A dear friend of mine wanted to repay us for helping out with the pre-wedding festivities of her two offspring. Now in truth, no thanks and definitely no repayment was required but I must admit, it was lovely to have our efforts acknowledged.

The table was set beautifully when we arrived.

There were little gifts at every place settings-dark chocolate and a fragrant candle.

The host of the evening is a transplanted Brit and we were honoured that she included a number of her traditions from home into the evening. We started with a “prawn” cocktail where succulent shrimp were tossed in a homemade sauce and enhanced with slices of silky avocado.

The entree was a chicken breast poached in a luxurious sauce. Cilantro was included so that the dish sparkled with a light, fresh taste.

Accompanying the main were carrots and peas, green beans and fabulous roasted potatoes. I thought that the latter may have been blanched first but our host indicated that they were simply roasted with olive oil, garlic paprika and rosemary.

I was prepared to have another helping of those potatoes as my dessert but I had forgotten that our host was about to prepare another of her traditions -hot custard which we poured over apple platz. Ice cream was also available to adorn the pair.

The last course was the sharing of a special bottle of port and lovely international cheeses. I was partial to the hard Bella Vitano cheese and felt sure that it heralded from Italy. In fact with research, I find that it is make in the cheese state of Wisconsin. It was sturdy at first bite and then had a lovely mouth feel. I also loved a smoked Gouda, especially with light and thin beet crackers.

As the evening of being basked in love came to a close, I set the left over platz at the front door so that I would be sure to remember it. Another ‘lady” realized that she hadn’t had enough treats that evening and only stopped slurping down the platz, when we pulled the dish away from her. I warned my husband as I crawled into bed beside him, not to be tempted to eat the dessert that was in the kitchen sink.

We are all very different people who speak different love languages. My love language is food and hospitality in the giving and the receiving.

That evening I felt so loved and appreciated. The gift of the evening itself and the actual gifts that I took away, were blessings to me from a woman I consider a sister.

Kath’s quote: “Friendship isn’t about who you’ve known the longest. It’s about who walked into your life, said “I’m here for you”, and proved it.”

Love never fails.

At D’s former job representing a major food-service company, he often had to travel to western Manitoba and Saskatchewan. He didn’t especially enjoy the travel unless he was in Regina. In fact, a couple of times he even took me along to enjoy the city. He often remarked at how well populated Regina was with restaurants, bistros, café and taverns. In fact on a per capital basis, he thought Regina had more great restaurants than Winnipeg! He was especially fond of a place dubbed Leopold’s Tavern.

Fast forward a couple of years and Leopold’s has found its way to Winnipeg. Opening in the heart of south Osborne, next to the Park Theatre in the former Deseo location, it was easy to locate and find parking. It wasn’t so easy to cross Osborne at midday so here’s a little tip: park close to one of two pedestrian crosswalks. That way you’ll be eating sooner and back to work that much earlier as well. This day was one of their pre-opening events-free lunch to suppliers and friends!

We were invited to share an appetizer and each order an entrée. Since their lunch menu also covers off the evening, we got a great preview of what will be offered up.

We choose Buffalo Cauliflower where Leopold’s pretty much duplicates the taste of Buffalo Wings without the high calorie count of actual wings. The crumbled blue cheese and dressing cooled of the pleasant fiery tastes. Our helpful server indicated that on Wing Wednesday you can choose the cauliflower with 8 other wing sauces. We tucked that info away for good keeping.

With a nice cool pint of 1919 by Little Brown Jug, I could have pretty much called it lunch and been satisfied, but our entrees had not yet arrived.

At first glance I decided upon their Fish & Chips and was hoping that D would select the Mac & Cheese. He remembered the fried chicken from Regina and opted instead for Leopold’s Buffalo Chicken Ranch burger. When he generously offered to share his fries, I switched to Mac & Cheese myself, adding bacon for good measure. Because after all, I was ordering the fish to get the fries, so why not indulge in both!

When the burger arrived, two rashers of thick meaty bacon were escaping the premise-made hamburger buns. The crunchy chicken was as superb as D remembered it and he was very content.

On the other hand, I was a little overwhelmed when my casserole of Mac & Cheese was delivered to the table. I felt like a glutton, but tucked in anyway. The tart mix of white wine with three gooey cheeses made for delicious eating. The added bacon, crumbled Ritz biscuits and parmesan put the dish right over the top! Perhaps I completed an eighth of it when I put my fork down and surrendered.  The left overs will be much appreciated by my hungry family.

I recognised the front windows and staircase of the former restaurant inhabitants. Leopold’s brightened it up with skylights on the stair wells and various retro paraphernalia adorning the walls.

