Several years ago during one of our summers in Germany, our family made the trip to Amsterdam. We drove to a nearby village and toured a delicious cheese factory. After sampling all the different flavours of havarti and gouda (I remember the nettle gouda was divine), Karlos and I found a table packed with free […]
happy hour
Toronto Eats: Birthday Dinner at Pravda Vodka Bar
For this year’s birthday, I wanted to go somewhere different. New cuisine, new neighbourhood, new ambiance. With Donatello’s brilliant suggestion, we decided to try the Pravda Vodka Bar. We arrived early for Happy Hour, which is one of our family’s favourite tricks to save while eating out, like we always do here.
Happy Hour: Raspberry Shrub
Shrubs, or drinking vinegars (they taste better than they sound!), are acidulated fruit syrups. Back in the day, there were no refrigerators to help preserve fresh fruit for longer than a day or two. Adding the sugar draws out the juices of the fruit via osmosis, and traditionally, the mixture would be left to ferment […]
Happy Hour: Cape Cod Cocktail
Having just come back from road tripping through Cape Cod, I found out that one of my favourite drinks, the vodka cranberry, is also called a Cape Cod, or Cape Codder! The cape is riddled with cranberry bogs, so it is fitting that its namesake cocktail incorporates the juice of this ruby red fruit. […]
Happy Hour: Kiwi Elderflower Cocktail
This is inspired by Saint Patrick’s Day, though none of the ingredients are remotely Irish. I decided to use naturally green fruit and coloured accessories and just let the unique flavours shine through.