travelogue: toronto (part 1)

back in toronto, second trip within a year (see my summer post here). i'm here to attend my niece's wedding but it was also an opportunity to spend time with my mom. toronto in february isn't very nice, so, along with ange, my friend from forever ago, we hunkered down with my mom and just enjoyed the days. 

first things first when i arrive in toronto, my sister takes me to loblaws, a canadian supermarket, to get groceries otherwise i would eat fried eggs with potatoes for breakfast everyday and while it's delicious, i can't have that happening (see photo below). at loblaws i discovered president's choice ice cream shop's mint chocolate... so good. i picked up ambrosia apples, they're my and kai's favourite apples, ever. i also bought special kellogg's vanilla almond and vanilla almond milk. just being in a supermarket with good-looking produce and product choice makes for a great outing (sorry, stockholm).

i met stella! she is the loveliest puppy. we went for walks, she napped in my arms, she gives the best cuddles. what a lucky pup to call ange her mama. 

eggs and potato breakfast

throughout our days, we play italian card names, drink tea - well, ange and my mom drink tim hortons coffee - and i keep the both of them from cheating. my mom, especially. she'll try to pull a fast one over you. a favourite game is scopa.

and, i am lucky to call ange my friend... she's super caring, funny, she's got your back, cheers you on and even though she drives you crazy while playing italian cards every single time you know you'll miss it if she stops. love you ange.

libretto pizzeria is the best. whenever i'm in toronto, ange and i eat here. the pizza is perfection.

pasta! with potatoes, with tomato sauce, with melt in your mouth meatballs. there was ricotta too, simply baked one day and stuffed in homemade cannelloni pasta tubes on another day. and, of course, there's cake. at 89 years old, my mom can still cook up a storm and do it deliciously.

i love hudson's bay brand products. i picked up a compact mirror, a tote, and prettily wrapped soap. and, i really wanted to bring the swing jacket home with me but alas, it was too expensive. i'll save my pennies for next time.

i dyed my hair, so much cheaper than stockholm. i mean, significantly cheaper.

i drank london fogs, daily. craving one now but there isn't one to be found in stockholm. and if there was it would cost a billion dollars... same as chai lattes. i really liked the ones at the red rocket coffee on the danforth.

my sister spoils me... from my mom's friend's bakery, she picked up arancini (rice balls) and cannoli with ricotta which i happily indulged in. 

and, of course, a visit isn't complete without ketchup chips ;)

the day before my niece's wedding we happened to come upon my dad's wallet. it was left just the way it was when he passed away. it brought a smile to my face but also left me feeling sad.

inside, he had tucked away a valentine card my niece gave him. it was such a beautiful find. he would have loved to see angelica get married, his first grandchild.

it's been many years and i still miss my dad, every day. time doesn't heal all things. it's just a new normal, this longing for my dad.

that's angelica in the ruffled flowered dress... she's getting married!

next up, angelica's wedding!

travelogue: new york city!

exactly one month ago, on my way to toronto, for my niece's wedding, i stopped off in new york city to meet up with a couple of friends. suji and ange flew in from vancouver just to see me, so grateful for girlfriends (insert heart emoji here).

while we stayed at luma hotel in times square, we spent most of our time south of midtown. one of the most enjoyable things to do is strolling and admiring the buildings as you go. we explored alot of ground.

at the chelsea market, we breakfasted at sarabeth's bakery, shared a baggie of mini doughnuts from the dougnuttery, and looked at pretty things in anthroplogie. 

strolling along bleecker street we stopped into magnolia bakery and i highly recommend you try their cupcakes, so much to choose from! 

in soho (LOVE), we visited a number of shops such as eileen fisher, universal standard, madwell and many others that suji had on her long list :) 

glossier was a fun stop with its pale pink walls, red accents (i.e. a sofa that looks like lips running along one side of the space), grey polished concrete floor, and pale pink coveralls for the staff. the space was filled with lipsticks, mascaras, concealers and other products for you to try. while there was much i should have bought in retrospect, i am happy with my boy brow purchase.

in west village, the butcher's daughter served great vegetarian fare, exactly what i expected. i still think about my quinoa sesame salad; so delicious.

lunch at abc carpet and home was perfection. suji and i both had the roasted kabocha squash toast with fresh ricotta and apple cider vinegar and it was incredible, a mouthwatering experience. the seared salmon on a bed of bibb salad with spicy buttermilk vinaigrette was perfection too. and, the place was gorgeous; i want to move in.

  

 

just north of central park, ange and i explored harlem. it was red rooster that brought us here. it's owned by marcus samuelsson, who was born in ethiopia and raised in sweden (i've eaten at his kitchen and table stockholm restaurant). 

red rooster is a cheerful, stylish place and packed with people. our waitress was sweet and lovely. the comfort food, you can tell, prepared with care. we shared cornbread with lingonberry butter (a touch of sweden), ange ate mama's breakfast pie (bbq brisket, creamy potatoes and baked eggs) and i had miss b's biscuits and gravy (buttermilk biscuit pudding, fried egg, fried chicken, dirty gravy). guys, it was all SO GOOD, we think we ate our favourite meal here.

then we walked off all the food we ate. along 125th we peeked into some shops, a mix of local and brand outlet shops as well as street vendors. we each bought a pair of super cheap banana republic jeans and ange gifted suji and i old navy new york tees to wear to our cake class in brooklyn. the people we encountered on our stroll and shopping were super nice, happy to offer their opinions in the change room or chat in the cashier lineup.

there was so much more to see but it'll have to wait for another visit; a show at the apollo theater, speakeasy at ginny's supper club, more jeans to buy at banana republic!

milk bar's pretzel cake and truffles class brought us to brooklyn! the class was held in williamsburg, and it was so good. 

i'm all about a salty and sweet combo. three layers of pretzel cake, a chocolate stout ganache (yes, there was beer in there!), pretzel crumbs (i was eating these right out of the bowl!) and burnt honey. this was a VERY delish cake. i ate the leftovers... pieces of pretzel cake dunked into the chocolate stout ganache and popped the pretzel crumbs into my mouth. 

while i gave my cake to ange to take home, i was so happy that we made cake truffles that i could take with me... i impressed my mom when i arrived in toronto :)

 

we get to take the cake home!

i really liked brooklyn. we strolled around williamsburg after class visiting a couple of shops on my list which i would recommend, bird for clothing, shoes and accessories (suji found a cute pair of shoes here) and catbird for jewelry. oh, and if you love coffee, go to devocion... i know without a doubt stefan would have loved it.

we hopped onto the east river ferry to take us to dumbo. the weather was finally warm so it was really nice to be on the ferry (it had been so cold the first few days in the city). and the views of the manhattan skyline were picture worthy.

in dumbo, we ate pizza, took pics of the brooklyn bridge and then i ate a cream cheese salmon bagel from greenberg at north third street market, he's the guy that supplies russ and daughters cafe so you know it's going to be good. there were stops to the almondine bakery and at jacques torres i picked up chocolate for stefan.

   

 



 

while we didn't actually spend too much time in the times square area, i do have a few highlights. first, go see kinky boots! and, for dinner... parker and quinn in the refinery hotel, just around the corner from our hotel, is a great place. if you like pasta, head to carmine's. 

on the touristy front, ange and i took a boat to see the statue of liberty. it was pretty amazing to see it coming into view and then it was right there in front of you. while it's smaller than i expected, it was cool to see up close. it was an informative (lots of info about the buildings along the way) and worthwhile hour to spend on the water. thanks for suggesting it ange :)

  

new york, you were lovely but next time don't be so cold. ange and suji, thank you for flying across the country to meet up with me. XO