The Winner of the Luxury Chocolate Show Tickets is...

@von_funk

Congratulations Jason! =D You have won a PAIR of tickets to The Toronto International Luxury Chocolate Show taking place at Roy Thompson Hall this Sunday, November 3rd! Please email me at foodjunkiechronicles@gmail.com to confirm your attendance.

Thanks to the 39 contestants who participated in my giveaway. 

Here's a snapshot of the Excel spreadsheet where I tracked the #foodieyuchocolate hashtag from day one of the giveaway (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 worth $50 to The Luxury Chocolate Show http://bit.ly/18uMJAl #foodieyuchocolate". Each person may tweet once a day for the duration of the giveaway. Once the giveaway was over and everybody's entries were accounted for I checked to see if they follow me (@foodieyu) on Twitter. Below is a list of people who qualified for the contest:

I used "True Random Number Generator" from random.org to pick the winner from the 74 entries.

The Luxury Chocolate Show Tickets Giveaway - CLOSED

I'm giving away a PAIR of tickets to The Toronto International Luxury Chocolate Show worth $50!

The Toronto Chocolate Show is the first and only show of its kind in Toronto to exclusively feature and celebrate everything chocolate under one climate-controlled roof.

The third edition of the Toronto International Luxury Chocolate Show celebrates everything chocolate under one roof in a luxuriously appointed venue. A diverse array of fine chocolates and chocolate-inspired products will be featured. Various vendors will be displaying, sampling and selling their fine chocolate products at show prices, just in time for the holiday season!

WHAT: The Toronto International Luxury Chocolate Show

WHEN: Sunday, November 3rd, 11am - 7pm

WHERE: Roy Thomson Hall at 60 Simcoe St.

Each Toronto International Luxury Chocolate Show ticket includes:

- Admission to The Toronto Luxury Chocolate Show on Sunday, November 3, 2013.
- TASTE SAMPLINGS (while quantities last per discretion of each vendor) Does not include wine, cake or savoury food that are available by individual ticket purchase.
- FREE entry for hourly draws
- FREE Chocolate Making Classes (firs come first serve basis)
- FREE Chocolate Makers Demo Sessions
- FREE Registration for the Chocolate Eating contests
- 911 CHOCOLATE RELAY

 HOW TO ENTER

1) You MUST be following me (@foodieyu) 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 worth $50 to The Luxury Chocolate Show http://bit.ly/18uMJAl #foodieyuchocolate

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 #foodieyuchoocolate 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 Monday, October 28th and ends on Thursday, October 31st at 12PM. 

One lucky winner will be drawn randomly from www.random.org once the contest is over on Thursday, October 31st and I will announce the winner shortly after.

GOOD LUCK!!! ^_^

The Winners of the EXCEL Gumergency Kit Giveaway are...

@SadieWeinstein

@alexaclark

@hollymessana 

Congratulations Sadie, Alexa and Holly! You have each won an EXCEL Gumergency Kit (pictured below). After reading everybody's stories I felt that you three would have benefited the most from an EXCEL Gumergency Kit! Please email me at foodjunkiechronicles@gmail.com your mailing address so that I can send you your kit right away.

Thanks for playing!

Toronto's Hottest Chef 2013

As a co-founder of Toronto's Hottest Chef (Twitter: @TO_Hottest, Facebook: Toronto's Hottest) I thought it would be a tad weird if I didn't do a blog post about my own event. Call it shameless self promotion but hey, it's my event and I want you to buy tickets! Come and support meee! OR come out to support a charity event where you'll enjoy awesome food and booze along with live entertainment, prizes and a swag bag full of goodies to take home. Either one works. It's your choice.

WHAT: The 2nd Annual Toronto's Hottest Chef Grand Finale #TOHottestChef

WHEN: Wednesday, October 30th @ 7:30PM

WHERE: The Great Hall @ 1087 Queen Street West

TICKET: $35. Tickets can be purchased online

WHAT YOU GET: Attendees will enjoy delectable canapés created by our 9 finalists and a complimentary cocktail complete with live entertainment, prizes and a swag bag full of goodies to take home and most importantly, take part in a live vote to crown Toronto’s Hottest Chef 2013!

This is a 19+ only event.

Book it!

After two rounds of online voting, 9 of Toronto’s Hottest Chefs will battle it out on Wednesday, October 30th at The Great Hall to see who can serve up good looks and good eats. In a true battle royale, à la Top Chef, each of the 9 finalists will be challenged to serve up 300 delicious canapés to some of Toronto’s top industry influencers, media and

culinary palettes. Not only are the contestants competing for the ultimate title of “Hottest

Chef 2013,” but the chef who comes out on top will be awarded all of the proceeds raised during the initiative for a charity of their choosing. 

