Gastronomy and Life's Other Pleasures

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Posts tagged lunch

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Airport Fare: Heirloom Bakery Cafe at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport

While waiting to depart for our honeymoon, the husband and I decided to have lunch at the airport terminal.  There were so many options, we actually had trouble deciding on what to eat!  However, we were incredibly intrigued by Heirloom Bakery Cafe - the sandwiches looked fantastic (and we LOVE sandwiches), and who wouldn’t be intrigued by tables with iPads fastened to the tops?  That’s right, each table had an iPad for the same number of chairs at that table, so, if it was a four seater table, there were four iPads.  Interestingly, you also viewed the menu, ordered your meal, and paid for your meal, all using the iPad!  

We decided to split two sandwiches.  I ordered the ham, brie and apple panini on  cranberry focaccia bread, and it was amazing! I love the combination of flavours that made up the sandwich: the sweetness from the cranberry focaccia, the creaminess of the brie, and the tartness of the apple.  The husband ordered the three cheese grilled cheese sandwich, with goat’s cheese and two other cheese that I unfortunately can’t remember.  But what I do remember from the bite that I had was that it was delicious and the husband loved it, deeming it one of the best grilled cheeses he’d ever had! It was a wonderfully unexpected first meal of our honeymoon,

 

Filed under food airport Toronto terminal Pearson sandwich Heirloom Bakery Cafe lunch brie cranberry focaccia grilled cheese cheese

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Brunch at Panera Bread

The husband and I decided to take a drive to New York State one recent weekend to do some shopping.  We go a few times a year just to hunt for new grocery/food items, and, while there, we always dine at Panera Bread.

I tend to try their new menu items whenever we go because we don’t go that often.  This time, they had a new breakfast sandwich which was a flatbread stuffed with turkey chorizo, scrambled egg, potatoes, cheese and veggies and grilled until hot.  Yum! We also shared their new muffin, the peach pecan crunch muffin, which was super moist and packed with huge chunks of peach. I also loved the crunchy granola baked into the top of the muffin.

The husband got his usual (the bacon turkey bravo sandwich, the mac and cheese and a cherry cheese danish) and he ate every bite like it was the first time.  Sigh. haha

Filed under food bruch lunch Panera Bread restaurant sandwich turkey chorizo flatbread breakfast bacon macaroni and cheese danish muffin peach

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Lunch at Bistro Fifty Four

While taking a little bit of time off for the period pre- and post-wedding, the husband and I had a little bit of extra time to dine at a restaurant we had been wanting to try.

We first experienced Bistro Fifty Four at the Kanata Food and Wine Show in November 2012.(see here), and enjoyed the beef bourguignon that we tasted.  

The restaurant is actually a part of a golf course, which I did not realize.  It was quiet in the restaurant the day we dined (the golf course was not yet open) except for a few other patrons who were mostly retirees, likely due to the fact that it was a week day lunch, and there aren’t any office buildings or businesses nearby.

We were promptly greeted, seated and served, and the food came out pretty quickly too.  I ordered the monte cristo sandwich and got the soup of the day, a chipotle roasted corn chowder, as my side.  Both were delicious - the sandwich was so moist and fresh, and the soup had a great kick of spice but with lots of good roasted flavour.  Both of our dishes were served with a pickle and their in-house made coleslaw, which was very different and tasty as it was made with balsamic vinegar, which gave it a wonderful caramel-type colour.

The husband went for his usual, a club sandwich, but for his side, he upgraded to poutine.  But this wasn’t just any ordinary poutine - he got what the menu described as “Newfie poutine,” which was your basic poutine topped with stuffing!  As a self-dubbed club sandwich connosseur, he liked both the sandwich and his side very much!

We would definitely return to Bistro Fifty Four; the food and service were great, and we’d like to try more of the menu.

Filed under food lunch dinner sandwich club sandwich monte cristo soup chipotle corn chowder poutine newfie poutine Ottawa Bistry Fifty Four restaurant review Stittsville

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Lunch at Melt While enjoying Easter weekend in the Market, the husband couldn`t resist stopping to try a sandwich at Melt, a gourmet grilled cheese shop.   The shop is tiny; there are only a handful of seats on which to sit and enjoy your sandwich, but the list of sandwich options is huge!  You can choose to build your own sandwich, or you can go with one of the pre-selected options. The husband settled on the Proscuitto, which comes with proscuitto, provolone cheese, and roasted red peppers.  For his choice of bread, he opted for rye, and chose garlic butter in which the sandwich was to be grilled.   I did not try a bite, but the husband loved it - it was perfectly grilled, the cheese excellently melted, and the flavours all came together wonderfully.  The price is steep: $6.99 plus tax for this little sandwich, but it was nice to give a new place a try. 

