Savouring True Meat Flavours at Cowbell

We often rely on Toronto Life's best restaurant list for our adventures. Last year, we made our way to Cowbell and were excited to discover a unique bistro experience - the restaurant buys their meat locally, butchers their own animals and sustainably aims to use all parts. It's a small operation involved vertically in the entire food process. The feature there, of course, is meat, with a menu that changes constantly depending on what they have brought in. On our first visit, I had the Cowbell burger. Normally, I would never order a burger, but the lady next to us told me it was the best burger she had ever had, so how could I turn that down? As I recall, it was indeed an amazing burger, with bacon and topped with Quebec cheese. That experience had left me wanting another bite so we made the trek to far Queen West again last night with our friends James and Lisa.

The Cowbell menu is found on a chalkboard in the restaurant, with an assortment of appetizers and mains - I caution vegetarians that this is not the place for you, although there are some minimal choices! What I love most about Cowbell is that the chef really celebrates and highlights the natural flavours of meats - no fancy sauces, just delicate cooking and handling that brings out the best of beef, duck, pork and the like. Last night, Tony and I did the butcher's plate to start - an assortment of terrine, pate, liver and hearts. I had the angus beef with bone marrow as my main, served with a side of wild mushrooms and leeks - the beef was AMAZING. I can't tell you how disappointed we have been with beef in Toronto in general, but this was just perfectly medium rare and tender. Tony had pork, which again was very simple, highlighting the natural taste of pork, tasty, but less amazing than my beef. I miss the carpaccio we had on our first visit, very basic rare beef slices served with nothing and yet, tasted better than any carpaccio we have ever had. It is truly a sign of good fresh meat and good preparation. We had creme caramel with blackberry compote for dessert, which was rich and satisfying, but truly, the highlight of the restaurant is the meats, so invest your bellies in that!

Cowbell is a great place for anyone who loves food and loves meat. Don't think of it as a heavy "meaty" place - I made that mistake at first, delaying our visit there, but it really is a foodie destination, so you can appreciate fine preparation and simple yet delicious tastes.

Paris 2009: We Made it to the Louvre, and Our Last Meal in Paris

It's been weeks since we returned from Paris, seems like a lifetime away that we were enjoying the food and sights of France. The great thing about vacation is that you can choose to do things and live the way you dream of, but not may be feasible in everyday life. To sleep in til noon and have amazing French meals everyday was a dream come true for us.

On our last day, we made our way into a museum after all - none other than the Louvre. I think it was our most visited place this trip, through the gardens, the courtyard, and finally a fast look inside as well (not to worry travelers, we have been before!). We did the speed tour to start: Mona Lisa, Winged Victory and Venus de Milo, seeing favourites along the way such as the Wedding at Cana. We eventually made our way to the Rubens Room, an amazing exhibit of21 paintings commissioned by Marie de'Medici, wife of King Henry IV of France. We stopped for lunch at Cafe Marly, as recommended by our friend Stella. We were saving it for our "last meal" because we wanted to make sure we left Paris with an amazing meal to remember. Cafe Marly did not disappoint - sitting under the elevated arches of the Louvre and facing the pyramids. In the cool fall weather, the experience was sublime. We started with a king crab guacamole salad - the king crab was meaty and fresh and tasted like it was just cracked out of the shell. For mains, I had a delicious prawn risotto and Tony had steak. Before this trip, I did not know that prawn risotto was such an amazing French dish, from our delicious first meal at Coup d'Etat, to this last meal at Cafe Marly, the prawns were delicious and like nothing I have tasted before. The steak was not extraordinary, but the bernaise sauce was amazing...heart stopping, but amazing. We left with our bellies full and happy. We managed to sneak in another couple rooms at the Louvre before it was time to leave.

The Louvre is possibly the most beautiful building in the world, housing the most amazing collection of art and history, plus an delicious meal...not a bad way to say good bye to the City of Lights.

Paris 2009: We're Not Meant to Visit Any Museums on This Trip...

