Based on Green Day’s Grammy-winning album of the same name, this straight-from-Broadway musical weaves the story of three friends forced to choose between their dreams and the safety of suburbia (tell me about it). Music featured includes “Wake Me Up When September Ends,” but, sorry, Billie Joe fans: No Green Day members appear in this production. Toronto Centre for the Arts, 5040 Yonge St., 416-644-3665. Dec. 28 – Jan. 15.
In this new Cirque du Soleil production, a young girl escapes boredom through a world of imagination (tell me about it), which features dance, music, aerialists and performers who bend in extraordinary ways. Ricoh Coliseum, 100 Princes’ Blvd., 416-870-8000. Dec. 20 – Dec. 30.
Alice in Blunderland
This original musical-comedy pantomime puts a twist on the Lewis Carroll classic with the likes of the Pink Cheshire Panther and Rob and Doug Tweedledumb. There’s also a naughty panto on the Dec. 31, which is a date you might not want to be late for. Red Sandcastle Theatre, 922 Queen St. E., 416-845-9411. Dec. 26 – Jan. 7.
Stuck for ideas for where to take the kiddies during the holiday break? You might want to check out the Puppetmongers’ unique adaptation of The Princess and the Pea, which includes clever servants who conspire to create a happy ending for their employers, all set in a teeny-tiny mansion. Tarragon Theatre, Extra Space, 30 Bridgman Ave., 416-531-1827. Dec. 26 – Jan. 1.
Kick-start 2012 with some big laughs at the 11th Comedy Extravaganza, hosted by SCTV alum, Gemini-award-winning actress and all-around funny lady, Andrea Martin. The show also features top Canadian comedians (like Steve Patterson) handpicked by Yuk Yuk’s founder Mark Breslin. Massey Hall, 178 Victoria St., 416-872-4255. Dec. 31 @ 7:30 pm.
Earlier today, we stumbled across this National Geographic list of the best foods to eat in Ontario. There are actually a few surprises here, but most of them stem from the publication’s complete lack of originality more than anything. Especially with maple syrup at the top of the list, which is tantamount to listing chop suey as the best food to eat in China’s Guangdong province.
Toronto is mentioned on the list twice. The first is for pasta, but not because of great restaurants like Buca. No, it’s worth making the trek to Toronto because that’s where pasta manufacturer Primo is based. Because, clearly, nothing is better than mass-produced pasta. Apparently our jerk chicken is pretty sweet too.
Other notable foods coming out of the province include wild blueberries, pickerel and cheddar cheese from our many great dairies — you know, like Balderson.
Strangely, Tim Hortons is nowhere to be found. Check out the full list here.
The “affable” Rob Ford gives a year-end interview to The Globe, wherein he confirms the obvious: he really likes Tim Hortons and McDonald’s. [Globe and Mail]
Toronto’s paramedics say the city is trying to force an essential service designation on them while denying them bargaining rights granted to other critical workers. [Globe and Mail]
Some economists are worried that a rush of condo sales is on the horizon in Toronto. Condo investors may be headed for the exits as the economy weakens and profits become harder to come by. [Globe and Mail]
Ontario’s health minister has ordered the ORNGE air ambulance service — a publically-funded agency — to open its books to provincial investigators. [Toronto Star]
Mike Zigomanis of the Toronto Marlies is in the spotlight over an alleged appearance on a revenge porn website. He has hired a lawyer to help deal with the issue. [Toronto Sun]
When owner Mike Derbyshire took over the old Sharkey’s Village Café a few months ago, his plan was to ride out the summer with the old business and launch a new restaurant during the slower fall season. So after closing for six weeks of intense renovations — during which countless passersby tried to peek in through the covered windows — The Kennedy Public House opened its doors to reveal a space that is completely its own.
And so far, Bloor West is happy. In its first week, the Kennedy had a wait list for tables from Tuesday to Saturday night.
The line up may be because of the women.
“Women often (chose) where a couple will go,” says general manager, Larry Clarke. “And women will not go to a crummy washroom.”
Ditching the former (we assume crummy) basement loo, the Kennedy now has a glamorous, sparkling-clean unisex water closet, with five spacious private stalls. The space is so fine that we took our time washing our hands and fixing our hair. We felt like we were somewhere special.
The wood on the table tops and flooring at the Kennedy, on the other hand, really is special. It's 1000-year-old fir, reclaimed from a 250-year-old barn in western Canada. The carpenter came from out west with the wood and did his work on-site. If you look closely, you can see antique, hand-forged nails in the table tops.
