Richmond Hill's Person of the Year: Arnie Warner

11:16 am

Arnie Warner takes a stroll through the foyer of the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts, illuminated by the morning sun shining through a wall of windows. His eyes wander to the restored schoolhouse on the far side of its courtyard, to the rack of flyers that boast a litany of high-profile shows that have come and have yet to come: Art Garfunkel, Rigoletto, Romeo and Juliet.

For Warner and Richmond Hill, it’s a 20-year-old dream made real, years of teamwork and great personal sacrifice come to fruition. To this, he flashes an easy smile and says laconically, “I’m just a lowly Ward 2 councillor. It wasn’t just me.” The town councillor’s modesty doesn’t do justice to his steady leadership, and he certainly doesn’t believe he’s deserving of our nod for Richmond Hill’s Person of the Year — an honour Warner has earned for his efforts in building the centre, restoring the old schoolhouse and turning the municipality’s downtown area into a more business- and family-friendly place to be.

Warner was certainly not alone in the project — it took the work of hundreds of people over many years — but one doesn’t have to look far to find praise for his chairing of the steering committee to build the 600-seat, $30 million venue. “Any building like this needs a crusader, someone who will lead the charge when it comes to securing funds and the public’s interest and support,” says Eli Lukawitz, the centre’s marketing and development co-ordinator. “Councillor Warner has always been the face of this theatre. He has worked tirelessly to further the cause of this venue. And as the chair, he and the rest of the committee were the reasons why we hit the ground running. They set us up for success, and the community of Richmond Hill owes Councillor Warner and the committee a debt of gratitude.”

The centre boasts a floor-to-ceiling glass wall, a street-width floor in the lobby, a 30-seat orchestral pit, a 150-seat rehearsal hall that can be repurposed for community and corporate events and the only fly tower in York Region — allowing for shows with high-end production values. The centre is expected to generate up to $3 million per year for local shops, restaurants and other businesses. “We needed an acoustic space, and this space resonates very well,” says Philip Trow, president of Opera York, currently in residence at the centre. “It has all of the good things and there are more of them. Everyone is gaga about how good the acoustics are there. It also provides a focal point for the arts in Richmond Hill because there hasn’t really been a good theatre in that town ever where artists can come and do things. Now we can do anything, and if we can get bums in the seats, we’ll do it.” The idea of the centre was brewing since the 1980s but was put off due to cost concerns. In 2003, the town finally approved the site location at Yonge Street and Wright Street, on the site of Richmond Hill’s old town hall. The next year the steering committee, led by Warner at the behest of then mayor Bill Bell, was assembled to get the project on its feet. “We wanted to create a people place, and quite frankly, the village core needed revitalization,” says Warner. “You had the remnants of the old strip clubs, there were adult video places, and they’re mostly gone.… People weren’t coming to Richmond Hill, certainly not downtown Richmond Hill. So we decided it should be here. It started some fiery debate and it even became an election issue. But this was the right spot.”

As a resident of Richmond Hill with more than 35 years of experience in public service, Warner was tapped to lead the charge on the arts centre. Tempering democracy with efficiency, Warner balanced input from all sides while keeping the endeavour moving. There was, however, a tremendous personal cost. Warner’s wife, Kathy, died in April, a little more than a month after opening night. It was a tremendous weight to bear for the councillor, while working on the project, though his wife wouldn’t stand for his grief getting the best of him. “It absolutely made working on this more difficult,” says Warner. “I didn’t even want to go to opening night. I wanted to stay with her. But my wife wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The key to success, says Warner, has been to listen to everything that everyone has to say but not be shy about coming to a decision as time ticks down. Not everyone will get everything they want, but a consensus is the ultimate democratic goal. “You need a strong chair to steer something like this, and he steered it all right,” says Suzanne Stoner, a citizen member of the committee. “He ran a tight ship and he didn’t fool around.” “I can offer that Arnie had a real vision on the ground, and the town has felt a huge impact as a result,” adds Richmond Hill Mayor David Barrow. “There was a fraction of the people frequenting the downtown core before compared to now.” Of course, such a project doesn’t come easy, or cheap. Unco-operative weather, problems with materials and a price tag that more than doubled from the original estimate of $12 million delayed opening night for months.

Counc. Nick Papa argues that had construction begun when he first started pushing for the project in 1993 the final tab would have been less severe. Council, however, had been gun-shy of the idea for quite some time. “I know for a fact that in the beginning nobody wanted to do it. Everyone was scared to even start thinking of building one because they were concerned it would cost too much money,” Papa says. “But when Arnie did come on, he was really good. He was able to organize and get everything together for the centre to open.”

