Eden Hertzog breezes through the door of her cookie factory, New Moon Kitchen, to greet me. Her five-week old baby girl, Frankie, is the picture of serenity in a snuggly, cuddled into her mom's chest.

Hertzog jokes that she's allegedly on mat leave, but that doesn't happen for business owners. She seems cheerful about it, though, and just casually continues to operate a factory that churns out 25,000 cookies per week, baby in tow.

Hertzog has been running New Moon since 1997, but she didn't always have four giant rooms in a warehouse to house her business. She started putting together batches of her recipes after hours at another café she worked in at the time.

"I'd make what she needed for the café, then bake until 4 a.m. or 5 a.m.," she says, with absolutely nothing of that harried look that so often accompanies such reminiscing.

Now, New Moon Kitchen has six staff members, an inventory room, a baking room, a packaging room, and a staff room/office, all in a bright, sunny, and ancient warehouse near Lansdowne and Dupont. It's probably the quietest, most peaceful factory on earth. And, 16 years later, she still sticks to her original vegan recipes.

"What I gained awareness of was that people wanted not only vegan, but also egg-free and dairy-free options. Why would we say, 'Let's put butter in because we can?' And initially I couldn't afford nuts, so we stayed that way," she says, laughing.

All of New Moon's recipes are Hertzog originals made with organic spelt flower, from Momints (mint chocolate heaven) to Ginger Snappers, which I got to try right out of the oven.

The flavours definitely taste authentic. Hertzog uses a pile of fresh ginger for the Snappers, and they don't taste overly sugary like most store-bought cookies. My one issue is that the cookies are a little on the crunchy side. That makes sense, though, since they're shipped to stores across the country by UPS, and a soft cookie wouldn't hold up very well in those conditions.

Obviously, producing 25,000 cookies in a week is no small task. But the New Moon bakery has an industrial mixer, a rack oven that looks like a boxy spaceship and bakes 640 cookies at a time, and a cookie depositor, which, Hertzog says, is "as high-tech as it gets." The depositor is actually quite amazing. The dough feeds through the top onto a mechanical roller, and the cookies are stamped out at the bottom, four at a time, 32 to a tray.

The Bite Me cookie, which is made from seeds and oatmeal, is still scooped by hand, she says, because it'll crumble apart if it goes through the depositor. "It's nice to have people making food by hand," Hertzog says. "I think we're going back to that."

In all of her spare time, Hertzog is busy inventing new recipes. She's releasing a sugar-free granola bar and toddler cookie in about a month, for which her two-year-old son Cedar acted as the guinea pig.

"I just created the thing I wanted to give my kid. Sugar makes kids crazy. It's like crack for kids, and nobody wants to hang out what that kid." Amen to that, sister.

In the meantime, Hertzog and Frankie will continue to pop by the factory every so often, because Hertzog just can't stay away. She is doing a commendable rendition of 'having it all.'

Photos by Jesse Milns

The next version of the iPhone is rumored to come equipped with fingerprint technology, larger screen size and a bigger camera but if it was up to me to make a wish list for the perfect smartphone it would be longer battery life.

I can't tell you how many times I have been out around the city to have my phone die halfway through the day. It got so bad for me that I had to give in and buy a portable power charger and an extra USB cable and carry it around with me just so that I could make it through the day.

And I am not alone. 67% of smartphone users have experienced not having access to a charger when they needed one while out. And 71% of the people who experienced this problem left their phone uncharged.

These stats come from a survey done by DanTeb Enterprises, a Toronto start-up supported by the Ryerson Digtial Media Zone incubator lab, who aims to solve this problem by placing charging stations in high traffic, public places to let you charge your phone for free.

The company is co-founded by Laura Miller and her father. Laura told me that the inspiration for DanTeb came out of her own personal frustration with dealing with her phone dying on the go and couldn't believe that no one was trying to solve this problem. She also saw a key business opportunity in using these charging stations for advertising to leverage a highly captive and literally "connected" audience.

There are currently 22 DanTeb charging stations in Canada, 16 of them in the Greater Toronto area. Charging stations are free to use and can charge up to 12 devices quickly and simultaneously via the various smartphone and tablet cables provided for devices such as the iPhone 5, older iPhones, Android and BlackBerry devices.

According to Laura, the stations get close to 2,000 charges a month with one station, located in a food court of a mall, seeing upwards to 6,000 charges in the same time period.

Charging stations can be found in the Sheppard Centre, Lawrence Square, Direct Energy Centre and on the Ryerson University campus. DanTeb is currently in talks with rolling out charging stations in the PATH, the Metro Convention Centre and the Eaton Centre.

DanTeb is not the only startup tackling the problem of premature smartphone battery death. Another Toronto-based start-up, Powerbarr, aims to make charging your phone not just accessible but sustainable with their solar-powered charging stations.

Created by a trio of Green entrepreneurs, Colin Campbell, John Wilson and Eleana Jusenlijska, the company is currently prototyping their free, renewable charging station at Cafe Belong in the Evergreen Brickworks. They are holding a funding event today at this location to raise enough capital to be able to roll-out the Powerbarr to 4-5 other locations in Toronto and KW in order to continue gaining necessary market data before formally launching the product later this year.

Depending on funding, you should expect to see the Powerbarr in Balzac's Coffee shops in Liberty Village and in The Tannery in Kitchener-Waterloo as well as Steam Whistle Brewing on Bremner Blvd this summer. The team's goal is to see 1,000 sustainable charging stations in North America by 2015.

