The Smokin' Buddha: Port Colborne, Ontario

Antejito

A long time ago, I used to live on Lake Erie in Wainfleet, Ontario. I loved this house – it was breezy, surrounded by trees and water and I always had the very best naps outside on the deck. Our neighbours were the Echlin’s, Kevin and Kyla, and after years of being out of touch, I was lucky enough to reconnect with them a few months ago while visiting their restaurant The Smokin’ Buddha in Port Colborne, Ontario.

Avocotta dip

Located in the old train station, the Smokin’ Buddha has a warm, cozy vibe, with super friendly service and an impressive menu. What started out as a small stall at the Port Colborne Farmer’s Market (in which he used to sell the very best homemade mango salsa I have ever had!) in 2005, blossomed into a successful restaurant that officially opened on October 5^th, 2007. The menu and set up of the restaurant are largely inspired by his time in Japan, with the addition of other colourful, bright and unique dishes from all over.

When I visited a few months back, my good friend Sarah and I decided to try a few different items. We of course, however, started with some beer... but not just any beer. Kevin partnered up with Great Lakes Brewery in Etobicoke and created the Smokin’ Buddha lager. This lager is the perfect balance to the varied and often spicy offerings available on the menu.

Bulgogi bowl

For our appetizers, we started with the Avocotta Dip – an avocado and cottage cheese guacamole hybrid. The dip was creamy and light and despite not being a particularly huge fan of cottage cheese, it worked well with both the chips and the antejitos. Antejitos are one of my favorite appetizers and this place does them better than anywhere else. For those of you who have never tried them, they typically include a mix of beans, corn, peppers, cheese and spices in a flour tortilla which gets rolled, then baked and then cut into bite size pieces. Where the Buddha’s are best however, is in the fact that they coat the outside of the tortilla in a spicy dry rub, before quickly frying it and then serving it. Perfection!

Yam-A-Rito

Lavender Crème Brulée

For our mains, Sarah ordered to Yam-A-Rito and I ordered the Bulgogi Bowl, two of the Buddha’s staple items. The Yam-A-Rito is a delicious sweet potato tortilla, with salsa, cheese and a bit of heat. It was sweet, savoury and very filling! My Bulgogi bowl was filled with tender sesame, ginger, garlic and soy sauce marinated beef, cucumber cut into matchsticks and shredded carrots on top of warm rice. The dish had the perfect balance of saltiness and flavor, and I have since been trying to replicate it at home!

As if all of that food wasn’t enough, we decided to order dessert. 3 words = Lavender. Crème. Brulée. It was heavenly. Light, sweet but not too sweet, with just a subtle hint of lavender. It was the absolute perfect ending to our meal and further proved why The Smokin’ Buddha is doing as well as it has been. Did I mention that they were featured on You Gotta Eat Here? Well they were, and you do!

I'm Back!

After a very long break, I have decided to make my way back into the food blogging world and I am excited to share some of my recent food adventures with you. I am in the process of editing and proofing my stories and photos and will be posting new blogs very soon! 


Thank you for your patience and happy eating!

Good Earth Food and Wine Company: Beamsville, Ontario

Cheese pot

How do I love thee Good Earth? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth of baked bread delight
My mouth can eat with edible flowers on each bite,
For the ends of feasting in a beautiful space.

I love thee to the level of every wine glass’
Most urgent need to be filled up just right.
I love thee shortbread, fluffy and light;
I love thee creamy pâté, perfectly bruléed.

I love thee with a passion put to food
In my pot of cheese as I stuff my face.
I love thee with a love I did not choose.

With my every visit – I love thee with the best 
Wine, bread and cheese of all my life! – and if you so choose,
You shall but visit the winery before your death!

*Not many words rhyme with death, so I had to stick with it.
** I would absolutely recommend visiting the Good Earth Food and Wine Company in Beamsville soon! 

Deli board

Jake’s Grill & Oyster House: Burlington, Ontario

Freshly shucked oysters

I hate to admit it but I can be somewhat of a food snob from time to time. Don’t get me wrong, I will eat just about anything but certain things, like restaurants attached to hotels, don’t typically appeal to me... but, people can change, right? When I recently got a hankering for seafood and googled “seafood Burlington”, Jake’s Grill & Oyster House popped up. I scanned the menu and thought it looked great so I drove over, anxious to try a new place. I admit that I was initially somewhat dismayed to see that it was adjacent to a hotel; I hadn’t done my full research and was pretty much sold on going for a bite as soon as I saw fish tacos on the menu. Though skeptical, I decided to check it out and was not disappointed.

