from Costa Rica, like M+L) and very-nearly-too-much delicious food.

After some cocktails and a glass of Falanghina for me, we dug into the burrata special, some pan seared scallops, and hand-rolled ricotta gnocchi in a four cheese sauce. Our mains were lamb, tuna, truffle pasta, and a ribeye special — the latter being mine, and being superb. We washed it down with an excellent bottle of Sangiovese.

We somehow managed dessert, which came to us just as a cheer went up from the bar as the Leafs scored to tie their game late. Lindsay and I had affogato; the others went for strudel and cheesecake. Three of us got a little sip of Vin Santo; Lindsay got a glass of Brunello.

No surprises expected, none delivered. Just a fantastic meal with old friends.

And with the warmer weather come the visitors

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It has been — and continues to be — a week of visitors. Petite mainstay friend N (sans J, this time) is in from Montreal and has hung out with us a few times. Then Lindsay’s brother and his girlfriend arrived Friday. The five of us had a later dinner around the corner at Frankie’s, our first time back there in yonks. Their servers did yeoman duty, bravely surviving a lot more traffic than they expected, and helped us through a menu in transition for our first patio meal of the year. Felt nice.

The next day was another lovely one, so after dealing with a minor plumbing emergency, we walked to Eastbound for brunch, then took a streetcar up to Riverdale Park east where half the city seemed to be gathered. We sat under a tree and drank beers & pet nat. I got to throw a ball with a cute dog a few times.

Today was a bit more sedate — I did contemplate a Jays game but had too much to catch up on, so watching on TV sufficed — but we did squeeze in a late dinner at Richmond Station:

  • Cocktails
    • Black Walnut Old Fashioned
    • Cardi P
    • Spring Fling
  • Appetizers
    • Brigid’s Brie w/ truffled wildflower honey, brown butter, petits croutons, grilled sourdough focaccia
    • Pain Au Lait w/ grass-fed butter, Vancouver island sea salt
    • Spanish Mackerel Sashimi w/ granny smith apple, horseradish, pickled celery, buttermilk sauce
    • Smoked Cookstown Beets w/ whipped ricotta, aged balsamic, roasted hazelnuts, endive
  • Mains
    • Berkshire Pork w/ Brussels sprouts, caramelized apple, potato rösti, apple cider vinaigrette
    • Duo Of Muscovy Duck w/ dry aged breast, grilled endive, confit Cookstown rutabaga, orange-cognac jus
    • Cave-Aged Comté Agnolotti w/ grilled wild spring onions, morel mushroom jus, ramp oil, verjus butter
    • Grilled Leek & Chickpea Burger w/ beet chutney, aged cheddar, green chili & coriander mayo, iceberg lettuce, rosemary fries
    • 2020 Domaine Breton “Trinch” Cabernet Franc

Grapes for Humanity: Southbrook x Richmond Station

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Earlier this week Lindsay and I attended a dinner we won in the Grapes For Humanity charity auction with three other couples (two of whom were also at last year’s Bachelder dinner at Barberian’s). This year’s prize was a dinner at Richmond Station with Southbrook‘s owner Bill Redelmeier and a board member from Tree Canada. Southbrook has long been a favourite of mine, but I’d not yet met Bill, so that was an extra treat. I also knew the food at Richmond Station would be great, but wow…they stepped up their game even more than usual.

This was the menu:

