The Wired Monk...More than just delicious coffee

A couple weeks ago, I found myself needing to kill some early morning time in the Wired Monk neighborhood. A big fan of their java and baked goods, I decided to stop in to try out their cappuccino.

Wired Monk's Cappuccino is a 'goodie', likewise the rich and creamy hot chocolate. We also had the incredibly delicious Breakfast wrap. Squished in a panini press, the wrap enclosed some melted Cheddar cheese, scrambled eggs, veggies and a mild black bean and yellow corn salsa. The wrap itself was pretty big, so 1/2 was just enough to get the day started.

Cappuccino & Hot Chocolate

Wired Monk Breakfast Wrap

Innovative Brunch Indulgences at The Costal Cafe

Brunch is my favorite dining experience - there, I said it! I love everything about the brunch - it's the perfect opportunity to eat steak with eggs, drink champagne before noon and have your dessert first. Yes, brunch allows you the opportunity to choose savoury or sweet, cure the night before hangover and get a good buzz going for the day.

There are a few great brunch options in Halifax, but my favorite is definitely The Coastal Cafe on Robbie Street. Chef Mark Giffen has a gift - of combining good quality ingredients to create stellar, intriguing meals that are not your standard Eggs Benny...although I'm sure his would be kick-ass too if he made them. As a person who eats out a fair amount and who counts eggs as one of my 'Top 5 Must Have To Live Foods', brunch at the Coastal is always a treat, as I'm sure to be surprised, seduced and stuffed by the menu's offerings.

Take for example, The Durty South, a combination of several comfort foods piled together on a plate of sweet and savoury, saucy and chewy goodness. Nestled in the bottom of the bowl was a bed of sweet, earthy baked beans and chunks of sweet potato, topped with 2 fried eggs and a pile of smokey, tender pulled pork. Adding to this dish of delight was some golden buttery cornbread.

Les Oeufs d'Automne - my friend's meal and my second choice - consisted of a decadent combo: poached eggs, crisp bacon, roasted parsnip, sweet maple syrup, tangy goat cheese, pecans and crisp, toasted baguette.

I have to admit - this blog post is a bit delayed and the menu items have been slightly altered. However, I hope the photos and description of these dishes will lead you to the sunny yellow awning over The Coastal's door. This place tempts your tastebuds with some fantastic meals that you won't soon forget!

Durty South

Baked Beans, Fried Eggs, BBQ Pulled Pork and Cornbread

Mmmm Cornbread

You can even see the pieces of corn - no mix here folks!

Les Oeufs d'Automne

Poached Eggs, Bacon, Roasted Parsnip, Pecans, Goat Cheese

The Skinny on Savour 2011

Well, another year's Savour food & wine Show has come and gone, and a great time was had by all. Last Wednesday night, Savourites gathered at the Westin Nova Scotian to celebrate the 8th annual event. With over 60 booths of food and wine, there was a bite to tempt every tastebud and a wine to please every palate.

The quantity of product at this show is amazing - there is so much to try that one person would never get to do it all...and there have been many to try! After 4 Savour shows, I never go in without a game plan. I check out the exhibitors and decide where I'll be stopping before venturing into the fray. As a sommelier-in-training, I checked out a lot more wine booths this year and tried to pair them with the most appropriate bite. In case you're wondering...I'm well aware of my uber-geekiness.

If you didn't get to attend this year, I would highly suggest giving Savour a shot next year. It's the perfect opportunity to try some of the best food and wine in Halifax all under one roof. There was even a Local Food Award (which went to 5Fish). And as the tagline reveals, Savour is 'Mingle-licious'!

Don't forget to check in next week to find out the winners of the 'Best of Show'!

How a foodie 'does' Savour...Mapping it out!

