Hinterland Love

Last fall was my first time in Prince Edward County. I spent three days jumping from winery to winery, restaurant to restaurant. I was in heaven tasting all the different wines in the area. And as a result, my husband and I left with many cases of wine.

Over the winter months, we consumed a lot of that wine. So when a friend announced a 40th birthday weekend in the county, I was ecstatic! Not only would we have a great weekend away with friends, but also an opportunity to refill our cellar (my cellar being a tiny space on the wall in the basement) with the wines we fell in love with.

With summer coming, the go-to winery for me was Hinterland. Marysol introduced me to their rosé last summer (that's when I first fell in love). This orangy-pink delight is made with 90% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay. It's the perfect way to start an evening with your closest friends. They sold out of the 2007 but I picked up some of the 2008. Even though it still needed another month in the bottle, the few sips I had got me salivating for more.

I also picked up a bunch of the Whitecap. Last fall I had bought 2 bottles and regretted it. I should have gotten way more. I am a huge Prosecco fan and this is their version. Love it. It's great with finger foods before a meal and fantastic on it's own.

One I hadn't tried before was the Ancestral. It's made from Gamay Noir grapes, is slightly sweet and has a lovely raspberry/strawberry taste. A great summer afternoon in the sun wine.

I'm surprised more Ottawa restaurants don't carry Hinterland. Their Toronto list is quite extensive. Brookstreet Hotel is the only one here. Although I can see the Whitecap going beautifully with oysters from the Whalesbone. The rosé with seared tuna (drool). Ok, I think I have to go pour myself a drink...

Hinterland

1258 Closson Road, RR#1

Hillier, Ontario

613-921-7003

Tennessy Willems

$$+

With all the hype around this new restaurant, it didn't take much convincing from our friends Mark and Stacey to get us to join them for dinner at Tennessy Willems. I've never been a huge pizza person, but give me a paper thin crust from a wood burning oven and some interesting toppings and I'm in.

It was much smaller inside than I imagined, and the lights a bit brighter. Tables and walls lacking in character, but once your food is in front of you, your surroundings vanish. Between the four of us we shared 2 apps – the mackerel plate and the house salad.

The mackerel plate was done up using the Whalesbone's delicious smoked mackerel, apple beet slaw, lemon crème fraîche and some homemade bread. We savoured every bite, this plate being one of my favourite of the evening.

The house salad was mixture of peppery arugula, yummy wood oven roasted wild mushrooms and shavings of Grana Padano parm in a mild maple and sherry vinaigrette.

They have a few mains on the menu that are not pizza, but when in Rome... We shared 3. My husband says he judges a pizza place on their Margherita, and this one passed the test with it's savoury fire roasted tomato sauce, fiore di latte mozzarella and fresh basil.

The second pizza we decided to go with was the duck confit with caramelized onion, white truffle oil, melt-in-your-mouth Riopelle cheese and rich duck confit. A great pie to share, but I don't think I could do a whole one to myself.

Our third pizza was a toss up between the wild boar and the chorizo. I beat Mark at rock-paper-scissors, bringing my choice of wild boar to the table. I think this one could have used some form of sauce on the base because it was quite dry. But the mouthwatering boar sausage made up for it – I just wished there was more of it it was so good! Other delectable ingredients on this one included caramelized apple, heavenly sage that went so beautifully with everything, roasted garlic and sharp cheddar.

Service good, apps ranging from $10 to $12 and mains $15 to $18.

Tennessy Willems

1082 Wellington Street Ottawa

613-722-0000

Trio Lounge

$$+

Had to check this place out after reading so many great reviews.

This cozy little restaurant has got relaxing Friday evening written all over it. With it's wall lined with comfy seats and dim lighting, if you're lucky enough to get a spot, you won't want to leave. And their menu makes it easy to just sit back and slowly eat and drink your night away.

At first glance the menu looks small, and you would expect it to be easy to choose from the list of delectable small plates. Not so. There are many dishes to opt for, which leaves you with that feeling of wishing you had a stomach large enough to try everything. Which of course, reduces the time between then and your next return.

As I sipped away at my Cab-Tempranillo, engaging in conversation, one by one our plates came out.

First, a rich mushroom tapenade with truffle and sprinkles of micro-greens served on baguette toast. The conversation ended at this point as my friend Amy and I savoured each bite.

Next, mouthwatering lamb mint balls with a Moroccan yogurt and a handfull of fresh micro-greens. After dousing my first few bites in this lovely, light sauce, I had to pull back in order to save some for the last few meaty bits.

And finally, a generous cheese board with creamy Soeur Angèle, made from both goat and cow's milk, Mont Jacob, so flavourful and yummy, and my new favourite sheep cheese, Manchego – absolutely divine. The charming platter was dotted with bright red dried cranberries and flower petals. And the savoury red pepper sauce and homemade pesto completed each bite of cheese on the perfectly crisp baguette toasts.

I've already planned what I'm going to order during my next visit – the baked cheese sandwich with house ketchup (which came highly recommended by a friend) and braised Malaysian pork belly steak. Yum!