Day 8: We started the day with an incredible lunch at Priori, suggested by Tony's friend Megan last night. I clutched onto her hand sketched map and found our way to this "secret" location - not likely secret for locals, but having walked the area for the last week, I can't believe we had no idea it existed! First we walked through the garden in the courtyard of the Palais Royale, which we did not know we were allowed in. After passing through the garden and a number of small shops, we came onto rue Vivienne and finally the cute gallerie Vivienne! The restaurant is a little cafe with tables taking up half the narrow walkway under the glass dome, a nice way to enjoy the sun on a cold day! I had the plat du jour, a rich bean soup served with guacamole and salad. A totally unlikely combo in my mind, but was good, trust! I really dislike beans and actually had no idea what was in the soup initially, but decided to order it after seeing it arrive on our neighbours' tables. The rosey, savoury soup was very good indeed, despite the beans :P It really hit the spot for the cooler weather we've been having! Tony had an amazing pasta with mushrooms, served as a salad with plenty of cheese. We loved having lunch in this quiet not-so-tourist spot - delicious and quaint, the kind of place we wish we could visit everyday to enjoy a long leisurely lunch.

Paris has a museum for everything and everywhere, but we haven't made it to any on this trip, always waiting for a rainy day to do indoor stuff. At the tower yesterday, I noticed a fashion museum I had not seen before: the Musee Galliera, housing the evolution of fashion through the years and its significance to the city. We chose this one over the fashion and textile museum close to the Louvre since the building exterior was so beautiful, not knowing much about either. We made our way to the lovely renaissance-style palace only to find it was temporarily CLOSED due to some fragile exhibit! What good is it if no one can see it? I was so sad to waste part of our LAST DAY in Paris commuting to a closed museum. Sigh. We fast forwarded our plans for the rest of the day and head over to Opera to do some real-time fashion exploration ala department stores! We first stopped in Uniqlo, a Japanese clothing store known for high quality casual wear at low prices. Apparently, it only just opened here in Paris last week and it was insane...MOB insane, we moved like cattle into the store. The line-up to pay was wrapped around the edges of the store, with a helpful staffer holding a "line ends here" sign 3 walls away from the cashiers. Thankfully, they see to have adopted Japanese efficiency because the line moved quickly. By the time we left, there was a line-up just to get into the 3 level store.

We made our way over to Au printemps for some last chance shopping. Shopping in Paris really is amazing, always the latest styles and colours in every brand imaginable. Department stores feature uber high end to affordable and fashionable options...love love love. After some thorough browsing of clothes, shoes, bags, and accessories galore, we made our way back to the gourmet gallery at Lafayette across the street. One of our priorities for the day was to pick up some cheap wine and champagne to bring home, and also some more pate for the plane ride. I wish we could just freeze a bunch and take it home, but we'll just have to savour the last of it tomorrow as we fly back over the Atlantic.

We decided for once to try out one of the restaurants recommended in the Eyewitness Guide in the Opera district; but of course, we found it closed. Luckily, the concierge at the hotel it was attached to was very helpful and recommended a lovely french bistro not far away, Auberge St. Roche. It was a cute little restaurant indeed, and hidden down a side street that we never would have found on our own; in the end, we feel blessed that our original plans didn't work out but ended up trying something more local. Most of the restaurants here offer 3 course prix fix, and you choose the options. To start, Tony could not help but have foie gras since it was our last dinner in Paris! I had escargot served with french wild mushrooms in a cream sauce. For mains, I had swordfish, which caused me hesitation at first because it is generally tough, but at the auberge it was good - solid yet tender and seasoned just right. Perhaps the swordfish I have had in the past was just always overcooked. Tony had veal medallions in a light cream sauce, which was also delicious. We were sure one of us had to have veal since there were 3 different options on the menu - had to he a house special, right? We couldn't pass up dessert and had creme brulee and profiteroles. We both agreed they couldn't compare to the dessert we had at Coup d'Etat the first night (pannacotta and tiramisu) or the amazing apple crumble I had last night; but nonetheless, it was enjoyable.

After the late dinner, we made our slow stroll back to the hotel. Again, love how convenient everything is relative to where we are staying and how beautiful the city is to walk at night! I would come back to this location in a heartbeat, walking distance to most of the areas we have been this past week - there's no better way to enjoy the city.

Alas, we have to say au revoir to Paris tomorrow. One last meal, and maybe a last chance at some sort of museum in the morning? Over lunch, we both reflected on how relaxing our week has been - we would wake up and then decided where to go based on weather, walked to different sites and markets, found food as we went, and shopped as we liked. Feels like a life we could enjoy everyday. Europe, maybe you are in our future afterall...