As well as meeting the General Manager, pretty much every staff member greeted us upon arrival and departure. I am quite sure that soon they will be the place “where everybody knows your name and they’re always glad you came” sing with me now…..

Kath’s quote: “Food is not about impressing people. It’s about making them feel comfortable.”-Ina Garten, ‘The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook’

Love never fails.

In the same manner that the Canadian Museum for Human Rights elevates our city to a national (even international) tourism level, Era Bistro elevates the Museum to even higher heights. I have had the pleasure of noshing at the at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York, The Musee D’Orsay in Paris, The Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem

and more recently the Ufizzi Gallery in Florence (my husband and I at the Ufizzi pictured above). All were tasty enough but none had the integrity of local produce and regional menu as Era does.

I have met both the Director of Food and Beverage and the Executive Chef at Era Bistro. The former named Toni is gluten intolerant and strives to give persons with this, vegan and vegetarian preferences plenty of menu choices. On the lunch menu alone there were nine delicious options. I enjoyed the gluten free Quinoa Salad on my visit.

Executive Chef Kirk Hanson couldn’t visit for long as he was hands-on in the kitchen. He did linger long enough to fill me in on their seasonal menu emphasizing locally sourced, Certified Fair Trade and sustainable products. Somehow they manage to do all of this and keep their lunch prices reasonable, ranging from $8-21 at lunch.

Over a couple of visits I have managed to tuck into the Pickerel Po’Boy and California Club, having a difficult time trying to discern my favourite. The former was assembled from panko-crusted Manitoba pickerel and iceberg lettuce, tomato, pickled onion & jalapeño remoulade. The latter, roasted herb-marinated chicken breast and prosciutto, lettuce, tomato, avocado spread, mayo, sprouts & aged cheddar. Both were wedged between halves of toasted ciabatta buns.

In addition, I just might have tried Era’s famous carrot fries where beer-battered carrot sticks were served with  a fresh herb & jalapeño buttermilk dip for…..dipping!

Era’s desserts are in a league of their own. Both that I have sampled were gluten free-the Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with a blueberry lavender and lemon compote

and the Roasted Peach and Rhubarb Parfait with house-made graham crumbs and Chantilly ream. I understand their home-made ice cream and crème Brule daily specials are amazing too.

As I was oohing and ahhing, Toni reminded me that Era Bistro is the exclusive caterer for the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and does off-site catering as well. The Bistro is available for private events like weddings, holiday parties and corporate soirees.

As my lunch date and I were leaving I popped outside to get a glimpse of the beautiful summer patio. In addition, I just had to stop in at the boutique where I made a mental note to purchase future hostess and birthday gifts.

Kath’s quote: “Ice cream is exquisite. What a pity it isn’t illegal.”-Voltaire (Francois Marie Arouet) (1694-1778)

Love never fails.

We love to travel and have recently learned from friends how to make the entire airport departure part more pleasurable. They are members of a couple of executive lounges and enhance their leave-takings with a leisurely visit where they can enjoy a beverage, some delicious food, flip through magazines and the like. Before a long overnight flight overseas recently they arrived in time to enjoy a meal at the Flight Club and gave the bistro on the arrivals floor of the airport, glowing accolades. She asked if I had a chance to dine there. As a matter of fact I had.

We were away in March and thought that we would return to spring in Winnipeg but we had no such luck. Spring teased us through April and I was overjoyed to receive an invite to a tasting at the Flight Club where their menu is inspired by herbs and seeds. I was craving green…anything green.

Sister #3 (my date for the evening) and I were delighted by the Roasted Heirloom Beets and Tomato Salad. The vine tomatoes  and white balsamic vinaigrette produced just the right amount of acidity to offset the silky beets and pungent goat cheese. Between the fresh thyme and rosemary and the sweet candied pistachios which added crunch and sweetness, I knew by that first dish that the evening would be a delicious success.

The Spiced by the Sea Ahi Tuna Tartare was also a hit -flavoured with pickled ginger, lime, chia seeds and microgreens. I like my tuna tartare with a smidge of sesame oil which was missing, but satisfying nonetheless.  To offset the seriousness of the plate, the tartare was accompanied with a side of deep fried knotted nori.

The Jumbo Shrimp Wonton Soup warmed us up and even though I am not partial to miso, the broth with hon shimeji and shitake mushrooms was light and lovely.

