My family is not religious. Most of us have been baptized in the Anglican church, but aside from weddings, baptisms and funerals, as a child growing up, I can’t ever remember getting up to go to church. In fact, when questioned about religion, I’ve often joked that our religion was the flea market, because that’s […]
Category: shops
The All Ontario All the Time Cooking School
Never let it be said that Toronto does not have its fair share of cooking classes. Any night of the week, the culinarily curious can bake, sauté, flambé or roast at courses that range from “watch and eat” style to professional certifications. But for anyone with an interest in local, sustainable cuisine, they should stop […]
Follow the Scent of Cookies to the Happiest Place on Earth
Mary Macleod’s Shortbread 639 Queen Street East 416-461-4576 Some people say Disney is the happiest place on earth. I’d say those people are wrong. I have proof that the happiest place on earth is on Queen Street East, just past the Don River, where Mary Macleod and her small team of bakers make the […]
The Many Flavours of Riverside
Greg tells many great stories of the time he lived at Queen and Broadview in the late 80s, upstairs from one of the guys from Skinny Puppy. Those stories almost always come back to the fact that there was a dearth of restaurants in the area back then, and save for but a few greasy […]
On the Shelf – May 24, 2009
Here’s a few new things we came across this month that are definitely worth sharing. Margaret’s Artisan Bakery Crisps We came across these at the Ontario Cheese Society tasting in late April. Better known for their Margaret’s Artisan Flatbreads, these organic flour crisps from MJ Fine Foods are made in Vaughn and come in a variety of […]
On the Shelf – April 26th
As someone with a love of food, I’m always poking around in shops looking for new things to taste and try. And to share. On the Shelf is a new (-ish – we did one back in December) monthly feature in which we share our great food finds for the month. Alphanso Mangoes If you’ve […]
Where Can I Find – Local Preserves
I got an email from some friends recently looking for locally-made jam. They were specifically looking for wee little jars to give out as favours at their upcoming wedding, but as I thought and thought and thought about it, I was having a hard time coming up with anything more than Greaves in Niagara-on-the-Lake, which is where […]
Where Can I Find – Cake and Candy-Making Supplies
Despite the fact that we here at TasteTO have officially declared the cupcake to be soooo over (enough already, please?), it seems that more and more people are becoming interested in cake decorating. Based on the number of emails we get from places looking for coverage for their cupcake or baking business, it’s an industry […]
Where Can I Find? – Alfajores
In recent weeks I’ve bemoaned the lack of authentic Mexican and Latin American foods here in Toronto, but for some reason, alfajores are pretty easy to find. This traditional cookie of Argentina may have had origins in the Middle East, and now variations of it exist throughout Spain and Latin America. Basically, it’s made from […]
My Toronto Includes A Taste of Quebec
A Taste of Quebec 55 Mill Street, Building 36, 1st floor 416-364-5020 In the federal political upheaval of the past weeks, the Tory government has made references to the separatist Bloc Quebecois that made it sound as if they believe everyone who ever defended Quebec’s unique heritage had cooties. And while the rest of Canada […]
Organics, Delivered
Recent chilly nights and the appearance of squash and pumpkins means that the end to farmers market season will soon be upon us. Within the next few weeks, farmers will be finished with this year’s harvest, and we’ll be left to fend for ourselves in the aisles of the supermarket, where Peruvian asparagus and spongy […]
A Tour of St. Lawrence Market, Part 2
As noted in Part 1 of our tour of St. Lawrence Market on Monday, the south market has just about everything needed to fill a pantry. But the fruit and vegetable stands, bulk goods and bakeries tend to mostly fill the perimeter and basement of the space. For most visitors to the market the first […]
A Tour of St. Lawrence Market, Part 1
Recently in a Market Basket column, we explored the north section of St. Lawrence Market which hosts the weekly farmers market. But there’s a whole array of tasty stuff in the south building where vendors are set up at permanent kiosks and shops. Open Tuesdays to Saturdays, the south market building, located at 92 Front […]
Orgasmic Organics
Multiple Organics 1545 Dundas Street West 647-435-5340 What are two well-educated young women to do when they find themselves with doctorates, but no where to use them? Why, open an organic food store of course! Such was the case for Nupur Gogia and Carrianne Leung recently when they discovered that the only way […]
Craving Some Valentine’s Chocolates
Craving Chocolates 119A Roncesvalles Avenue 416-538-1212 Valentine’s Day is commonly thought of as the biggest holiday of the year for chocolate sales, but statistics show it actually ranks third or fourth after Easter, Halloween and Christmas. Due to shopping habits related to the day, however, Valentine’s generates more one-week candy sales than any other […]
It’s All Good at the General Store
Good Catch General Store 1556 Queen Street West 416-533-4664 The success of any retail business is based on its ability to respond to the surrounding community. Can you give the customer what they want? A business that sees itself as part of the community can take that relationship one step further, as it not […]
Delight in the Junction
Delight 3040 Dundas Street West 416-760-9995 I shed a little tear the day in 2003 when Citron closed down. The Queen Street restaurant was one of my favourites and I think of it fondly still. A couple of years later, a friend who happened to also be good friends with the folks who had […]
The Cheese Is Fine, I Walk the Line
Thin Blue Line 93B Roncesvalles Avenue 416-840-6966 The old saying goes that “good things come in small packages”. Nowhere is that more true than the tiny little cheese boutique that opened on Roncesvalles Avenue last fall. Taking up half of a standard storefront and with maybe 100 square feet of space for customers, it’s a […]
A Bag of Magic Beans
Merchants of Green Coffee 2 Matilda Street 416-741-5369 Coffee. Where would we be without it? It wakes us up, keeps us going and fuels social gatherings. But how many people actually think about where their coffee comes from? Or how fresh it is? For people who grew up on (and possibly still drink) supermarket coffee, […]
Soma – Home to the True Chocoholic
Soma Chocolatemaker Historic Distillery District, 55 Mill Street, Building 48, unit 102 416-815-7662 It’s a sad fact that many people who deem themselves to be “chocoholics” have never tasted anything made from good quality chocolate. That’s not meant to sound snobby, but I make the statement to illustrate a point. There are “chocoholics” who get […]
Flour, Sugar and Art at the Queen of Tarts
The Queen of Tarts 283 Roncesvalles Avenue 416-651-3009 Not many people can count watching Martha Stewart bite her own leg off as a hi-light of their culinary career, but for Stephanie Pick, proprietor of The Queen of Tarts bakery on Roncesvalles Avenue, it was an event that garnered her already popular shop international attention. Someone […]