Derbyshire scoured the Toronto Archives and covered his walls with old pictures of the neighbourhood. Favourites are an image of an old local bath house and a large mural showing the building of the streetcar tracks on Bloor West.
And then, of course, there’s the food. Head chef Tristan D'Souza, formerly of the Toronto Hunt Club, has created a menu that combines traditional comfort food created with chef expertise.
Take the macaroni and cheese ($16), which is about as far of a cry from the stuff in the box as you can get. D’Souza makes a porcini asiago cream sauce — which includes a medley of shiitake, button and crimini mushrooms — and tops it off with lemon-thyme bread crumbs. Then there’s the smoked pork belly and bean cassoulet ($12), which Clarke says people at the grand opening went nuts over, and the fried chicken with jalapeño waffles, covered in a housemade chicken gravy and garnished with peppered watermelon ($18).
Fun sides include the black and tan onion rings ($6) which are drizzled with Guinness and have a sweet flavour, and the smoked nuts. D’Souza smokes almonds, pecans, cashews and roasted corn and serves them in a Mason jar. ($7, or $4 for a refill.)
A major supplier is Gordon Food Service, and there are many local craft beers on tap. (Though brew from the big guys is also served.)
Regardless, those smoked nuts sound like they’d go great with anything.
Up at the Toronto Centre for the Arts,a very recent musical is playing. It's also Tony award-winning, but don't let that put you off. Written by the solid librettist Joe DiPietro, along with David Byran, the gifted composer and long-time keyboardist of rock group Bon Jovi, Memphis is a fine show that I wish could have stayed for months in Toronto, butit's running until only Dec. 24.
The story is lightly based on a (white) disc jockey in the '50s in the southern United States who did a daring thing at the time: he started to play "race music." Of course, he also helped turn Elvis Presley into one of the most popular and beloved musical stars of the 20th century. (Presley's real claim to fame was that he almost single-handedly made African-American music acceptable to the American white majority.)
Bryan's music consists of pretty satisfactory imitations of mid-century rock 'n' roll. The white DJ Huey is played wonderfully by Bryan Fenkart, and Felicia, the black female singer who rides to the top and beyond (and is also the DJ's love interest), is played by the striking Felicia Boswell, whose voice is booming and ethereal.
I was personally moved to tears a dozen times, since I was involved in Mississippi's Freedom Summer of 1964 as a teacher, and experienced the glorious rhythm and blues of the local Baptist church — the likes of which gave birth to modern rock 'n' roll — every single Sunday.
Memphis is delightful entertainment. It's hardly a great musical — you may not be able to hum a single tune from the show — but it has a rollicking sense of freedom, and it's full of hope for America to grow into multi-racial greatness.
Allan Gould is Post City Magazines’ theatre critic. He has a Ph.D. in english and theatre from York University and has written over 40 books. His writing has appeared in Toronto Life, Chatelaine, en Route, Canadian Business, Good Times and Financial Post. He is married with two children. Aside from his family, his major passions are theatre and film, because they enrich life with pleasure and meaning.
This month, Organic Meadow will have produced a whopping 15,000 litres off eggnog — up 60 per cent from last year. (That's something like 180,000 eggs. That's a lot of eggs). Despite a rise in popularity in this carton of foamy goodness, here at Post City, we decided that if we're going to drink the stuff, we might as well make it. Below, some help on how to whip up eggnog in your own kitchen.
Because the actual ingredients from Organic Meadow are a highly guarded secret, Product Manager Jennifer Hyde suggested a base mix for us average Joes wanting to DIY our eggnog this year. Here's what you need to serve eight people. Ready?
– Eggs. Twelve of them. Preferably organic. – Six cups of milk. – Two cups of heavy cream. – One and a half cups of sugar. – A quarter cup of brandy. – Two teaspoons of nutmeg. (Add-ons include but are not limited to: bourbon, rum, cinnamon and/or mint).
1. Right before you start, have a nip of rum to get the fire in the belly started.
2. Grab your eggs and start beating them. It's been a rough year, so really, really beat those eggs up. The colour you are looking for is a rich yellow, similar to butter.
3. Mix in the brandy, and cool the mixture in the fridge. You can store it the night before your party, but doing it a few hours before guests arrive is considered best.
4. You may have some time to kill. So, grab a drink and sing some carols. Sing off-key to get the dog singing too.
5. In a separate bowl, pour in the milk and add sugar for the sweet, sweet taste. Stir until sugar has dissolved. If you see grains of sugar floating around, like dandruff, it means you haven't stirred long enough.