Paris 2009: A View of the Beautiful City

Day 7: Paris is such a beautiful city. Everyday, I marvel at how amazing the architecture is, and how even the oldest buildings have such charm. Over the years, I think Paris has also become more "clean." Today was very sunny so we decided to make our way to the Eiffel Tower.

We walked down to the tower from Trocadero, where the Palais de Chaillot is. That view, if you have not taken it before, is better than anywhere else. By night, many of the photos you see of the tower featuring fountains are those in front of Palais de Chaillot. Like the Louvre, I had forgotten how stunning the tower is. Did you know it was initially built as a temporary structure? I'm not sure what taking it down would have been like, but now, it is stands as the symbol of Paris. Seeing it by night from the top of the Arc was beautiful, and by day, against the blue sky, it was even more magnificent. We took the elevator all the way to the top terrace of the Eiffel Tower and marveled at how BIG and beautiful the city is. It was breathtaking and I am glad we made the day trip - my last time up the tower was just at night. Both are worthwhile! Words and pictures don't capture what it is like to experience the city from the tower.

We found ourselves in St. Germain for dinner with Tony's friend Megan, who has lived inParis for a couple years. She took us to a young, hip place for locals named Cinq-Mars. It was very comfy and social. We started with kirs to drink, blackcurrent with white wine, which I loved - expect it at our Christmas party this year! To start, we had the daily special of mushroom soup, which was served with a large bowl and ladel for sharing, along with a house terrine made with beef, served like a meatloaf for the table to share. It was a very homey experience! For mains, Tony and I had seabass with spinach in cream sauce, and a house pork sausage with mashed potatoes. For dessert, I had an amazing...AMAZING...apple crumble with creme fraiche. It was better than any apple crumble I have ever had, I feel like I always have to have it with creme fraiche from now on. Tony ordered a chocolate mousse, which was literally a giant bowl of chocolate!! Megan had a unique meringue served on cream with almonds. I have developed a new appreciation for French desserts since being here, because they are always delicious but not too sweet at all! They always taste amazing and light without being overwhelmingly sugary, an appropriate end to our meals without being too heavy.

We took a leisurely walk back home, across the river and through the Louvre - beautiful by night, especially without all the crowds! I don't think I can ever get enough of the Louvre. We only have one more full day in Paris tomorrow...so many options. If it's nice maybe we will wander some more neighbourhoods, or if it is cold or raining, maybe we will step into a museum or two after all!

Zurich Side Trip...and Random Thoughts on Travel

Day 5: I love traveling by train - it is convenient, easy and reliable. If the train leaves at 8am, you just have to show up before it leaves; mind you, if you're running late, you would be out of luck, there is no 'delay.' We caught a direct train from Paris to Zurich to visit my aunt and her family, 4 short hours away. Travel in Europe is just so easy, and now that Switzerland has joined the EU, there isn't even a mandatory passport check on the train anymore. I wish we could always just hop on a train and cross countries! I've always just showed up a couple days before and bought a ticket with no issues.

We arrived in Zurich shortly after lunch, with the train emptying along the way in Strasbourg and Basel. Our first stop was an old Spanish tapas restaurant with my aunt for some lunch - some meatballs, seafood, rabbit and best of all, a chicken liver omlette. The egg was sooo fluffy! We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering old Zurich, with some shopping and tea stops along the way. Zurich is an incredibly clean city, not crowded, and the people are polite and multicultural. It is an easy place to travel and live. As a bonus, English is also one of the 4 official languages!

My aunt spoiled us with an amazing home cooked meal: ostrich, ribs falling off the bone, chinese mushrooms and fresh bok choi, and chestnut chicken wings. Who can't use a loving home cooked meal after a week on the road? It was nice to spend the evening catching up with family and just taking it easy. We head back out to Zurich city the next day to do some wandering on our own, mostly in "new" Zurich, including a stop at Jemoli department store for lunch, I had bratwurst while Tony had a falaffel. I adore Zurich and this being my 4th time visiting I could go again and again - doesn't hurt to have family to visit of course. It is always green and beautiful! The one major downside is eating is generally very expensive.

Having another 4 hour trip back to Paris gave me time to reflect on some things we've learned and things that have helped our travels:

1. My aunt, the avid shopper, reflected that "thanks" to globalization, shopping in foreign countries isn't what it used to be. Zara, H&M, Mango...they are everywhere! You really have to look for local shops and boutiques to see and experience local fashion.