Hosted by Toronto culinary renegade, Zane Caplansky (@Caplansky), the 2nd Annual Toronto's Hottest Chef Grand Finale is sure to be a riotous serving of good looks, good eats and most importantly, a good cause. So buy your ticket now as this is your chance to chum with the hottest of the hot and take part in a live vote to crown Toronto’s Hottest Chef 2013!

Here are the 9 finalists:

Adam Aguire, Sous Chef, The County General - Sick Kid's Hospital Foundation

Devan Rajkumar, Brand Ambassador, Food Dudes & Exceutive Chef, Bosch, Thermador & Gaggenau - Daily Bread Food Bank 

Dorian King, Executive Chef, Canyon Creek - Canadian Cancer Society 

Jason Rosso, Executive Chef, Milestones - Prostate Cancer Canada 

Leah Wildman, Head Chef, Fit Squad Toronto - Children's Breakfast Clubs of Canada 

Rick Roussel, Banquets & Events Cook, Hard Rock Cafe - Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation

Robin Dutt, Line Cook, The Drake Hotel - The Stop Community Food Center 

Ross Bonfanti, Owner & Chef, Il Sogno - CNIB 

 Tulio Lessa, Chef de Cuisine, Lil' Baci Taverna - Second Harvest 

But wait there's MORE...!

The official after party to Toronto's Hottest Chef will be hosted below The Great Hall at the Samuel J. Moore. Toronto's Hottest Bartender, Josh Lindley (@josh_lindley) of Bar Isabel will be serving up cocktails and may or may not be celebrating Halloween a little early. Oh and to top it off, the first 150 guests to show their event ticket will receive a free beer from Liberty Village Brewing Co!

Book it!

A big huge THANK YOU to our sponsors and donors!

I hope to see you there! :D

Book it!

About Toronto’s Hottest Chef Competition

Presented by party guru Kristina Chau, of Not Your Average Party, and food blogger Stella Yu, of Food Junkie Chronicles, the Toronto's Hottest Chef Competition is developed as a fun and cheeky way to draw attention to Toronto’s robust culinary scene. The event simultaneously promotes bourgeoning local talent while raising money for a good cause. So have your say and vote, chefs get flattered, we raise money for charity - everyone wins!

Scaramouche Restaurant

Scaramouche Restaurant is in a class all by itself when it comes to delivering the very best food, atmosphere and service in the city. The 30-year-old Forest Hill landmark restaurant continues to be awarded numerous domestic and international accolades and rightfully so. From being ranked the #1 restaurant three years in a row (2011, 2012, 2013) by restaurant critic Joanne Kates from Post City Magazines to earning an impressive 28 on Zagat's 30-point scale and securing the #1 spot for "Food in Toronto" in Zagat's 2012 Toronto Dining Survey, it is apparent that owners Keith Froggett (executive chef) and Carl Korte are committed to excellence and will settle for nothing less.

My gorgeous view overlooking the city skyline. I highly recommend getting a window table at Scaramouche.

LA MOBILETTA ($11)

The Italian word for moped, a Mobiletta is a delightfully light, fresh highball cocktail with Campari, lemon and grapefruit juice and topped with soda water, orange garnish

SNAP DRAGON ($11)

A very popular cocktail at Scaramouche, the Snapdragon is a delicious blend of pear nectar and vodka swirled gently over ice with a squeeze of fresh lime and topped with ginger beer, then strained into a chilled martini glass. Grown-up and mysterious!

EXCEL Gumergency Kit Giveaway - CLOSED

EXCEL Gum is changing the way it combats bad breath with a new campaign that aims to help consumers deal with “Gumergencies - the desperate need for gum because of bad breath.” The Wrigley brand has launched a new YouTube channel devoted specifically to the campaign. 

A recent playful EXCEL Gum survey inquired how Canadians deal with bad breath situations, the odd times they've chewed gum (while sky diving) and even styles of gum chewing...

Anddd with that bit of intro...I'm giving away THREE Gumergency Kits loaded with gum and mints so you'll be prepared the next time bad breath strikes :)

 HOW TO WIN

Share your Gumergency (i.e. a bad breath story) in the comment section below. I'll be picking three winners from there!

CONTEST DURATION

Contest starts on Friday, October 18 and ends on Friday, October 25 at 12PM. 