Prices very reasonable, between $4 and $14 and good service. Music selection is also fantastic. They don't take reservations so make sure to show up early.

Trio Lounge

307 Richmond Rd Ottawa

613-722-3887

Braised Beef Short Ribs

My friend Sue hooked us up with a local farmer who was taking orders for some of her yummy beef. We jumped on the opportunity. (They don't have a web site but send me a note if you'd like contact info.) We ordered the meat back in December and picked everything up late January.

Ahhh, a freezer full of delicious meat. I can't think of anything more wonderful. Well, except maybe the results of having this meat. Which is this dish right here – straight from comfort-food-heaven. Goodbye cold, wet days, hello soul-warming goodness.

After hours in the slow-cooker, the meat had already fallen off the bone. Every tender morsel melted in my mouth before my teeth even had time to sink into it. Nothing can compare to good beef. And once you go there once, you're in for life.

Sides for this dish are equally amazing. Unlike most slow-cooker meals where you throw everything into the pot and leave it, this one requires a lot of time for the accompanying veg. My husband was in the kitchen much longer than usual. I will say this though, every second was so worth it. Carrots and mushrooms cooked to perfection along with heavenly pearl onions and thick crisp bacon, all doused in a mouthwatering jus. The base for all of this was a whipped blanket of celery root – A-MA-ZING.

With a rich red wine by your side, this would be the perfect Saturday night dinner for your closest friends. Get the full recipe here on epicurious.

Pan Seared Fois Gras

Living in Ottawa has made it pretty easy to get great food to cook with. From our wonderful butchers carrying the best of local meat, to farms delivering fresh veggies to your door, it's very easy to eat well. On those occasions where you want to step it up a little, there are plenty of specialty stores in the area where you can find everything you need. There's even a website based out of Montreal called Ogourmet that offers delectable treats such as this fois gras available to ship within one business day.

My husband seared this sinful, silky treat to perfection. Beneath it, layers of peppery arugula drizzled in balsamic and oil, toasted hazelnuts and earthy brown rice infused with garlic and mixed with chunks of meaty shiitake mushrooms.

And if that wasn't decadent enough, every rich bite was chased with a refreshing and sweet wine from Prince Edward County – Exultet Estates 2009 Dolce Ghiacciato.

$12 In – Shanghai

Wow, I was starting to think I'd never post another tip jar submission ever. It's been a very long time – thankfully. But tonight, well, tonight could not go unnoticed.

We used to go to Shanghai quite often. I've always really enjoyed it there. My favourite dishes – Shanghai dumplings, pad thai, and coconut curry shrimp. I don't know what happened tonight though, food was good as usual, service – non-existent.

- 20 minutes+ before getting our first drink, 1 hour for the app, another hour for the main (some apps didn't even come with the others and snuck their way in just before the main), over an hour for the bill.

- My friend got the wrong app, and my husband got the wrong main. Unfortunately at this point he was so hungry he couldn't bare the thought of waiting another hour for a new dish so ate the ginger beef he was served. Oh, and he's really not a fan of ginger.

- Our server spilled my friend's beer into his dinner. Her response: “Oh, now it's going to taste like beer. Do you want me to do something about that?” Nothing was done.

My friend Gina said it beautifully – there's a way to give bad service well (having been in the industry). A few apologies, even a fake excuse, anything would have made me feel somewhat better. But she was clueless. And I don't think she had any idea that anything was going wrong.

To make matters worse, after about 40 minutes of waiting for our bill, even after having asked our server to bring it, approximately 50 people piled through the doors in about 10 minutes. Our chances of getting a bill now were hopeless. Another 20 minutes or more go by. We shuffle through the people to get to the bar, begging for our bill. No success, Don who was working behind the bar had to get the bill from our server. We waited some more, and the live act that had just started (a strip spelling bee) began. His first words: “I know there's still people eating here - so you should finish and leave.” Oh trust me, we want to! We wanted to an hour ago. We finally got our bill, our server still with no idea anything was even wrong, no apology, nothing.

I don't think the evening could have ended any more poorly. So sad. I really did used to love this place. So there you have it, $12 tip now in my empty little jar, waiting patiently for the next outing we have with impeccable service!

Side note: if you have an event going on that's going to box in your guests and pretty much reduce the service to nothing, warn them when they call for a reservation – at least.

Shanghai

651 Somerset Street West

Ottawa, Ontario

613-233-4001

Cake Heaven

Teresa does it again! Blowing us all away with her side talent as specialty cake maker. No party is complete without one of her jaw-dropping creations. Maybe it's because there were 3 birthdays tied into these cakes – whatever the reason, these ones seemed to raise the bar immensely.

After hours of laboring away, 8 separate cakes molds and detailed frosting like I've never seen before, Teresa proudly delivered the best cakes ever. Layers of either chocolate or white moist cake separated by velvety frosting. The crowd that piled into our dining room to break into these were, to say the least, trembling with excitement as they patiently waited for their slice of sweetness. Some on the other hand, couldn't contain themselves and dove in with two hands (you know who you are!)

Thanks so much Teresa! Birthdays would not be birthdays without you!