The Powebarr has 4 USB ports and also comes equipped with various standard USB cables for smartphone and tablets. The charging bar powers your phone just as quickly as a regular power outlet and can continue charging devices regularly for 3-4 hours a day for up to 20 days without any sun.

For Powerbarr, solving the inconvenience of your phone dying before the end of your day is matched by helping people make their lives more sustainable in an effort to create a better life.

So whether you are watching advertising at Lawrence Square or sipping coffee and soaking in the sun at Cafe Belong - turn your brightness on full, keep your location-based services on, and Tweet and Post to your hearts content...we have options in the city to keep our smartphones powered all day long.

Chicago's Goose Island Brewery is on its way to Toronto. Scheduled to arrive on LCBO shelves later this Spring, this cult-brewery from south of the border has been flexing its distribution muscle since it was acquired by Anheuser-Bush InBev a couple of years ago.

The two Belgian-style beers they'll be bringing are from their Vintage Ales line and will be sold in wine-style 765ml bottles for $9.95 as of April 29th although Twitter chatter suggests they might have already surfaced at LCBO's Summerhill location. They'll also be available at Nota Bene.

It may be AB InBev's dollars that have brought these beers here, but regardless of who's in charge, Torontonians can be thankful for the opportunity to try some really well made beers we may not normally have had a chance to get our hands on.

Ben Johnson also writes about beer over on Ben's Beer Blog.

In a previous coffee challenge, I suggested that you didn't see many coffee drinks with honey because, as sweeteners go, its floral richness was probably a lot more suitable for tea than java. As if to prove me wrong, I was told that a Toronto cafe has showcased a coffee drink with honey on its menu, so it was obvious that I had my next destination.

CONCEPT
The front window of Cafe Novo probably has one of the most peaceful views in the city, looking out over Bloor Street West to the northern edge of High Park. It's as close to pastoral as you'll get in the city without being right in the park, so it's appropriate that they serve a coffee flavoured with a substance that's pure nature.

Honey, after all, can't be sold with additives. A natural disinfectant and preservative, it wouldn't exist without bees or flowers, both of which I understand we haven't been able to produce in stainless steel trays in industrial parks yet. Honey has roughly the same relative sweetness as an equivalent amount of white sugar, but it's hardly as neutral in taste, and it's safe to say that anything sweetened with honey will taste of honey.

Which is to say that coffee purists might want to stay away from Cafe Novo's latte au miel, if their daily goal is to suck down a lot of coffee's essential flavours - the dark, the bitter, the chocolate - in their cup. Honey doesn't go gently into that good night; it'll make itself known, in all but the smallest quantities, and Novo's latte au miel packs a considerable honey punch.

SCORE: 7/10

EXECUTION
On a chilly weekend morning, barista Alex takes me through the very simple steps of creating the latte au miel, which he says began simply as a latte served with a spoonful of honey instead of a packet of sugar.

A scant ounce of Billy Bee honey gets squirted into the bottom of a heavy glass before Alex pulls a long shot of espresso, then steams the milk. He pours the shot into the glass first, and says that the hot coffee hitting the honey immediately changes the way the espresso tastes, even though it only dissolves a thin top layer of the honey. The milk goes over this, and the coffee Alex serves me has a very visible layer of undissolved honey lurking at the bottom of the glass.

SCORE: 8/10

VALUE
Novo's latte au miel comes in two sizes, priced at $3.90 and $4.65, and which one you get probably depends on how much honey you want to taste in your drink. A few quick sips of the frothy top is infused with honey, and isn't at all unpleasant.

Alex says that some customers like to forego a spoon and let the honey wait for them - a rich shot of sweetness at the end of their drink, like people who like their espresso to finish with a bracing mouthful of coffee syrup.

Mixing the honey into the drink changes the character of the latte entirely; there's a sweet, floral bite to honey, and even a faintly medicinal note, that will battle to the top of anything, and it's hard not to imagine the latte au miel as the sort of drink you save for a day like those we've had too many of lately, full of damp cold and a hint of some final winter cold that needs to be kept at bay with something warm and sweet and restorative.

SCORE: 7/10

TOTAL SCORE: 22/30

Thanks to the New Listerine UltraClean for sponsoring our coffee-fueled adventures.

See all posts in this series via our Toronto Coffee Drinks Challenge Pinterest board

Have a suggestion for a unique coffee drink that should be part of this challenge? Send your tips to editors [at] blogto [dotcom]

This Week in Music rounds up the latest news, releases and concerts coming to Toronto.

IN THE NEWS

Red Bull Tour Bus set to roll through Toronto

As the warm weather slowly starts to hit Toronto, we can all begin to look forward to one of the highlights of the summer - outdoor concerts. And if that doesn't sound good enough, how about a free outdoor concert? That's exactly what you're gonna get when the Red Bull Tour Bus rolls into town on June 2. As part of the energy drink's cross-country promotion, Tokyo Police Club will play a free show at Sugar Beach - that's a pretty sweet deal. You can RSVP at the tour's official site.

Edgefest 2013 lineup revealed

Love it or hate it, there's no denying that 102.1 The Edge is Toronto's most powerful radio station. Edgefest, the station's annual (more or less) music festival, has become something of a tradition around these parts, and it always offers an eclectic and solid lineup of artists. This year is in fact even stronger than the past couple of years. Check this out: The Lumineers, Band of Horses, The Neighbourhood, Monster Truck, Mother Mother, Dinosaur Bones, and Capital Cities. That's some pretty good stuff, right there. If you can look past the lack of shade at Downsview Park and the ungodly heat of late July, this should be a pretty bangin' show. Tickets and info can be found here.