The place is pretty spacious and though kitschy in their over-the-top boathouse theme, it felt cozy and warm. My friends and I sat down and began to go through their small but impressive menu. We decided to start off with a platter of fresh shucked oysters on the half shell and were served 15 incredible malpeques. They came on a bowl of ice with freshly grated horseradish, lemon wedges and a variety of sauces. We easily polished them off and wished we had ordered more.

Tilapia fish tacos

Next on the menu was the fish taco that initially drew me in. After having enjoyed incredible fish tacos in Ottawa at Burrito Borracho about a month ago, I had been trying to find something nearby to satisfy my craving. These tacos were fully loaded with a generous portion of bronzed tilapia, nappa cabbage, pico de gallo and a delicious and creamy cilantro lime aioli. The lunch orders consisted of two large tacos and a side salad. My first taco was incredible but sadly the second one had to be sent back because the fish was raw inside. The server quickly ordered me a fresh plate and the manager came out and apologized promptly. I got a whole new order (2 tacos!) in no time and they were delicious. The fish was fresh, the cabbage was crisp and the aioli was perfect, adding just the right amount of creaminess and bite.

While I didn’t have a chance to sample much else on the menu because we all ordered the exact same thing, I wanted to share this place none-the-less. If you are looking for fresh, reasonably priced seafood in the area, I would recommend giving Jake’s a try!

Martini House: Burlington, Ontario

If you’re looking for good food, a great atmosphere (inside and out) and an incredible cocktail list, then Burlington’s Martini House is for you. Tucked away on Elizabeth street, the Martini House offers a nice small patio in front, perfect for summer nights, and a cozy, candlelit setting inside. I recently visited for dinner on a Saturday night and thought it was time to share this place with you!

It goes without saying that they know what they’re doing when it comes to drinks – they have a separate menu designated just for martinis, offering a wide variety of combinations. I have had a chance to sample several different kinds and they have all been expertly concocted and mixed. On my most recent visit I decided to opt for a glass of wine instead of a martini and they had a good variety of local and international wines to choose from.

On this particular occasion I decided to order their curry mussels with a caprese salad. Perhaps a bit of a strange combo but it worked. The mussels were served in a rich, golden curry sauce and came with naan bread. They were served on a bed of rice which was perfect for soaking up the yummy curry sauce. The mussels were quite filling and would easily have sufficed as one whole meal. The caprese salad was equally good with a light balsamic and oil dressing. The salad is listed in the menu as coming with crisp leaf greens, which I opted out of - I don’t think lettuce belongs in a caprese. The tomatoes were ripe and delicious with beautiful bocconcini and fresh basil. It’s one of my favorite salads and they do it well.

My two friends who joined me for dinner ordered the pasta of the day and the filet mignon. The pasta dish consisted of homemade ravioli that were filled with fresh ricotta, spinach and scallions and served in a creamy garlic sauce. The ravioli were perfectly al dente and the portion was a good amount for a dinner serving. While we unfortunately had to send the filet back because it was overcooked initially, they immediately remedied the situation and gave us all free dessert as a food offering (which we graciously accepted, obviously). It should be noted that the fact that the meat was improperly cooked was quite out of the ordinary for them – I have ordered the filet there before and it was cooked perfectly – so don’t worry about this happening to you. The steak came back out served on top of a mountain of lobster cheddar mashed potatoes (yes, it is a thing and yes, they are crazy delicious) with grilled green beans and asparagus.

While it became a bit too dark outside for me to take any good photos of the desserts (I really hate the look of food shots with a flash so I made the decision to just go ahead and eat without taking any photos – a rare moment!) they were good but not incredible. The assorted cheesecake platter tasted a bit stale and uninventive, whereas the chocolate peanut cheesecake was dense and delicious! While I haven’t sampled their other solid desserts, I think your best bet is to enjoy a final dessert martini, of which they have several delectable options. 

I would certainly recommend checking this place out next time you are in B-town but be sure to make a reservation! It's a popular joint.

Bite-sized: M.T. Bellies, Welland, Ontario

So I used to work at this restaurant called M.T. Bellies (get it?). I started when I was in high school and it was my first serving job. I worked at the Port Colborne, Ontario location and though it is closed now, they are still going strong at their original location in nearby Welland. M.T. Bellies is a fun, easy-going restaurant with a lot of options on the menu. One side of the restaurant is catered more towards families (including white paper on the tables with some crayons and games) and the other is more for adults, with a few booths and high tables around a bar. While the food would definitely be considered standard restaurant fare (apps, salads, burgers, pastas, etc...) M.T's adds a few unique twists that make it stand apart from places offering a similar menu. One such example is this:

Da Boss

This burger  is called Da Boss and it kind of blew me away. Picture a big homemade beef and cheddar pattie, topped with jack cheese, crispy bacon AND tempura-battered jalapeno peppers! If that wasn't enough, they serve it up on a fresh kaiser bun. I've definitely seen a lot of fried onion rings on burgers but having the spicy yet muted crispy battered jalapenos was a real treat and a perfect burger topping (which I will most certainly be trying to replicate in the near future).