The arts community of York Region says the venue is nothing short of a godsend, unlike anything of its kind in the area. A happy end result for the largest project in the city’s history, and for Warner’s part, the most involved project that he has ever undertaken as an elected official. For that, he and the rest of the team are very proud. “We [Warner, city council and the committee] took the stage on opening night after the performances,” he says. “And I remember, as we were getting this standing ovation, that I turned to the mayor and said, ‘We really did this.’ We’re proud of it, and I think, as a town, we should be.”

North Toronto's Person of the Year: Galen G. Weston

9:06 am

EVERY CANADIAN WHO owns a television will recognize North Toronto’s Galen G. Weston (or Galen Weston Jr. or GG or G2, as his family addresses him — Galen Sr. is G1). In his button-down shirt, light brown hair and glasses,Weston is the boyish-looking spokesman for President’s Choice,offering up products that are “worth switching supermarkets for.”

The Weston family is notoriously media shy, and Galen Jr. is no exception: He lived a privileged upper-class North Toronto existence growing up, well-connected and well-educated. He attended Upper Canada College and spent summers at tennis camp. He graduated with a BA from Harvard and went on to complete an MBA at Columbia.

He returned to Toronto to work his way up through the family business. Since then,his shy looks and onscreen charm have garnered him something of a fan club: In a 2008 Vancouver Sun story, writer Shelley Fralic confessed to crushing on the 35-year-old executive chairman of Loblaw Companies Ltd., and commenters on the story online were quick to agree with her.

Likewise, a silly but charming video on YouTube featuring outtakes from a President’s Choice commercial shoot Weston filmed with a few babies has garnered more than 20,000 views and a few dozen comments along the lines of “OMG he’s so cute. I’m like totally gonna marry him!” (Indeed, until he married Bata Shoe heiress Alexandra Schmidt in 2005,Weston was considered the most eligible bachelor in Toronto.)

But anonymous YouTube commenters thinking you’re “yummy” doesn’t make you North Toronto’s Person of the Year. Weston is more than just a bespectacled, shaggy-haired figurehead. He’s been faced with plenty of skepticism and pessimism since he inherited the top job at Canada’s largest supermarket chain from his father in 2006 when he was just 33 and when the company’s stock was floundering.

But over the past three years, he’s proven himself more than just a dreamy spokesman: he’s managed to keep the company profitable during a recession and while learning on the job. More importantly, he has been intrinsic to introducing a number of environmentally and socially responsible initiatives.

In 2009, which happens to be the 20th anniversary of the President’s Choice Green branded product line, Weston undertook a number of these measures. Loblaws had the first stores in Toronto to charge a five-cent fee for plastic bags, a policy Weston enacted way back in January of this year, months before Mayor David Miller made it a city bylaw. Loblaws has been selling 99-cent reusable grocery bags made of recycled plastic for years now. It may seem like a small measure, but studies have shown that this policy has reduced wasteful plastic bag use by more than 50 per cent.

The plastic bag fee was announced in conjunction with a partnership with World Wildlife Fund. In April, on Earth Day, Loblaws announced their commitment of $3 million to WWF over the next three years.

But this isn’t the only environmental initiative Weston has come up with. Addressing an issue perhaps more urgent than plastic bags, last spring he announced the Loblaws “sustainable seafood policy initiative,” which seeks to address the current crisis of the oceans by working with environmental stakeholders, such as Greenpeace and the Marine Stewardship Council, to assess the sustainability of the store’s seafood sources. Loblaws has committed to sourcing 100 per cent sustainable seafood by 2013.

Completing a trifecta of environmentally aware moves, last month Loblaws announced that they will become the first grocery chain to have their “organic trimmings” converted into energy by late 2010. (In layperson’s terms, that means unsold produce.) Organic trimmings from the 47 stores in southwestern Ontario will be converted into energy at a new StormFisher Biogas renewable energy facility in London, Ont.

In 2006, shortly after Weston took over, Loblaws developed “five pillars of corporate social responsibility.” The aforementioned initiatives reflect those pillars (one is “source with integrity”), as does the recently implemented Loblaws “grad program,” the goal of which is to hire recent graduates from a variety of scholastic backgrounds for an 18-month program. Loblaws hopes to hire 1,000 grads over the next five years.

