Home 2012 (Page 3)

Year: 2012

Lost in the Boondocks Wood

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We left Indian Lake in the morning, hitting Highway 28. Our New York State adventures were coming to an end, and we had to make the 3 and a half hour trek back to Canada. Along the way, we would stop by and admire the numerous mountains and lakes. Lake Durant. Blue Mountain Lake. Eagle Lake. Utowana Lake. Raquette Lake. Eight Lake. Seventh Lake. Sixth, Fifth, Fourth, Third, Second and First Lake. I guess they ran out of names. About halfway to the border, we started to get hungry. Starving, in fact. But we had reached Highway 12, and options were scarce. Nothing for miles. Until we saw a size-able establishment with a huge parking lot, with ski-doos and ATVs on the rooftop. Welcome to Boondocks Restaurant and Bar, Lyons Falls, New York. Walking in the place is its own adventure. They’ve got the rustic feel, with lots of wood…

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Oh, Dimaggio’s!

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Mrs. Waffle did some research before our road trip vacation in New York State. And once I convinced her that Cooperstown was a must stop, she insisted that dinner happened at Dimaggio’s Cooperstown Hot Grill. So first we visited the Baseball Hall of Fame. And then we set out for Dimaggio’s. “The best food in town. Cooperstown, that is.” says their website. DiMaggio’s is owned and run by the DiMaggio family, (yes, cousin to Joe) and is located on Route 28, directly across from the Cooperstown Dreams Park – bringing them hungry customers by the busload. DiMaggio’s is obviously targeting families. Leaving aside their ice cream section, with their sundaes selection (banana split, chocolate chip cookie, strawberry shortcake and hot fudge brownie), their menu offers many options: New York Strip Steaks, Baby Back Ribs and all kinds of specialty salads, sandwiches and burgers. Apparently, DiMaggio’s Eggplant Parmesan and Rice Ball…

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Don’t let them tell you it can be stuffed

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Mrs. Waffle had a craving. She wanted horrid, greasy, salty pizza. Why? It all started by a complaint from @JuiceGnipoksy, who really wishes that Pizza Hut and Swiss Chalet would open up shop in downtown Ottawa. He has a point. Pizza Hut, founded in Wichita in 1958 and now a subsidiary of Yum!, (the world’s largest restaurant company who also owns KFC and Taco Bell), has about 12,000 Pizza Hut restaurants in the world. But in Ottawa, the closest Pizza Hut from downtown is in the Glebe, on Bank @ Fifth, about 3 kms from Parliament Hill. The closest Swiss Chalet is on Carling @ Kirkwood, about 7 kms from the Hill. Still, there are 9 Swiss Chalet in Ottawa and 9 Pizza Hut as well. Swiss Chalet gave up on its Chalet Suisse Quebec locations years ago, but Pizza Hut is quite present and has one franchise in Gatineau,…

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Caplansky’s Deli is smokin’!

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I’ve been wanting to meet up with Toronto Star reporter and beer expert Josh Rubin for some time. The opportunity finally arose today before my flight back to Ottawa, which was around 4PM – meaning that I had some time to kill in the afternoon. @starbeer suggested that we meet up for lunch and a pint at Caplansky’s. Caplansky’s Delicatessen first opened shop in 2008 when owner Zane Caplansky (check out his blog) simply got fed up relying on visits with Montreal friends to get his fix of Smoked Meat Sandwiches – so he opened his own kitchen in the Monarch Tavern. After a very successful year, he had to relocate to a bigger location – on College just west of Spadina – and opened his very own full establishment. Despite that, Caplansky’s feel like it’s been there forever. A bare brick wall covered with old pictures, neons and newspapers’…

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Metrobrunch

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Mrs. Waffle loves to go to Metropolitain for brunch. She regularly organizes outings there with her girlfriends. She loves it. They offer Brunch cocktails, the classic breakfast is her favorite and she often orders a Chocolatine to end her meal. (Apparently, most of her friends do too.) From time to time, she organizes brunch at the Met for other friends – out-of-towner types. And that’s when I get sucked in. The 3 of us arrived on schedule, at 10:30. The Met wasn’t very busy, on this Post-Canada Day Day. The patio was fairly full, but we could have elected to sit there if we had wished to do so – or even in the new patio annex, which includes comfortable couches under the trees – more suited for casual drinks than a meal with a toddler. So we settled in one of the left corner booths inside, and waited for…

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