We walked into Bodega to inquire if we could get a seat an hour or so later, we were told (not surprisingly) that they didn't take reservations normally but they would take our phone number and to just show up when we were ready. At this point, it didn't seem too busy but the room is a small one, so we set off to do a little shopping and walk off our last snack from a short time before.   When we returned, still early in the evening, the place was packed full. We were expected but still had to wait some minutes for a table to leave before we were offered a small table wedged between two other tables or the two stools at the end of the bar directly beside the wait station. We opted for the bar seats, our preferred location at most drinking joints anyways.   It was happy hour when we arrived (It seems its always happy hour somewhere in Victoria), and the special was an assortment of of Spanish wines, the din of the bustling bar made it hard to hear exactly what the ...

This isn't my first time eating here.  On this occasion, it was obviously a quiet night which is rarely the case.   Whiskey and I, on this particular evening had joined a friend of mine whom I hadn't seen in over 15 years, she happened to be staying at Dolphin's resort for the night and we wanted to visit, and also we injected ourselves into her dinner reservations.   I dine at Angler's maybe twice a year, and have as of yet, never had a bad meal there. On this particular evening I was a bit more concerned with catching up with an old friend with some drinks, so immediately we ordered a bottle of wine without first deciding on food. We settled on a bottle of Summerhill organic Merlot. Opulent yet soft, this wine was everything I wanted it to be this evening, and the markup on such a bottle was very reasonable for a dining room with a good, hand selected (albeit small) wine list.  Shortly after some catching up I finally opened the food menu. Right away my eye...

In my opinion you have to eat certain things when in New York City. You have to eat pizza (you also have to call it a "slice" when you order). You have to eat a large pretzel, which I have had my fill of forever and did not eat on this trip and you have to eat a pastrami sandwich.  I love pastrami, a Rueben Sandwich is possibly one of my favourite things in the world. The pastrami sandwich in New York is one of the great joys in my life when ever I am there.  We were on the way back from High Line Park and waiting for our tour of SOHO to start and had about an hour to kill so we asked one of the locals in the shops where a good place to eat would be. They pointed us about a block over to Amelias diner . This is a typical diner. long bar with round stools. Decor of bright orange and wood tabled booths. Looked like every diner in the 60s you have every seen on TV. You are blasted by the smell of coffee and bacon when you walk in. We were seated and I was blown away by ...

The biggest dilemma for true Foodies is often where to go for dinner. This dilemma is worse when you are trying to plan a date night in a city that is not your home.  D and I are no different. Deciding where to sit  down with clean palates and empty stomachs is one of the great joys of being a foodie and every once in a while D and I go just a little overboard. It is one of my favourite Foodie adventures. We set out in the morning for the few hour drive it takes us to get to Victoria . Checked into our hotel and headed out in search of food . It was the goal to see how many places we could get too in the one night we had . Our first stop was The Churchill  a belly up to the bar pub with a huge range of beer. I am fairly new to the beer drinking world and dont know much about beer. I had a pale ale that was full of citrus and hops. Sharp on my tongue and cut thirst. I dont know my beers but I know I liked that. We split a fish taco to have a look at how they do fo...

In the heart of the East Village in New York City there is a tiny noodle bar with a very subtle sign on the door. You would never know it was run by a world class chef unless you looked more closely to see there is never an empty seat in the house. Momofuku Noodle Bar  was a non negotiable goal of mine being in New York City. I have watched Chef David Chang on many food shows and have found myself inspired by his love of Asian cuisine and the beauty and simplicity that can come from something as simple as Ramen.  This is what Momofuku was built on, a chef's vision of finding his little hole in the east village to sell Ramen. He went on to open multiple restaurants in multiple cities but it started in this little long galley shaped noodle bar. I love Ramen and I love this chef's story so naturally I had to go. Downfall, I was travelling with my best friend who does not really like Asian cuisine, She was totally in support of me finding my little shop but we had to find a...

If most people leave their heart in San Francisco, I am certain I left my stomach in New York City and I mean that in the best way possible.   I have a special relationship with the City after spending 3 years of my early adulthood living on Long Island NY and I was no stranger to the culinary wonders that awaited me when I adventured there for a girls week holiday.  After  a very long day of travel my friends and I finally made it to our hotel at about 9pm on the first day of our trip. Flight from Toronto had been delayed and put a pin in our original plan to go to a karaoke bar after finding dinner of some sort. We were tired and starving in a city with too many choices when you are that tired and hungry. We did the only natural thing we could, head to the big shiny watering hole across the street called " The Smith" We were right downtown in Manhattan on 27th and Broadway so the restaurant was hopping at 9 pm on a Monday night. We were greeted with warm service ...

  Whistlin' Waffle is somewhat of an oddity in eateries.  Located in Willows Farm Market and Garden Centre , it enjoys shared space with kitschy home and garden shops, a food market, a clothing store, and a couple other whimsical businesses.  This waffle place has a couple other quirks as well. It has a vague, almost indiscernible, asian theme. Aside from the waffles (I'll get to those later), Whistlin' Waffle offers only a few side dishes consisting of spring rolls, edamame, deep fried fish dumplings and (of course) waffle fries. Drink offerings include a focus on bubble teas.   The atmosphere upon entering the establishment is stark, with barely any embellishments or decorations. A hard floor and plain wood veneer diner tables fill the echoey dining room, yet behind and around the counter is a clutter of dry erase boards, small appliances and various hand written cards and notes on bubble tea and waffle toppings.  A strange juxtaposition of an old school d...