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WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Basking in the “two plates for $20″ lunch at Play

This lunchtime dish of trout is described simply as "terrific".

By Anne DesBrisay

Play is young and cheerful and fresh: precisely what lunch on a wintry day requires. Its prime mover, Stephen Beckta, is manning the coat check as we stomp through the York Street door, shaking flurries off parkas, handing over soggy mitts. He takes on our burdens with habitual grace, and then leads us to a sunny upstairs table by a big, old window where we bask in the competent ministrations of a perceptive staff.

We are here to taste Play’s any-two-plates-for-$20 lunch, and drink a glass of wine suggested by a menu that pairs every dish with a proposal for best match, in three and five ounce pours. The presentation on the plate of the ‘S2S’ chorizo is striking, and the sausage is very good. We don’t plan to eat it all, but hand goes from plate to mouth to plate again with embarrassing repetition, sometimes dunking the marbled, well-spiced sausage in the curls of dijon mustard, sometimes not.

Pretty and tasty. A pretty chorizo sausage platter disappears quickly — there are no leftovers when a dish is this good.

Next course, trout, yielding just right, in a sweet cider pool surrounding a silken squash purée. Layered above this, a few bitter disks of well peppered turnip (I love turnip), some soft ribbons of leek, and a toss of chewy proscuitto for a bit of meaty, salty yum.  A terrific dish. Feeling we’d had a deal of a meal, we splurged on dessert ($8): a stunner of a chocolate terrine, generous enough to pass around (and around).

Cost: $20 for two plates

Hours: Lunch from noon to 2 p.m. daily (open daily for dinner, too).

Play food + wine,  1 York Street, 613-667-9207. www.playfood.ca.

WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Savour a galette with oomph at Fleur de Sel et L’Argöat

The galette is a Brittany crepe made with the heartier buckwheat flour. It has a tangy, nutty sort of flavour, and the oomph to stand up to strong, savoury fillings

In 2008, the pescatarian restaurant Fleur de Sel teamed up with the crepe restaurant L’Argöat, the latter moving out of its upper floor space on rue Laval and into Fleur de Sel’s red brick a few doors away. The resulting merger then became known as (ta da!!) Fleur de Sel et L’Argöat, complete with a married menu as long-winded as its blended name.

But the union does mean that if you aren’t in the mood for a millet pie or smoked salmon mousse, you can have a crepe for lunch. Which is nice, because it’s rare. And you can have that crepe stuffed with meat, which is also rare in a vegetarian-with-fish-privileges restaurant.

These are galettes, actually, the Brittany crepes made with the heartier buckwheat flour. They have a tangy, nutty sort of flavour, and the oomph to stand up to strong, savoury fillings. Fleur de Sel’s are buttery and crispy edged. The galette I chose — after being told I couldn’t have the “La Bretonne” as they were out of lardons (quelle catastrophe!) — was filled with tender strips of rare venison along with sautéed mushrooms in a gamey, woodsy jus sweetened with long, slow- cooked onions. It came with a nice little salade composée with a few pickled vegetables and a tarragon vinaigrette, and made for a happy, filling lunch.

Cost: Galette L’Argöat, $17

Hours: Tuesday to Friday for lunch, Tuesday to Saturday for dinner

Fleur de Sel, 59, rue Laval, 819-772-8596, www.fleurdesel.ca.

WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Fraser Café has bright and cheerful tacos for a cold winter’s day

By Anne DesBrisay

It’s been a little over two years now at its new location on Springfield Road and the Fraser Café, run by chef-brothers Simon and Ross, seems well and truly tucked into the neighbourhood. Judging by the packed dining room at a mid-week lunch, New Edinburgh/ Rockcliffe/Lindenlea have embraced it. I crowded in with the happy regulars for lunch here, and waddled out stuffed and happy. Portions are generous — no need for a starter — and there was nothing restrained about the pork tacos I was encouraged to order.