THIS WEEK'S HOT TICKETS

FRIDAY APRIL 19 / MINDLESS SELF INDULGENCE / THE PHOENIX / 410 SHERBOURNE / $39.75 / ALL AGES

A friend of mine is trying to convince me to go to this show, but I'm on the fence. It's not that I don't like Mindless Self Indulgence's brand of loud, noisy, punk rock - really, if that's your thing, have at it. I'm hesitant because from what I understand, MSI shows are some of the more wilder concerts out there - an almost rave-level style of debauchery. While my attendance at the show isn't set in stone, this is sure to be a packed house.

SATURDAY APRIL 20 / THE BOX TIGER / THE RIVOLI / 334 QUEEN W / $10 / 19+

I mentioned The Box Tiger a couple of weeks ago when they were fresh off the release of their latest single, and now, you can check them out live. This is one of the most exciting bands that I've come across in a long time, and I truly think that they're due to break out sooner rather than later. If you've been to the Riv, you know how intimate it is, and it's the perfect setting for the frantic energy of The Box Tiger's music. Elos Arma, Viva Mars, and Air Marshal Landing will offer support.

RECENTLY ANNOUNCED CONCERTS

• THE BLOODY BEETROOTS / THE PHOENIX / MAY 24 / 9PM
• THE VIRGINS / THE HOXTON / JUNE 29 / 7PM
• YEASAYER / THE PHOENIX / JULY 2 / 8PM
• BLUE RODEO / MOLSON AMPHITHEATRE / AUGUST 17 / 8PM

WHAT WE GOT UP TO LAST WEEK

• Green Day prove popular as ever at sold-out ACC show
• Yes brings prog back at Massey Hall
• Muse makes a case for best visuals of 2013 at the ACC
• Jessie Ware hosts her first Toronto love-in

Photo of The Lumineers courtesy of MANIC! Photography on Flickr.

Shareable small plates and snacks are making the rounds on plenty of Toronto menus, and this recently overhauled kitchen and bar is no exception. Formerly home to Fressen, the familiar space on Queen West has gone hip and a bit higher end in its approach to vegan dining.

Read my profile of Grasslands in the restaurants section.

The best pubs in Toronto are a handful of unique locales that reflect the city's increasingly complex tastes in beer, our preference to support local talent as opposed to franchises, and the value that a sense of community can bring to the after-work-pint-and-a-bite experience.

Sure, they're the kind of places where the staff is engaging, and the menu and drink list is carefully considered, but they're also places that harken back to the origin of the word "pub" to the public houses of old that fostered a sense of community and reflected a city's culture. They're the kind of places you might feel as comfortable spending a late night as you would a thoughtful Sunday afternoon or maybe even bringing the kids on Saturday.

Here are the best pubs in Toronto.

See also:

The best gastropubs in Toronto
The best Irish pubs in Toronto
The best beer selection in Toronto
The best places to drink a pitcher of beer in Toronto
The best cheap drinks in Toronto

Photo by Neil Ta in the blogTO Flickr pool

MUSIC | Dwayne Gretzky Does Rumours by Fleetwood Mac
Couldn't get tickets to the Fleetwood Mac concert tonight? This is just as good. Young Lions Music Club presents a special performance by Dwayne Gretzky, Toronto's greatest cover band, playing Fleetwood Mac's Rumours album in full. Just a few blocks away from the band's sold out concert, Dwayne Gretzky will take the stage at the same time as the band, putting a youthful and crowd-pleasing spin on the legendary 1977 album. Tickets are available at Soundscapes, Rotate This and online through Ticketfly.
The Great Hall (1087 Queen Street West) 9PM $20

COMMUNITY | Evergreen Innovation Talks: Public Art in Cities Around the World
Evergreen's weekly Innovation Talks continue with special notice being given to art in public spaces. Looking at successes of public art around the world, the panelists will discuss the plausibility of incorporating public art in Toronto's Lower Don Greenway in the same manner. This week's topic involves moderator Andrew Davies speaking with John K. Grande, curator of Earth Art, artist Patrick Thompson, writer and media artist Wanda Nanibush and partner of K/R Architects Terry Riley. Can't contribute to the conversation in person? Follow along with the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag #InnovationTalks.
Evergreen Brick Works (550 Bayview Avenue) 7PM $10

ART | Art from the Unexpected
Unexpected artists present their creative works at Steam Whistle Brewing in an event where 20 industry leaders in various fields become the creative minds. Having created original art pieces for the show, these typically business-minded folks present their creations at Art from the Unexpected, a charity event supporting SKETCH, an organization introducing arts to homeless and street youth. A silent auction, cocktails and hors d'oeuvres are included in the evening, which features works by the CEOs and presidents of companies like Edelman and Scotiabank. See the creativity that can be unleashed from even the most practical minds at AFTU tonight.
Steam Whistle Brewing (255 Bremner Boulevard) 6PM $100

THEATRE | carried away on the crest of a wave
The 2004 tsunami connects three characters around the world, from Thailand to India to the U.S., as it tears families apart, killing hundreds of thousands. carried away on the crest of a wave is the first piece by playwright David Yee for Tarragon Theatre and it previews tonight at the theatre under the direction of Nina Lee Aquino. The impact of a singular natural disaster on individual lives is explored onstage at the premiere with Kawa Ada, Ash Knight, Richard Lee, John Ng, Mayko Nguyen and Richard Zeppieri playing characters working and living in the Thai sex trade, religious Indian communities, Malaysian fishing villages and the American suburbs. The show opens for a month-long engagement on April 24th.
Tarragon Theatre (30 Bridgman Avenue) 8PM $24 general, $21 student