“We look at setting up this program as a long-term approach to investing in our future talent,” senior director of recruitment and diversity Nan Oldroyd recently told the Calgary Herald. With so many news stories these days about how hard it is for college grads to find jobs, this program couldn’t come at a better time.

A lover and supporter of the arts,Weston co-founded the Spoke Club, a private club for Toronto’s artistically minded, in 2004. By all accounts, he is modest and kind. In a Maclean’s article from August 2008, Anne Kingston calls him “the Stuart McLean of Canadian groceries.”

“He’s a very classy guy and cool under pressure,” says an acquaintance, relating an anecdote about a tied tennis match they played together. “In the third set, I was up five to three, serving for the set. I was sure I would win.We’d been playing for an hour, and I figured this hard-working CEO would be exhausted.”

But all those PC Blue Menu meals must be paying off, because Weston won the set. “He was very gracious in victory. It’s clear to me that he has a feisty, competitive spirit beneath his well-groomed corporate mien,” says the acquaintance.

Despite his privileged upbringing, Weston has never coasted along on his family’s wealth. Humble and hard-working, he has worked his way up through the Loblaws’ chain of command, and since he’s been in charge, he has used his influence as the President’s Choice figurehead to introduce a culture of corporate social and environmental responsibility.

This past year saw a significant number of improvements in the way Loblaws and President’s Choice relates to the community and to the environment.We can think of a few corporate figureheads who could do worse than to follow Weston’s lead.

Little black dress blues

8:43 am

‘I’M FEELING, WELL, a little petulant when I’m told I can’t have the fantastic red dress I’ve spied on a counter in Chris Tyrell and Jim Searle’s studio. I feel like stamping my feet. “But it’s the perfect dress,” I moan. “I can tell it will fit. I love the design, the detailing, the fabric. I love the colour. I want it!”

I’m told for a second time I can’t have it. Sigh. The red dress has been custom made and designed for another woman. (A high-profile “blogger.” Whatever.) That means, unlike at a department store or boutique, that red dress is the only one in the world. I have to get over it. And give the designers credit. Searle and Tyrell won’t budge on this.

Chris Tyrell, a former lawyer, and Jim Searle, a former architect, are the founders of Hoax Couture. Two decades ago, the partners in work and in life started hawking Tshirts on Queen Street. Within a few years, their collections were garnering international acclaim. Ten years ago, Searle and Tyrell opened their first boutique in Yorkville before moving to their current location near Queen and Spadina.

At Couture Studios, the dynamic duo’s aim is to be the “ultimate stop for custom-made fashion.” Today, I’m on a mission. I want a little black dress (an LBD) something every woman should own, especially this time of year when holiday parties are in full swing.

Though Searle and Tyrell make house calls, I’d suggested visiting them at their studio/home. One can’t help but dig their vibe. I have to walk down an alley decorated with colourful graffiti, enter through a back door, walk up four flights of stairs, then across a large rooftop garden, to get to their live-work space. It’s a hidden gem. A tray of mini-desserts is on hand, along with the offer of tea or coffee. (Yes, they do this for all their clients.) For designers, they’re neither pushy nor diva-ish. They’re mature, friendly and laid-back.

“It is hard to find good custom-made designers,” Searle told me when I phoned to make my appointment. “A lot of them are more seamstresses than actual designers. And their clothes are a little too ‘mother of the bride,’ if you know what I mean.” I own at least a half dozen LBDs. “Not one of them is perfect,” I explain. “For some reason, I always think I’ve found the perfect LBD, but then, when I go pull them out a second time, they don’t seem so perfect.” Searle and Tyrell nod sympathetically.

“We hear that a lot from women,” says Tyrell. “Most women do own a little black dress, and they’ll say,‘If only the neck were deeper,’or ‘If only it were a little shorter,’ it would be perfect.’” If only. If only. If only. Today, I hope that I’ll never have to say, “If only this dress …” again.

Tyrell and Searle have a large celebrity following. Their designs have been seen on every major awards show, including the Oscars, and worn by such personalities as Molly Johnson, Diana Krall, Alanis Morrisette, Jada Pinkett and Will Smith. I tell the duo I have the perfect LBD in my head, and that’s where the benefit in getting something custom made comes to the fore. Even if it doesn’t exist, it can! Searle pulls out his computer, and we look at images together, discussing dresses and who looks good and who doesn’t.