6. Inside the last bowl (yep, that’s three bowls) drop in the heavy cream and, as Devo sang, “Whip it, whip it good.”
7. When that is done, you are nearly there. Have another nip of rum as a reward for getting this far as you’ll soon be wowing your party guests.
8. Mix the three bowls together and your base is complete.
9. The rest is up to you. You can add nutmeg on top, or more booze or whipped cream. Tip: the more booze you add, the more it dulls the egg flavour. So if you love a frothy egg taste, use less booze.
And, if you really can't be bothered to prepare this yourself, go to your nearest grocery store. There, you'll find Christmas wrapped inside a carton.
Over a century after the first underground pedestrian paths were built in the city, Toronto is debating plans to expand the world’s longest underground shopping complex south, towards the waterfront. [Globe and Mail]
City politics isn’t the only tricky field for Rob Ford to maneuver. For the third week in a row, the football fanatic mayor has lost the weekly city hall football pool to a political foe. [Toronto Star]
Construction on the long-awaited rail link between Pearson Airport and Union Station will begin in the spring. [CBC]
It appears as though the 2012 budget is taking its toll on city councillor and budget chief Mike Del Grande. But budget burnout is nothing new, the National Post reports. [National Post]
The Republican mayor of a Mississippi city has been forced to admit he is gay after submitting a receipt, from a purchase made in a Toronto sex store, to state auditors amid a spending scandal. [Toronto Sun]
Whether you’ve been noshing on them your whole life at the Hanukkah table or have just recently discovered their fried goodness, most agree there’s something great about potato latkes. It’s why Zane Caplansky of Caplansky’s Delicatessen held the second Latkepalooza event Sunday night.
“Potato latkes have a certain universal appeal,” Caplansky says. “You can’t go too wrong with fried potatoes and a little schmaltz.”
True, you can’t. But everyone has an opinion on what makes a great latke. And it doesn’t always include schmaltz.
Take Jason Rees, who runs Pork Ninjas, a competitive barbeque business. He was the last latke contestant to arrive, and had a table full of Pork Ninja T-shirt-wearing friends waiting for him when he did.
It’s doubtful Rees’ latkes were ever made by anyone’s bubbie. Cooked in duck fat, made with cranberries and topped with crème fraîche, caviar and apple sauce, Rees’ latkes are about as non-traditional as you can get.
“Last year I showed up late, with too few latkes,” says Rees, who made the required three-dozen latkes this year. “There are secret magical ingredients in the apple sauce.”
But non-traditional latkes aren’t for everyone. Lorne Zimmerman came to Caplansky’s to support another Latkepalooza champ hopeful, friend Ronny Shinder.
“There are a lot of things you can put in latkes,” Zimmerman says, biting into one of Rees’ creations. “Caviar isn’t one of them.”
Zimmerman tells his friend and latke virgin Audrey Yates that the size of the latke is always important. At the other end of the restaurant, Rees takes a bite of his magic applesauce and caviar-topped latke and inadvertently agrees with Zimmerman.
“I always say I’ll make them small and they come out big,” Rees says. “That’s the Pork Ninja way.”
Rees has some serious competition. Shinder, for example, has been making latkes en mass for years. Back in the day, he hosted latke parties at his photography studio, making 500 potato pancakes for his nearest and dearest every Hanukkah.
“They change from batch to batch,” he says. “I’m not very good at quantities.”
Shinder saved a special hot sauce he bought in Arizona for the occasion, and had chives and salsa, tamari sauce, applesauce and sour cream as toppings. Despite the wide topping selection, Shnider says his latkes usually turn out better.
“It’s the re-heating,” he says. “If you don’t re-heat them, they turn out crisper.” (It may be true, but Caplansky says it’s too complicated for insurance reasons to have that many cooks in the kitchen frying-up latkes.)
The other contestants were chef Keir Weseloh, who brought in sweet potato latkes, made with the whites from green onions, and Eric Bernhard brought in latkes based on a recipe from his Jewish-Italian great grandmother. “It’s russet potatoes, sugar, and fresh thyme,” Bernhard says.
Customers rated the latkes without knowing who made them. At the end of the day, it turned out that Caplansky’s own latkes were the house favourite.
Or make that second favourite.
“The best latkes are your mother’s,” Zimmerman says. “Well, my mother’s.”
Last week at the Phoenix, an audience was brought to complete silence by an a cappella rendition of “Peace In The Valley” from Cold Specks. The Etobicoke-born singer — whose real name is Al Spx — has been turning heads in the United Kingdom recently. On Thursday, she opened for St. Vincent, and though she hadn’t written the opening song, her soulful and modern take on the highly-regarded classic proved to be an apt embodiment of her original music.