These daily creations have earned a loyal following, according to our server (both knowledgeable and helpful), and upon chomping down, one can understand why. On house-made corn tortillas, the filling is boldly flavoured, the presentation bright and cheery for a drab January day, and further surprises are tucked into the fat packages by way of textural contrasts. Chopped green apple is a nice one. So is the base layer of puréed squash perked with cumin. Thinly sliced radish lends peppery notes, slivers of sautéed red cabbage are bright pink grins; diced mango adds some sweetness, while red onion cuts it. The jerked pork itself is highly perfumed with cloves and allspice. On the plate are two of these taco treats and just in case these aren’t enough, gaps have been filled in with a cumin scented black bean salsa — the beans perfectly al dente, clearly not from a can — and a pile of dressed greens.

You’ll be reaching for your napkin over and over again. If you can manage dessert, the butterscotch pudding is nursery comfort food, updated with candied peanuts and crème fraîche.

Cost: Taco $14

Hours: Tuesday to Sunday for lunch/brunch and dinner

Fraser Café, 7 Springfield Rd., 613-749-1444, www.frasercafe.ca.

WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Discovering fine French fare (and great lunch deals) at Gy Resto in Hull

Discover fab lunch bargains — like this delectable rainbow trout with mango and papaya salsa — at Gy Resto

By Anne DesBrisay

How lovely to come across a little filet of truite Arc-en-Ciel, as they call Rainbow trout up here at Gy (pronounced Jee) with a real live beurre blanc pooling beneath. And just to gild the lily, crowning the fish is a sunny salsa of mango and papaya. A loose-textured, wine soaked, buttery and creamy polenta is the really good starch on the plate, and next to the juicy fish and creamy cornmeal, a mound of greens. I’m not going to complain about any of it, except perhaps to suggest the salad might be tossed in favour of something like green beans. Nothing wrong with the mound, except the hot butter sauce ran into the cold salad and I’m not a fan of a delicate sauce and a sharp vinaigrette on the same plate.

But for $12.95, this is a steal of a dish, particularly because of the starter it was packaged with: a zucchini salad that looked as though it might be pretty drab — tangled ribbons of raw green zucchini on a white plate suggest underpowered flavours. Not one bit! Snips of sundried tomato boosted the smack big time as did a sparkling lemon confit dressing cut with a bit of mayonnaise and a rough chop of fuzzy oregano.

If you don’t know this little French eatery on this shoulder to shoulder restaurant heavy stretch of rue Laval in downtown Gatineau, you may find yourself looking around a bit for Gy (short for Gyno, as in chef/owner Gyno Lefrancois, originally from le Gaspésie). Here’s a hint: look up. The signage for this second-storey French restaurant isn’t great. But the restaurant is. And lunch here is a bargain.

Cost: Two-course lunch specials are $10.99 and $12.99, served Tuesday to Friday.

Hours: Tuesday to Friday, 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m; Tuesday to Saturday, 5 p.m.- 9:30 p.m.

Gy Resto, 39-A rue Laval, Gatineau (Hull district) 819-776-0867.

WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Authentic tacos! Los Tacos de Mauro takes the taco up a level

These tacos are so good they may make you feel like dancing

The question kept popping up: “Have you been to the taco disco yet?” And every time I heard it — which was at least four times in the past month — I couldn’t help but wonder if it was the punch line to a joke. But this is no joke. Los Tacos de Mauro is the real deal. Yes indeed, fresh, homemade authentic Mexican food is being served — by the white-aproned cook himself — in a downtown nightclub called Discoteka…disco balls, light-up dance floor and all. The setting may be slightly surreal, but the owner infuses the place with genuine hospitality and the food is a notch above.

On a global scale, Mexican food has moved into the spotlight. As I mentioned here back in October after my City Bites Live event featuring Toronto Chef Francisco Alejandri, traditional Mexican cuisine was recently recognized by UNESCO for its “Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity”. But how many of us here in Ottawa have tasted genuine Mexican food, rather than Tex-Mex or some watered-down version of it? Chef Alejandri’s food — so light, fresh, and far from cheese-smothered — convinced me I hadn’t. I am delighted that a trip down the 401 is unnecessary, the tacos at Los Tacos de Mauro in the Byward Market are a game changer for this city.