All clients meet with Tyrell and Searle at least three times. The first meeting is to discuss what they’re looking for. (And, yes, if you’ve seen a high-end designer dress and want them to copy it, they can do that, too. We looked at the Prada collection). “Any information you bring us is good information,” says Searle. The second meeting is where measurements are taken. The third is to make sure everything fits perfectly.

Though they do like working with colour, they maintain that every woman, no matter what shape, size or colour, looks good in an LBD. “You can still go to a party in a little black dress and stand out,” says Tyrell. “And little black dresses are timeless.” Are they honest with clients about what will look good on them or not?

“For sure,” says Searle. “That’s part of why you get a custom-made dress.” They have hundreds of patterns on hand. And there are a number of fabric stores in the vicinity, which makes it easy to run out to check fabrics. I’ve decided I want two dresses. (This pampered princess can’t help herself.) I want the red one that I can’t have, but we’ve decided (ha-ha blogger girl!) to alter the design … slightly.

They are also going to design the perfect little black dress for me, with a low-cut neck, short but simple. A custom-made dress costs $350 to $800. At the end of our first meeting, I’m on cloud nine. “This is the part I love,” says Tyrell. “When we know we’ve all come up with something perfect, it feels euphoric.”

At my second fitting, I feel like I’m visiting a plastic surgeon. Except Searle isn’t taking a marker to my face. I’ve put on a muslin fabric — a thin potato bag fabric — and he marks it up, showing me how the dress will fit and where he’ll cut away fabric. In one week, I’ll not only have a little red dress but a perfect LBD. Searle says it usually never takes them more than three weeks, from start to finish.

I can’t wait for people to say, “I want your dress.” They won’t be able to have it. It is one of a kind and all mine.

T.O.’s goose down dreams

11:23 pm

1st PLACE – LET IT SNOW!

On Sonia, Bogner, $1,358.00
On Xiao Nan Yu, Canada Goose, $485

Respectively starring as the sugar plum fairy and the snow queen in this year’s National Ballet production of The Nutcracker, Sonia Rodriguez and Xiao Nan Yu know how to tackle the elements with poise and pas de bourres. Nan prefers the Canada Goose Chilliwack parka because it’s “incredibly warm, brightly coloured and so easy to throw on,” whereas Sonia can’t get enough of the Bogner jade parka that she says is the perfect length and a classic combination of comfortable and chic.

Where to get it: (Bogner) Sign of the Skier: 2794 Yonge St. 416-488-2118
(Canada Goose) Higher Ground: 2488 Yonge St. 416-486-2488

HOT CHOCOLATE

FOCCE RAMONA JACKET, $975

Break the ice with this one-of-a-kind Italian showstopper that’s as perfect for a ritzy holiday party as it is for a midnight skate.

Where to get it: Janan 87 Avenue Rd., 416-926-0597

CREME DE LA CREME

CANADIAN SPIRIT JACKET $400
Any style-savvy ski bunny would kill to sport this sleek and ultra-light parka on the slopes.
Where to get it:Tzatz 2512 1/2 Yonge St., 416-481-0311

CLASSIC COAL

MICHAEL KORS QUILTED COAT $495
This full-length designer piece is as warm and snug as it is elegant and classic. The built-in belt makes it flattering to all frames.
Where to get it: Chadwick’s Bayview Village, 416-512-6900

FIRE ON ICE

PARAJUMPERS GOBI PARKA, $970
Add some serious heat to your holiday with this sexy high-cut bomber. Unzip the hood to display an incredible neck piece.
Where to get it: Stylexchange Promenade Shopping Centre, Thornhill, 905-707-6684

On a wing and a player

9:55 pm

1ST PLACE
MOST AUTHENTIC!

Crown & Dragon, 890 Yonge St.
Thomas and the boys used to meet up for wings twice a week after practice, so rest assured he knows his mild from his medium. He loves Crown & Dragon’s “smokin’ gun” wings even though the flavour eludes him. “I don’t know what it is, but I like it,” he says with a big grin. So how does it compare to the wings back home? “I think it would do good,” he says. “A lot of people like their wings like that.” PRICE: $9.95

Click here to find out Thurman’s favourite place for wings in Buffalo

2ND PLACE

St. Louis Wings, 808 York Mills Rd.
Thomas waxes about the great texture, tender chicken and understated spiciness. This concoction would hold its own back in Buffalo, says Thomas. Price: $9.95

THIRD PLACE

All-Star Wings, 10720 Yonge St.
The sauce on these has Thomas licking his lips, but he’s most excited about the “perfect size” of the drumsticks: “It’s not too fat, but there’s enough on there,” he says. Price: $8.45

FOURTH PLACE

McSorley’s, 1544 Bayview Ave.

