Time flies and the flies are here
May 9, 2007....
Well, instead of giving any excuses or apologies of why I haven't written, I will just begin. My life has certainly been an exciting ride of late. I feel like I'm on this raft taking me down a quick flowing river with eddies here and there that jostle me back and forth at times. But, the good news, is that I'm managing to stay in the raft for the most part and enjoy the ride. But, what a ride!
So, what's been happening you ask?
I went to TO to provide some hors d'oeuvres for my friend Kerri's birthday party and the crowd seemed to love the dishes, especially the cold pear and blue cheese soup and the raw Thai wraps. It was a lot of work and my friend saw first hand how much time it takes as I was shopping on Friday and then on Saturday I was in the kitchen from 11 am and was still cooking when the guests started arriving after 7 pm. I always have the best intentions to be totally prepared and ready to go, but I'm always running out of time. This is especially difficult when you're not working out of your normal kitchen as I had to transport a variety of equipment, spices and accessories in my suitcase and buy other main staples on the spot such as oils, vinegars, etc. The other part that is challenging is that each kitchen is so different to work out of. I loved my friend's kitchen as it was large and there was a lot of space but there are also things to find, things to learn how to work, things you need to buy, especially if the person doesn't cook, like baking sheets, and things you buy but don't work, like the high-speed blender I bought and turned off after one use and wouldn't go back on again. I wasn't impressed but at least it made the most difficult and important element to the Thai wrap - a nut paste that is difficult to do by other methods, and I had brought an emulsion blender (wonderful tool) that I used for the soup and other elements. Shopping is also a challenge as you just can't find all that you're looking for, in particular special ingredients - in this case I went to several stores looking for tamarind with no luck. I could have found it if I went shopping to several stores more stores probably but after looking in three stores there was no more time I could waste. It's always a difficult decision for me of how much time to spend looking for something or to just make a substitution right away. In this case, I know I didn't have much time to set up and prepare the meal so I went with a substitution - dates for a dipping sauce, which I never got to at the end of the day or thought I needed anyway. This is the interesting and challenging part I find about chefing - you need to be creative, flexible and be able to work spontaneously when an ingredient you wanted to use is not available or is not of good quality and you just can't use it or is spoiled, etc. etc. and you have to make a substitution, or try another approach or recipe. Or you make things and they don't turn out so you have to figure out another approach, try it again, or try another recipe. This is often at the ninth hour or at the last minute so you have to think keep cool, think fast and just do it. This is what amazes me about the chefs that have been working at this for a while as they see mistakes and errors as normal in the day to day work and just adjust as required, even if it's just before service. It's the only type of creative work I know where you are creating a product that is judged by almost all senses by the critics.. taste, touch, smell, sight and sometimes hearing when something is sizzling or being poured... and you have to work at the last minute to put it all together quickly and effectively. What stress, what nerves! So, the event went well, and there was a lot of interest in finding me a spot in TO so I could create a four course gourmet vegan dinner there. That would be nice. I always knew that there would be a large clientele in TO for this type of food but I also thought competition would be starting up in it as well. We'll see, enough on my plate in Ottawa for now and speaking of Ottawa...
Preparations are underway for the May 28 dinner at Helsinki Lounge, in particular perfecting the menu items for the dinner, deciding what goes with what, what's in season at that time, how the different colours and textures combine, overall balance, and one of the most important elements is how we will quickly serve around 40 people quickly with each service, which is a skill in itself. So, all these things and more running through my head and stickies and notes everywhere with ideas and thoughts about the dinner like a work of art in progress. I hope that the unveiling of my next piece on May 28 will be well received by the critics.
