The competition is fierce in Abbey's Kitchen Stadium! *giveaway*

I have two tickets for this weekend's much-anticipated Abbey's Kitchen Stadium (AKS) event that I can't use, so I'm giving them away!

The Event:
Abbey's Kitchen Stadium: Battle Three (19+ event)
Sunday, September 29, 2013 from 1-4pm
722 College Street

AKS celebrates Toronto's vibrant food culture and brings together some of city’s hottest restaurant, food truck and pop-up vendor chefs to raise money for a local food initiative, My Food My Way. AKS has been modeled after the popularity of reality Food Network competition programs such as Chopped, Iron Chef, and Top Chef.

A secret ingredient will be revealed at the event and four of Toronto's culinary superstars will each prepare two dishes that showcase the chosen ingredient. Each chef will then be invited to present their dish to the celebrity judges on the stadium stage. Attendees will have the chance to purchase the dishes for $5 each.

Battle Three Chefs: 
Carl Heinrich (Richmond Station, Food Network's Top Chef Winner!)
Dave Sidhu (Playa Cabana)
Thomas Davis (The Stockyards)
Dustin Gallagher (Acadia, Food Network's Top Chef Competitor)

Battle Three Judges: 
Vikram Vij (Celebrity Restauranteur)
Alex Lifeson (Rush Guitarist & Rock Hall of Famer) 
Liem Vu (Host for Global TV's The Morning Show) 
Dee Brun (Cocktail Deeva, Stephen and Chris Show) 
Susan Merry (Owner, All the Best Fine Foods)

How to Enter (you can do one or the other, or both!):

1. Leave a comment on this blog post, answering the following question: "If you could pick the Secret Ingredient for AKS: Battle 3, what would you pick?" Don't forget to include an email address so that I can contact you if you win! (3 entries)
2. Follow @kitchenfrolic on Twitter and tweet the following: "Hey @kitchenfrolic! I want to win a pair of tickets to #AKS3 http://bit.ly/16LJQuV!" (You can do this as often as you like - 1 entry per tweet)

Notes:

• Contest runs Thursday, September 26 to Saturday, September 28 at noon. 
• The lucky winner will be chosen randomly through random.org and the winner will be announced (and contacted) shortly after the end of contest.

*** UPDATE ***

Thanks to everyone that entered! The winner was Jeffrey Ngo. Congratulations and enjoy the event!

Hot Bunzz celebrates TUMalum

One year ago, Paul and I attended our first Toronto Underground Market (TUM) and had a lot of fun, eating some really great food while we were there. Reading over my blog post from that event it's funny to remember that Paul's favourite food from that event was the Basil Beef Thai bun from Hot Bunzz because we have eaten A LOT of bunzz since then.

A few TUM vendors have gone on to launch their own bigger projects and have now become part of an elite group known as TUMalum. According to TUM's website, TUMalum are "either (1) a food vendor who started at TUM & now owns a successful & established food business OR (2) a food vendor whose development & success was directly impacted by TUM."

I have been lucky enough to be around to celebrate a few Hot Bunzz moments: we were there at their first TUM (although I didn't know it at the time) and I was invited to the launch of their first brick and mortar place inside Urban Bistro (21 St. Clair W). Well, I can now add another date to my Hot Bunzz timeline: earlier this week, I was there for a Sneak Peek (and First Bite) as they launched a special TUMalum collection to celebrate their first birthday (and TUM's second anniversary)!

For this milestone, Hot Bunzz introduced the TUM Alum Collection - "The first ever Collaboration of fellow TUM Alum friends with a lineup inspired by signature dishes stuffed into our signature Bunzz. 3 different Collaborationzz, 3 different new flavours!"

summerlicious anniversary lunch - Fabbrica

Location: 49 Karl Fraser Road, Toronto

Description on Summerlicious site:
Authentic Italian cuisine, uniformly rustic and intended for casual enjoyment. Fabbrica houses a contemporary dining room anchored at the front with a long bar and at the rear, our wood-burn brick pizza oven from Naples. The atmosphere is casual and convival!