“This is good. Not a bam, but a zing,” says Thomas. He’s a fan of the charred texture and the homemade sauce, and he breaks out in a sweat after only one. Price: $6.99 for six whole wings

FIFTH PLACE

Duff’s Famous Wings, 1604 Bayview Ave.

“This one makes me sweat real good,” says Thomas, dabbing his forehead with a napkin. A bit too spicy for his taste, but an otherwise dynamite dish. Price: $9.75

Designer's guy-de to the Distillery District

9:22 pm

Not five minutes after I meet Canadian design gurus Chris Hyndman and Steven Sabados in Toronto’s famous pedestrian village, a small pug sporting a Dolce and Gabbana cardigan runs toward us. The event serves as the perfect prelude for our day in the Distillery, lovingly described by Steven and Chris as stylish, charming and a always a little unexpected.

Over the past seven years Steven and Chris— whose former show, Designer Guys, made them a household name—attest to having spent countless hours inside the gates of 55 Mill Street. These days when they’re not shooting their wildly popular CBC talk show, Steven and Chris, they invariably come here in search of inspiration tucked carefully within this 13-acre Victorian hideaway.

“I think a lot of people just don’t know that this place is always changing,” says Steven as we grab a green tea from Balzac’s Coffee Roastery. “We come down so frequently because after two weeks you’ll find that there’s totally different merchandise. There’s a great sense of movement here”. Chris chimes in that as long-time Eastenders and proud representatives of the ever-evolving world of design, the transformative face of the Distillery is, literally and figuratively, right up their alley.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in the Distillery, as small teams of men string lights around evergreens that line the main Trinity Street drag.

“This is definitely the best time of year to come to this area,” he adds. “There are always amazing events going on and the shop owners really go all out with their products with the holidays around the corner.” One such store is the Vintage Gardener, the first stop we make on our journey.

“This is our favourite store for mood,” says Chris of the tiny little space filled to the brim with plants and garden pieces. “It’s like something out of a fairytale, or like being in some lovely person’s garden shed”

A few steps northwest bring us to Bergo Designs in the Link Building.

“We featured this on our show once” says Steven holding up a glossy, bright red human figure, whose been impaled with a handful of large kitchen knives. In theory, the item is a knife-rack, but Chris is quick to explain that it’s so much more. “We talked to a woman who had gone through a tough divorce and her best friend gave her this as a gift and told her to think of her ex-husband everytime she used it. She told us that the item made her laugh so much that she, over time, found it easier to reconcile with her ex. Now they’re great friends!”

As we continue along on our journey everything we see seems to remind the two long-time partners of another Distillery tale. “I remember we walked into the Corkin Gallery and on display there were these incredible charcoal drawings of wolves. I still think it was the best show we’d ever seen”.

The pair agree that they should do a Steven and Chris spotlight on galleries, as we walk into the Artscape Studios building — where local artists keep shop on two floors with winding hallways.The space is extremely open concept – with glass walls enabling passersby to gaze at the artists in action as they fashion the very products that will line their shelves.

The guys are especially interested in a Tanya Kirouac encaustic painting on a gallery wall. The forest scene depicted on the canvas is made entirely of pigmented beeswax and its smell couldn’t be more fitting.

“We love that you can actually speak to the artists here,” says Steven.

By this time we’re hungry and we begin to head west towards Distillery lane. En route, Steven and Chris insist that we peek into the Stone Distillery Fermenting Cellar, where a seminar appears to be in session. “There’s always something different going on here,” says Chris. “And it’s a stunning and totally unique venue for parties and weddings.”

The cellar space is huge, with massive stone walls and gorgeous windows hat cast a gothic light on scattered visitors. A crowd of 20 or so are sitting by a stage in the southeast corner, listening to a young man host a hands-on workshop about do-it-yourself wreath making.

After browsing through many a vendor’s booth, we can no longer ignore our rumbling tummies. The Taste of Quebec beckons us with its aromas of baking bread and promises of fine cheese.

The owner Thom Sokolanski doesn’t let us down. Trained in France, he treats us to an over-the-top tasting session, offering samples of fromage that go for more than $250 a wheel. He whispers that his Quebecoise sugar pies are a season specific steal.Chris proclaims that this is now his favourite store. He’s especially fond of Thom’s friendly approach—an attitude that makes the Distillery the perfect neighbourhood.

