I thought I deserved a coffee today because I finished a whole bunch of things I was working on so I hit up Starbucks. I found a drawing from my favorite neighborhood kid.
Bare Burger
Every year for Nash’s birthday, we seek out a new delicious burger joint to try. Since we’ve tried so many, I looked to Zomato for suggestions and they sent me two lists. Bareburger was on both lists and it was one we hadn’t heard of yet!
The place specializes in organic, free range meats, though that wasn’t the reason we were there. We just like burgers. I ordered the Southern Caviar burger (pictured above) which had bison, pimento cheese, back bacon, stout onions, horseradish remoulade on a brioche bun. Everything went really well together and their house bacon is so delicious! The meat was juicy and cooked very well.
Nash had the El Matador which had bison, cheese curds, pickled jalapenos, guacomole, green leaf, spicy pico de gallo on a brioche bun. This was super messy but so worth getting hands dirty for. So much gooey goodness going on here.
We also ordered the Macho Fries which were crunchy fries topped with jalapeno, guacomole, pico de gallo, pepperjack cheese and a sauce with a kick. These were so good we finished the entire giant bowl AND our burgers.
To wash things down I sipped a Figs & Bacon. I didn’t know I was supposed to put the bacon in the drink so I just ate it. Hahahahaha it was worth it (because their bacon is delicious).
Nash had The Mexican which was a happy hour drink with tequila and ginger beer.
We were super impressed with the burgers. They were both fantastic combinations of ingredients and didn’t leave us feeling like we were dying. Definitely a highly recommended burger place.
Happy Halloween Weekend!
Hope you are having a fantastic Halloween weekend full of treats. Teddy dressed as a horse this year with a cowboy riding on his back!
Investing in Sound
I’ve wanted a better record player for ages. I had one of those 3-in-one box things that were a CD player, radio and vinyl player at the same time. The problem was that it often didn’t work well for new records because the needle weight couldn’t be adjusted. I usually would mend the problem by putting dimes and nickels on the needle but I came to the realization that it would not be healthy for my records as my collection started to grow. I headed to Planet of Sound for some help.
They were super helpful and was able to find a perfect player for my needs and price range. They’re super honest about quality (price doesn’t always mean it’s better etc). I ended up choosing the TEAC TN 300 which has a built in pre-amp and also the ability to connect to the computer via USB if I wish. Not to mention it’s beautiful.
Planet of Sound helped me set my needle weight, as well as put the belt on properly at no extra charge. I was afraid I’d break it if I did it myself.
I also bought a Harmon Kardon Aura speaker. It has both Bluetooth and Airplay wireless capabilities. I can also plug it into my new record player. It is perfect for me because I don’t live in a big apartment so this is super simple and the sound fills the entire room.
I am now prepared for the best of both worlds, analog and digital. I can’t wait to annoy my neighbours blasting Carly Rae Jepsen or Arcade Fire. Investing in systems to play all my music is so worth it.
I’m Tee Ramone
For Halloween at work I dressed up as Dee Dee Ramone. I got a sick leather jacket from Danier (my first real leather jacket) and a Ramones T-shirt from Forever 21. Don’t I look so badass??
Exposure is Poop
In the beginning when you start off a creative career of some sort you might take that opportunity that pays absolutely nothing to get your name out there. A few is fine, I mean I’ve done my fair share of free work. However, once you are established or been around the block a bit there should be no way people are still asking for favours in terms of exposure.
In fact, I’d say the second that you learn how to make money from doing what you love is when you stop accepting to do it for free. If you’re doing it for free, you might as well be doing it for yourself and retain all your rights. Post it on your own blogs, portfolios etc but don’t let people take advantage of you on something that they totally have the means to pay you for.
Anyways, exposure is poop, it doesn’t pay rent.
What is Your Least Favourite Halloween Candy?
Now that Halloween is nearing I thought we’d talk about candy. As a kid (and as an adult), I loved all sorts of chips, candy, chocolates but the one thing I never liked was Tootsie Rolls. I always thought people who gave them out were the worst people. They were probably the people on the block who despised children.
What is your least favourite candy? Why?
Hanmoto
Hanmoto is a super cozy izakaya just off Dundas West on Lakeview Avenue in Toronto. You could walk past it’s slight red glow if you weren’t specifically looking for it. The place is small and seats about 30. I was lucky enough to walk in and get a table for a friend and I. As I waited for my friend, I sipped a North Town Nashi, a fruity drink with mizo shochu, lemon, asian pear and shingo pear bitters.
This is a sharing restaurant so we ordered a bunch of dishes.
Hot Hot Tofu: Cold silken tofu, chili oil, pickled cucumber, onions, nori. I enjoyed the melt in mouth texture of the tofu very much. They added just the right amount of chili oil and it wasn’t too spicy or salty.
Hamachi Tartare: Sweet chili ponzu, shiso, cilantro, avocado. The yellowtail was very fresh and paired well with the avocado and the texture of the other toppings.
Uni-Bomb: sea urchin roe, chicken skin chips, sushi rice. I rarely ever have sea urchin (because finding it fresh is hard in the city) but I really enjoyed this bomb! The chicken skins were super crispy and looked so enticing that my Jewish friend (who doesn’t eat chicken) took a bite out of one. Oops.
Enoki with Miso Butter arrived on a hot plate looking like a steak. The mushrooms were cooked together as one piece and flaked like meat. You can never go wrong with cooking anything in butter.
My second drink of the night was an Arisaka Sour with green tea, cucumber infused gin, uzu, soda, lime bitter. I was surprised to actually taste the cucumber.
For some reason even though I usually hate okra (when my mom cooks it), I decided to see if I would like it when it was done properly. This was cooked with parmesan and topped with bonito flakes. The flakes kind of felt like eating paper so I wasn’t relaly a fan. I also think I just hate okra in general and can’t get over the slithery texture (to no fault of Hanmoto).
Lastly, we ordered the Salmon Aburi with torched salmon and sushi rice. It resembled a deconstructed version of the blowtorched sushi we loved at JaBistro.
Who leaves without trying the Miso icecream? I haven’t eaten much savoury ice cream but this one was super refreshing and topped with nori powder and toasted rice balls. Picture miso soup except frozen and in block form. The miso soup of the future.
A visit to Hanmoto is definitely a must! But good luck getting a seat if you are more than two people.
Cracked Apple Cider With Spiced Rum
Continuing my quest to try all the ciders I could find, I stumbled on Cracked Apple Cider with Spiced Rum. I found it resembled more of a mixed rum drink than cider, any hint of apple was overshadowed by rum and spices. It’s not really sour, spicy or sweet. Not sure if I would get this one again.
New Cutting Board
I never thought about getting a new cutting board until I saw this adorable one at Kitchen Stuff Plus.
The board comes with four mats that can be used on top to keep the board itself clean and avoid cross-contamination. This one has a board for vegetables, poultry, fish and other meats.
I love the simple colourful design.
Tiana Feng 