GOOD LUCK!!! ^_^

The Chefs' House

"We're a real-world training restaurant where the finest Hospitality and Culinary Art students from George Brown College learn from the best teacher - experience." - The Chefs' House.

Located at 215 King Street East, The Chefs' House (Twitter: @thechefshouse, Facebook: The Chefs' House) is a restaurant where George Brown students experience and learn first-hand the skills they will need in the real world of the hospitality industry. Students from the George Brown Chef School and School of Hospitality and Tourism Management work for either 7 or 14 weeks in both the restaurant's front and back of house. They come from the following Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts programs:

- Food and Beverage Management
- Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure
- Hotel Management
- Integrated Culinary Management
- Post Graduate Italian Culinary Arts

My friend and I had dinner at The Chefs' House several weeks ago. Once I walked in the restaurant I realized how large and spacious the room was. I love the dangling lights as well as the contrast between the modern, contemporary white bar & kitchen on one side and the textured brick wall on the other.

The open kitchen gives guests a great view of the students. 

There are two prix fixe options for dinner: 3 courses for $41 or 4 courses for $47.  My friend ordered the 4-course and I ordered the 3-course.

House-made bread to start. We really liked the soft focaccia (we had seconds!)

Frida Restaurant + Avocados from Mexico

Last week I was invited to a special dinner at Frida Restaurant & Bar (Twitter: @FridaRestaurant, Facebook: Frida Restaurant & Bar). Hosted by Miss Ava Cado (@missavacado) of Avocados from Mexico, chef Jose Hadad of Frida took guests on a culinary journey with a delicious four-course meal featuring irresistibly rich and creamy Mexican avocados.

What you should know about Mexican avocados...
- The world’s first avocado was grown and cultivated in Mexico countless generations ago.
- Due to fertile volcanic soil, ideal climate and centuries of expert cultivation, Mexico remains the source of the world’s finest avocados. 
- Mexico is the only place in the world where avocado trees naturally bloom four times a year. 

Avocados in general are very nutritious because they are..
- High in monounsaturated fat or "good" fat: a diet high in monounsaturated fat from avocados has been shown to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and raise HDL (good) cholesterol.
- High in potassium and deliver lutein and zeaxanthin: these are two phytochemicals that protects against cataract and macular degeneration. 
- A great source of folate: folate is a B vitamin that keeps the DNA of your cells in good repair. Half of an avocado provides one-quarter of a day’s worth of folate (the recommended daily intake is 400 micrograms). 
- An excellent source of fibre

Yes avocados are really, really good for you! The great thing is they are also very tasty :) Below is a recap of my evening where chef Jose utilized and incorporated this beautiful fruit in his four-course dinner for us.

SALSAS WITH CHIPS

MARGARITA AND SANGRIA

APPETIZER: GUACAMOLE

Avocados, red onions, tomatillos, cilantro and corn tortillas

The Winner of the Cask Days 2013 Tickets Giveaway is...

@dinobotmoj

Congratulations Jonathan =D You have won a PAIR of tickets to Cask Days 2013 taking place at the Evergreen Brick Works on October 19th & 20th! Please note that your tickets are only valid for the Session Three: Sunday, October 20th from 12pm - 5pm. Please email me at foodjunkiechronicles@gmail.com with the full names of you and your guest.

Thanks to the 47 contestants who participated in my contest. 

Here's a snapshot of the Excel spreadsheet where I tracked the #foodieyucask 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 worth $60 to @CaskDays http://bit.ly/1fKJCh7 #OnCask #foodieyucask". 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) on Twitter. 

I used "True Random Number Generator" from random.org to pick a winner from the 90 entries.

THR & Co.

Located at 97 Harbord St., THR & Co. (Twitter: @THRandCo, Facebook: THR&Co.) is the descendant of the neighbouring restaurant The Harbord Room. Curt Martin, formerly of The Harbord Room, helms the kitchen at the brand-new spot with Cory Vitiello overseeing both restaurants. THR & Co. boasts an impressive compilation of affordable sharing plates, pizzas, pastas, and meat and fish dishes with flavours and ingredients inspired by the Mediterranean. 

THR & Co. features the elegant interior design of classic bistros with dark red banquettes, marble table tops and wooden floors (black and white graphic tile flooring can be found surrounding the bar). Natural light filters through the floor-to-ceiling windows illuminating the open and elegant space. The large mirrors toward the back of the restaurant further beautifies the airy space. My favourite spot to dine at THR & Co. is actually at the wrap-around bar, specifically the tail-end nook by the kitchen. Cozy and comfortably tucked in, these seats are ideal for casual dates and intimate conversation. 