Lunch at Melt

While enjoying Easter weekend in the Market, the husband couldn`t resist stopping to try a sandwich at Melt, a gourmet grilled cheese shop.  

The shop is tiny; there are only a handful of seats on which to sit and enjoy your sandwich, but the list of sandwich options is huge!  You can choose to build your own sandwich, or you can go with one of the pre-selected options. The husband settled on the Proscuitto, which comes with proscuitto, provolone cheese, and roasted red peppers.  For his choice of bread, he opted for rye, and chose garlic butter in which the sandwich was to be grilled.  

I did not try a bite, but the husband loved it - it was perfectly grilled, the cheese excellently melted, and the flavours all came together wonderfully.  The price is steep: $6.99 plus tax for this little sandwich, but it was nice to give a new place a try. 

Filed under food lunch sandwich grilled cheese Melt ottawa provolone proscuitto red pepper

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Lunch at Nectar Fine Tea

I once again had the opportunity to lunch at Nectar Fine Teas one recent afternoon, and it was just as amazing as I remembered it to be! I had not dined there in quite some time, so I was so excited to experience the delicate, dainty dining experience that is their High Tea lunch service.

My lunch began with the savoury course, which consisted of potato and leek soup, a potato tart (with the amazing flavour of tarragon) and an open-faced lemon chicken sandwich with black olive tapenade.  All three were so delicious and had amazing depth of flavour.

The second course, the sweet course, consisted of a vanilla and cranberry scone as well as green tea and ginger shortbread cookies, and, of  course, jam and clotted cream.  This is my favourite part of the high tea experience!  The scones were fantastic and I adore their shortbread cookies, especially the green tea flavoured one. 

If you are looking for a laid back but delicious high tea lunch, I highly recommend Nectar Fine Teas!

Nectar Fine Teas

1250 Wellington Street West, Ottawa, Ontario

613-759-8327

Filed under food lunch tea high tea sandwich tart scone shortbread soup potato leek Ottawa restaurant review Nectar Fine Teas

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Lunch at the Works Burger Bistro What’s more fun than a Friday lunch with your work bff’s?  We went out to the Works Burger to celebrate a coworker’s last day before her mat leave this past Friday, and celebrate we did, with milkshakes all around! I opted for the brand new (and limited time!) milkshake on the menu, the Maple “Sin-amon,” which is vanilla ice cream, a layer of maple syrup and cinnamon, another layer of vanilla ice cream and topped with crumbled maple cookies.  It immediately jumped to the top of my all-time favourite milkshakes list!   For my lunch, I went with my usual, the avocado blt with chicken on a croissant. Perfection in every bite!  All in all, another amazing meal at the Works, and the service was on point as well - they did a fantastic job!

Lunch at the Works Burger Bistro

What’s more fun than a Friday lunch with your work bff’s?  We went out to the Works Burger to celebrate a coworker’s last day before her mat leave this past Friday, and celebrate we did, with milkshakes all around!

I opted for the brand new (and limited time!) milkshake on the menu, the Maple “Sin-amon,” which is vanilla ice cream, a layer of maple syrup and cinnamon, another layer of vanilla ice cream and topped with crumbled maple cookies.  It immediately jumped to the top of my all-time favourite milkshakes list!  

For my lunch, I went with my usual, the avocado blt with chicken on a croissant. Perfection in every bite!  All in all, another amazing meal at the Works, and the service was on point as well - they did a fantastic job!