Crispy fried jalapeno on top of Da Boss
(with a side of poutine, obvi)

While on this particular occasion I only ordered the burger, I have tried nearly everything on the menu at one point or another and it is pretty much all good. They aren't doing anything terribly fancy or out of this world, but they are taking classic food items and doing them well and in some cases (such as the case of Da Boss) they are seriously raising the bar! If you are driving through Welland and looking for a casual, good eat, I would definitely recommend M.T's (especially if you are driving through on a Friday in the summer when they are serving up delicious Lake Erie perch!)

Field Trip: Vintages BBQ, Toronto, Ontario

Last week I had the pleasure of attending the Vintages BBQ in Toronto courtesy of She Does The City.  Held inside the Corus building at the Queen’s Quay in Toronto, the sold-out event was full of people excited to enjoy an evening of wine tasting and delicious BBQ!

We braved two hours of traffic coming in from Hamilton to Toronto (which, as a reference, should not have taken more than 1 hour) for the event and we were not disappointed. I had never been to the Corus building and thought the space was incredible and perfect for this kind of event. With high ceilings and a modern-industrial feel, the room was set up with various tasting stations and big open doors that lead to the patio and outdoor grills. The room was buzzing with people drinking and mingling while the DJ played upbeat versions of classic hits.

With so many wines to choose from, I was grateful for the taster’s notebook – a small booklet listing all of the offerings as well as space to make notes – which was provided to each attendee.  Here are some of my favorites from the evening:

• France, Rhône: M. Chapoutier Belleruche, Rouge, 2011 – a full-bodied deep red wine, that was both fresh and very fruity, exactly what I look for in a summer red.
• USA, California: Buena Vista Vinicultural Society, Sauvignon Blanc, 2011: I was naturally drawn to this wine because of the name and I will definitely go back to this wine because I continue to find the name very amusing (also, it was tasty).  This was a very fresh tasting Sauv-Blanc with an herby nose to it. I think it would be amazing with roast chicken or pork tenderloin (or a Buena Vista Social Club playlist).
• Italy, Toscana: Casamatta, Sangiovese 2011: I am not often a big fan of Sangiovese, but found this one quite nice. While there was still a bit of an “earthy” flavor, which I don’t generally enjoy, the fruity nose and taste made the wine seem bright and flavourful.  

Now, you may recall my mentioning that this event was both a wine-tasting and BBQ and I would be remiss if I didn’t also discuss the delicious food! For starters, I have been craving ribs since Thursday. I am really not much of a rib person and typically avoid eating them in public (I’m a messy enough eater without the addition of super-saucy finger food) but decided to just go for it and was not disappointed. Picture meaty, succulent ribs, covered in a tangy sauce with meat that fell right off the bone and melted in your mouth! (I’m sorry because now you probably want ribs, too!) Needless to say I went back a few times to get more because they were so good. There was also a steak station with little pieces of steak cooked perfectly to medium-rare. While enjoyable, they weren’t seasoned at all and in this case, the flavor of the meat itself just wasn’t enough to not require seasoning. The third station was a seafood station and I definitely made my way over more than once. They had whole salmon fillets that had been grilled over cedar planks as well as tiny little lobster sliders that were topped with a generous dollop of tangy aioli. 

In addition to the BBQ stations outside, they set up a few tables indoors with an equally delectable selection of salads and veggies. Besides the cute little cornbread squares and tasty guacomole, my favorite item here was the potato salad. I know, potato salad typically isn’t anything special or memorable, but that is precisely why this one was so good. Perfectly cooked potatoes (firm yet tender), just the right balance of creaminess and tangyness in the dressing and sweet peas! It seems so obvious to me to put peas in potato salad now but it was pretty exciting at the time (it’s the little things in life, right?) Everything was very good and perfect for cleansing your palate in between wines.  

Overall, the event was very well done and I only have one suggestion for next year’s: to see more wines from Canada since there were only 2! We have some pretty incredible wine regions and I would have loved to see them represented at this event. None-the-less, the Vintages BBQ was a great opportunity to try new wines, listen to fun music and, of course, eat ribs! Thanks She Does The City!