2. Department stores are always reliable for washrooms and food, either in the basement floor or on the top floor, and always with many options. This has been almost fail proof for us in both Japan and Paris! Japan's department stores were lined with restaurants while most of the department stores here in Europe have small markets or cafeterias for snack stops.

3. I was reminded in Zurich that Starbucks is always reliable for clean washrooms and AC (yesterday we actually needed heat, but regardless, it is always a good spot to stop and refresh!). Familiarity is a good thing.

4. Out of respect, you should always attempt the language - no one can blame you for trying! While our bad French has often elicited responses in English, many also have done their best to help us understand what they are trying to say in French, and it is all very cordial. We've had nothing but good experiences here and have never felt like strangers or uncomfortable in the city.

5. The closer you are to a tourist hot spot, the worse value the food is, if not poor in taste! Walk a block and you will already have better options!

6. A good old fashioned paper map > GPS.

Paris 2009: The Day We Would Have Lost on the Amazing Race

Day 4: There is a lovely cafe at the foot of our apartment here, and today we decided to try it out. Surprisingly very reasonably priced (2 courses each, wine and a beer cost us 30 euro), and delicious! We sat on the patio to enjoy the sunny dry weather today (finally!). Our new strategy is to randomly pick items we can't identify/translate, because it means it is something we would not normally have. For our lunch, Tony ended up with a sausage in corn bread to start (was really good) and steak as his main (ok, he knew it was beef, but we didn't know how it would be served). Actually, Tony had tried to order something else foreign on the menu but the waitress (and I assume owner) was convinced it would be too foreign and the taste too strong - I assume it had something to do with cheese. I had hareng filets (fish, small and sardine like) done with olive oil to start and a curry sausage with rice as a main - I think it was a ground pork sausage, but to be honest, neither of us could really tell. In any case, all our food was wonderful, delicious and too much for me to finish. We're glad to have this little gem right downstairs!

Since it was a sunny day, we decided to skip the museums and spend the day outside. Our first stop was Notre-Dame. As usual, it was crawling with tourists - to the point that it started to annoyed me. Quite a contrast from Sacre Coeur that did not allow photos and had someone at the door to strictly reinforce "silence" and "no photos." Notre-Dame allows photos but no flash...of course, there was flash going off everywhere. Honestly, is it so hard to turn it off?? There were a number of people who sat in the pews (actually, they are just chairs there) to take in the church...but the altar was crowded with people eagerly taking photos. It took away from the experience for me, but I suppose they are catering to the millions of visitors they get every year. I lit a candle before we left - at least I could have some kind of spiritual experience to take away. We again missed the opportunity to go up the tower, it was closed by the time we went to line up. Neither of us have had the opportunity, it simply is not our destiny to see the view from the top of Notre-Dame!

Next we wandered into Marais, a historic district that I did not have a chance to explore previously. It was once a place of royal residence but lost it's glamour during the revolution. Aimless wandering apparently is not my thing, so we decided to head towards Place des Vosges - a square that is perfectly symmetrical and has been the site of many historic events. It also used to be the site of jousts and tournaments. One of the houses was also home to Victor Hugo, author of the amazing Les miserables. The square, to be honest, was a bit underwhelming, but that may have also been because we took twice as long to get there as we should have - we overshot the square thinking OF COURSE we'd see it, but it's surrounded by buildings, so no, it wasn't as obvious as we thought. I think we were a good 30min away from it before we realized we were well beyond :P It did, however, allow us to explore many streets of Marais, filled with little boutiques. I found the area a bit older but quaint, and although not bustling like other high tourist areas, I wouldn't mind staying in future visits. We did manage to get in another tourist site before leaving the area - site of the Bastille, marked only by the Colonne de Juillet now, commemorating those who died in the famous storming. There is also a modern opera house in the square, Bastille Opera, a glass facade that is in stark contrast to the grandiose and traditional National Opera House. After our wandering, we made our way to Bon Marche to pick up some food for our trip tomorrow and for my aunt - it is like a giant Urban Fare. The metro station only has one door out to the main street...and yet, we walked the WRONG way to the store. sigh. As you can imagine, I was not thrilled. It was 7:30 by the time we made it to the store, and I simply had not a care in the world to shop, so we picked up some macaroons, some champagne and called it a night. I guess we didn't have to go all the way there just for that in the end! I can just imagine what the Amazing Race episode would be like, with the camera panning to the sites JUST next where we were walking each time, or showing the sign that we blatantly missed...and the audience saying "you idiots!" In the end I think I was just tired and ready for my next meal!