When you strip away the haunting guitar and simple acoustic melodies, Specks’ songs are gospel through and through. Like most gospel music, her take on the storied genre is dark and unrelenting. Unlike most gospel music, the characters in her songs find little instances of light or hope. Even the stage banter was heavy. Spx tried to lighten the mood of her brooding and mesmerizing set with a joke: “two cannibals are eating a clown together. One looks to the other and says ‘Does this taste funny to you?’” The punch line was hardly a surprise, but within the context of her set, the joke only added to her aspect of darkness.
Jokes aside, Specks’ voice remained the focus of the set. Hers is powerful and dominant, and at times otherworldly. She seems to channel voices of the past and sings with a confidence that defies her story: a singer who hardly performed in public throughout the majority of her young career, save for some small backyard parties. As Specks repeated the line “I predict the graceful explosion” towards the end of her set, it was hard to tell whether it was a premonition of her own imminent fame or some beautiful end to society.
The performance came to a close with a solo rendition of “Lay Me Down.” The lyrics “with my last breath my soul will slip” rang heavy with the crowd, which was more than likely unprepared for such a powerful opening act.
Specks may not be re-inventing the wheel with her “doom soul” spin on gospel music, but her voice alone is reason enough to check it out.
It seems the Price is Right for retired game show host Bob Barker. He has said he will pay out of his own pocket to have three African elephants from the Toronto Zoo moved to a sanctuary in California. [Toronto Star]
While a white Christmas in Toronto this year is unlikely, Google is finding another way to bring you snow. A search for “let it snow” will send snowflakes falling across your screen. [Toronto Sun/National Post]
Starting today, commuters from Southwestern Ontario have another option for getting into the city. The GO train now operates service links between Waterloo Region and Toronto. [CTV]
Biagio Ristorante, an upscale Toronto eatery, held its annual Christmas dinner to feed the city’s homeless. [Toronto Sun]
Feel like you haven’t been on vacation in a while? Probably cause you haven’t. Statistics show that Canadians aren’t travelling as much as they used to. [Toronto Star]
Toronto's Dave Bidini, freewheeling rocker, author and the only Canadian artist to have been nominated for a Juno, Genie and Gemini, is back on the musical side of the artistic ledger as he puts the final touches on a new Bidiniband album due out Jan. 24. We tracked him down to get the inside scoop on the album, titled In The Rock Hall.
Describe In The Rock Hall — what can we expect? It's a big, strange taxi ride from your front door to a country you've never visited and back again. We wrote it large and wide, with lots of sonic and musical dynamics.
Seems like a lot of thought went into the recording, getting the right sound “off the floor.” What was behind that decision? Well, we had this enormously large room, but we didn't want to sound lost in it. We wanted to attack the size of the space, so we put the drums right in the middle and recorded everything live, trying to capture the heat of the performances. There's only one guitar overdub and two re-sung vocals. Otherwise, what you hear is how it all went down while it was going down. Some warts, performance-wise, but they're necessary, true.
Noticed this awesome event on your website with Sarah Harmer, Chris Murphy and more. Care to explain? It's a show I curate every year for Hockey Day in Canada, and this year it's in PEI. All the performers write original songs about one player, and debut them live at Stolen From a Hockey Card. Bidiniband backs them up, Ron MacLean hosts. It's really an incredible event, and CBC Radio broadcasts it the next day.
Tell me about the band. Don Kerr, Paul Linklater and Doug Friesen. Paul and Doug were Rheostatics fans (my old band) and we were pen pals when they were kids. Then they moved to T.O. Paul and his wife actually stayed in my home when I was in Italy writing Baseballissimo — and eventually we started playing together. Doug and Paul were best friends when they went to school in Manitoba, and they started a band, The Scribbled Out Man, with Don Kerr, so really this is a natural band/family that seemed destined to play together, really.
Roots roundup
Toronto native Chris Luedecke, otherwise known as roots musician Old Man Luedecke, has release a new collaboration with Montreal band Lake of Stew on a new EP dubbed Sing All About It. The seven-song EP is being offered as a pay what-you-can download. The title track was apparently inspired by Luedecke’s twin daughters that arrived this past summer. It's a good album, a very bluegrass-heavy, twangy affair, with Luedecke's banjo front and centre. Standouts include the quirky, fun “Too Much To Late” and the smart and surprisingly political ditty “Monsanto Jones.” Foot stomping is optional, but not really avoidable. So prepare yourself.