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WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: A mighty meatless feast at The Table

There's Plenty to love at The Table

I go to The Table every time I get into a vegetable rut. I hit the jackpot recently with the discovery that my five-year-old loves kale, but there must be more to life than kale chips, right? So on a recent visit to The Table I thought about what makes for a satisfying meatless meal. The answer includes freshness, variety, proper seasoning, and a diversity of cultural inspiration.

For those of us looking to replicate the experience at home, all you need is an impeccably well-stocked pantry, crisper, and spice rack, not to mention an in-house prep-cook who never tires of spinning greens and mincing garlic.

I have always found it interesting that The Table seems to attract a rather, shall we say, homogenous clientele. The restaurant serves fresh and delicious food by any standard, much of which happens to also be super healthy, yet I suspect it fails to win over a wider, more general, audience. You know, like the folks chowing down on Dagwood-esque cold-cut sandwiches.

Perhaps branding is to blame. It must be tough to sexy-up a buffet of heart-smart, vitamin-rich, allergy- sensitive macrobiotic eats. Or is it?

I recently picked up a copy of the new hit cookbook Plenty by celebrated UK author, fancy food shop owner and self-confessed-non-vegetarian Yotam Ottolenghi. I defy you to flip through his book and not salivate instantly. The food is gorgeous, presented simply, yet it is all just insanely appetizing — nothing about it says “thou shalt cut your own hair and wear patchouli oil.” It says, thou shalt enjoy beautiful, delicious, flavourful food.  And by the way — Look Ma, no meat! It took me until page 238 to even realize all the recipes were vegetarian.

So it was with Ottolenghi in mind and the soft scent of cumin and curry in the air, that I made my way to buffet at The Table. I filled my plate with an array of tasty treasures: fresh cornbread, tofu fritters topped with maple-kissed onion chutney (also sold by the jar, $6.75), crisp leaves of organic bok choy, creamy chunks of avocado tossed with fresh tomato and lemon juice, red quinoa and black bean salad, a Moussaka of creamy mashed lentils, crunchy toasted herb pita chips with a dollop of red pepper hummus, citrus salad with shredded spinach and fennel, and sweet and cinnamon dusted squash crescents. For dessert, my favourite chocolate cheesecake in town (it was on our 2010 list of 101 tastes to try before you die). Everything was well-balanced, tasty, fresh, and flavourful. A satisfying meal.

Looking at the utilitarian glass bowls on the buffet, the hand-scrawled ingredient labels, and ultra-earnest sign delineating 10 advantages of eating at The Table (the Veggie Commandments, if you will), I can’t help but wonder why vegetables are still so often tied to a back-to-the-land, moralistic and medicinal point of view. Why aren’t vegetables as hot and trendy as, say, pulled pork, burgers, or charcuterie?

If Ottolenghi can be a culinary celebrity in the UK, there is hope that the full foodie embrace of vegetables is on its way.

Hours: Monday to Friday, 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.; Saturday to Sunday 11:30 a.m. – 9 p.m.

Price: Food is priced by weight

The Table, 1230 Wellington St. W., 613-729-5973.

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WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: In-house smoked chicken panini at Pressed, the new West Centretown café

Fresh new lunch spot smokes their own chicken, bacon and babaganoush

On my first visit last week, Pressed had only been open for 10 days. I regret that I didn’t hold off a bit longer before testing out the new West Centretown café because I believe this spunky local business deserves a chance to work out some of the kinks. So consider this less a review and more initial impressions.