SOA (SUMMER OF ANTON) ($12)

 Tromba tequila, wild berry & balsamic shrub, fresh lime and ginger beer 

BEEF HEART TARTARE ($12)

Espelette mayo, green olive relish, cured duck yolk, crispy tendon & banyuls vinegar

Cask Days 2013 Tickets Giveaway - CLOSED

I'm giving away a PAIR of tickets to CASK DAYS worth $60*! 

Tickets to this event are already 90% sold out.

*Advertised ticket price of $25 + HST + online processing fee = $29.96 x 2 = $59.92

As a major contributor to the Ontario craft beer community, the family behind Toronto mainstay barVolo, have taken Cask Days (Twitter: @CaskDays, Facebook: Cask Days) and elevated it into one of the most coveted craft beer events in North America. Along with featuring over 200 cask conditioned ales from over 100 Canadian microbreweries, highlighted this year at Evergreen Brick Works will be 36 beers from the UK, the international brewery feature...the roots of "real ale". Not only will there be premium one-of-a-kind brews, the event will also offer a standout line-up of beer focused workshops, art, music, food pairings ("the eats are as epic as the beer") and one-on-ones with brewers on site. This year, Cask Days is raising money to support UNITY Charity which engages and empowers youth aged 10 to 18 by implementing school and community programs. 

Cask Days 2013 will host over 4,000 people over 2 days. Check out the cool promo video:

Each Cask Days ticket includes:
- Commemorative 9th Annual Cask Days 2013 glass (each session has a unique design)
- Admission to a five hour festival session at Evergreen Brick Works
- 100+ breweries and 200+ beers brewed for the festival to choose from
- Official Cask Days 2013 Festival Guide and tasting book
- Live entertainment with local DJ's and live artists
- Free shuttle bus transportation to and from Brick Works (from Broadview TTC station)

Drink tokens are $2.50 (tax included) for 5oz serving and will be available for purchase at event

Session One: Saturday, October 19th, 2013 (12pm-5pm) Sold Out
Session Two: Saturday, October 19th, 2013 (7pm-12am) 
Session Three: October 20th, 2013 (12pm-5pm) 
Cask Days Baller Pass: All Access (Session 1, 2 and 3) Sold Out

***THE PAIR OF TICKETS IN THIS GIVEAWAY IS FOR SESSION THREE ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20TH FROM 12 PM - 5PM ONLY***

 HOW TO ENTER

1) You MUST be following me (@foodieyu) 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 worth $60 to @CaskDays http://bit.ly/1fKJCh7 #OnCask #foodieyucask

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 #foodieyucask 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, October 3rd and ends on Thursday, October 10th at 12PM. 

One lucky winner will be drawn randomly from www.random.org once the contest is over on Thursday, October 10th and I will announce the winner shortly after.

GOOD LUCK!!! ^_^

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS FOR CASK DAYS

Toronto Popup with ESÉ

Peter and Ryan, the duo behind the L.A. style Mexican popup ESÉ, create dishes that reflect the unique style and flavours of the culinary landscape of Los Angeles and the Southwest. Born and raised in L.A., Ryan relocated to Toronto to be with his "esé" Peter (esé is a Spanish slang term for comrade, pal or friend). To alleviate his homesickness, Ryan began cooking the style of Mexican food that he grew up with. Looking to tradition for inspiration, both Ryan and Peter take pride in making everything from scratch — from the complexity of a slow cooked sauce to the routine of hand-pressing their own tortillas. Authenticity is important to the duo but showcasing their ability to be creative and whimsical is just as important. Before long, Ryan and Peter, or ESÉ (Twitter: @ESEsuavecito Facebook: ESÉ), found themselves participating in pop-ups around the city including the Toronto Underground Market, The Junction Flea and The Stop's Night Market.

Toronto Popup (Twitter: @Toronto_PopUp, Facebook: Toronto Popup) featured ESÉ two Sundays ago at Monarch Tavern. The $40 five-course dinner, with optional wine or beer pairings, evolved around Mexican small plates or antojitos ("little cravings"). Below is a recap of the ESÉ Antojitos dinner:

Peter double checking his eggs before they are served.

UNO

ARPEGE EGG

Coddled yolk, housemade chorizo, goat cheese mash, tortilla spear

Toronto Popup founder, Juliana, with Ryan and Peter giving a toast to start the evening off right.