Doiron readies new album
Cool Toronto singer/songwriter Julie Doiron, formerly of the East Coast band Eric's Trip, is working on a new album set to be released in 2012, potentially as early as this spring. A video clip posted on YouTube (below) shows Doiron at work, kinda, on said record. Back in the heyday of the grunge ‘90s, Eric's Trip made a name for itself as the first Canadian band signed to Sub Pop records — home to Nirvana, Soundgarden and Mudhoney. The band scored a few minor hits and broke up in 1996. But Doiron soldiered on, and has released a number of albums, including her last effort, a collaboration under the moniker Daniel, Fred & Julie on You've Changed Records in 2009.
For those unfamiliar with Eric's Trip, here is a vintage video of one of their shows at Toronto's Lee's Palace.
Album of the week: Nuclearize Me by Great Aunt Ida
A new release from Ida Nilsen has been a long time coming. Now five years since her 2006 release How They Fly, Nilsen has relocated from Vancouver to Toronto and has turned out a solid album. Nuclearize Me demonstrates a progression in production and the sonic soundscape without sacrificing Nilsen's outstanding songwriting ability and innocent, lilting vocals. Reminiscent of other Canadian indie stalwarts such as Forest City Lovers or Hooded Fang, Great Aunt Ida provides a hefty sonic punch in a simple, no-nonsense package. Highlights include the lovely “Noonday Sun” and the positively bursting track “Lonely.” Expect Great Aunt Ida to garner significant attention and win over some new fans with Nuclearize Me.
Concert of the week: Skydiggers at the Horseshoe Tavern
I've been writing about it for weeks now: the legendary Skydiggers’ annual holiday shows at the Horseshoe Tavern tonight and Saturday night. The band, if you've lived under a rock, have been plying the alt-country trade for a couple of decades and are known for their entirely awesome live show featuring the inestimable talents of frontman Andy Maize. When they hit the stage and dial up the classic “Slow Burning Fire” or one of the sweetest love songs this side of Jim Cuddy, “I Will Give You Everything,” you'll begin to understand why they've had such a long and successful career. Because they are awesome, of course. Expect newly minted MP Andrew Cash to join the band as well as other top secret, special guests. Just go. 'Nuff said.
Rock 'n' roll tweet of the week
From Death From Above 1979 frontman Sebastien Grainger, @sebby_g:
"Before you go to bed say the "Our Father" prayer but replace "Bread" with "Boner". That is all."
Queen West has a brand new spot to satisfy a Vietnamese sandwich craving. Just don’t go to Banh Mi Boys, situated in the old Ziggy’s Shawarma and Seafood House space, expecting traditional cold cuts between your bread. Go expecting better.
While the “boys” (brothers David,Philip and Peter Chau) have yet to renovate their space (there’s been some back and forth about getting a permit, since they’re in a heritage building) or have an official grand opening (they’re still operating on reduced hours and close at 8 p.m., not 2-3 a.m., like they want to), their food is already flying off the counter.
“It’s all thanks to the Twitter bugs,” Philip says.
It’s also thanks to their awesome Vietnamese-inspired sandwiches.
The brothers have years of expertise behind them, having worked at longtime family business N & H Food Co. Ltd for nearly their whole lives. Philip handled the bakery part of the business, while David handled the meat processing side and Peter dealt with wholesaling.
Philip says they wanted to open their own sandwich joint for a while, and spent the last five years perfecting their recipes on weekends.
“It did help to have a bakery and meat plant at our disposal,” he says.
The weekend time paid off, and led to creations such as the pork belly bao (pictured above, $3.49). The pork belly is rubbed with a Chinese five-spice powder, slow-cooked for five hours in a pan with cola and veal stock, then seared to order. It’s topped with house-pickled radish and carrots, cucumbers, cilantro and secret recipe “luck sauce,” which is similar to hoisin sauce. The result is a supremely tender bao, which also happens to be an amazing lunch for under $4.
Also popular is the grilled chicken banh mi ($4.99), with boneless chicken thighs that have been placed in a soy sauce marinade for at least 48 hours. Toppings include house-made aioli and barbeque sauce, pickled carrots, cucumbers, cilantro and, if you want them, jalapeños.
The Chaus do their own take on a taco with the kalbi beef taco ($3.99), served in a soft flatbread shell. The beef is a plentiful serving of short rib, soaked in a spicy soy sauce and pear marinade, topped with purple cabbage slaw, kimchi, pickled carrots and cilantro.
Nearly everything, from the kimchi to the pickled vegetables, is made in-house. Philip says they often head out to St. Lawrence Market for their meat, and get the rest of their supplies from various wholesalers.
And for those who don’t know, Banh Mi is pronounced “bun me.” Incidentally, that’s the perfect thing to say when walking into to this place.