The simple but appealing menu of gourmet sandwiches and salads is a very good start and I applaud the use of local ingredients such as Whalesbone’s smoked trout and Upper Canada Heritage Meats featured in the pulled pork sandwich. The owner, Jeff Stewart, stopped by each table during the lunch hour to check in with his new patrons. He seemed eager to share the story of leaving behind his government gig in exchange for the immediacy of running a neighbourhood eatery. Ironically, timing seems to be one of the kinks that needs some work. There were multiple delays between ordering our food at the cash and receiving everything to the table. My sandwich was delivered nearly 10 minutes before my friend’s (ditto at the next table) and our side dishes arrived at random intervals in between.

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WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Ishina’s Carling Avenue lunch counter offers curry in a hurry

Malai Chicken (Butter chicken's creamier cousin) and basmati rice with nan

It can be a little disconcerting to find oneself the sole customer at a lunch counter at 12:45 p.m. then to realize the person who works there is suggesting that you eat somewhere else. In this case, I was being directed to Ishina’s original location (circa 2003) in Bell’s Corners, where a full hot lunch buffet is served.

At this new outpost of the family-run Ishina restaurant and catering company, those seeking “curry in a hurry” have but three choices of ready-to-eat curry combos (read: cafeteria steam-tray fare dished into styrofoam) that change daily. But though I appreciated the advice on where to go for more choice, I decided to stay. This was a craving emergency.

There are a few stools with views overlooking the traffic whizzing down Carling, but undoubtedly the no-frills space is primarily dedicated to take-out customers (hint: there are a few parking spots in the back). It’s more a retail shop and packaging space for the company’s popular line of Indian delicacies and prepared meals, which are also sold at food shops and through grocers around town. Ishina also produces a line of jarred sauces — butter chicken, korma, and curry — that can be added to meats and vegetables and turned into meals at home.

The day I visited, hot lunch options were malai chicken, aloo mattar paneer, and moong dal. I was sold on the chicken dish when I learned it was “a lot like butter chicken but creamier.” Who knew that was even possible? With its seductively rich creamy tomato gravy and telltale mélange of warming Indian spices like cumin, clove, cinnamon, and coriander, I would have been none the wiser if it had been billed as butter chicken. I opted for both basmati rice and naan bread so as not to miss out on a drop of that sauce. Sadly, the naan suffered from being reheated in foil so the fluffy rice had to suffice.

Judging by the circles I move in (hungry ones), when the damp, darker, shorter days set in, many of us began hankering for curry. The best I can say is this hits the spot in a pinch, but I’d love to see the Carling shop offer more inspiring grab-and-go options. Dare I suggest the not-so-traditional but oh-so-satisfying curry nann-wrap sandwiches or big steaming bowls of soul-warming chili-spiced soup? And while we’re brainstorming, I’m even hearing about a curry house across the river getting rave reviews for its butter chicken poutine. Hey, whatever works — it’s a long, dark, cold winter ahead.

Cost: Curry combos (includes naan and/or basmati rice): $5.99-$8.99

Take-out shop hours: Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.,  (Lunch served only on weekdays); Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Ishina Distinguished Indian Cuisine, 1808 Carling Ave., 613-695-8282.

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WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Red Apron’s brown bag soup & sandwich

Pull up a stool with a view or take the brown bag lunch to go

If you haven’t yet stopped by the much-expanded location of Red Apron, right across the street from their old spot on Gladstone Ave., don’t say I didn’t warn you. You will not leave the city’s locavore-approved food emporium empty-handed.

In fact, don’t be surprised if you walk out with 10 times more than you expected. It’s that kind of place — not just filled with those gourmet impulse buys like fancy jams, fresh-baked fruit pies, wonderful Quebec cheeses, granola, and handmade caramel corn, but the even more seductive stuff: an array of fresh and frozen take-home dinners. These are the proverbial home-cooked meals we all dream would appear on the table with the snap of our fingers after a long, tiring day of work. And there they are. Just take your pick.