Filed under food sandwich blt bacon avocado croissant Works Burger Ottawa milkshake maple cinnamon vanilla restaurant review lunch

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Easy Saturday morning frittata I felt like something a little more hearty for breakfast one recent Saturday, so I decided to put together a little oven-baked frittata. It came out fantastic! Super flavourful and fresh, and packed with healthy ingredients.  I will be making this more often now that I know how simple yet delicious it is. Oven baked frittata (adapted from Chatelaine) Ingredients - 6 eggs - 1 green onion, finely chopped - 8 slices of bacon, cooked, drained, cooled, patted dry to get rid of excess grease and chopped into small pieces - 1/2 cup shredded old cheddar cheese - 1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped - a couple of small button mushrooms, finely chopped - a handful of baby spinach and kale, chopped - salt and pepper to taste - 1 teaspoon Italian herbs - sprinkle of smoked paprika Directions - Preheat oven to 350°.  Lightly grease a 9-inch pie place (using whatever you prefer - I used olive oil cooking spray). - Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk briskly until combined.  Add salt, pepper, herbs and paprika (and any other seasonings you’d like!) and mix.  Add all of the veggies, bacon and cheese, and stir gently to combine. - Pour into the greased pie plate and push the mixture around a little bit to make sure that all of the ingredients are fairly evenly distributed. - Cook for approximately 25 minutes, or until the centre is just set.  Remove from oven and let sit for a minute or two.  Slice and serve with toast and fresh fruit on the side.

Easy Saturday morning frittata

I felt like something a little more hearty for breakfast one recent Saturday, so I decided to put together a little oven-baked frittata.

It came out fantastic! Super flavourful and fresh, and packed with healthy ingredients.  I will be making this more often now that I know how simple yet delicious it is.

Oven baked frittata (adapted from Chatelaine)

Ingredients

- 6 eggs

- 1 green onion, finely chopped

- 8 slices of bacon, cooked, drained, cooled, patted dry to get rid of excess grease and chopped into small pieces

- 1/2 cup shredded old cheddar cheese

- 1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped

- a couple of small button mushrooms, finely chopped

- a handful of baby spinach and kale, chopped

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1 teaspoon Italian herbs

- sprinkle of smoked paprika

Directions

- Preheat oven to 350°.  Lightly grease a 9-inch pie place (using whatever you prefer - I used olive oil cooking spray).

- Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk briskly until combined.  Add salt, pepper, herbs and paprika (and any other seasonings you’d like!) and mix.  Add all of the veggies, bacon and cheese, and stir gently to combine.

- Pour into the greased pie plate and push the mixture around a little bit to make sure that all of the ingredients are fairly evenly distributed.

- Cook for approximately 25 minutes, or until the centre is just set.  Remove from oven and let sit for a minute or two.  Slice and serve with toast and fresh fruit on the side.

Filed under food eggs mushroom frittata kale spinach red pepper green onion recipe brunch lunch breakfast healthy

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Lunch from Essence Catering I love discovering new little spots to eat, or, even better, new little spots that will bring the food right to me!   While doing my daily scroll through my Twitter feed, I came across a tweet from Essence Catering a while back introducing their new lunch menu, with delivery available in the vicinity surrounding their offices, which is very close to where I work. I was so pumped! After perusing the menu, I e-mailed my order and, presto, my lunch showed up the next day!   I decided to try their black bean soup (served with salsa, avocado and creme fraiche) and the Asian spiced pulled pork served with bahn mi vegetables and miso aioli.  Wow! Everything was so fresh and jam packed with flavour.  I was amazed at the depth of flavour of the soup, and the accompaniments were such a delicious addition.  The sandwich was bursting with the toppings; the pork was tender and spiced excellently, and the veggies were crisp and fresh. I would highly recommend ordering lunch from Essence Catering! I will definitely be taking advantage of their lunch menu and delivery again.

Lunch from Essence Catering

I love discovering new little spots to eat, or, even better, new little spots that will bring the food right to me!  

While doing my daily scroll through my Twitter feed, I came across a tweet from Essence Catering a while back introducing their new lunch menu, with delivery available in the vicinity surrounding their offices, which is very close to where I work. I was so pumped! After perusing the menu, I e-mailed my order and, presto, my lunch showed up the next day!  

I decided to try their black bean soup (served with salsa, avocado and creme fraiche) and the Asian spiced pulled pork served with bahn mi vegetables and miso aioli.  Wow! Everything was so fresh and jam packed with flavour.  I was amazed at the depth of flavour of the soup, and the accompaniments were such a delicious addition.  The sandwich was bursting with the toppings; the pork was tender and spiced excellently, and the veggies were crisp and fresh.