We skipped over to the Asian section of the Flight Club menu and landed at the Indonesian dish of Nasi Goreng. Sister #3 and I agreed that this was the best dish that had been sampled up until that time. We loved the sunny-side egg over the spicy and sweet fried rice and were over the moon when we tasted the chicken satay skewers! There were four of us sharing each dish and we could have easily gone home after this delectable one, but our tasting time was not over, in fact we had just started!

In addition to all the savoury food, samples from the Flight Club’s juice and smoothie bar came out in between plates. This gorgeous one called Charge Me Up was a nutritious blend of grapefruit, pineapple, lemon, lime and lemongrass. If this smoothie doesn’t get you going, I am not certain what will.

I am confident that you see the trend of this post. Every dish was creatively concocted and plated, utilizing the finest ingredients and complex taste profiles. I am running out of descriptive words for the multitude of dishes, so I think instead I am going to post the rest of the entrees that we sampled and list the ingredients from their menu.

Shiromiso Salmon-Miso-marinated Atlantic salmon, pan-fried and served with roasted cauliflower, wasabi and a Yukon gold puree, elegantly paired with pickled ginger beurre blanc.

Flight Club Veal Cheek-Veal cheek wrapped in smoked bacon and cooked in a sous vide style with hints of fresh rosemary and thyme, served over creamy truffle-scented mashed potatoes with ratatouille and crispy fried leek.

Flight Club Lamb Shank-Lamb shank cooked in a sous vide style with black pepper and sweet onion and served with a Yukon gold potato puree and garnished with a Tuscan Cipollini onions confit with raisins and pine nuts.

Crispy Green Tomato Sandwich-Breaded Green tomatoes on a Kaiser bun with fresh avocado, spicy jalapeno cheese and lettuce and buttered with a smoked chipotle aioli.

I believe this one was (I may be incorrect-hey even foodies forget sometime!)…

Banh Mi Grilled Pork Wrap-Grilled pork marinated in a lemongrass topped with pickled king mushrooms, fresh garden vegetables and softly lathered with our “Flight Club” special sauce.

Golden Roasted Chicken ‘n’ Rice-Roasted chicken served on a bed of flavoured rice and fresh vegetables with traditional chilli sauce.

Vegetarian Red Curry-Healthy blend of vegetables and tofu cooked in a lightly spiced red curry sauce served with apricot and almond rice pilaf and crispy pappadam.

Sweet Lemon Cheese Dumplings-Lemon cheese filling in a sweet parcel, deep-fried and served with chocolate and salted caramel sauce.

We were delighted when the dessert came out, not because we had the room for something sweet but because it meant we could soon put our forks down. These little packets popped in your mouth!

Death by Chocolate-Decadent chocolate ice cream, bittersweet chocolate chunks, chocolate cookie crumble and milk chocolate sauce.

I have always considered this dessert title an odd one, but so appropriate in this case. I thought that I might die if I took another bite, but that didn’t stop me.

Kath’s quote. “Anybody can make you enjoy the first bite of a dish, but only a real chef can make you enjoy the last.”-Francois Minot

Love never fails.

Recently I received a late in the evening email asking if I would care to attend a luncheon at the Fort Garry Hotel the next day. A friend had been invited to attend at a sponsored table and asked if I would like to come along as well. The detail that our lunch was already paid for didn’t even matter as the invite would provide an opportunity to visit with this friend and enjoy the fabulous food of the Fort Garry Hotel.

When I arrived I realized that I would be exclusively in the company of women, a pleasure I truly love. Whether it be my daughters, my sisters or the “Media Mavens” I love the company of women. In fact one of the Mavens was unexpectedly there as well as a number of old friends. It was a truly lovely assembly of beautiful females.

The chicken and poached vegetable salad was simply exquisite, enhanced by hazelnuts and goats’ cheese. The inclusion of fennel and beets were lovely and the chicken breast was perfectly prepared.

While we finished up with gorgeous fresh fruit tarts, the Manager of Volunteers, Spiritual Care and Development began to share her personal story as well as the reason she is so devoted to the work of Jocelyn House Hospice.

I was very moved by her story, partially because I am about to have my 2 year cancer check up (there but by the grace of God go I), but also because of how inspiring Jacqueline’s personal journey was.

I am what is known as a “fixer”, always wanting to solve the problems of those I love, even when they might quite simply need only a sympathetic ear. That’s the down side of being a fixer. The upside is that I really feel compelled to contribute my time to the work of Jocelyn House in some way. Right now I am trying to discern in what manner.

In the mean while, I will continue to gravitate to the company of women, in beautiful places, sharing lovingly prepared food.

Kath’s quote: “The best kind of friendships are fierce lady friendships where you aggressively believe and defend each other and think the other deserves the world.” -Ashley Hall

Love never fails.