Lunch Beat T.O.

WEDNESDAY

+ 

LUNCH BEAT T.O.

= 

ONE INCREDIBLE HUMP DAY

Lunch Beat T.O. is a midday, midweek dance that's happening on Wednesday, October 16 from 12:00-1:00 PM at The London Tap House. Your ticket price of $10 includes all convenience fees, entrance, a healthy takeaway lunch from Cultures Restaurant and a guilt-free hour of socialization, dance and fun! You will be back to work smiling and feeling good after experiencing the social, physical and mental benefits of dance...I guarantee it!

Click HERE to purchase tickets to Lunch Beat T.O.

Founded in June 2010 by Molly Ränge in Stockholm, Sweden, Lunch Beat has spread like the latest dance craze with international branches now in over 55 cities including locations on all continents. The project has been given significant attention in international media, such as BBC World, Business Week, Oprah and Slate, and has been covered in all major media (paper print, TV and radio) in Sweden. 



 After international success, Lunch Beat T.O. is bringing the second of its kind to Toronto in hopes to raise awareness of healthy and active living while leaving the office desk for an hour. Lunch Beat T.O. is a not-for-profit event with all proceeds benefiting the Heart and Stroke Foundation and SickKids Patient Care. Last year, Lunch Beat T.O. had more than 100 participants and raised over $1,000.

 Back again for the second year, Lunch Beat T.O.'s special guest DJ Skinnzy is one of Toronto's very own SickKids patient celebrities. Born with a congenital spinal cord tumour, DJ Skinnzy has endured a lifetime of medical procedures and retains no sensation or function in either of his legs. Although he is unable to dance to the music he creates, DJ Skinnzy wants nothing more than to use his musical talent to provide a good time for others. He is truly an inspiration!

All in all, Lunch Beat T.O. believe that Torontonians work hard and deserve a healthy break during their work day. They are committed to bringing you a party in the middle of the week, in the middle of the day, where all you have to do is dance.

Click HERE to dance for a great cause!

For more information on Lunch Beat T.O.: 
Email: lunchbeatto@gmail.com
Twitter: @LunchBeat_TO
Facebook: Lunch Beat T.O.

Halton Wing Festival 2013

Brace yourselves everyone.

What I'm about to tell you is FOR REAL. 

There is an ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT WINGS festival coming up that you would NOT want to miss.

What: Halton Wing Festival

When: Saturday October 5th, 2013. Doors open at 5:30 pm 

Where: Country Heritage Park - Gambrel Barn at 8560 Tremaine Rd. Milton, ON

Why: In Support of the MS Society of Canada, Halton Regional Chapter 

Tickets: $35.00 for ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT WINGS

Click HERE to purchase tickets

The Halton Wing Festival is a fresh new community festival based in the Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Halton Hills area. Motivation for the event has been driven by a need by community organizations in the Halton region seeing a decline in involvement from younger community members in recent years and current fundraising events failing to peak the interests of those demographics. 

All proceeds raised through ticket sales, sponsorships, and other events leading up to and at the wing festival will help support client services at the Halton Chapter of the MS Society. There will also be a donations box on site at the event for anyone who wants to donate more!

AS FOR THE WINGS...

Your entry fee for the event includes ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT WINGS (while supplies last) made by 7 local vendors. These wings also will be up for 3 possible awards:

1. Judge's Overall Favourite;
2. Judge's Exotic Choice Flavour; and
3. People's Choice

I'll be joining the Honourable Mayor of Milton, Mr. Gordon Krantz, on the judging panel at the event!

So guys come out to the Halton Wing Festival next Saturday, October 5th, to stuff your face with wings and support a great cause!

Click HERE to purchase tickets

For more information on the Halton Wing Festival:
Twitter: @WingFestival
Facebook: Halton WingFestival

The Winners of the Foodival Tickets Giveaway are...

@TheFunkyCrew

@JubleeW

@sassygirlcanada
@PillyJ
@Hey_itsG

Congratulations all! =D You have each won a PAIR of tickets to Foodival taking place at 99 Sudbury this Sunday, September 29, 2013! Please note that your tickets are only valid for the DAYTIME SESSION from 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Please email me at foodjunkiechronicles@gmail.com so that I can give you your e-tickets.