Price: $20

Appetizers:

   
Paul had Buffalo Mozzarella (fresh tomato, balsamic, basil and extra virgin olive oil) and I had the Beef Carpaccio (mustard sauce, capers, onions, grano padano). Paul's appetizer was really colourful and fresh and all the flavours of the ingredients stood out. As for me? This is now my favourite carpaccio dish ever. Everything just melted together into a delicious, light, fresh taste. I normally don't like capers (I find them too salty) but these blended in nicely and I barely noticed them. The only thing I didn't care for on the plate were the radishes, but I loved the rest of the dish so much I barely noticed them.

summerlicious anniversary lunch - Oliver & Bonacini Café Grill

Location: 2901 Bayview Avenue, Toronto

Description on Summerlicious site:
Oliver & Bonacini Café Grill, Bayview Village is the first of O&B's casual dining restaurants. This large urban space feels very downtown despite its North Toronto location. A gleaming open kitchen extends into the airy dining room, featuring washed tin ceilings, leather banquettes and dramatic and distinctive light fixtures. The menu offers something for everyone, including fresh, made-from-scratch soups, salads, sandwiches, pastas and fire-roasted pizzas.

Price: $15

Appetizers: 

   
Paul had the Organic Lollo Rossa Green Salad (Niagara Stone fruit preserve, Parmesan and Riesling dressing). He really enjoyed the dressing and the preserved fruit in the salad. Meanwhile, I had the Watermelon & Tomato Gazpacho (basil, olive and brioche), which was refreshing on a hot summer day. The gazpacho had a nice twang to it and there was very generous great portion for an appetizer.

summerlicious anniversary lunch - Bier Markt Don Mills

Location: 7 O'Neill Road, Toronto

Description on Summerlicious site:
Inspired by Belgium's passion and unparalleled reputation for the finer things in life, the Bier Markt brings you the ultimate dining experience; knowledgeable staff guiding you through the art of pairing beer to complement your meal in an atmosphere that balances sociability with sophistication. The dining menu is Belgian-inspired and boasts over 100 beers from over 24 countries.

Price: $20

Appetizers:

   
Paul had the Pork & Fennel Wurst (Kosher pickle, Gouda cheese, mustard, Backerhaus bretzel) while I opted for the Wild Mushroom Soup (wild & tame mushrooms, shallots, fresh herbs, mushroom broth). I loved my soup (really, I love anything with mushrooms) even though it was odd to order a soup on a sweltering hot day. The broth was light, with lots of subtle mushroom flavours and was loaded with a variety of mushrooms. Over on Paul's side, the pretzel was perfectly made and we both really liked the mustard that came with it (sweet, but tangy) and Paul really enjoyed the sausage - it was the perfect amount for an appetizer.

summerlicious for our anniversary!

Paul and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary a couple of weeks ago and we celebrated by having a few lunches during Summerlicious.

For those outside Toronto, Summerlicious (and Winterlicious) are two food festivals held every year here in Toronto. Winterlicious runs during the first two weeks of February while Summerlicious occurs at the start of July (both typically slow times for restaurants). During both these events major restaurants across the city offer a limited menu of prix fixe lunches and dinners at a discount from typical prices. Currently the prices are $15, $20 or $25 for lunch and $25, $35 or $45 for dinner, with drinks and tips not included.

Some restaurants book up really quickly, but Paul and I don't generally choose a place based on popularity, but we go based on the menu. Plus, this year, we decided to try places that were in our neighbourhood.

I don't normally review restaurants here on kitchen frolic, but I wanted to share a recap of the places we tried and the menu items we ate. Watch for my recaps over the next few days!  :)

toronto food fest 2013 - vendor edition

The lovely Ashley from SmashCake was kind (and brave) enough to let me help out at her booth at the recent Toronto Food Fest. After doing the rounds at the event as a blogger/eater at the mediapreview hour, I slipped behind the table to join Ashley and Greg and saw what life was like as a vendor at a food event.