So, two new venues have emerged and we decided to use both for June and end the season with a splash. I have been working with Rasputin's folk cafe downtown (http://www.rasputins.ca) to hold an event there as I believe the philosophy of Dean's place and his approach fit in well with the dinners. Rasputin's is a small family run folk cafe that emphasizes the relaxed, the informal and is in its 21st year. They present over 100 concerts a year, feature Open Stages, and host Jam Sessions. Dean was receptive and knows that my dinners have been selling out very quickly so he would like to offer the June dinner, on Sunday, June 17, to his email membership list of a few hundred first. If there are seats left after people on his list are given a certain amount of time to reserve, then I can open the dinner to others. We will be promoting this event shortly and then I will know very soon how many seats I will have. What a fun and warm space, complete with the stage, mike and sound system for the use folk gigs that come in, cosy tables all around, and the kitchen right there. Dean has been welcoming and enthusiastic to the concept of the dinner, which is the kind of thing he's wanted to do for awhile he said.
The next venue is the downtown Chelsea Club (www.chelseaclub.ca). I have to say downtown so people don't think this is in Chelsea, Quebec across the bridge, which some have already thought of when I mentioned this location. This venue came about in an interesting way. A participant at the last dinner said that the Sommelier Guild uses a wonderful location called the Chelsea Club and he would look into it for me. He is a member and used to have events there. Well, next thing, I was sitting down at the Chelsea Club with the head chef and manager Sean to meet him and discuss the dinner. He was very warm and enthusiastic to the idea of the dinner and supportive of me having it there. There were only a few spots left in June at the club and I chose June 18 right away.
The Chelsea Club is one of those hidden spots in Ottawa that I didn't know about but had heard about at times and most people I speak to feel the same way. It's right downtown so I don't know how you could miss it but we do. It's right at Somerset at Metcalfe and is beautiful historic building with no signage as it's only for members. What is the Chelsea Club? I love the history of this club, in particular because in 1925 the Womens' Canadian Club, a group of promiment women in
the community including Charlotte Whitton, bought the house and made into a residential and social club only for women. Times have changed, and men have been welcomed in for more than 20 years and the club is no longer residential. On the first floor, there is a nice bathroom for the women and the men's bathroom is in the basement and was probably put in when they had to accommodate males coming into the club.
Prior to 1925, the club was a residence to promiment people as Metcalfe Street in the 1880s was wide tree-lined avenue and one of the most prestigious addresses for Ottawa's political and business elite. In 1883, Sir Alexander Campbell, one of the Fathers of Confederation, Canada's first Postmaster General, and who later became the Lieutenant Governer of Ontario, acquired the properity to build a 7000 square foot residence. In 1887, the house was sold to Sir John Carling, President of the Carling Brewing and Malting Company and who became the Postmaster General and held several Cabinet posts. In 1897, it was bought by Sir Louise Henry Davies, a former Premier of PEI, member of Sir Wilfrid Laurier's cabinet and later a Supreme Court Judge. The home's last owner was William S. Fielding, a former Premier of Nova Socia and a cabinet member under both Laurier and Mackenzie King.
So, there you go, and I am thrilled to be having a dinner event there in June and hopefully future events. I won't give much more away so it will be a pleasant surprise to those people fortunate to attend the next dinner on June 18.
By the way, the public can also visit the house on Sunday, June 3 from 12 - 4 pm during Doors Open - Ottawa 2007. I've been looking for a place like this and I'm hoping this is the spot that will work for the dinners as it would be nice to have a regular spot in which to lay my chef's hat, or my colourful bandana that I use in my case.
As I was leaving, I mentioned to Chef Sean that I could assist in the kitchen as he sounded like he was extremely busy. Well, as has happened with my life to date since I started on this path, next thing I know I'm starting shifts in the kitchen assisting him. This is a great honour as he's a senior chef with loads of experience chefing at the finest places such as the Truffles Restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel in TO, Henry Burger, and other high profile restaurants. So far, I've done three shifts and love it there. Sean is a wonderful chef and teacher and has a warm and kind personality. Very different kind of chef than most kitchens around. The thing that is exciting is that there are a very different events every day. One day I was working on a book launch and gourmet dinner and the next time was an elaborate wine and food pairing evening of several courses or "flights" of hors d'oeuvres passed with paired wines. Also, there are fringe benefits in being able to taste the food and wines.. yum! So, more on my adventures later...
