Monday, March 29, 2010

significant moments

There are moments in time that feel significant. Moments where you think to yourself: Well, that's going to change my life. Tonight, I had such a moment.

Five years ago, I had such a moment. I should preface this by saying that I am an intuitive gal (and I believe that this is an important part of people - yeah, I know, it can flaky and weird but it works for me). I rely on my gut, a lot! So, five years ago I was sitting in my tent trailer at my uncle's property near Clear Lake reading the newspaper and I saw a pencil drawing of the building at 725 Osborne St. and I knew that this moment was a biggie. I called Alex on his cell (he was still at work and going to join us later in the week) and said, "I found it." He knew what I meant. He called the landlord and the rest is Bistro 7 1/4 history.

Tonight, I had a moment. I sat in a meeting with two chefs and a friend and thought, "Well, there you go." Many of you know that Alex and I are constantly curious and working on multiple projects at a time but tonight was a meeting with a significant weight.

We'll see what happens but I am excited to be on yet another adventure!

Friday, March 5, 2010

the news to now...

I apologize for not writing more recently. It has been a crazy few weeks! First, I turned 40 which felt significant. I'm still processing that one although I sense my forties are going to be good to me. One of the advantages of owning a restaurant is that you can use it to host parties on occasion and so Alex threw me a fabulous birthday party! Thank you to all the staff for working so hard to create wonderful food and a lovely evening for me. Thank you to all my friends and family (my sister flew in from Vancouver!) for celebrating such a important event with me.

Next we flew off to Montreal for a couple days of rest and relaxation (read: catching up on sleep and eating incessantly.) Aside from two overnight trips to Grand Forks, Alex and I have not had a holiday since our week off last January so we seem to be trying to create more space for play (as the work piece is intensifying - see below.) Okay, every time I go to Montreal, I wonder why I don't live there. I love the urban nature, the metro, the restaurants and the markets make me want to weep. I love the French culture, the in-your-face, of-course-I'm-right, let's-have-a-drink-and-laugh craziness of it all (for those who don't know, I am half French Canadian). We ate ridiculously yummy food, mostly involving Au Pied de Cauchon restaurant and the markets. We bought fresh chickpeas, sausage from Ile-de-Madeleine and the most glorious cheese imaginable. My favourite is called Le Secret, a runny, oozing, melt in your mouth bit of joy (my girlfriend and I call it 'cheese puddle'). The cheese list at the restaurant takes up half the chalkboard and is being gobbled up by appreciative cheese lovers! I know Alex is going to write more about the food in his blog.

Next, we are heading to Toronto with our kids for some quality time with Alex's extended family. And, to shop for kitchen items (we need a quail egg cutter - who knew?) and food! In her retirement, Alex's aunt Inara took a part-time job at The Cheese Boutique. Of course, this is one of the few members of Alex's family that isn't obsessed with food so there is a fair bit of irony in that. Anyway, we'll be spending lots of quality time with Inara shopping for cheese! We also plan on checking out Mark McEwan's new market/restaurant, going to our friend Joanne's restaurant Relish, and heading to the Black Hoof for some offal and other nasty bits. If anyone has any suggestions for food stores or restaurants, please pass them along.

We are also planning trips to Brandon for the Royal Winter Fair (I love the fair, horse jumping and pig displays rock my world) and then to Vancouver in May to see our family and friends there. I haven't even begun to wrap my head around the food possibilities of that trip yet.

In between all of this, we have begun the process of planning the folk festival (yeah!!!) and our expansion (yeah?). I joke. Of course we are excited about the expansion of our restaurant to include a lounge and a private party room (and city planners willing, a patio) however I am not so daft as to not recognize the mountain of work involved in that process! We have drawings, we almost have a prospectus done and we are in negotiations with the landlords to take over the space next door. It's exciting and terrifying all at once. I will continue to update on the progress of this project.

As for the Folk Festival: full steam ahead! We are going to have a building to cook in this year. The design (Syvverson Monteyn) is fantastic but I will be a little bit sad to let go of my tent in the bush. There is something very empowering about saying that you cooked dinner for 5000 people in a tent in the bush. We are working on the menus (so if you have any desires/suggestions/needs, say them now), planning our guerilla kitchens (popping up next to you at any given moment), Alex's mainstage act, maybe some wine pairings, and a few surprises, too!

So, off to work and play I go!