The Five Fishermen

Lobster Stuffed Scallops w/ a Chardonnay Beurre Blanc

Mini Lobster and Goat Cheese Cakes with Basil Aioli

Tempest

Crispy Fish Tacos

w/ Smoked Line Caught Haddock and Guacamole Coulis

Stories at the Haliburton

Tahitian Vanilla Panna Cotta w/ Drunk and Sober
Berries and Lacey Almond Tuille

Taj Mahal

Lamb Hyderabadi Biryani

Mango Juice and Chocolate Fountain

Saege

Getaway Farms Cider Braised Pork Belly, Balsamic & Red Onion Agrodolce

Sweet Potato & Thyme Blini and Caramelized Gala Apple

Chives

Nova Scotia Pulled Pork

Brioche w/ Winter Slaw and Bourbon BBQ sauce

Chez Tess

The Euro ~ Sweet Vanilla Crepe stuffed w/ Banana,

drizzled with Nutella, Caramel, Chantilly & Toasted Almonds

Chocolate Mousse ~ Chocolate Mousse in a bite size crepe cup

topped w/ Chantilly and Almond Brittle

The Press Gang

Seven Hour Bison Ravioli

tossed in a Truffled Caramelized Garlic & Bourbon Reduction

w/ Celery Toot Puree and Pistachio Wilted Chard

White Point

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Maple Creme & Pecan Brittle

Mix Fresh Kitchen

Lamb Kebabs

The Westin Nova Scotian

Mini Burgers on Brioche; Philly Steak & Crab Cake

Durty Nelly's

Fresh Shucked Oysters and Guinness

Delta Barrington & Halifax

Meadow Brook house-smoked Pork Belly topped w/ Dragon's Breath Blue Cheese

served w/ Celeriac Puree and Van Dykes Blueberry Drizzle

The Port Pub

Pan Seared Digby Scallop on Local Dulse Seasoned Cracker

w/ Apple & Fennel Slaw and Wild Blueberry-Maple Vinaigrette

The Spread at Hamachi

Morris East

Potato Ravioli

Root Vegetable Crackers

Nova Scotia Raspberry Daiquiris

Le Caveau

L'Acadie vine Smoked Salmon w/ chilled Fox Hill Quark Souffle and Leek Coulis

Wild Nova Scotia Porcini Risotto finished w/
Old Growler Gouda and Martock Glen Duck Confit

Fid Resto

The Black Pearl Shooter
Soy Tapioca Pearls & Fresh Carrot Juice

Seasoned w/ Apple Cider Vinegar, Chive Oil and a Sweet Potato Crisp

Pipa

Bacalhau a Bras

Saute of Cod, Onion, Potato & Egg

Seasons

Liquid Nitrogen Candy Pop Corn

White Chocolate Soup w/ Espresso & Cocoa Nibs

Blueberry Cocktail

My friend Stephanie and I - post event. I realized that I forgot to mention one of the other key rules to planning and making the most out of your Savour food & wine Show experience - Bring a friend!

The most wonderful time of the year....!

It's almost here, the most wonderful time of the year! No, I don't mean Christmas, or New Year's Eve, or my Birthday. I mean my favourite night in the city of Halifax - on that I look forward to all year long, the Savour food & wine Show!

This year's show will take place at the Westin Nova Scotian TOMORROW night, March 2nd from 7:00-9:30 pm. Tickets are just $79+HST, a fantastic value for the amount of food and wine.

I'd like to challenge you to try everything, but there's no way to taste it all - it's just too much! To view the list of exhibitors, click HERE.

In case you still don't 'get' how amazing this event is, check out my blog post about Savour 2010....then I think you'll get the idea! if you're a foodie in Halifax, you'll hang your head on Thursday if you weren't at the most "mingle-licious" event in town!

Tickets are still available! Visit the eDining Website's Savour Page to purchase tickets!

Steak Frites at Brooklyn Warehouse

So, I know that it's evident that one of my favorite restos is The Brooklyn Warehouse, and this meal further adds to my love affair. I recently went to dinner with a friend of longtime family friend of mine who has been away from Hali for about 4 years; long enough to miss the opening and rise to fame of Brooklyn Warehouse as one of Halifax's best restaurants (in my opinion).

On this visit, I knew what I wanted to order from the moment I sat down. It didn't take long to convince my friend that she wanted the same. We decided on the Steak Frites; an 8 oz. NS Striploin, oven roasted potato wedges, olive oil poached tomato with chevre and Pommery mustard dip.

Holy mother! Look at that piece of meat! Not only was the steak incredible and perfectly cooked for my taste, but the fries were just right as well - fat chips with a crispy shell.