I'm not sure if you've noticed but there are TWO more winners than the original THREE because Foodival was kind enough to send over an extra two sets of tickets to me last night due to all the contest entries :)

Heads up. You can now get 50% off Foodival tickets by using promo code "Foodival50"! Click HERE to purchase tickets.

Thanks to the 41 contestants who participated in my contest. 

Here's a snapshot of the Excel spreadsheet where I tracked the #foodieyufestival hashtag from day one of the contest (if you don't see your tweet in the hashtag stream, it means there is no entry from you. Sorry. Read this to find out the possible reasons why your tweets are not showing up.) The tracking was done using chronological order, as in, #1 was the first person to enter the contest. To enter, the person had to tweet "Hey @foodieyu I want to win a PAIR of tickets to @foodiesonfoot #FoodivalTO! http://bit.ly/15GjmOS #foodieyufestival". Each person may tweet once a day for the duration of the contest. Once the contest was over and everybody's entries were accounted for I checked to see if they follow me (@foodieyu) and @foodiesonfoot on Twitter. Below is a list of people who qualified for the contest:

I used "True Random Number Generator" from random.org to pick five winners from the 52 entries.

Kenzo Japanese Noodle House (Mississauga)

Finally. FINALLY. Mississauga gets a ramen restaurant. I don't exactly know why it took so damn long but the fact of the matter is that it's finally here. Kenzo Japanese Noodle House will go down in history as the first ramen dedicated restaurant to tackle Mississauga. This Kenzo ramen chain's fifth location opened in July and is situated at 720 Burnhamthorpe Rd. W. inside a plaza. Yes a plaza with ample free parking spots. No Green P's. No street parking. These are PERKS of the 'BURBS my friends. Digging through my old posts I realized I blogged about Kenzo's Annex location two years ago. At the time if you wanted ramen in downtown you only had a choice of Kenzo or Ajisen. That's it. Ramen spots such as Kinton Ramen, Sansotei, Santouka, Ramen Raijin and Ryus Noodle House didn't even exist yet.

I'm no ramen expert nor am I a ramen snob. Whilst others debate between whether Santouka or Sansotei is better I am absolutely fine with going to Raijin, Kinton and Kenzo. I like them too. It doesn't mean I don't have a preference - I do have mental notes when it comes to which I like better - but I certainly don't mind eating at any one of them. And FYI I prefer Sansotei over Santouka, I haven't been to Ryus yet and I always avoid Ajisen.

GYOZA ($8.95)
Japanese style pork dumplings.

Sausage League 2013 - Final - The Saint vs. The Drake

How time flies. It seems like only yesterday that I attended the first Sausage League battle of 2013 between Bryan Birch of Barque Smokehouse and Jesse Vallins of The Saint Tavern. It was definitely not yesterday though...more like back in May before summer even started. Oh summer, where did you go? 

Anyway, I found myself back at Marben (@MarbenResto) this past Wednesday evening for the Sausage League 2013 final. After four rigorous months of competition it was time to finally crown the Sausage King of Toronto! Will it be last year's champion, Jesse Vallins of The Saint Tavern or John Koplimae of The Drake Hotel? It must be fate because I voted for Jesse's sausage dish back in May and here he is once again :)

How Sausage League works: For $25, you get to enjoy two unique sausage dishes (one from each competitor) along with two Muskoka Brewery beers. You'll then get to cast a vote for the dish you like best. It's the same format through out the entire competition. 

Sausage League 2013 finalists ready for battle: John Koplimae of The Drake (@thedrakehotel) and Jesse Vallins of The Saint Tavern (@thesainttavern).

(Photo Credit: Marben)

I was craving for a cocktail so I ordered myself an old fashioned.

Foodival Tickets Giveaway - CLOSED

I'm giving away THREE PAIRS of tickets to Foodival taking place at 99 Sudbury on Sunday, September 29, 2013!

Presented by Little Birdie Media Inc., curated by Foodies on Foot (Twitter: @foodiesonfoot, Facebook: Foodies On Foot) and in support of Real Food for Real Kids, Foodival is Toronto's first carnival themed food festival. The event will have over 20 local food vendors, serving reinvented carnival or childhood themed foods, including many vendors that are not typically on the food events circuit. Many are making their first Toronto food festival appearance at this show. 