ALSO OF NOTE:

• Hitler's Ass
• Lilian Crum: Things That Go Bump in the Night

MORE EVENTS THIS WEEK

For more Toronto event suggestions, check out these posts:

• Toronto Food Events
• This week in fashion
• This week in film
• This week in theatre
• This week in comedy
This week in music
• April concert listings

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Photo via Young Lions Music Club

After a full day of public deputations, Rob Ford's executive committee is preparing to vote whether or not recommend a major casino and gaming facility to city council. If council decides to deep-six the idea, the mayor says he'll make the topic an election issue. More than 200 people, including industry insiders, expressed their opinions. The odds don't look good for Ford. Can he turn it around?

Coun. Giorgio Mammoliti made his first public appearance since undergoing emergency brain surgery during the casino meeting at City Hall yesterday. The mayor gave Mammoliti a hug and a thumbs up. Outside the committee room it wasn't all cuddles for Ford - he walked full-speed into a stationary TV camera. Full coverage and video.

The Toronto marathon, scheduled for 5 May, could get tighter security in the wake of yesterday's deadly explosions in Boston. The organizer of the event is planning to speak with Toronto police today about making sure the event, sometimes used as a qualifier for the Boston marathon, is secure. 14,000 runners from more than 50 countries are expected to take part.

The CBC spoke with the 200 Torontonians in the US for the race, none of whom are thought to be among the injured. If you're looking for someone who can't be reached try Google's Person Finder.

Transit shelters might not be safe refuge during wind storms like the one that blew through the city Thursday night. Several sides of an Astral waiting area on Goodwood Park Crescent smashed in the gale due to a design flaw in the roof attachment, according to the Toronto Star. Have you seen any examples of this?

Watch out for black money - fraudsters are tricking people into accepting stained bills in place of clean money based on the understanding that the money can be simply cleaned. It can't.

Finally, Leonard and Mae Fine are hanging up their knits for the last time after more than 50 years in the business. The pair, both in their 90s, met in New York and ran Marni Knits on Dufferin Street for half a century, supplying clothes to major retailers in the city. The Fines finally caved to pressure from their son to retire.

IN BRIEF:

• Search for Toronto senior ends in tragedy [Toronto Star]
• College students' project highlights commuting headaches [CBC]
• Blue Jays' Mark Buehrle finds mark against White Sox [CBC]
• James Reimer, Phil Kessel propel Leafs past Devils [CBC]

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Malstad/blogTO Flickr pool.

This Week in Home Video previews all the latest Blu-ray, DVD and on-demand titles hitting the street this week, plus lost gems, crazed Cancon, outrageous cult titles and the best places to rent or buy movies in Toronto.

Antiviral (eOne)

Syd March works for a clinic that sell injections of live viruses harvested from ill celebrities to their most obsessive fans. Brandon Cronenberg, son of local body horror maestro David Cronenberg, perfects his father's nightmarishly sterile universe almost perfectly in his first outing as a director. Cries of nepotism aside, this is truly a sterling first effort, with an intriguing premise - obsession with celebrity culture reaching its zenith through the transfusion of fatal virus - played straight and narrow. Certainly not for the squimish, but then again, what Cronenberg film ever was? We can hardly wait to see what this Cronenberg family member conjures up next time.

Extras include audio commentary from Brandon Cronenberg and cinematographer Karim Hussain, "Anatomy of a Virus", Deleted Scenes, and The Design of Antiviral.

ALSO OUT THIS WEEK

Django Unchained (eOne)

Quentin Tarantino's second foray into the punk historical genre starts like a firecracker but curiously loses it way in the last hour, before almost completely fizzing out with a limp resolve. No matter, poor Tarantino is light year ahead of most directors on their best day. Christoph Waltz brings the weight; as always a joy to watch, the film really suffers when he is off screen. After being teased with the prospect of a 4 hour Director's Cut, this theatrical cut seems rushed Already available on iTunes, and with minimal extras covering the horses, the stunts and the costumes.

Manborg (Anchor Bay)

Manborg is a very difficult film to classify because calling it a "film" doesn't really do it any justice: It plays more like a 60 minute long YouTube poop mashing up Mighty Morphin Power Rangers with jilted 1980s strait-to-VHS culture edited by drug addicts and perverts from Winnipeg. It may actually be bad, but it's so wickedly crazed and uniquely styled that you cannot help but want to champion it. Made by the mysterious outfit known as Astron-6, this DVD release also features commentaries from the director and cast, deleted scenes, VFX Montage, and most importantly Bio-Cop, the best faux trailer since Edgar Wright's Don't (2007).

Repo Man (Criterion Collection)

Nothing quite captures the very essence of the mid-80s Southern Californian punk ethos like this weirdo assortment of comedy, drama, horror and Sci-Fi. If you are on the fence, this features Harry Dean Stanton and a young Emilio Estevez as the best odd couple ever, and the overly aggressive sound track includes Iggy Pop, Circle Jerks, Black Flagg, The Plugz, and Suicidal Tendancies. Criterion have done a stunning job with the extras, which include the cleaned up TV version which hilariously substitutes an oft used derogatory swearword with the genius variant "melon farmer".