So leave it to the doyennes of “sophisticated comfort food” to combine their meal service operation with a retail shop and come up with a quick and easy “brown bag” lunch option too. Like the dinners, the lunch menu changes daily and rotates seasonally, if not more often. Each weekday there are two different sandwiches and one soup option. Last Wednesday, I had the choice between a grilled chicken club sandwich and the heritage salmon filet with lemon caper aioli. Both are made on the now ubiquitous Art-is-in panini buns, which attain an addictive crispy, savoury crunch when warmed on a sandwich press.

I chose the fresh salmon on 12-grain fennel panini. The mild licorice flavour in the bread echoed the fresh fennel and minced fennel tops that combined with the rich aioli-moistened chunks of fish. The carrot ginger soup was sweet, thick, and velvety. I sat at one of the few stools in the shop’s window, but this is primarily meant to be take-out fare. And, let’s face it, the longer you sit there, the more likely you’ll be going home with one of those pies.

Lunch hours: Monday to Friday, 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. You can view the weekly sandwich selection online.

Cost: Sandwiches $5.95-6.95, small soup $3.95

Red Apron, 564 Gladstone Ave., 613-695-0417.

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WEEKLY LUNCH PICK: Who knew? Discovering the Chinese hamburger at Rice Pea Chinese Restaurant

I vividly recall how my first Northern Chinese restaurant experience shook me out of many assumptions about Chinese cuisine. I was surprised to discover lamb dishes on the menu as well as the liberal use of oil, vinegar, and garlic. Also, instead of rice, there was an impressive variety of noodles, dumplings, and pancakes. Considering the fact that wheat grows better in northern China than rice, this makes a lot of sense. It’s a handy reminder, in this age of access to all ingredients all the time, that regional cuisines are deeply rooted in both culture and geography.

We don’t have many opportunities to appreciate the vast regional differences within Chinese cuisine here in Ottawa, which is why I was delighted to discover a relatively new family-run Northern Chinese restaurant in the same strip mall as two other foodie gems — an Eastern European deli and a favourite Thai restaurant — tucked behind the Carling Animal Hospital. I dropped by for lunch recently and used my usual “research method” (eavesdropping on customers who look like they know what to order) and hit upon a couple of unique and delicious dishes.

First came the homemade noodles. The sight of these two words together makes my heart flutter. And these were unlike any noodles I had ever seen or tasted. When the steaming bowl of thick gorgeous plump ribbons arrived, I was instructed to toss them in the sauce hidden at the bottom of the bowl — it was the classic trio of hot chili oil, vinegar, and enough fresh chopped garlic (visible chunks!) to ward off colds and flus for weeks (months?) to come. For all of its pungency, the overall effect was a surprisingly mellow. After several bites, the dish took on a comforting, almost bland flavour — in a good way. This is one belly-warming, soul-satisfying winter-blues-fighting dish.

Next came the Chinese pork hamburger. What – you’ve never had a Chinese hamburger? Nor had I. I was imagining it might be one of those fluffy sweet Chinese steamed buns but our helpful server described it as a homemade pancake stuffed with chopped pork. How bad can that be?

According to one random Internet source, this burger has a 2,000 year old history. (“It was the snack of choice for the soldiers who defended Xian City in the Shanxi Province…The soldiers were fond of the burgers because, like today’s burgers, they were filling and traveled well.”) Apparently it remains a local favourite to this day and I can see why. It’s akin to a crusty flat English muffin, sliced and spread with a modest layer of tender juicy fall-apart pork (judging by the texture and aromatic porkiness, I’m guessing it might be slow-cooked shoulder), moistened with its own succulent fatty juices, and adorned with nothing but a sprig of coriander.

After one bite I looked around to see if I had miraculously discovered a secret dish but the joke was on me. These crunchy porky delights were on every table in the place.

Cost: Chinese hamburgers $4.99 each; handmade noodles $6.50; generous lunch specials from $7.50 served with soup, rice, and springroll.

Hours: Tuesday to Friday, 11:30 a.m. – 10 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 4 p.m. – 10 p.m.

Rice Pea Chinese Restaurant, 2280 Carling Ave., 613-828-8988.


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