Here are some of the vendors you will see at Foodival:

To round out the carnival theme, there will be games, prizes, performances and giveaways too!

A daytime, all ages, session will take place between 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM, geared towards families and children, followed by a 19+ session from 6:00-10:00 PM.

***THE THREE PAIRS OF TICKETS IN THIS GIVEAWAY ARE FOR THE DAYTIME SESSION ONLY!***

 HOW TO ENTER

1) You MUST be following me (@foodieyu) and Foodies On Foot (@foodiesonfoot) on Twitter:

AND

2) Tweet the following sentence, exactly as shown, nothing before or after it: 

Hey @foodieyu I want to win a PAIR of tickets to @foodiesonfoot #FoodivalTO! http://bit.ly/15GjmOS #foodieyufestival

1. For your entry to be valid, you need to tweet the above sentence exactly as shown

2. You may tweet once a day for the duration of the contest. Re-tweeting others do NOT count as a valid entry

3. Contest is tracked by the #foodieyufestival hashtag stream. If you don't see your tweet in the hashtag stream, it means there is no entry from you. Sorry. Read this to find out the possible reasons why your tweets are not showing up

CONTEST DURATION

Contest starts on Thursday, September 19th and ends on Thursday, September 26th at 12PM. 

Three lucky winners will be chosen randomly from www.random.org and I will announce the winner shortly on Friday, September 27th. 

GOOD LUCK!!! ^_^

To purchase Daytime Foodival tickets, please click here.

To purchase Evening Foodival tickets, please click here.

This Beautiful Day

I know most of you read my blog for all things FOOD but in case, just in case, you are interested in knowing a little bit more about me I've been featured on This Beautiful Day! 

Thanks Lisa for the wonderful profile :)

Toronto Popup with Chef Trish Gill

The organs and trimmings of a butchered animal, or offal meats, often get a bad rep. This bad rep usually stems from the opinions of the "anti-offals" - individuals that can't get past offal’s stigma.  Some anti-offals are not totally against these trimmings; for them it depends on presentation. For instance, a lot of anti-offals eat sausages without realizing that its skin is often made from intestines. Some anti-offals are even okay with devouring chicken liver pâté or foie gras on toast because it is less daunting compared to eating heart or brain. However, if they take a minute and cast aside their biases, they will likely find themselves enjoying these mildly grotesque yet delicate and affordable cuts of meat because they are actually quite delicious, as well as nutritious (using these cuts also shows respect to the animal).

Being Chinese, I've grown up with eating livers, brains, blood, feet and kidneys all my life. Almost every animal part is used in Chinese cooking so I've embraced these entrails ever since I was little. There's always a place in my heart stomach for offal (how sappy) especially offal in different cuisines which is precisely why I was really excited about chef Trish Gill's (@gilltrish) offal-centric menu at Toronto Pop Up (Twitter: @Toronto_PopUp, Facebook: Toronto Popup). Here's a recap of chef Trish's five-course "Curious Cuts" dinner at Monarch Tavern:

First course at the pass and ready to go.

FIRST COURSE

THREE BITES: CHEEKS, HEART, LIVER

Wine - James Oatley Tick Tok Chardonnay

Craft Beer - King Pilsner, King Brewery

Home of the Brave

Welcome to Home of the Brave, an all-American diner brought to you by the La Carnita folks Andrew Richmond (owner) and chefs Jonathon Hamilton and Nate Middleton. Nestled above Lou Dawgs on 589 King St. West, Home of the Brave dishes out classic American cuisine that "feels different, but also feels like home". In less than a month since the second-floor restaurant opened, Home of the Brave has already become quite the popular spot in the neighbourhood. With modernized American comfort food, creative cocktails and the motto JOIN OR DIE, it appears that Torontonians are happily joining in on the good eats at the new diner.

I went for an early dinner at Home of the Brave (Twitter: @theHOTB, Instagram: @thehotb) last Friday with three friends. Since the restaurant only takes reservations for more than 10 people, we thought it's wise to go earlier than later. We arrived at 6pm and snagged one of the large orange booths on the side.