I would highly recommend ordering lunch from Essence Catering! I will definitely be taking advantage of their lunch menu and delivery again.

Filed under food lunch sandwich Essence Catering Ottawa pork black bean\ soup bahn mi

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Lunch from Di Rienzo’s (a contribution from the fiancé) For some reason, the fiancé’s office building is riding a big trend of ordering in food on a weekly basis and selling it as a fundraiser.  Most often he talks of mountains of boxes of pizza, but more recently he discovered that they were also bringing in Di Rienzo sandwiches for sale. Our relationship with Di Rienzo sandwiches goes way back; I used to eat there for lunch quite often when I worked nearby, and would bring them home to share.  But after relocating elsewhere in the city, we hadn’t made the trip back to enjoy these delicious sandwiches in quite some time.  It is quite an interesting place to get a sandwich: the location is essentially a convenience store in a residential area of Ottawa’s Little Italy, but with a full service deli, and freshly made to order sandwiches.  It is a unique way to get a sandwich, but you will not be disappointed! For his most recent lunch, the fiancé chose the ham, chicken, roast beef, spicy salami, marbled cheese, lettuce and mayo sandwich.  That’s a lot of meat!  And all on a freshly baked roll.  He loved it.  I might join him next time!

Lunch from Di Rienzo’s (a contribution from the fiancé)

For some reason, the fiancé’s office building is riding a big trend of ordering in food on a weekly basis and selling it as a fundraiser.  Most often he talks of mountains of boxes of pizza, but more recently he discovered that they were also bringing in Di Rienzo sandwiches for sale.

Our relationship with Di Rienzo sandwiches goes way back; I used to eat there for lunch quite often when I worked nearby, and would bring them home to share.  But after relocating elsewhere in the city, we hadn’t made the trip back to enjoy these delicious sandwiches in quite some time.  It is quite an interesting place to get a sandwich: the location is essentially a convenience store in a residential area of Ottawa’s Little Italy, but with a full service deli, and freshly made to order sandwiches.  It is a unique way to get a sandwich, but you will not be disappointed!

For his most recent lunch, the fiancé chose the ham, chicken, roast beef, spicy salami, marbled cheese, lettuce and mayo sandwich.  That’s a lot of meat!  And all on a freshly baked roll.  He loved it.  I might join him next time!

Filed under food lunch sandwich deli bun roll Ottawa Di Rienzo fresh

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Curried tuna with avocado on crackers How were your holidays?  Mine were quick but wonderful.  We got to visit with our families, enjoy two turkey dinners and lots of laughter.  It has been snowing a great deal which has made driving tricky, but we managed.  It sure is gorgeous outside with the more than 50 cm of snow that we’ve had in the past week! Continuing with my quest to cook from Chef Michael Smith’s book, Fast Flavours, I have this delicious tuna recipe to share with you this week.  I can’t believe I never thought to mix tuna with avocado; these two ingredients come together perfectly!  I decided to adapt Chef Smith’s recipe quite a bit so if you would like his original recipe, check out his book!  I must apologize for my terrible photo; I was trying to work with the natural light coming in my kitchen window but it totally washed out the colours.  Don’t let my terrible photo fool you: these little morsels were completely delicious, and healthy to boot!   Curried tuna with avocado  Adapted from Chef Michael Smith’s Fast Flavours Ingredients -  1 can (184 g) of your favourite tuna  - 1/4 cup of 0% greek yogurt - 1 tbsp of zucchini relish (I used President’s Choice) - 1/2 tbsp of curry powder (adjust to your preferred taste) - fresh ground pepper to your taste - 1 ripe avocado, scooped out and chunked - sprinkle of smoked paprika - a bunch of your favourite crackers Directions - Drain most of the liquid from the tuna (it doesn’t have to be completely drained, but mostly) and put it in a medium bowl.  Add greek yogurt, relish, curry powder and pepper.  Stir in the avocado and mash everything up to your desired consistency (chunks of avocado are ok!) - Spread onto crackers of your choice, sprinkle with a dash of smoked paprika and enjoy!

Curried tuna with avocado on crackers

How were your holidays?  Mine were quick but wonderful.  We got to visit with our families, enjoy two turkey dinners and lots of laughter.  It has been snowing a great deal which has made driving tricky, but we managed.  It sure is gorgeous outside with the more than 50 cm of snow that we’ve had in the past week!