“It’s all about the atomsphere ,” says Steven as Chris nods in agreement.

I choose to believe them because, after all, they are the experts.

It's all about local at Corktown's Gilead Café

10:28 am

The Gilead Café has an obscure location, in an alley south off King Street, but what a charming and casual venue. Here Chef Jamie Kennedy is doing what he loves to do: selecting the very best local fare from farmers and food producers, crafting the products in his long established creative, minimal way, and adding culinary touches that are all about harmonious and complementary flavours and textures. I loved watching Chef Kennedy work, moving like a conductor leading a slow symphony — each of his long-practiced fluid and efficient movements assembling the ingredients on the plate as he regularly assesses and adjusts the esthetics of the presentation.

This night, Chef Kennedy worked with Ontario’s own Rosehall Run Winery, featuring the best Rosehall wines for each course. The beef was supplied by the noteworthy beef purveyor, Cumbrae Farms. Steve Alexander, the owner of Cumbraes, has a remarkable husbandry program that he closely supervises with his own farmers, making sure the cattle are raised humanely on a specially selected diet. This, and his wonderful aging program, are the secrets to the great taste of his beef.

To begin, a refreshing, pale 2008 Rosehall Run Sullyzwicker rose was enjoyed with the passed hors d’oevres: a wonderfully sweet scallop with a sauce of spinach, shallots and white wine, more remarkable because the roe sack was left attached (My favourite part!! Scallops are rarely served this way in Toronto); smoked white fish canapes and crab and green pea arancini.

Our first course was a slice of seared rare Cumbrae’s hanger steak with Kennedy’s own pickled vegetables of cauliflower and heirloom red carrot. The wine served was the 2007 Rosehall Sullyzwicker red. This wine had enough body and acidity to work with the meat and pickled vegetables. More importantly, I loved how the tarte taste of the crunchy pickled vegetables offset the nutty, full flavour and texture of the soft beef.

A light course followed, an intensely beefy double consommé made with beef shank and tendons, a complex flavourful clear broth with wild mushrooms that woke up my palate.

Smoky, crispy, belly and mildly spicy back ribs of whey-fed pork were served with apple, carrot and red cabbage slaw. For an interesting pairing, this dish was served with a tarte 2007 Rosehall Jamie Kennedy Chardonnay, a wine well matched to the smoky and rich spiciness of the pork.

Our last course before dessert was rare roast prime rib of beef with celery root puree, whole-roasted garlic cloves and chopped leeks. This course was served with 2007 Rosehall Jamie Kennedy Pinot Noir.

Ah, dessert!! As my partner Elaine remarked: she could have started with dessert! Bread and butter pudding with maple black walnut ice cream — a noteworthy finish to a truly fine dinner.

Word has it that Chef Kennedy will be opening the Gilead café on a regular basis for dinners. We shall await that opportunity to continue to experience Chef Kennedy’s wonderful craftsmanship with his local selection of the finest tasting produce of Ontario.

Gilead Café — 4 Gilead Place, Toronto. 647-288-0680

Dr. Josh Josephson is the owner of The Cookbook Store and Josephson Opticians. He is a chevalier of Les Chevalier du Tastevin and the Le Chaine des Rotisseurs, a member of L’ordre Mondiale and a member and former president of the International Wine and Food Society, Toronto chapter.

Indulge your shopping fantasies at Girl Friday

7:57 am

Here’s the thing about Girl Friday… women LOVE this store!

Girl Friday is a regular stop on the Casual Chic boutique shopping tour, so women with many different style preferences, body shapes, and budgets have entered the store. Invariably, they leave with a few new “favourites” in their hands.

Girl Friday owner Rebecca Nixon runs two boutiques in Toronto, and designs the house-branded clothing line sold in boutiques across Canada. The designs are classic, easy-to-wear, and affordable.

In addition to their house line, Girl Friday carries casually chic designs like Soia and Kyo coats from Montreal, Dish jeans from Vancouver, and Akiko’s beautiful silk blouses from L.A.

To complete your casual chic ensemble, Girl Friday offers a wide array of shoes and accessories like wallets from Hobo International that double as a clutch purse in a pinch.

When you need an outfit for brunch with the girls, Girl Friday is your one-stop casual chic boutique!