Although Ashley explained that most events start off a little slowly for her (people tend to save dessert for closer to the end), we were consistently busy from start to finish.

Ashley’s menu consisted of 3 different products, each with different flavours. Once I wrapped my head around the products on offer and their prices, my main job was to get the items that were needed as Ashley took the orders. Between the three of us, we managed to keep things going smoothly all day long.

Considering I was handling food for 5 hours straight, I’m proud to report I only tipped over ONE cupcake the whole day.

toronto food fest 2013 - eater edition

This past Sunday, I got to play two very different foodie roles at the same event. First, Paul and I attended the media preview hour of the 2nd annual Toronto Food Fest (what this post is about) and then I slipped behind the SmashCake booth to see what life was like as a food vendor at an event (which I'll write about in an upcoming post).

Some of the tasty treats available: (clockwise from top left) lemon meringue cupcakes from Bakin' Bits; vanilla and smashed smarties cupcakes from SmashCake; macarons from Francesca Bakery and gourmet sandwich from Bricks and Mortar

Some of the amazing reasons to attend the Toronto Food Fest:

• takes place on a Sunday afternoon so the whole family can enjoy together
• located in the suburbs, so there's lots of free parking
• a great mix of new vendors, pop-up shops and established businesses
• it's FREE to attend (that's right, FREE)

The event was split into two areas - indoor and outdoors. It was a beautiful, sunny day (although seriously HOT), so after taking a quick walk-around the indoor area we headed outside to visit those vendors first.

There were lots of great vendors set up outside, including:

Clockwise from top left: Dutch Frites, Sopsop, Liko's Hawaiian BBQ and Buster's Sea Cove

taste of the food terminal 2013

Last year, Paul and I attended the first ever Fresh Fest 2012 - the first time that the Ontario Food Terminal had been opened to the public. We had such a great time that I told my family, friends and co-workers all about it so that they could check it out this year.

Renamed as the Taste of the Food Terminal (personally I liked the name Fresh Fest better - more unique and describes perfectly what the focus of the event was - fresh food!), the event was also moved to May (last year it was held in September) so we were curious what seasonal products would be available.

Quick facts about the Ontario Food Terminal (which is only open to the public this one day of the year):

• the largest wholesale fruit and produce distribution centre in Canada and the third largest in North America after New York City and Los Angeles
• consists of a Farmer's Market with 550 stalls, a 100,000 square foot cold storage area, two restaurants and 4 acres of Farmers' Market stalls
• 1,001,210 tons of produce distributed annually

if there are bao (buns) to be eaten, i'm first in line

Bison Short Rib bun from HotBunzz

I had seen Hot Bunzz (@HotBunzzTO) around on Twitter for awhile but our first taste of their buns was at the September 2012 Toronto Underground Market where their Beef Basil Thai bun was a hit with both Paul and myself. I've been stalking following Hot Bunzz on Twitter ever since. Growing up in a Chinese family like I did, I ate a lot of buns (or bao as they're called in Chinese), especially meat-filled ones, so I'm always curious to see how these little snacks are interpreted by others.

For the past few months, Hot Bunzz have been hinting that something big was happening and I finally learned what the buzz was about - they were launching a permanent space! When Hot Bunzz's Mitch invited me to preview their new place inside the (also new) Urban Bistro (@UrbanBistroTO) at 21 St. Clair Ave. West, I couldn't be more excited and accepted immediately.

After arriving, I spoke with owner Mark about how Hot Bunzz came to be and he told me he was inspired by the traditional Asian bao after travelling through Hong Kong and Shanghai, but wanted to do something different with the fillings. He believes that "food is about adventure" and you can definitely see that philosophy in the HotBunzz on display - the flavours they were previewing were Sicilian Sausage, Canadian Elk and Bison Short Rib.

happy mchappy day - wednesday, may 8!