Well, instead of giving any excuses or apologies of why I haven't written, I will just begin. My life has certainly been an exciting ride of late. I feel like I'm on this raft taking me down a quick flowing river with eddies here and there that jostle me back and forth at times. But, the good news, is that I'm managing to stay in the raft for the most part and enjoy the ride. But, what a ride!
So, what's been happening you ask?
I went to TO to provide some hors d'oeuvres for my friend Kerri's birthday party and the crowd seemed to love the dishes, especially the cold pear and blue cheese soup and the raw Thai wraps. It was a lot of work and my friend saw first hand how much time it takes as I was shopping on Friday and then on Saturday I was in the kitchen from 11 am and was still cooking when the guests started arriving after 7 pm. I always have the best intentions to be totally prepared and ready to go, but I'm always running out of time. This is especially difficult when you're not working out of your normal kitchen as I had to transport a variety of equipment, spices and accessories in my suitcase and buy other main staples on the spot such as oils, vinegars, etc. The other part that is challenging is that each kitchen is so different to work out of. I loved my friend's kitchen as it was large and there was a lot of space but there are also things to find, things to learn how to work, things you need to buy, especially if the person doesn't cook, like baking sheets, and things you buy but don't work, like the high-speed blender I bought and turned off after one use and wouldn't go back on again. I wasn't impressed but at least it made the most difficult and important element to the Thai wrap - a nut paste that is difficult to do by other methods, and I had brought an emulsion blender (wonderful tool) that I used for the soup and other elements. Shopping is also a challenge as you just can't find all that you're looking for, in particular special ingredients - in this case I went to several stores looking for tamarind with no luck. I could have found it if I went shopping to several stores more stores probably but after looking in three stores there was no more time I could waste. It's always a difficult decision for me of how much time to spend looking for something or to just make a substitution right away. In this case, I know I didn't have much time to set up and prepare the meal so I went with a substitution - dates for a dipping sauce, which I never got to at the end of the day or thought I needed anyway. This is the interesting and challenging part I find about chefing - you need to be creative, flexible and be able to work spontaneously when an ingredient you wanted to use is not available or is not of good quality and you just can't use it or is spoiled, etc. etc. and you have to make a substitution, or try another approach or recipe. Or you make things and they don't turn out so you have to figure out another approach, try it again, or try another recipe. This is often at the ninth hour or at the last minute so you have to think keep cool, think fast and just do it. This is what amazes me about the chefs that have been working at this for a while as they see mistakes and errors as normal in the day to day work and just adjust as required, even if it's just before service. It's the only type of creative work I know where you are creating a product that is judged by almost all senses by the critics.. taste, touch, smell, sight and sometimes hearing when something is sizzling or being poured... and you have to work at the last minute to put it all together quickly and effectively. What stress, what nerves! So, the event went well, and there was a lot of interest in finding me a spot in TO so I could create a four course gourmet vegan dinner there. That would be nice. I always knew that there would be a large clientele in TO for this type of food but I also thought competition would be starting up in it as well. We'll see, enough on my plate in Ottawa for now and speaking of Ottawa...
Preparations are underway for the May 28 dinner at Helsinki Lounge, in particular perfecting the menu items for the dinner, deciding what goes with what, what's in season at that time, how the different colours and textures combine, overall balance, and one of the most important elements is how we will quickly serve around 40 people quickly with each service, which is a skill in itself. So, all these things and more running through my head and stickies and notes everywhere with ideas and thoughts about the dinner like a work of art in progress. I hope that the unveiling of my next piece on May 28 will be well received by the critics.