Girl Friday has two Toronto Locations:
740 Queen Street West – 416.364.2511
776 College Street – 416.531.1036

Always on the lookout for Toronto’s best boutiques!
Wendy

As a personal style coach with THE REFINERY, Wendy Woods translates the world of fashion into a personal style that makes her clients shine, while introducing them to Toronto’s unique boutiques.

A blind wine tasting at the new Splendido

7:53 am

The new Splendido has a very casual but elegant atmosphere. It’s a great place to take a first date, have a 50th anniversary, or just to meet for a business dinner. The new co-owners are Carlo Catallo, a highly experienced and knowledgeable sommelier, and Victor Barry, who served as executive chef alongside former owner, chef David Lee.

Together with a group of good friends, all who have extensive wine cellars, we gathered to taste the fruits of the wonderful 1990 vintage. The tasting was conducted with all of the wines masked and numbered by the restaurant staff. There were 12 wines in all, presented in two flights of six bottles.

Before we began, we enjoyed canapés of butter-poached lobster with a slice of fresh white truffle. The highly fragrant truffle was incredibly flattering to the taste of the very sweet lobster, which in turn was also enhanced by the butter.

As the first six bottles were presented, we enjoyed pork and pistachio torchon touched with a bit of grainy mustard and beef tartar with black pepper on a potato chip. The first six wines turned out to be Charmes Chambertin Castagnier, Tignanello, Chateau Cheval Blanc, Barolo Paolo Scavino Bric del Fiasc, Chateau-Neuf Du Pape Reserve Celestin and Chateau Palmer.

The favourite top three wines were Barolo Paolo Scavino in first, Chateau Cheval Blanc in second and finally the Chateau-Neuf-du-Pape Reserve Celestin. With the exception of the Charmes Chambertin, which was corked, all of the wines were big and bold — possessing a highly aromatic nose while presenting quite a bit of fruit on the palate. Clearly, this was a very successful vintage.

We enjoyed these wines with the courses that followed:

A foie gras parfait “Victor” — a signature dish of the chef combining duck and chicken liver in a silky-smooth combination, a piece of toasted slice of brioche and a preserved plum in 5 year old rum.
A house-made pappardelle tossed with parmesan cheese and very liberally dusted with grated Molise black truffle — a sensationally heady aromatic dish with the very well-made, well-textured pasta.

The next flight of six bottles followed: Il Poggione Brunello, Chateau Lynch Bages, Chateau de Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin, La Turque, Chateau Clinet and Chateau Beausejour. This flight seemed comprised of even bigger wines.

Three of the bottles had received a perfect 100 points on wine critic Robert Parker’s rating system. Those three were the favourites with first place going to Hommage a Jacques Perrin, an exceptional wine that was virtually perfect in every way. In second, Chateau Clinet and third was La Turque.

The final dish we enjoyed with the second flight was an extraordinary, rare Cumbrae Farms Black Angus rib steak, seared and cooked sous-vide, one piece, a cut of the eye and the other, the deckle — the wonderfully flavoured, soft textured flap that surrounds the eye. This privately selected beef, served with a thyme peppercorn jus, had to be one of the very best beef experiences I have had anywhere in Toronto, New York or Buenos Aires!!

The perfectly cooked, well-marbled beauty was wonderfully tender and juicy, possessing the lovely nuttiness characteristic of proper aging. Clearly, this cow was fed a very well selected diet, one that has become typical of the husbandry maintained by Cumbrae’s owner, Steven Alexander, with his farmer partners.

I would come to Splendido once again, just to enjoy this beef perfection before I would venture to any of Toronto’s vaunted steak houses… some of which serve beef that is quite wonderful as well.

These fish will make your tastebuds smelt

11:01 am

Smelts are a lovely small whitefish, usually six-to-nine inches in length, with a sweet, clean flavour. The smelt is mostly fried up, but some will pickle them as well.

The smelts come up river by the thousands to spawn in the early spring and folks will just stand in the river and fish them out with dip nets — like shooting fish in a barrel.

There is, however, a winter smelt fishery — if you happen to find the right person willing to brave the cold. Looks like I’ve found the right people.

New London Bay, P.E.I., home of the Green Gable oyster from George Dowdle, is also home for a nice catch of smelts. Dressed and shipped from the L&C fisheries, the smelts landed at Starfish on Monday last, with a colour and shine I haven’t seen yet on a spring smelt.