Dragon (wu xia) (eOne)

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Like a Shaw Brothers remix of A History of Violence, Liu Jin-xi (Donnie Yen)'s secret identity is baited out when he saves a shopkeeper from two notorious gangsters. Once detective Xu Bai-jiu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) gets a whiff, Liu's clan training attracts all the wrong sorts.

Police Story/Police Story 2 (Shout Factory)

Before he broke wide in America in the mid-1990s with Rumble in the Bronx and Rush Hour, Jackie Chan made incredible and brutal action films in his native China. Many of them were poorly dubbed and chopped up on VHS, so it's up to pop culture salvagers Shout!Factory to release some of the better Chan oeuvre in High Def, like the awesome Police Story, a bona fide Hong Kong action classic. You can even watch them dubbed or in original Cantonese with English subs, depending on your persuasion.

Message From Space (Shout Factory)

In the wake of STAR WARS massive financial success in 1977 pulpy copycat Sci-Fi epics exploded on a global scale, and the Japanese answer is just as bananas as you would expect (possibly, more). A healthy disregard for logic, costumes that would have been rejected for being too camp on Buck Rogers, a confused Vic Morrow showing up as the token dickhead American, and the mighty Sonny Chiba - Hattori Hanzō himself - chewing scenery wholesale are just a few of the delights in store for those brave enough to answer this message.

STILL FRESH

• Woochi the Demon Slayer
• Naked Lunch
• Father's Day
• Hyde Park on Hudson
• Major Dundee

THE BEST OF DAVID CRONENBERG

To mark his son's debut feature release on DVD, here are my five favourite films from the mind of his father, David Cronenberg, Toronto's premiere horror director.

05. A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE

04. THE BROOD

03. THE FLY

02. THE DEAD ZONE

01. VIDEODROME

Like many others, chef Rory McGouran's first experience at 416 Snack Bar was a late night ordeal. The unique dining experience ultimately brought the fine-dining chef back to the Queen West hotspot, where he now showcases a diverse menu wonderfully lacking in pretense. Here McGouran talks about switching gears in the industry, developing new items, and some of his favourite places to snack in Toronto.

Did you always want to be a chef?

No, I didn't start professionally cooking until my early 20s. I didn't know what I wanted to be. If you asked my parents, the chef thing would have been the last thing they would have said. Growing up, all I wanted to eat was ham sandwiches and dill pickle chips. But I was always a creative person; I liked to work with my hands, so when I was young, I did all sorts of construction projects like woodworking.

As I started to find what I wanted to do, I started working casually in restaurants. I was 19 when I started working at The Sultan's Tent. And then the garde manger didn't show up to work one day. The chef was freaking out because we were 200 booked and super busy, but I had been watching his job for about eight months and I told him I could do it. So he stuck me back there and I haven't left the kitchen since.

Was that when you decided to embrace the profession?

That wasn't really when I figured it out, no. That was when I realized I had some natural abilities and skills within a kitchen. I started working at The Keg and Moxies and that fostered a little more interest and I wanted to see how far I could really take it. And then I started working at the Drake Hotel and that got me to see a little of the finer side and it was something I wanted to get a little more versed in so I went to Stratford Chef's School.

After I finished, I got the apprenticeship at Scaramouche where I met Keith Froggett. He was a very instrumental mentor, teaching me about personal standards and how this profession is more than just a passion. A passion is a quick flash in the pan while if you really care about it it's about dedication and technique in the day-to-day routine. It's about the real craft of what we do.

What's the biggest lesson you learned from Keith Froggett?

I came from casual dining where it was all about food costs and making sure you use every possible scrap, and when I got to Scaramouche, it was about putting the best product out. I made risotto one day, and I had a little bit left over from the day before, and I started to use the old stuff first. Keith saw me doing that and he just pulled me aside and looked at me and said, 'We are better than this. You are better than this.' That was something I really took to heart and that was when I decided that I always wanted to have that standard and strive to be the best that I could be.

What brought you to 416 Snack Bar?

A lot of things bring everybody to Snack Bar. My first experience here was late night after work, hearing the buzz about it inside the industry — about the unique style of service and food. I actually found the owners on Craigslist. They needed to fill the position pretty quick and it seemed like a pretty good fit.

I love the casual atmosphere and how we get kind of back to basics, away from the pretentious big white plates with lots of garnishes. Not that that doesn't have its place, but substance rather than presentation is the thing. The diversity of cuisines that I get to learn about and experience is great. We go out on field trips and eat the most random stuff we can find and figure out how it relates to Toronto, and we really try to capture on the menu the multicultural diversity of the city. That's why we call ourselves 416.

Was there anything you had to relearn by transitioning from fine dining to a more casual post?

Probably humility; never thinking you're above and beyond something. Taking that step back... There was this big dividing line of being a casual chef or a fine dining chef where there were certain things I want to work with. When I came here, I decided I wanted to let all of that go and see that I still have to work under the food costs and constraints that any chef has.

And when your items only cost $3-4 you have to be very selective of what you want to purchase and order. And I don't have have a lot of space to keep things. It wasn't so much a transition as having a different point of view. Just because it doesn't look like sex on a plate, doesn't mean there's not a lot of hard work or innovation and creativity involved in it.

What cuisine did you like learning about the most?

Our Trini double, which is Trinidadian street food, is a totally vegan dish and it's definitely very popular. It was interesting to learn about how they make food in such poverty; they're able to create substance and great flavours out of very raw products like chickpeas and tumeric and cumin. It's basically a fried poolish with tamarind sauce, and has been a staple on our menu since I put it on. I don't see it coming off any time.

Where do you like to source your ingredients?