The bar at Home of the Brave features spiked slushies and root beer on tap, as well as a rotating selection of Guest Book cocktails imported from some of America’s finest cocktail creators.

SUMMER IN SAKON ($12)

Thai spiced vodka, pineapple, ginger beer, lime (that's a bottle of water beside the cocktail)

Ravi Soups (Queen West)

It's time to embrace the cold weather guys because summer is OVER *insert sad face*. How does one "embrace the cold" anyway? Well most people go shopping for fall clothes; cardigans, sweaters, pea coats, scarves, etc., because they wanna look good...gotta keep up with "fall fashion trends 2013", ya know? Nothing wrong with that at all. Unfortunately for me fall fashion is pretty much irrelevant. The problem is that when others find it "breezy" I find it "chilly". When it's supposedly "cool" I find it "cold". Hence the reason why I don't have much fall clothes - I switch from balmy summer clothes right into winter gear almost immediately (okay maybe I'm exaggerating...I'm sure there are a couple of weeks in between or something). I'm perpetually cold :( Anyway, armed with my winter jacket you'll probably see me embracing the cooler temperatures with a cup of steaming hot chocolate. Yum. You may also find me at some all-you-can-eat Chinese hot pot place in Markham or perhaps enjoying some tofu stew in Korean town. But when it's seriously cold outside, Ravi Soups is one of the best places to warm your soul.

Ravi Soups, a family-run restaurant, is the place to be for a quick and hearty meal. There are three Ravi Soups locations: 322 Adelaide St W, 1128 Queen St West, and 2535 Dundas St West. 

There's a wide variety of unique and exotic ingredients in both their soups and wraps. I'm pretty sure you won't find any of these creative flavour combinations anywhere else.

Flix + Pix + Plates

I'm a huge supporter of The Culinary Adventure Company (Twitter: @culinaryadvco, Facebook: The Culinary Adventure Company). Having been to several of their tours I must say that they are all very well-organized, fun and one-of-a-kind. Above all, I have never left their gourmet exploits hungry! Awarded Best Culinary Tourism Experience Award in 2012 from Ontario Tourism and currently ranked #3 in Tripadvisor's "Toronto Activities", chef/owner Scott Savoie strives to bring new and unique experiences for all "foodie and adrenaline junkies". Whether you are the laid-back type who enjoys discovering local neighbourhoods and their eclectic food shops / hidden gems ("no tourist traps and no chains") or more of the adventurous type who looks for elaborate culinary adventures (i.e. kayaking to the Toronto Islands for a gourmet dinner picnic or mushroom foraging), I'm confident that The Culinary Adventure Company will have something for you. And you know what? It's actually pretty fun playing tourist in your own city 'cause you can't possibly know...well...everything! For example, it was through The Culinary Adventure Company's Tour of Little Italy two years ago that I discovered Toronto Temperance Society (which is now my favourite cocktail bar)!

The latest culinary program in The Culinary Adventure Company's line-up is a Food, Film, Photography and Digital Media event series called Flix + Pix + Plates. Brought to you by The Culinary Adventure Company and CHEESEWERKS (Twitter: @CHEESEWERKS, Facebook: CHEESEWERKS), the Flix + Pix + Plate series gives food and cheese lovers a chance to enjoy a unique one-night-only dining experience inspired by feature films, food photography and other digital media sources. Flix + Pix + Plate will offer diners an all-inclusive 5-course meal and drink pairings for $65 / pp + HST or $120 per couple. Each film or photography theme will be the inspiration for the menu that evening. Held on the third-Tuesday of the month at CHEESEWERKS, guests will watch Ghostbusters in October and JFK in November.

I was invited to Flix + Pix + Plate's media preview dinner a couple of weeks ago at CHEESEWERKS (coincidentally I'm also a big fan of Kevin Durkee aka Big Cheese - check out the extensive tasting menu I had last year at CHEESEWERKS!) 

MEDIA PREVIEW MENU

Parmesan Herb Truffle Popcorn

Poulet a L'estragon sur Pate Feuilletee

Southern Fried "BLT" on Crostini w/ Lemono Basil Aioli