We fried them up in a lightly-seasoned flour and cornmeal jacket, thin enough to see through. It helped provide a crisp crunch. The meat was the sweetest and tastiest around. No sauce required, no lemon, just sweet, firm smelts. Held by the tail you can eat through the bones, and lick your fingers — it’s only proper.

The other method we tried on the smelt was a light brine and smoke, which will make a great cold appetizer.

As with all things good and wholesome, the smelt won’t be around all the time. I will have them land on Mondays and Thursdays — weather and Mother Nature permitting.

On another note, I am growing a MOustache for MOvember as part of a fundraiser and awareness for Prostate Cancer (so is the team at Post City Magazines). It’s not as physically grueling as say a marathon, but just as effective.

Two things:

1) Come on down to Starfish or The Ceili Cottage and have a laugh at what I call a Moustache — for the cost of $1 per comment — to the cause of course. Just try to make me cry!

2) I’ll be having a MOvember party at The Ceili Cottage on MOnday, MOvember 30th – all procedes to the cause, and EVERYONE is to be wearing a MO. Ladies included — there will be a craft table at the front door to create your own MO.

Shuckingly yours, Paddy

Patrick McMurray is the owner of Starfish Oyster Bed & Grill and The Ceili Cottage. He is also a World Champion Oyster Shucker. Catch his blog weekly at PostCity.com.

The biggest trend for fall: Biker jackets

10:27 am

One of the great perks of my business is that I get the chance to travel to some of the greatest cities in the world to tour fabric shows and meet with fabric mills.

Every fall and spring, I make the trek to the biggest and most prestigious fabric show in the world called Premiere Vision held in Paris.

Of most benefit is that I get trend direction regarding fabrics for the following year at the show, plus some great inspiration from what is currently in the shops and on the backs of Parisian women.

Yes, it’s true. They are chic. And when they’re really well-dressed, they are super chic. The women of Paris are a great source of inspiration to me.

This fall I went to Paris and found that I had hit the nail on the head in terms of fashion direction. The biggest trend in terms of outerwear jackets was biker jackets.

They were all over the catwalks for fall in collections by the biggest names, done in black wool with silver zipper details.

My interpretation of the biker jacket is called the veltroni jacket. It’s done in a fine black wool coating with silver zipper details.

I also designed one in a funky purple wool boucle and a black-and-white tweed version.

So sometimes the French are not ahead of us in fashion. Sometimes, we are right in sync.

A la prochaine, mes amis!

With three corporate stores in Toronto, Franco Mirabelli continues to distinguish himself as one of Canada’s strongest fashion talents. Keep up with him by following his weekly blog at PostCity.com or by visiting mirabelli.com.

Wilkinson brings French classics to The Roosevelt Room

8:13 am

Toronto native Trevor Wilkinson is putting his French cooking roots to good use in a decidedly forward-thinking environment: a supper club in Toronto’s entertainment district.

After plying his trade in the finest of the city’s kitchens, working with Michael Bonacini at Jump, as well as Marc Thuet and David Lee at Centro, three years ago Wilkinson opened the doors to his own, eponymous French bistro—Trevor Kitchen & Bar. With a solid team in place, Wilkinson eyed his next challenge, and along came Jeff O’Brien and his new concept supper club, The Roosevelt Room. Designed by Allen Chan, Anwar Mukhayesh and Matt Davis (HGTV’s The Designer Guys), the space is contemporary Art Deco that oozes a French cabaret style.

Despite the cooler-than-thou looks, Wilkinson’s approach to the food remains the same: "good cooking, nothing flashing, French techniques and really good quality ingredients — pot, wooden spoon, fire." There is, however, a nod to the Hollywood glamour period in the menu.

After the first draft of the Roosevelt carte was passed around and it was looking good, someone found an old menu from the first Academy Awards, at the Roosevelt Hotel in 1929, coincidentally. A classic French menu, it inspired Wilkinson and owner Jeff O’Brien to abandon their earlier efforts and craft a new (yet old) version of the historic menu. Expect a dinner menu high on French classics such as soupe a l’oignon, steak frites and coq au vin.

"I have a real love for French food," says Wilkinson. "Duck confit, foie gras, they are some of my favourite things to eat."

The Roosevelt Room, in keeping with the supper club format, serves dinner starting at 5 p.m. with no reservations past 8:30 p.m., when the slow transformation to night club takes place.

For more information go to www.therooseveltroom.ca. The Roosevelt Room is located at 2 Drummond Pl., 416-599-9000.

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