On Wednesday, May 8, McDonald's is celebrating the 20th McHappy Day in Canada and they need our help!

For every Big Mac, Happy Meal or hot McCafe beverage that's sold on May 8, McDonald's will donate $1 to local children's charities, including Ronald McDonald Houses. Last year, that totaled $8,000,000!

Did You Know?

• Last year, on McHappy Day, McDonalds Canada sold 402,802 Big Macs, 207, 246 Happy Meals and 709,907 hot McCafe beverages?
• 1,400 McDonald's restaurants will be celebrating McHappy Day on May 8
• 10,000 families stay in Ronald McDonald Houses each year

How you can help (super easy, I promise!):

• On May 8, go to McDonald's and order a Big Mac, Happy Meal or a hot McCafe beverage (or all three!) 
• Spread the word to your Facebook friends and on Twitter using #McHappyDay

Watch how Ronald McDonald House Charities give sick children what they need most - their families.

Disclosure: I am not sponsored by McDonalds Canada. For helping to spread the word, McDonald's Canada has made a donation to Ronald McDonald House on my behalf, otherwise I have not received any other compensation for this post. 

bouchon bakery love

One of my regrets for not starting a food blog earlier is that I never got to share some of the amazing food we ate during our past trips (Hong Kong, Tokyo, Hawaii, London, Las Vegas, etc). Of course, that just means that we need to travel some more!

But seriously, one of the places that we discovered (and fell in love with) while on our travels was the Bouchon Bakery in Las Vegas.

During our first trip to Vegas, we stayed at the Venetian, which has both a Bouchon and a Bouchon Bakery (both places are under the Thomas Keller umbrella, and if you're into food at all, you already know who THAT is). After our first morning, we were completely hooked on the pastries at Bouchon Bakery and ended up eating breakfast here every day (macarons the size of my hand! sweet and chewy pain au chocolat! luscious cheese danishes!) On our second trip, we stayed at Treasure Island and ended up walking over to the Venetian for breakfast at Bouchon Bakery at least three of the five days we were there. Are we hooked, or what?

So when I heard that Thomas Keller's next book was focused on Bouchon Bakery, (we already have all his other books) it was immediately placed at the top of my "Must Have" list of cookbooks. Then, I found out that The Cookbook Store was hosting a book launch event with Thomas Keller! What?! Sign me up! 

our first TUM (toronto underground market), part 2

(Note: This is the second part of a two-part series about our first TUM. You can read Part 1 here)

After the Thanksgiving Pucks, we headed to the back of the venue to a surprisingly short line up for Fidel Gastro’s (@fidelgastros). I had heard a lot about them on Twitter so was excited to try their food. After browsing the menu, I settled on trying the Gorgeous Jorge ($5) – a sandwich of peanut butter pulled pork, bacon jam and crackling. I think it was the word crackling that won me over. This was a little saltier than I expected (maybe it was the bacon jam?) and the combination of peanut butter and pork was a little weird, but the more I ate, the more I liked it. And the surprise crackling bits throughout the sandwich were really good. It was pretty cool how crunchy they managed to stay squished in that pork and jam mix.

At this point, the live music was really getting going and it was our only complaint about the event. Ok, I get it – live music makes for a really fun atmosphere, and the musicians were talented, but it was SO LOUD. Because of the venue, the sound was really reverberating around the walls. I couldn’t hear Paul, he couldn’t hear me (even when I was yelling directly into his ear), I couldn’t hear the vendors and vendors couldn’t hear my order. It was actually kind of annoying. Everyone around us was shouting at each other and repeating their shouting since no one could hear each other. Since this is an event that encourages chatting and sharing of food experiences, it was a little off-putting to not be able to speak to each other about what we were eating...