Local as much as I can. I use Hooked for all my sustainable seafood. The closer I can get it from, the better. I use Off the Bone for all my meats, even though we're not a huge, high-protein restaurant. A lot of stuff that I use is more tertiary cuts that's more available to me.

What's your favourite thing to cook on the menu and the most tedious thing?

My favourite thing is probably my favourite thing to eat: steak tartare. Whenever I go to a restaurant and see it on the menu, I just have to order it. Sometimes I wish restaurants don't have it so I can order something else. The most tedious thing we do is definitely our steam bun.

A lot of people would outsource it and buy it from a bakery, but I make all of the steam buns here in house. We make the dough, we roll them out, we proof them, steam them, freeze them, and it is a bit of a tedious process, but it's a very rewarding one at the same time. You put in all the hours of hard work in shaping and nurturing these little buns, and when they turn out nice and perfect it's a very rewarding feeling.

Where do you like to snack in Toronto?

I snack here. I eat way too much here. I'm definitely infamous for finishing my shift and sitting at the bar, gobbling down a few reubens. Outside of that, I like Oddseoul, Kinton for ramen, and there are a few places along [Queen West].

Where would you like the see the restaurant go?

I've only been here for the last nine months, but since I've come here the diversity of our food has changed. I think we provide a more significant meal. When we started, it was a lot more of just snacking, and now people are considering this a dining experience and will come with three other people and sit down at a table and spend two hours here and order the entire menu. I'd like to see the brand of 416 expand. We're kind of limited in our space here, and we can't really get any busier, but I'd love to see the company expand to whatever it may mean: a deli, bistro, catering. I think there are a lot of places we could go with it.

What's next for you as a chef?

I come from a background of really fine dining. This has been a great casual change for me. One day I would like to transition back to having some of that. I don't really want to ever leave Snack Bar, but everyone has to evolve and change. I wouldn't say I want to limit myself to go back to fine dining, or being a catering chef, or focusing on pastry. I want to focus on being better as a chef from top to bottom. I love baking bread, I love making dessert, I love butchery and I love working the line. I became a chef because I enjoy being a chef and I never wanted to take the knife out of my hands.

What do you like to do for fun when you're not in the kitchen?
I'm a big sports fan. I live across the street from the Rogers Centre so I'm an avid Jays fan. I also golf twice a week with my father. And I eat out with my girlfriend, but we usually stay at home with the dog and make soup.

RAPID FIRE QUESTIONS

Most underrated ingredient? Butter
Best culinary tool? Knife
A chef that inspires you? Michael Wilson
Favourite Toronto restaurant? Scaramouche
What's one dish you can't live without? Steak tartare
What would people be surprised to find in your fridge? Nutella. It's better cold.
What's one food trend that needs to end? Foam

For more chef profiles, visit our Toronto Chefs Pinterest board.

Photos by Morris Lum

The worst culprit on the DineSafe database this week was Papaya Hut, a restaurant and smoothie bar near Yonge and Wellesley. They had no fewer than 10 infractions, including a crucial error in making sure food was not contaminated and significant failures to otherwise manage food safety and clean washroom fixtures. Fu Yao Supermarket at Gerrard and Broadview was also delinquent: the grocery store was on DineSafe last month for the same crucial infraction as this week, namely, failing to ensure food is not contaminated. And here are the other mildly villainous establishments that got nabbed by the health inspector.

244 Pizza and Wings
Inspected on: April 10
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 6 (Minor: 2, Significant: 3, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Failure to protect food from contamination or adulteration.

Chinese Traditional Buns
Inspected on: April 9
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 6 (Minor: 5, Significant: 1).
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Fu Yao Supermarket
Inspected on: April 8
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 4 (Minor: 1, Significant: 2, Crucial: 1).
Crucial infractions include: Failure to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

Papaya Hut
Inspected on: April 10
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 10 (Minor: 3, Significant: 6, Crucial: 1).
Crucial infractions include: Failure to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

The Arabian Club
Inspected on: April 9
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 1, Significant: 3, Crucial: 1).
Crucial infractions include: Failure to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

Yogen Fruz
Inspected on: April 10
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 2 (Minor: 1, Significant: 1).
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Indian Spice Kitchen Restaurant
Inspected on: April 10
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 1, Significant: 1, Crucial: 1).
Crucial infractions include: Failure to maintain hazardous foods at 4 C (40 F) or colder.

Editor's Note:

An earlier version of this post included Lit Espresso Bar (College), but we have since discovered that the inspection in question in fact resulted in a pass and that the establishment's yellow status was the result of an error on the part of DineSafe.

Located on a quiet street in Rosedale, 107 Marlborough Avenue is a beautiful, classic Victorian semi-detached on the outside, with a whole lotta fancy new features hiding within. It's one of those oh-so-chic gut renovations that contrast beautiful brick exteriors with sparsely decorated interiors, eggshell white walls, white oak flooring and ultra-modern details.

Think of it as the Club Monaco of real estate; high on style, low on substance and far too focused on appearing current. One has to wonder if, at $1.6 million, the three bedrooms, an unfinished basement and additional permit-parking in the lot across the street are really worth the price tag. But, hey, that's Toronto.