We truly love the area we are staying because the abundance of restaurants has allowed us to make our way "home" to have dinner each night. We had a simple dinner tonight but was, of course, no less disappointing. I had garlic soup filled with croutons to start, which hit the spot as I was craving some comfort food, followed by a simple salmon and scallop with fresh pasta. It was exactly what I was looking for, something a little less indulgent. Tony had steak tartare that was also light and delicious. One thing we have noticed is how delicious fries are - they are always GOLDEN and fresh. Fries are not really just the easy side we get in North America and actually enjoyable!

Tomorrow, we make our way to Zurich! So excited to see family and have a fabulous home cooked meal.

Paris 2009: Living the Parisian Life - Wine Festival and Shopping at Galeries Lafayette

Day 2: We thought we could beat the jet lag by powering through our first day and staying up late; but alas, we didn't get a move on for day 2 until lunch time....not much different from our weekends at home :P For lunch, we stopped by a nearby patisserie - I had a croissant with ham and cheese, and Tony had some other savoury pastry with ham and cheese. We had our mini lunch at the Louvre in front of the pyramids, surrounded by happy tourists taking pictures. Sigh. If life could be so simple everyday!

After lunch, we went to check out a modern furniture show near canal Saint-Martin. It was more like a flea market, tents lined up along the canal with a mix of new and used modern furniture pieces for sale - likely a very good buy for someone local. We saw many versions of my coveted Eames chair - we need something like this in Toronto, a market of modern furniture knock-offs! We hung out around the canal for a bit as it was a beautiful day, and stumbled upon the hostel Tony once stayed. Next we made our way to Montmartre. Our goal was to visit Sacre Coeur, since Tony had not been inside, but we stumbled upon a giant wine and food festival! Highlights include a human pyramid, we had made it to the top of some long stairs just in time to see them pile up! I also received alot of attention for my sandwich foie gras - while eating it, people kept asking me where I got it, or mumbled some words and shook their heads at me...not really sure what was going on, but I LOVED my sandwich! For 7 euros, I even got a nice little glass of wine! yum. Had we been able to move through the tents, we may have tasted more meats, cheeses, and wines, but there were simply too many people, we were lucky to make it from one end to the other and get anything at all along the way! We sat on the steps of Sacre Coeur to enjoy our sandwich and then made our way into the church. Sacre Coeur is a stunning byzantine cathedral, we spent some quiet time inside taking it all in before heading out to face the crowds again.

It was a clear night in Paris so we made our way over to the Arc de Triomphe. We got our tickets and enthusiastically hopped through the doors marked "entrance." I had forgotten that the way up is JUST stairs. In fact, I think most people are unprepaired for the stairs until they excitedly run out of breath just half way up! Luckily, someone brilliantly installed a line of benches to greet you as you enter the museum/exhibit at the top, a must stop for everyone! Five years sure has aged me because I remember bouncing up all the domes, churches and towers while backpacking with ease and this, I found myself a bit tired! Regardless, the Arc is worth the climb, particularly at night, because you get to see the 12 roads leading into the arch. While up top, we caught the sparkling lights of the Eiffel tower (happens on the hour) and the fireworks show from the wine festival on Montmartre as well! It was a nice way to end the night, how can you beat that view?

Day 3: Today was more leisurely. We had a delicious lunch near the aparment - poached salmon for Tony and a truffle omlette for me, and then picked up our tickets to Zurich at the train station (going on Tuesday!). It's been rainy most days so we decided to take it easy and made our way to do some department store damage at Galeries Lafayette. An interesting tidbit: did you know when Coco Chanel first came to Paris, she had purchased the straw hats she needed for her designs in this very store? Check out a tour of Chanel's haunts: http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/la-vie-en-chanel/1/?comments_page=1. The historic building faces the back of the Opera House and is stunning, with floors and floors of merchandise, and separate buildings for men and housewares. The place was an absolute zoo, but we navigated through, and also made our way to the gourmet market for some pate and cheese to bring home for the night. We also got a nice bottle of white wine for 6 euros! I can hardly believe we spent most of our day at Lafayette and didn't even make it to Au printemps as planned! We are hoping to go to Bon Marche before we leave, as I've heard there are some good deals in the food market. Guess we'll save that for another rainy day. Tomorrow, maybe we will tackle a museum or two...