a toronto food blog
7 days in Peru, 3 days hike, 23 km uphill and down, 500 digital pictures, 3 rolls of film, and 11 hikers. It wasn’t easy; I struggled so much and thought my lungs were literally going to burst from the effort, but everyone’s kind encouragements kept me going and I learned how to breathe, literally and metaphorically, during it all.
Our Homer’s Odyssey into Toronto’s doughnuts continues… -BHH
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We’ve heralded Portuguese doughnuts before and we’ll likely do it again before this little round up is done (spoiler alert, we’re fans). With that said, it was pretty surprising that we left the venerable Venezia Bakery unmentioned for so long. On most days the cafe is a one-woman operation serving up breads, pastries, hot sandwiches and even a few grocery essentials to local patrons. To some, Venezia must seem like a defiant holdover on what is fast becoming restaurant-mile on Ossington. To label it an anachronism, however, would be to betray the timeless appeal of their baked goods – the kind that would make Venezia feel right at home in any neighbourhood. Next time you’re in their’s before sundown, we recommend you have yourself one of their giant doughnuts with your morning or afternoon coffee. You’ll probably be tempted to stock up on some of their classic pastéis be nata for later too.
Venezia Bakery
114 Ossington Avenue
More Toronto Doughnuts: Bake Lab, Bonjour Brioche, Caldense Bakery, Mexi-Can Market, Nova Era Bakery
Canon AE-1 | Lomography Film 400
We kinda knew that Hearth wouldn’t be for us. Leo was reluctant, but I was determined to have an East Village restaurant experience. The spring menu, which looked so appetizing online, seemed underwhelming in person and had I not been craving fish that night, I would have been hard pressed to choose anything as nothing really called out to me. After a bit of deliberation, we finally chose to share the Grilled Quail with a side of the Sauteed Market Greens, the Whole Roasted Fish of the Day (which may have been Bass, I can’t quite remember anymore…), and the Rhubarb Panna Cotta.
Each dish was good on its own, prepared simply with a good amount of refinement…except for the fish. The fish was the least flavourful, stuffed with lemon and rosemary, and unfortunately ruined by a bitterness permeating its underside. Leo, whose family cooks seafood regularly, says whoever gutted the fish must have cut into its stomach and organs, which can release some sort of acid. Whatever it was, it was unpleasant. If you’re going to do something as simple as roasted fish with rosemary and nothing else, it better be done well, right?
The dessert, however, was impressive. The panna cotta with the ‘rhubarb soup’ was like eating a burst of spring, simultaneously light and fresh, but filled with warmth. We couldn’t get enough of the almond brittle.
Hearth
403 East 12th Street | Website
Here are some film photos from a Sunday walk in Roncesvalles, taken all the way back in April! It was after my brunch with Amy at Keriwa. We dropped by a few vintage stores, Sweetpea’s (florist), and then Roncy’s Bean for gelato. Amy has a post on all the chocolate she got from The Mercantile, a quaint little grocer along the strip that sells some hard to find stuff like Kushmi Tea brand from Paris…and Jamie Oliver foodstuff.
Canon AE-1 | Kodak Porta 400
Peru is about a week away and I don’t feel ready at all. Ack! The past few days have been a blur of shopping and looking and then shopping again. I finally got my hiking boots, but still no rain jacket! Seeing as how ill prepared I am, I will most likely be MIA from the blog this upcoming week as I get my act together…then I’m off for another week…so, I guess it’s going to be pretty quiet around here. But hey, there’s instagram! ;)
Between the scurrying about, Leo and I succeeded in eating our face off every day of the week, including a for-two coconut cream pie from Wanda’s Pie in the Sky. We barely finished that one. Well, I barely finished my half.
Well, here’s to the weekend! I have high hopes of finally rounding up an eat-and-see list for Cuzco with some more trip shopping squeezed in, then relaxing on Sunday in shorts.