SPECS:

Address: 107 Marlborough Avenue
Price: $1,599,000
Lot Size: 1860 sf
Storeys: 3
Bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 5
Fireplace: Yes
Taxes: $5,769 (As of 2012)

NOTABLE FEATURES:

Wood-burning fireplace
Ultra-contemporary designs (always dreamed of the safety and security of a giant glass wall surrounding my steep, slippery wooden staircase)
Impressive chef's kitchen with gas stove and double-oven
Spacious walk-out balcony from master bedroom (facing backyard for ultimate hanky-panky usage)
His and Hers (or His and His or Hers and Hers) sinks in master bathroom
Semi-private, tree-lined cobblestone backyard

GOOD FOR:

Young couples who are hesitant to abandon their Candy Factory Lofts for the family-friendly practicality of the uptown home, so instead settle with purchasing an expensive semi-detached in Rosedale. Also a decent bargain for those who prefer to light their cigars with dolla dolla bills y'all.

MOVE ON IF:

You're over the top about the safety of your children (glass walls, cobblestone yard, narrow kitchen). You think that $1.6 million should probably buy you more than a three bedroom house with too many bathrooms, a backyard with no yard to speak of, and one of those horrible "rec rooms" with low ceilings and laminate flooring.

Additional Photos:
Read other posts in this series via our House of the Week Pinterest board.

It's a day later and the taste of Hákarl still lingers. Hákarl is the famous rotted, I mean, fermented Greenland Shark dish described by multiple top TV chefs as one of the most foul dishes out there. I disagree.

But I digress. Þorrablót (pron. thorra-bloat, blót being a Norse religious feast) is Iceland's antiquated midwinter festival occurring on the first of the month of Thorri, not to be confused with the god Thor, and coinciding with Husband's Day. When Iceland became a Christian nation towards 1000 AD, the tradition was deemed pagan and was eventually quashed, until 1958 when the savvy owner of Naustið's, revived the tradition at his restaurant, serving up traditional country dishes (alternately, hardcore Viking survival foods) as delicacies. Like many ideas born out of modern marketing, the tradition caught on.

Toronto's Thorrablot is hosted annually by the Icelandic Canadian Club of Toronto (ICCT), a community group made up of Icelandic bloodliners and Canadian Icelandophiles. Our host for the evening was ICCT president Karen Wallington, hair stylist at Knot Just Dreads, of no Icelandic relation, but has visited the island over 16 times. The evening was started in true Thorrablot tradition with a mini concert by Lindy Vopnfjörð, followed by folk songs, and a Viking re-enactor.

Traditional foods were served like roast lamb, turkey, sugared potatoes and easily the most impressive dish for me, smoked lamb, which looked and tasted almost exactly like a typical deli smoked meat, except for the fatty connective pieces that held a decadent creamy texture. But the real pièce de résistance was the platter of exceptionally traditional foods, with thousand year old heritage cooked for pure winter survival rather than for enjoyment of taste.

Or maybe our tastes have just changed over the eons because mealy oats-based blood pudding (blóðmör) and liver sausage (lifrarpylsa) always seem to be a hard sell. Not to mention hrutspungar (ram's testes soured in whey) that had a springy Chinese fish ball consistency but tasted like boiled chicken, sourness, with subtle iron undertones. Sheep's head cheese (sviðasulta) gives you the option of eating a powerful smoked herring without the fear of scale, bones or fish, but there is still the fear, or joy, of potentially getting an eyeball in there too.

And then there's the hákarl. Anyone who has a penchant for stinky, ripe cheese can identify with these chewy morsels of flesh - think of it as the Stinking Bishop of the meat world, whose smell is arguably more fearsome than its bite. Hákarl is made from the Greenland Shark - you know, the kind that have antifreeze running through their veins, which allow them to swim in subzero temperatures. Like the car fluid, it's highly toxic. The Vikings used to bury it in the sand for months while the deadly fluids seeped out and the meat was readied by the ground it lay in.

Dessert specialties included sætsúpa, Icelandic compote or fruit soup; the decadent prunes and icing heavy vinarterta cake; mysuostur, a carmelized whey cheese, that reminded me of dulce de leche, with that unforgettable and highly addictive fermented tang; kleinur, little donut bowties; pönnokökur, or pancakes served with jam and skyr, the highly coveted calcium-rich Icelandic yogurt. The evening was accompanied by a silent auction and also a live auction hosted by Canadian fashion icon, Linda Lundstrum.

Canada's Icelandic community was formed in 1874 when the first wave settled in Kinmount Ontario near Haliburton, lured by so many nations by the prospect of free land and a chance to start over anew. Toronto's ICCT hosts many cultural film, theatre and music events. Fans of Björk, Sigur Rós, and Gus Gus are always welcome to check them out.

Additional Photos

Photos by Kat Rizza

City staff have released the short list of transit taxes they say Toronto city council should consider in order to fund the next phase of transit projects, including the Downtown Relief Line. In a report to be discussed at next week's executive committee meeting, city manager Joe Pennachetti and the chief financial officer Rob Rossini recommend:

• 7.5 - 15% development charge hike
• 5-10% per litre fuel tax
• 50¢ - $1 per space parking levy
• 0.5 - 1% sales tax

All of which must be entirely dedicated to funding transport projects - nothing else.

Once the first round of projects, including the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, are complete, staff say the city should adopt highway tolls, high-occupancy toll lanes, and a vehicle registration tax. It's thought once the first batch of new infrastructure is available the secondary charges will be more appropriate.

"While fuel tax, sales tax, commercial parking levy and development charges can be implemented in the near term, the revenue options which more directly impact vehicle users should be delayed until phase one investments are substantially completed, providing alternative modes of transportation," the report says.

Staff also say council should express support for the Big Move projects provided there is a "clear commitment" from Metrolinx and the province to build new subways and light rail lines in order to reduce congestion and boost transit capacity.