Continuing with my quest to cook from Chef Michael Smith’s book, Fast Flavours, I have this delicious tuna recipe to share with you this week.  I can’t believe I never thought to mix tuna with avocado; these two ingredients come together perfectly!  I decided to adapt Chef Smith’s recipe quite a bit so if you would like his original recipe, check out his book!  I must apologize for my terrible photo; I was trying to work with the natural light coming in my kitchen window but it totally washed out the colours.  Don’t let my terrible photo fool you: these little morsels were completely delicious, and healthy to boot!  

Curried tuna with avocado 

Adapted from Chef Michael Smith’s Fast Flavours

Ingredients

-  1 can (184 g) of your favourite tuna 

- 1/4 cup of 0% greek yogurt

- 1 tbsp of zucchini relish (I used President’s Choice)

- 1/2 tbsp of curry powder (adjust to your preferred taste)

- fresh ground pepper to your taste

- 1 ripe avocado, scooped out and chunked

- sprinkle of smoked paprika

- a bunch of your favourite crackers

Directions

- Drain most of the liquid from the tuna (it doesn’t have to be completely drained, but mostly) and put it in a medium bowl.  Add greek yogurt, relish, curry powder and pepper.  Stir in the avocado and mash everything up to your desired consistency (chunks of avocado are ok!)

- Spread onto crackers of your choice, sprinkle with a dash of smoked paprika and enjoy!

Filed under food tuna avocado Chef Michael Smith Fast Flavours recipe cookbook President's Choice lunch crackers snack

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Lunch at Thyme and Again

My bffs and I went up to Thyme and Again one recent Friday for a relaxing lunch and to get away from the office and take a bit of a break.  It was a fantastic idea!

I ordered the roasted garlic and cauliflower soup with side of Israeli couscous, which was spiced with cinnamon.  It is one of my favourite Thyme and Again salads! 

My bffs all ordered sandwiches:  the three cheese grilled cheese and the Italian meat combo.  Everything was fantastic! We enjoyed a cozy and delicious lunch nestled in one of their corner tables surrounded by the big store front windows.  We could have stayed there all afternoon!

Filed under Ottawa Thyme and Again catering food lunch restaurant shop sandwich soup couscous salad delicious

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Holiday dinner, cafeteria style No judgies please people, but I am about to tell you something that you might find a bit shocking:  I love my work cafeteria’s holiday meal! That’s right, each Christmas (and Thanksgiving), the cafeteria at my work serves up a full holiday meal, including turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mashed turnip and gravy.  The meal also comes with soup, your choice of a small coffee or milk, and your choice of dessert (I chose the plate of two sugar cookies).  All this is yours for $10! It is delicious! The turkey is moist, the potatoes are real, and the turnip is creamy.  Why do I get so excited for this meal, you might ask?  Well, I think it goes back a long way to my childhood.  You see, my family’s holiday meal traditions never included turkey - we always had something else that was equally delicious.  But I think all those years of not having turkey has made me long for that traditional, classic holiday meal combination of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce, and I will take it where I can get it! haha As the fiancé and I continue to make our own traditions, I hope to perhaps incorporate turkey.  What is your favourite holiday meal combination?

Holiday dinner, cafeteria style

No judgies please people, but I am about to tell you something that you might find a bit shocking:  I love my work cafeteria’s holiday meal!

That’s right, each Christmas (and Thanksgiving), the cafeteria at my work serves up a full holiday meal, including turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mashed turnip and gravy.  The meal also comes with soup, your choice of a small coffee or milk, and your choice of dessert (I chose the plate of two sugar cookies).  All this is yours for $10!

It is delicious! The turkey is moist, the potatoes are real, and the turnip is creamy.  Why do I get so excited for this meal, you might ask?  Well, I think it goes back a long way to my childhood.  You see, my family’s holiday meal traditions never included turkey - we always had something else that was equally delicious.  But I think all those years of not having turkey has made me long for that traditional, classic holiday meal combination of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce, and I will take it where I can get it! haha

As the fiancé and I continue to make our own traditions, I hope to perhaps incorporate turkey.  What is your favourite holiday meal combination?

Filed under food turkey lunch holiday mased potatoes turnip stuffing gravy soup sugar cookies dessert cafeteria