  • Canapes for the table
    • Cured Salmon Tartlet w/ creme fraiche, trout roe
    • Beef Tartare w/ Yorkshire pudding, porcini mayo, horseradish
    • Gougere w/ applewood smoked cheddar
    • Duck Liver Pate w/ candied buckwheat, bourbon-maple gastrique
    • Paired with Southbrook 2020 Estate Vidal Orange
  • Striped Bass Tartare w/ shio koji, sea asparagus, yuzu
    • Paired with Southbrook 2021 Estate Rosé
  • Cookstown Greens Parsnip Velouté w/ brown butter, granny smith apple, lemon thyme
    • Paired with Southbrook 2020 Saunders Vineyards Chardonnay
  • Confit Chicken Tortellini w/ truffled celeriac puree, smoked butter, crispy chicken skin
    • Paired with Southbrook 2020 Saunders Vineyard Cabernet Franc
  • Shalom Farm Venison w/ mushroom tartlett, chestnut puree, spruce hollandaise
    • Paired with Southbrook 2018 Estate Merlot
  • Dessert
    • Cookies & Cream Tart
    • Chocolate ice cream, white chocolate ganache, chocolate shortbread
    • Paired with Southbrook Cassis Dessert Wine

Lindsay and I just went back over the menu trying to pick out a favourite course, and realized every single thing was excellent.

As for the guest of honor: Bill’s been in and around this space forever, and it was amazing to pick his brain and hear his thoughts about the industry. Terrific wine, excellent conversation, superlative food, and great friends. The kind of night you wish wouldn’t end.

Les fins de semaine Québécoises

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As of last night we have dear friends staying with us for a few nights, visiting from Montreal. We drank wine and ordered late dinner and talked and laughed until late. They’ll be here only too briefly, but any visit is a treat.

[Update: on Sunday we walked up to Maha’s for brunch but the line was too long, so we walked back down and tried OK OK Diner for the first time. Outstanding classic diner brekkie. Instant weekend staple going forward.]

Next weekend we’ll be headed to Quebec ourselves, visiting Quebec City for a weekend. It’s something of a replacement trip for Lindsay’s birthday, a getaway postponed because of COVID.

Now I just have to survive this week.

Reunion

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On Thursday I got to go to the eighth installment of an annual ceremony celebrating winners of a digital art prize, sponsored by my old company, which Lindsay created in a past life. It was great to see many of my old colleagues again, and just to…get out. Post-vaccination, as in-person things have returned again, I find we’ve struggled to mobilize on getting out as much. So, for one night, it was nice to put on decent clothes, to head downtown (traffic notwithstanding), to take in art, and to talk and laugh with people again.

By the way, if you’re in Toronto and you can make it, the exhibition of the five finalists’ work is at 401 Richmond until October 1st.

Kojin

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Last night friends K+P asked us to join them for dinner at Kojin. It was a tasty, tasty meal:

  • Starters
    • Corn flatbreads, organic smoked sea salt butter, stracciatella cheese w/ garlic chili honey and thai basil
    • East Coast oysters w/ kombu mignonette, lemon
    • Blistered shishitos w/ sumac, spicy mayonnaise
    • Steamed buns: pork belly w/ hoisin, scallion, cucumber, and shrimp w/ spicy mayo, pickled onion, iceberg lettuce
    • Cocktails (Spring Heeled Jack: tanqueray, aperol, triple sec, cynar, lime; Lady Grey: earl grey vodka, cointreau, honey, lemon; Yuzu Soda: Tanqueray, yuzu, soda; Closson Chase ‘KJ Watson’ 2020 Pinot Gris)
  • Main
    • Cowboy ribeye
    • Ember potatoes w/ seaweed crema, maldon salt
    • Magnum of 2006 O Raffault ‘Les Picasses’ Chinon Cabernet Franc
  • Dessert
    • Yuzu sorbet
    • Digestifs (Lillet Blanc; Amaro; Campari & soda; Grand Marnier)

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Frankly, it was all delicious

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We went to visit friends D+K at their house last night, after trying to make it happen for nearly a year. They very generously made us a delicious dinner — charcuterie, mushroom risotto with prawns and scallops, wagyu steak, and grilled corn. We drank a lot of great wine too: 2019 Westcott Reserve Chardonnay, 1991 Beringer Cabernet, and 2016 Silver Oak Cabernet from their cellar; 2015 Hidden Bench Tête de Cuvée Chardonnay and 2011 Catena Zapata Nicolás from ours. We even got some doggy scratches in. Good night all around.