Rob Ford has indicated he is against any new taxes, even making a gagging noise the last time new ways of paying for subways were brought up during a media scrum. It's believed approving these new charges would deliver more than the $2 billion needed each year.

"I'm not supporting any of those revenue tools. People can't afford these taxes. That's all it is is tax, tax, tax," he said during today's casino discussions.

Staff rejected a TTC fare increase, congestion charge, payroll tax, and land transfer tax. Income, utility, and property taxes were also not part of the package of recommendations.

What do you think - is a two-step approach the best way to get the most transit for every dollar? Do you support these taxes?

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: ReDeViL72/blogTO Flickr pool.

Since opening three years ago, this College Street pub has imported the true Scottish experience to an unassuming locale just west of Ossington. Along with an impressive selection of malt Whiskys and beers, the pub serves a $16 plate of haggis, otherwise known as savoury lamb and oat pudding cooked in a sheep's stomach lining. So how does it taste?

Read my profile of The Caledonian in the restaurants section.

Things aren't looking too good for Toronto's BIXI bikes. A city report released today says the program is experiencing financial difficulties related to the repayment of a loan to buy its bicycles, bike stands, and other equipment.

Though the city says the scheme has been "very successful," attracting 4,630 paid subscribers and more than 1.3 million bicycle trips since 2010, the parent company PBSC Urban Solutions seems to be struggling to generate income during cold winter months.

When it started, the City of Toronto provided a 10-year, $4.8 million term loan to BIXI for the purchase of equipment. As of December 31, the balance of the loan was $3.9 million. The report says the troubles are related to an "unsupportable debt load" and a "seasonal cash flow shortage."

A confidential attachment to the report details ways the city could alter its arrangement with BIXI to best protect its assets in the event the company is unable to repay its debt.

The Montreal-based company is currently in the process of selling its New York City, Melbourne, and Boston contracts as part of an agreement with the city and Quebec government. The City of Montreal loaned BIXI $37 million in 2011 and extended $71 million more in loan guarantees and credit lines.

It's not clear at this stage whether the problems are serious enough for BIXI to close its Toronto operations. A representative for the company said more financial data will be available later and that there is no information on a possible closure. In a scrum, Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong said it's his understanding the company wants to quit Toronto.

The details of the financial restructuring will be made public before the April 23 meeting of the executive committee. A staff report is due June 19 on the status of BIXI in Toronto.

Should the city try to support its BIXI bikes or should the parent company sort out its own problems related to the original deal?

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Martinho/blogTO Flickr pool.

Whenever I buy a bottle of vermouth at the LCBO, I'm struck by just how pathetic the selection is. Sure, there probably aren't too many straight vermouth drinkers out there, but as a key ingredient in popular cocktails like the Manhattan and Negroni (to name a couple), you'd think it'd be easier to get one's hands on something like Carpano Antica Formula. Try out either of the above drinks at a place like Cocktail Bar, and you'll have a sense of what a difference ingredients like this make.

Apparently I'm not alone in this frustration. Thanks to its monopoly, customers are, for the most part, at the whim of the LCBO's purchasing department when it comes to available booze in this province. While there are special orders and the possibility of sourcing products through an agent, those options won't mollify the average consumer. With this in mind, I thought I'd crowdsource a list of products for which there's demand. Given that not all the responses we received are collected below, here are a few trends worth noting:

1. People really, really want the LCBO to cary Cîroc vodka
2. The LCBO could stand to improve its bourbon selection
3. Ditto for Absinthe
4. It would be nice to buy bitters where we buy our booze
5. Ice!

Are you listening, LCBO? Maybe you should...

A casino, convention centre, and entertainment resort in downtown Toronto is a step closer to reality now that Rob Ford's hand-picked executive committee has voted 9-4 in favour of sending the discussion on to city council next month. The vote wasn't unanimous: councillors Paul Ainslie, Peter Milczyn, Jaye Robinson, and Denzil Minnan-Wong went against Rob Ford's wishes.

Had a majority of the 13-member group voted "no," the casino would have effectively been killed off before it could be debated by a full group of councillors.

While the news isn't entirely surprising, a clutch of member motions altered several aspects of the conversation. Coun. Paula Fletcher asked that the Port Lands be officially dropped from the list of possible locations but the committee decided to keep the waterfront property on the short list. A motion to dedicate all revenue from the casino to transit expansion passed 11-2.

Despite today's decision, the latest projections seem to give the anti-casino councillors a small majority ahead of the deciding council vote.

More than 200 people, including several industry groups, turned out to speak before the executive committee yesterday. Police chief Bill Blair also spoke, saying he had no concerns about an increase in crime connected to a Toronto gaming development.

Toronto's Board of Health has already spoken out against improving access to gambling in the city, saying 1.2 to 3.4% of people in Ontario are addicted to some form of chance-based game. "I just don't buy these arguments - they don't exist," claimed Rob Ford. "They might as well ban food for fat guys like me ... you have to have self control."

The cabinet-like committee was discussing an in-depth report by city manager Joe Pennachetti that said increasing convention space was key to any development, be it at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, the CNE, or Woodbine. Extra space for visiting trade shows and other events could net the city significant amounts of extra cash, greatly increasing the city's income from a resort.

The report said the city should expect between $111 to $148 million a year in hosting fees from OLG if it agreed to build a resort. The provincial lottery and gaming provider, however, says that figure will be between $50 million and $100 million and has already said it's not willing to give Toronto a special cut of the profits.

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: ragingwire/Creative Commons.