Bye, Bye Summer: What to do by the Lake Shore in the winter - Part 1 {Jazzy Jazz}

I haven't really gone outside much since this cold weather showed up. I'm not much of a winter person at all. I mean I like the odd crisp winter walk; and I really do love the look of snow, but the cold I can do without (even though I really do love bundling up in those cozy cowls).

So if you're like me, what the heck do you do in these dark winter months? I've put together some sort of guide, and please, if you know of something fun to do leave me a comment because I need all the help I can get!

Jazz Hands
Photo source

This post is all about jazz. This past weekend my hubby Mark and I had a craving for some jazz so we popped on over to Birds and Beans for some Sunday Jazz. First of all, if you've never been to Birds and Beans, you're missing out on the most delicious coffee known to man. (Lately I've been sipping on lattes, but my true love from there is the London Fog. I've only managed to order it once. The don't have it on the menu, so won't make it anymore until more people ask for it, so please for the love of Sundays ask for a London Fog! Ok I digress).

Ok back to the Jazz.

Every Saturday and Sunday Birds and Beans has some really fun jazz. You walk in, get your coffee and some nibbles (the breakfast cookie is available during all hours of the day and is quite delish); then turn around and walk up the stairs. You might feel a bit intimidated if it's your first time going upstairs because the jazzers are right there, but just step past them and find a spot on one of the 'ol chairs or the reclaimed church pew. The jazzers comprise a group of about 10 or so people who manage to all play together seamlessly. The jazz on Saturday changes up a bit, but the Sunday show seems to usually have The Birds of a Feather at noon, with Jazz at Birds and Beans with Fair Trade at 2:30. Get there early so you can get a seat.

But Birds and Beans isn't the only place with live jazz by the Lake!

Café Du Lac is another place to enjoy some fun live music. I think I talked about the live music there before, but the fun part about this place is that it's quaint and cozy; and cozy = staying warm. Order some poutine, sit back and enjoy.

If you're closer to Brown's Line you can catch some cool jazz every Saturday at Tatsu's Bread. They pull their jazz folks right out of Humber who provide a nice and warm atmosphere to enjoy your organic earl grey (hey maybe they'll make me a London Fog!) and a delectable dessert. If you go there during lunch they have these crazy yummy curried tuna sandwiches that I dream of on a weekly basis.

Momo's Bistro isn't quite by the lake but it still seems warm and cozy (I haven't been there yet!) and has some live jazz for all you folks. Check out the jam packed calendar here.

Ok that's all I've got. I'm semi-new in these parts so I'm partly counting on y'all to let me know what I've missed.

Also if you have ideas for other things to do in the area to keep warm, give me a shout at s_dodge (at) rogers (dot) com so I can add it to my next post!

Have a great Friday, jazz it up and stay warm for goodness sakes -- it's cold out there!

Shop the Shore -- Gift Ideas

Coffee from The Big Guys LIttle Coffee Shop - 2861 Lake Shore Blvd W

I just found this post on Our Lakeshore and thought I'd share. Happy Shore shopping!

snow? what snow?

I woke up this morning with excitement about what it might look like down here -- all the snow that has been in the forecast. Only there was no snow! I was pretty disappointed that we didn't get any and I've been told that this is one of the perils of living by the lake: warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. I'm sure we will get snow, but I hope it will be soon!

A day in the life of someone who has no plans with roti (and paint fumes) on the brain

This week off from work hasn't worked out completely as I planned: I was hoping to have the whole house ready to move in and all I would have to do is empty the boxes and put away the dishes. But since the painting is being done, I couldn't really hang out or put stuff away until it was done. That said, it has given me some time to relax and do anything I feel like.

Yesterday morning I needed to get out of the house because the painters were here and the paint fumes were getting to my brain. I decided that I needed to make a bigger dent in my book club book, so I headed over to Artisano, which is a lovely Italian-style, coffee, sweets and panino place just north of the Queensway on Islington. I was there for two hours or so with all the retired men, mommies and the few people that went there to work with their laptops.

