fourONEsixSTYLE

Last winter my Mags gave out on me, leaving a hole in my shoe between sole and leather. I’d had them for a few seasons and had put them to good use in the city slush. The sole is a good two inches up from the ground all the way around and made of rubber, perfect for Toronto weather. I’d hoped to get a new pair once this wintery weather started so I went back to where I bought them in the first place, Get Outside. It’s my favourite shoe shop, along with heel boy, and it was voted best shoe store in blogTO’s Best of Indie Toronto. They’ve got a ton of great trainers, like Royal Elastics which I love, but they didn’t have a pair of Mags in sight. They seem to have switched to something called Clarks but they’re not the same.

So now I’m stranded, with no winter boots to make my way home, and I can’t seem to find a pair in the city that’s got style but can also keep my feet out of the wet stuff. Even stranger is that many shoe stores are already pushing their spring line-up of strappy sandals. Where am I supposed to find my snow shoes now? Some friends have told me to make the hike to Trove on Bathurst, maybe they’ve still got some boots on sale.

photo: idiolector

Czehoski Restaurant on Queen West
Originally uploaded by hc916.

I’ve been having a bit more fun rating restaurants in Toronto on Restaurantica. My favourite place out there is Czehoski. It’s a great place to meet friends for drinks in summer or winter. Menu is small but there’s a great selection of drinks, even organic wines.

It was my top pick too when I wrote a piece last fall for Variety magazine. New Yorkers (Gotham edition) could get a quick look at the best places to hit in Toronto for nightlife when visiting during the Toronto International Film Festival.

At the time I sat down for an informal interview with the Manager of Czehoski; he revealed great stories about the former mob hangout and butcher shop, remnants of which are immediately obvious when walking through the door. On the second floor it’s another world entirely, small intimate areas make up the space.

Visit Restaurantica for more of my review.

For those who get totally stressed-out Christmas shopping I have one piece of advice - go local and stay out of the malls. Over the course of two rainy days I’ve found nearly everything I need in Bloor West, Parkdale and West Queen West, granted I’ve been buying for people who love design as much as I do and it’s always easier to find unique gifts away from the dreaded mall.

Relatively new to the block is blue igloo in Parkdale, a small shop with a bit of everything for the home. Every time I go in I leave with something for my flat, but this time the silver teardrop lamp I picked up had someone else’s name on it. At Jolanta Interiors on Bloor every kitchen accessory you could dream up is somewhere on its shelves. Smallish brandy glasses were a nightmare to find anywhere else - they were out, too pricey or not the right shape - but they were a quick find at this established shop in the village. Wish I’d bought the ramekins for creme brulee for $1.50 a piece at Jolanta’s instead of at Williams Sonoma at $11 a pop, though WS did wrap them up extra pretty.

Of all the places I’d been Studio Brillantine at Dovercourt and Queen is my fav. Whenever I’m lost for gift ideas SB is where I end up. I spent an hour looking at every piece in the store - Stelton’s stainless steel coffee set by Arne Jacobsen, Shiseido candies from Ginza, Toyko and minimal digital watches by Philippe Stark. It’s the kind of stuff that wins design awards and gets noticed - conversation pieces - the kind of pieces people usually don’t buy for themselves but would love to own and probably don’t already have. I left with a great bag of goodies, easily finding something for the home-office guy, the entertainer and the traveler too all in one simple spot.

Studio Brillantine @ 1082 Queen Street West. Ph: 416.536.6521
Jolanta Interiors @ 2368 Bloor St. W. Ph: 416.762.9638
Blue Igloo - now online only.

Caban announced recently that it would be closing its doors, and have now begun huge clearance sales at all of their Canadian stores. Though I was hoping to one day toast a US expansion - instead it’s time to say goodbye to the 6-year-old franchise.

Shoppers are scooping up sales already, and though the sale is good, it’s not “closing sale good”. Caban’s got some quality brands and that seems to be enough to get shoppers in for the bargains. In the food section you’ll find 20% off deals on products by Dean and Deluca, Bodum, Stelton and Nigella Lawson. You can pick up books, like Susur Lee’s A Culinary Life, for 30%, and if you’re looking for big ticket furniture items which are 20% off you’re going to have to get there fast before there’s a sold sign on that Philippe Stark stool you wanted.

I’ll have to mourn the slick lifestyle brand’s demise in true Caban fashion, with a spill of bubbly on the hardwood floor (bought new champagne glasses) while I throw on a Buddha Bar CD and whip something up from Balthazar’s cookbook.

Sweet Lulu’s
Originally uploaded by DanielN.

Seems bloggers do make a difference. After seeing this image on DanielN’s photoblog I was compelled to give one of the new resaurants in my work area a try. Sweet Lulu had the style of a place I might like. It’s clean, modern and organic - what my sister might call cafeteria style, but I can get into that. Another reason compelled me to try Sweet Lulu, my current lunch boite is closed for renovation and I can’t get ramen out of my head.
I left my car near Trinity park and walked by what used to be my favourite clothing store (public - now sadly been split into two news stores, neither of which get me very excited) and thought I’d just grab something to go.
No take out menus by the door, so I walked up to the kitchen area hoping they’d have something to replace my favourite lunchtime meal from Sonya’s. Despite the “cafeteria” style this place was bright and cozy. Making me feel even more at home was the Fischerspooner track playing from the speakers. It was enough to convince me to get something even if they don’t have ramen on the list…and they didn’t. I ordered a meal-sized soup for $8.00. This better be good, I thought. “10 minutes” they told me. May as well stay and chill if I’m gonna get settled. My massive soup arrived and was so delish - pad thai noodles, thai yellow curry with lemongrass and basil. It was my own mix and match creation, of which I was quite proud. Felt as though I should pipe up and tell them ramen noodles are better for this kind of thing, since she’d conceeded pad thai noodles were the best for soups when I’d asked earlier. I figured it wasn’t a big enough deal to stir it up, especially since the waitress had been so sweet and smiley and at that moment was happily singing along to the Brazilian Girls track “pussy, pussy, pussy, marijuana”. Bizarre lyrics I know, but it’s a feel good song and quite catchy. It kinda fit the laid-back atmosphere. After my tasty soup and a lunchtime relaxing in the this fun little boite I couldn’t help but leave with a smile on my face too.