So, two new venues have emerged and we decided to use both for June and end the season with a splash. I have been working with Rasputin's folk cafe downtown (http://www.rasputins.ca) to hold an event there as I believe the philosophy of Dean's place and his approach fit in well with the dinners. Rasputin's is a small family run folk cafe that emphasizes the relaxed, the informal and is in its 21st year. They present over 100 concerts a year, feature Open Stages, and host Jam Sessions. Dean was receptive and knows that my dinners have been selling out very quickly so he would like to offer the June dinner, on Sunday, June 17, to his email membership list of a few hundred first. If there are seats left after people on his list are given a certain amount of time to reserve, then I can open the dinner to others. We will be promoting this event shortly and then I will know very soon how many seats I will have. What a fun and warm space, complete with the stage, mike and sound system for the use folk gigs that come in, cosy tables all around, and the kitchen right there. Dean has been welcoming and enthusiastic to the concept of the dinner, which is the kind of thing he's wanted to do for awhile he said.
The next venue is the downtown Chelsea Club (www.chelseaclub.ca). I have to say downtown so people don't think this is in Chelsea, Quebec across the bridge, which some have already thought of when I mentioned this location. This venue came about in an interesting way. A participant at the last dinner said that the Sommelier Guild uses a wonderful location called the Chelsea Club and he would look into it for me. He is a member and used to have events there. Well, next thing, I was sitting down at the Chelsea Club with the head chef and manager Sean to meet him and discuss the dinner. He was very warm and enthusiastic to the idea of the dinner and supportive of me having it there. There were only a few spots left in June at the club and I chose June 18 right away.
The Chelsea Club is one of those hidden spots in Ottawa that I didn't know about but had heard about at times and most people I speak to feel the same way. It's right downtown so I don't know how you could miss it but we do. It's right at Somerset at Metcalfe and is beautiful historic building with no signage as it's only for members. What is the Chelsea Club? I love the history of this club, in particular because in 1925 the Womens' Canadian Club, a group of promiment women in
the community including Charlotte Whitton, bought the house and made into a residential and social club only for women. Times have changed, and men have been welcomed in for more than 20 years and the club is no longer residential. On the first floor, there is a nice bathroom for the women and the men's bathroom is in the basement and was probably put in when they had to accommodate males coming into the club.
Prior to 1925, the club was a residence to promiment people as Metcalfe Street in the 1880s was wide tree-lined avenue and one of the most prestigious addresses for Ottawa's political and business elite. In 1883, Sir Alexander Campbell, one of the Fathers of Confederation, Canada's first Postmaster General, and who later became the Lieutenant Governer of Ontario, acquired the properity to build a 7000 square foot residence. In 1887, the house was sold to Sir John Carling, President of the Carling Brewing and Malting Company and who became the Postmaster General and held several Cabinet posts. In 1897, it was bought by Sir Louise Henry Davies, a former Premier of PEI, member of Sir Wilfrid Laurier's cabinet and later a Supreme Court Judge. The home's last owner was William S. Fielding, a former Premier of Nova Socia and a cabinet member under both Laurier and Mackenzie King.
So, there you go, and I am thrilled to be having a dinner event there in June and hopefully future events. I won't give much more away so it will be a pleasant surprise to those people fortunate to attend the next dinner on June 18.
By the way, the public can also visit the house on Sunday, June 3 from 12 - 4 pm during Doors Open - Ottawa 2007. I've been looking for a place like this and I'm hoping this is the spot that will work for the dinners as it would be nice to have a regular spot in which to lay my chef's hat, or my colourful bandana that I use in my case.
As I was leaving, I mentioned to Chef Sean that I could assist in the kitchen as he sounded like he was extremely busy. Well, as has happened with my life to date since I started on this path, next thing I know I'm starting shifts in the kitchen assisting him. This is a great honour as he's a senior chef with loads of experience chefing at the finest places such as the Truffles Restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel in TO, Henry Burger, and other high profile restaurants. So far, I've done three shifts and love it there. Sean is a wonderful chef and teacher and has a warm and kind personality. Very different kind of chef than most kitchens around. The thing that is exciting is that there are a very different events every day. One day I was working on a book launch and gourmet dinner and the next time was an elaborate wine and food pairing evening of several courses or "flights" of hors d'oeuvres passed with paired wines. Also, there are fringe benefits in being able to taste the food and wines.. yum! So, more on my adventures later...
posted by Caroline at 5:42 AM
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