The Pommery mustard was a great addition to the plate - the savoury, spicy sauce added a nice kick to the steak. On the side, an unexpected, luscious bite was provided in the form of a sweet, supple, olive oil-poached tomato. Topped with creamy, melted goat cheese and drizzled with tangy balsamic, it was a wonderful accompaniment! This was definitely one of the most lovely, well-balanced plates I've ever eaten in Hali...yet another reason why Brooklyn is one of my fave spots for a quick bite, or an meal of all-out, local-product awesomeness!

Sippin 'n' Shuckin', 2011

A couple weeks ago, I wrote about Sip' n' Shuck a couple weeks ago. I was so pumped to have another opportunity to try some of the newer Nova Scotian wines, the always incredible ice wines and, some fresh, clean and salt watery goodness of Nova Scotian oysters. As you'll see, I definitely took advantage of the crustaceans, but at Sip' n' Shuck, there is so much more to take in!

Along with the freshly-shucked oysters, there were hors d'oeuvres prepared with oysters; mussels steamed with bacon and leeks and saffron-vanilla; a luxurious cheese board, an enormous selection of chocolates from the Sweet Spot Chocolate Shop (my fave chocolate spot in the province) and a wine presence from almost all of Nova Scotia's wineries.

Make sure to keep your eye out for this event next year, at $35/ticket, it's a great value, and a wonderful opportunity to check out some of NS's best products from vine and sea!

Succulent, shucked Oysters

Ice wines from Blomidon Estate Winery, Gaspereau Vineyards,

Domaine de Grand Pre and Jost Vineyards

A variety of bubblies from Tideview Cider

Steamed Mussels

A luscious chocolate-covered caramel from the Sweet Spot Chocolate Shop

Girls Night out at the Five Fishermen Grill

If you're anything like me, you would have been wondering what had become of Little Fish, the Five Fisherman Restaurant's little sister resto on Argyle Street. A few months ago, the former Little Fish opened its doors as the Five Fishermen Grill, with a delicious new menu and an even more tantalizing restaurant space. Gone are the bright orange walls, to be replaced by a slick and sleek slate blue overview, dark wood tables and a uber sexy glass-walled wine cellar.

I managed to coordinate a dinner with some of my favorite wino-foodie gal pals, and we got together to sample some of this amazing-looking resto's cuisine in the hopes that the food looked as amazing as the new space.

Not at all to my surprise, it surpassed our expectations. In an effort to go slow, and not let our eyes overpower our stomachs, we started out with three apps - and ended up sticking to those as they were so filling! We started with a bottle of bubbly from Five Fisherman's award-winning wine list, then proceeded to order the calamari, a trio of seafood sliders and the lobster fritters.

Bathed in a mysteriously spicy Hoisin glaze, the calimari was slick and tender. A five-spice aioli further enhanced the dish with a luxurious earthy taste. I do love my calamari in this city, and I was super excited to find a version that wasn't tossed in tomato sauce...NOT that it's a bad thing - I just love the unexpected!

Calamari

Flash fried, hoisin glaze and five-spice aioli

Next, we had the plump and tender lobster claws in a crispy sweet cornmeal crust. This was a lovely juxtaposition, as the lobster meat was succulent and sweet, while the crust provided a delicate crunch. The sweetness of the crust contrasted beautifully with the fresh, verdant and piquant salsa.

Cornmeal Crusted Lobster Claws with Salsa Verde

The trio of sliders gave us all a couple bites of each burger to in order to sample the flavour combinations. The little buns, though fairly standard, white bread, were soft and sweet; slathered with mayo, they were the perfect scene upon which to set the three little patties! All three patties were drastically different, yet the seafood within was moist, and flavourful.

Five Fishermen Gill Sliders

Lobster & Corn, Salmon & Dill, Scallop & Saffron

What you may not know about the Five Fishermen Grill is its Oyster Happy Hour! Everyday from 4:30-7:30, the 5FG has oysters available for half price!

Succulent and fresh with clean, salty seawater, the oysters were light, but just enough to tip us over the edge....Though we tried to tempt ourselves with dessert, we decided to quit while we were ahead!

Oysters

Me and mah ladies!

This was a really great night, and I hope to have dinner at the Five Fishermen Grill again soon. There are several other menu items that have caught my eye, and who could say no to an oyster happy hour?!?