We then headed to the open pavilion section where I had the surprise of the night. We saw the sign for Shinaki Co. (@shinaki_co), a vendor I had never heard of, but they had Char Siu listed on their board, which is one of Paul’s favourite dishes, so we figured we should give it a try. As I headed towards their table, the girl who was taking orders and I looked at each other and just burst into laughter. It was my friend Sandy, who I’ve known since high school but haven’t seen in YEARS! How’s that for a coincidence? Her brother (to quote Sandy) “does pork like nobody’s business”. Paul and I ordered the pork belly plate ($5) (which came with some salted peanuts, a nice sweet bun, hot mustard and hot sauce) and was plated in a restaurant-like manner. Verdict – some of the BEST pork belly either of us have ever had and probably one of our favourite dishes of the night (and I'm not just saying that because I know Sandy!).

I was so excited to see Sandy again that I forgot to take a photo of our food from Shinaki, but before we left, I headed back there and asked if I could sneak behind the table to take some shots and she was kind enough to let me.

our first TUM (toronto underground market), part 1

(Note: We had so much fun at September’s TUM that I have A LOT to say about it, so I’ve split this post into 2 parts. Watch for Part 2 coming up in a couple of days!) 

Thanks to the super generous Jen of foodpr0n, Paul and I got to attend the nighttime Toronto Underground Market (TUM) this past Sunday. We were extra excited because not only was it our first time attending TUM, but it was their First Birthday Bash!

According to their site, “TUM is a social food market for the community to sample the food of Toronto home cooks. It is a venue for budding entrepreneurs to showcase their products. These vendors are not necessarily chefs, although some will be. This is a new kind of community market; not a farmer's market, or a food festival, but something completely unique and new to Toronto.”

I’ve been reading about this event and drooling over TUM photos from my fellow food bloggers for months, but every TUM seemed to fall on a date that we couldn’t make. But not this time!

Warning: Since this was my first TUM, I was so excited to attend as an “eater” that I forgot about approaching the event as a “food blogger” – hence I didn’t have my DSLR, only my iPhone. And of course, my iPhone had less than 30% battery life left before I even entered the building. So, I apologize in advance for the blurry photos – lesson learned for next time!

Taking useful tips from Jon of Chan's a Fan and Jen of foodpr0n’s blog posts, Paul and I arrived early and managed to snag a parking spot at the Evergreen Brickworks. We got into line and waited (impatiently) for the doors to open at 6pm. I was armed with a bottle of water (useful),Tupperware (not that useful) and moist toilettes (super useful).

Since we didn’t know we were going to TUM until the night before, we didn’t really have a plan, so we decided to just let our eyes and noses guide us in our choices. There were a few vendors that I recognized from all my time on Twitter, so I definitely made it a priority to give them a try.

fresh fest 2012 at the ontario food terminal

Yesterday, Paul and I headed out to the Ontario Food Terminal to check out the first-ever Fresh Fest event.

This was the first time that the Ontario Food Terminal had opened to the public and the aim of the event was to:

• raise funds for FoodShare Toronto, a non-profit community organization whose vision is Good Healthy Food for All. 
• raise awareness of the importance of the Ontario Food Terminal in fresh fruit and vegetable distribution
• promote the health benefits of eating fresh fruits and vegetables

Some Quick Facts about the Ontario Food Terminal

• opened in 1954 and is 40 acres in size
• is the only food terminal in Canada and is the third largest in North America
• the Terminal has 22 warehouse tenants, 50 office tenants, 400 Farmers’ Market tenants and over 5,000 registered wholesale buyers making use of the facility
• over 975,000 tons of produce was brought into the terminal last year which on average represents 5.3 million pounds of produce per day 
• when compared to other food terminals around the world it is the only one with a wholesale Farmers’ Market on 10 acres on the same site as the traditional warehouse facilities 
• the increasing demand for “ethnic produce” is met by either the local growers or by the importation of those vegetables