Out For A Nice Dinner With My Honey

Update : Politica has permanently closed.It was late afternoon a week and a half ago Saturday, and we were going through the 'What should we have for dinner?' conversation. You can guess by the title where the discussion ended!It had been a while since we'd been out for dinner, so we decided to treat ourselves to one of our 'this is where we go when we have something to celebrate' places, called Politica. We had nothing in particular to celebrate though, just a desire for their excellent food and ambiance.Situated on a corner away from any main street (at 127 Strachan Ave, just north of King Street West), and housed within what would have originally been a stately manor, Politica is in a neighbourhood that is an interesting mix of residential and old warehouses. We love the welcoming atmosphere there, combined with touches of fancyness, (like white linen napkins and beautiful tableware), and during the years we've been going there, can honestly say, that we've never had a single bite of anything that wasn't totally delicious.

Seriously Good Leftovers : Fish Sandwiches

ass="aligncenter size-full wp-image-24690 blk-brdr" src="http://www.loulou.to/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/fish-sandwich-made-with-leftover-pan-fried-fish.jpg" alt="fish-sandwich-made-with-leftover-pan-fried-fish" width="640" height="430">I do love a good fish sandwich and often choose them in a casual restaurant when I find them on the menu.So you might say I'm a bit of a fish sandwich connaisseur. And these ones that Nick has been making at home lately are right up there with the best of them. And, as the title suggests, they're made with leftover fish fillets, cooked using his method of making nice crispy Panko coated fish in a frying pan (rather than by the more traditional and higher in fat method of deep-frying). I shared his method to make this delicious fish here.We usually have the fish, served with rice or potatoes, vegetables and a homemade Tartar Sauce (described below) on the night he first cooks it. Then the leftover fillets are put into the fridge in a covered container. The following day is Fish Sandwich Day! Woohoo.Fish Sandwich Day includes a trip to a local shop that sells bread, for some Pada Buns. (Nick endearingly calls them Prada Buns.) I thought these were a common thing because we see them around our neighbourhood all over the place, but a quick search indicates that they might only go by that particular name in Toronto. They are Crusty (but not too hard) on the outside and soft on the inside. Apparently they are Portuguese and are also called Papo Seco. But if you can't get your hands on Portuguese Rolls, any soft roll will do.The leftover fish is heated up in a single layer in the oven and remains remarkably crispy. The rolls are sliced and spread with some Tartar Sauce (Which is easily made by adding chopped green olives, capers, a small amount of chopped onion, and parsley to mayonnaise. Or just use mayo if you don't want to go to the trouble of making the sauce.) Then the sandwiches are assembled, using vegetables of choice - we like lettuce, tomato, and cucumber.

Checking Out Some Live Music at The Horseshoe Tavern

On Friday night a friend of Andrea's was performing with his band, Tin Star Orphans, at a local place called The Horseshoe Tavern. So we decided to check out the show with her.

The venue is actually called The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern, made legendary because it is one of Toronto's best known live-music stages, having been around since 1947. The building it is in was built 86 years prior to that in 1861, and was originally home to a blacksmith shop, which I imagine is how the place got its name.

I wrote another story about going to this place last year when I saw Kate Nash perform there, which I absolutely loved. That post is here. This was the last concert I photographed with my old camera that was pretty bad in low-light situations, but I still really like the shots I got of her show.

Garden Clippings Become an Interesting Bouquet

Last week, while cleaning up around the garden, I (finally) cut down the dead flower-heads of some ornamental Alliums that had bloomed back in June.You might remember this story back in the fall, where I talked about and posted pictures of us going to the garden centre for bulbs, and these were something new that I added to our garden. Well, they ended up growing quite tall and blooming beautifully, and I was happy to have added them. Since I've never tried them before, I'm not sure how well they'll come back next year, but my fingers are crossed.

Lunch on a Pretty Patio at The Queen Mother Cafe

High on the list of 'Good Things About the Summertime' is the fact that many workplaces around here follow summer-hours, in that people get Friday afternoons off. This meant that my friend Julie C and I could have a late lunch together last Friday.

And another thing that is high on that same list of good things, is that many restaurants have an outdoor patio open. Of course, outdoor eating spaces are not all equal, and I'm not always a huge fan of dining outside; if their patio is jammed up next to a busy street or sidewalk, or if there is no shade spot, I'll usually ask for a table inside. But if their patio is a little hidden gem, away from dust and street noise, that is where I'll want to be.

It was such a spot that we had lunch, at The Queen Mother Cafe. In fact, their patio is so well hidden that I'd been going there for years (we used to live very close by) and didn't even know they had one. To get there you have to go down a set of stairs, walk along a hallway below their kitchen and then climb another set of stairs, to get to their backyard. My pictures will described much better than can my words, how pretty the outdoor dining area at The Queen Mother is.