Later in the day I had to go to the dentist which I was happy for only because it meant I could waste more time before going home to the fumes. On the way home I stopped off at Queen West at Roncesvalles to check out some antiques -- I'd love to incorporate some old in with the new in the house. Along the way, I found the perfect desk lamp for my new desk at Black Pug Dmk. It's from the '60s and in mint condition but the kicker -- it's $195. A little over my budget of $40 for a desk lamp (I was seriously trying to justify the purchase in my head...).

When I got home empty handed (for which I'm sure M was grateful) the paint fumes were still pretty bad, which took away all desires to cook and eat a meal here, so M and I went out again for dinner. This time we had a craving for some Caribbean food so we checked out what I think is Caribbean Queen Roti Hut located at 2957 Lake Shore Blvd W.

Now I have to start off by saying that roti is one my MOST favourite things to eat. We became regulars of Cool Runnings on Main Street in the east end which was melt in your mouth yumminess - I would honestly dream about the stuff.

The roti at Roti Hut was just ok. It might have something to do with the fact that I didn't want it too spicy 'cause I'm a bit of a wimp, or it could have been the fact that it was Trinidadian roti, as opposed to the Jamaican roti from Cool Runnings I'm used to. Either way, it hit the spot and the owner was super sweet. She seemed to have a couple regulars come through when we were there (the restaurant has been around for 19 years after all!) and the price was right at $6.95 for boneless chicken.

The atmosphere isn't much to write about, but the owner had some really fun Caribbean music playing and I felt instantly as though I were closer to the sun and beach (I wish!).

Well that's all I've got for today. The kitchen is finally finished so I'm going to concentrate on putting stuff away and then I have to get out to change my SIN card info later on. I tried to do that earlier in the week but I forgot my birth certificate - arg!

later lakers!
~lealou

Greek Paradise: A Taste of Kalamata

(pic source)

These past few weeks have been full of construction and nasty paint fumes in our 'new' house and as a result, we haven't been in any sort of an eating schedule. I can't say we haven't been eating well, because it has all been delicious, but we've been seriously lacking in the home-cooked-meal department.

On day nth of eating out, M and I wanted to have something a little healthier: I had a craving for a big salad and grilled chicken. Eating at home wasn't really an option because of the paint fumes (no low-VOC here unfortunately... arg.) so we decided to check out a local greek place M's cousin told us about on the weekend.

There's no need to venture up to The Danforth for good Greek. Kalamata is located along the Lakeshore just past Kipling in Long Branch (one of the last neighbourhoods east of Mississauga for all you downtown folks) and what a find. Home to a former Fox and Firkin (Fiddle??), Kalamata offers delicious home cooked Greek cuisine with all the fixings. The room itself is on the large side, but was quite cozy nonetheless because of the warm and welcoming fireplace, low lighting and comfortable furnishings (not to mention the various bouts of Saganaki being flambéed at tables around the room). Large banquet-style seating is offered in some areas in place of chairs, while patrons can also opt to sit in a cozy corner booth.

For dinner, M and I opted for appeys: we each started off with a Greek Salad ($7) which was fresh and tasty and had the perfect amount of mouth-watering feta, olives and splash of lemon. Olive tapenade ($4) came next, which was pure olive heaven (that's if you like olives -- not for you Mom); followed by an order of grilled chicken Souvlaki Skewers ($4 for two), and Zucchini & Eggplant ($8), seasoned and lightly pan fried served with a side of skorthalia (a fresh garlic, whipped potato and extra virgin olive oil combo - delish!)

We only had water to drink, but there is a pretty extensive wine and cocktail list available.

According to the cuz, Kalamata offers a yummy brunch on the weekends. I'll be trying that out for sure in the next few weeks.

The best part of the night though was the owner. Unfortunately, I didn't catch her name but she was super friendly, down-to-earth and chatted with us about the restaurant and the area for quite some time. I can't wait to go back!

on another adventure

So I've started another adventure. Some of you may know me through my other blog about sewing and such, but in the past week I've moved to Mimico by the Lake in Toronto and I thought it would be kind of fun to write about my new adventures here.

You see... I don't really know anything about the West side of Toronto. I did live in Roncesvalles for about a year, four years ago; and had a brief stint with my travelling friend in the Junction but that's it.

So far this area is great. I already have the PERFECT coffee spot picked out (more on that later) and have eaten out at some yummy restaurants (more on one of those next).

Stay tuned for the adventure -- I think it will be a fun one!

~lealou