The Best Thing I Ate This Month

The best thing I ate this month – March 2015

Restaurant 18 spring salad

I stared at it like I would an expressionist painting. What was his vision? His Motivation? Was he in pain? Troubled? Inebriated? No. Just “Inspired by spring,” I was told. As a visual, it was bright and uplifting, expressive and assured. It pained me to take the first bite and unravel the masterpiece but this canvas was made for savouring.

Layered on a brushstroke of pesto were little diamonds of young yellow beets. The earthy quality of the beets were a perfect match for the refreshingly tender peas, served alongside their shoots. Crisp little domes of pastry hid luxuriously rich duck pâté. The honeycomb gem was a treasure and provided sweetness and unique texture.

There was nothing not to like about this salad. Within a flash I had devoured it. I was sad yet ever so thankful to have enjoyed a wild-fully original gustatory chef-d’oeuvre. Bring on Spring.

This bright jewel of a dish was created by Chef Kirk Morrison for his tasting menu at Restaurant 18. And it was the best thing I ate this month.

The best thing I ate this month – February 2015

I was cross-border day-tripping to Watertown, NY when I spotted the heavenly sign. Chipotle, Mexican Grill. That-a-way left to the promised land. This is where the magic happens. Each ingredient is laid out in front of you so you can customize your perfect meal. For me, it’s the Burrito Bowl. It’s a burrito, in a bowl and filled with dreams, so the slogan goes. Served in a bowl, built on a foundation of brown rice and black beans, topped with zesty adobo-marinated steak, bathed in fresh tomato salsa, adorned with creamy guacamole, and garnished with crisp romaine lettuce and aged white cheddar and jack cheese. This perfect meal is hearty, filling, zesty, refreshing, savoury, fresh and comforting. It will make you obsess for more. And it was the best thing I ate this month.

The best thing I ate this month – January 2015

I received more than a few puzzled stares when I announced that I had just dined on chicken and waffles at Hooch Bourbon House restaurant. For hardcore obsessives of Southern cuisine, there is nothing more heroic than these two combinations. Where today, most chicken is served devoid of bones or skin, this Cornish hen is proudly dished-up bone-in, skin-on and artfully displayed on its cutting board canvas. A perfect tribute embodying the soul of the south in the dead of winter. The smokey-sweet chipotle maple emulsion provides a compelling counter to the soft, chewy buttermilk waffles and tender crispy chicken. This is a stunner of a dish. A simple, good thing elevated to symphonic heights. And it was the best thing I ate this month.

Hooch Bourbon House restaurant is located at 180 Rideau Street in Ottawa.