There’s so much daily news about the food and restaurant scene that I thought I would compile the highlights of the past week as I see them. Follow me on Twitter to keep current on local and international epicurean happenings.
Labor Day has come and gone. A fabulous summer now just a memory I toasted with a couple of bottles of Sauvignon Blanc last weekend, but the food scene is still hot going into the Fall and there’s so much eating, drinking, savouring and making reservations for that I need to set up a project plan to manage it all! Here’s a summary of cool stuff from the food and restaurant scene for August 31 to September 6.
Restaurants and Chefs
Charlie Trotter‘s in Chicago closed in grand style and nothing less would have been appropriate. Charlie, his wife Rochelle with help from renowned chefs and an army of staff put on an intimate gala affair on August 31. This behind the scenes video shows the enormous admiration and respect other chefs have for Mr. Trotter’s innovations and contributions over the past twenty-five years. Watch the video.
This season will be the last of Anthony Bourdain‘s No Reservations. Gosh, I always hate the end of a great food show but he will be on CNN once again travelling and discussing food in different cultures. I hope he can maintain some of the gritty, bawdy food porn style on this network.
So closer to home Weslodge is getting a lot of press. Opened on King St. in July, it’s the new stage for the young, hip wannabes with their Gold Amex cards. It’s now on my list of places to get to before the big pre-holiday reservation party rush. From mains of burgers to lamb shoulder, small plate choices that range from seared bonito to buffalo tartar with foie gras. Cocktails come in single servings or a bottle size. Hmm, wonder if I would get questioning stares if I dined alone and got a bottle of Orange Spiced Old Fashioned? Don’t know, but going to give it a try.
Susur Lee and sons’ new restaurant Bent opened August 29th. Once again we are treated to unique Asian creations and a great list of sakes. Located at 777 Dundas West and open Tuesday – Saturday. Stay tuned for more on this one from me.
Food and Food events: Caffeine, Caffeine, Caffeine
Toronto will be hosting the Canadian Barista Championship as part of the Canadian Coffee and Tea Show. The annual trade show is open to entrepreneurs independent and chain operators this weekend. So if you want to know what it takes to be a tea sommelier, this would be the place to get that information.
Caffeinated Maple Syrup will be making its way to a breakfast table near you. As reported by the Huffington Post ‘the all-natural supercharged syrup packs 84mg of caffeine per serving — more than some energy drinks. So, you can stop soaking your waffles in Red Bull now.’ I’m thinking it would make a great breakfast shooter.
Photo credit:Wired Wyatt via [Thinkgeek]
In other maple news, a quarter of Quebec’s maple syrup reserves was stolen by thieves from a warehouse in St-Louis-de-Blandford. Not much detail of how this sticky heist carried out, but police say while the estimated value of the maple syrup is $30.4 million (yes, millions) there will be no appreciable impact to the world maple syrup supply. Thank goodness.
The Toronto International Film Festival kicked off this week. Yes, there will be high profile actors in town promoting their films, but there will also be much about where they eat. Changing it up a little this year Mark Macdonald has worked to bring food trucks and film together. Slowly but surely Mark is getting food trucks the profile they need in this town and doing a great job. Look forward to late night noshing following the films.
Have a good week of eating, folks!
Related articles
- Sweet score: Thieves pilfer millions in maple syrup (ctvnews.ca)
- Morgan Stanley Manager Has Meal #424 to Close Charlie Trotter’s (bloomberg.com)
- Charlie Trotter’s Gala Farewell (yankeeinnashville.wordpress.com)
Urban Eating 