I remember my first visit to Portland Variety in the summer of 2014. Back then I was quite impressed with the delicious food and amazing cocktails. Flash forward to November 2015, and we’re visiting again to see what’s new and exciting on Portland Variety’s new fall/winter menu.
This November e11even restaurant turns 5, and we were invited to celebrate with none other than their signature dishes & cocktails, as well as a sneak peak into new ones to be added to the fall and winter menu. All the dishes were presented by Executive Chef Evan Tandy, who’s also worked at Real Sports Bar and Grill, since 2011.
The Italian restaurant, Coco Lezzone, located in the Yorkville district (137 Avenue Road), provided us the ultimate 4-course pairing dining experience on Tuesday November 17th. This event was hosted by the 360 Gourmet Club, a new pop-up event service that gives diners a taste of a chef’s creations, a guide-through of each course, as well as take-home recipes and specialty ingredients. Chef Marlon Graham and master mixologist/TV host, Jeremy Parsons, took us through the first interactive dining experience.
It’s not often that we get to venture out of the city’s downtown core to visit a restaurant, but when we do it’s always something to look forward to. This time, we were off to Thornhill, north of Toronto, to visit Terra Restaurant, celebrating its milestone 20th anniversary this October. Terra is part of the Substance Food Group‘s family of restaurants, which also includes Sarpa in Oak Ridges, Rusty’s at Blue in Blue Mountain, and Francobollo in North York.
From Chase Hospitality Group, owners of The Chase, Little Fin, and Colette Grand Café, comes Yorkville’s newest hotspot, the Japanese-themed Kasa Moto. Situated where Remy’s stood for 26 years, the space has been transformed into a chic, contemporary space. On September 25th, we had the opportunity to join a Kasa Moto dinner party to sample some of their food and drink offerings, and checkout the new space.
It’s been awhile since we last meet Chef Eyal Liebman and his wife, Sommelier Rebecca Meïr-Liebman. Since their days at Moroco, a lot has changed. Their previous company, L is For…, specializing in pastries, has evolved and transformed to Chef & Somm, where the husband and wife duo provide their services as chef and sommelier in creating a personalized and unique dining experience.