The other day I received the following message via facebook.

Hi Vicky- sounds like you are having a great trip… My parents are in Jerusalem now and are going to tel Aviv tomorrow to the Sheraton. Do u have any suggestions for them? where they should go… Different ideas than the regular .. Thx

Here’s a list of attractions that I’d visited over the last few days that I suggested to my Facebook friend:

1. Tel Aviv Museum of Art: I hadn’t been to this museum in over 3 decades and I’m so happy that I went. I must admit that one of the reasons I went was because a foodie friend of mine went a few months ago and his photos on facebook really impressed me. The building itself is stunning not to mention the exhibits themselves. It’s also a great way to escape the sunshine between 12 and 2 pm!!

2. Sarona Market: Even though I was in Tel Aviv in April 2015 – this market opened just after I left.

This market brings the “best” of the country to one place. The variety of food in this market was perfect – restaurants, beer, wine, candy, fresh fruit, halva, bakeries, paletas, etc. My tummy was in heaven. I must add that I was lucky enough to have a “tour of Sarona Market” with a well respected Israeli Food Writer. Highlights of my tour included: Captain Curry and Forela Fish Bar.

Here’s a photo of my delicious Smoked Trout Shawarma from Forela Fish Bar!

Seriously, how pretty are these olives?

I couldn’t bring back the olives with me on the plane, but I certainly did buy  Rusty’s Almond Butter (with Halva) which is made here in Israel! #supportlocal

3. Carmel Market: This market is a true Israeli Experience. Its crowded, busy and so much fun! I visit this market every time I’m in Tel Aviv. It’s a must.

4. The Old Tel Aviv Port:  A great area to stroll around as it’s on the water and this adds to the atmosphere.  There’s plenty of restaurants, retail stores, cafes and ice cream to keep Israelis and tourists very happy!!

5. Delicious Israel: They offer unique food tours and food experiences. I was able to participate on a food tour of Levinsky Market and it was certainly a highlight of my trip. Read more about my tour by clicking here.

6. Nahalat Binyamin: I love this outdoor arts & crafts fair that is held every Tuesday and Friday. I always find gifts here and happy to support Israeli artisans. Not to mention it’s a fun scene.

Sadly I only took a photo of this piece of jewellery and I’m kicking myself that I didn’t buy one. #nexttime.

Attractions I didn’t have time to visit:

–Old Jaffa Port: Such a gorgeous place to walk around but I just didn’t have time.

–A Cocktail Bar; Apparently Tel Aviv has some pretty swanky cocktail bars (click on the link – pretty please)  and after googling “Cocktail Bars in Tel Aviv” – it’s evident that I need to go on a “cocktail crawl” on my next visit.

–Jewish Diaspora Museum: I haven’t been in decades but it was always one of my favourite museums.

Tel Aviv is a beautiful cosmopolitan city with a lot to offer. I was fortunate enough to stay in Tel Aviv for 7 full days and can’t wait to visit next year!!

For more information about Israel – please click here.

Today I was on chartered bus with over 40 others who were from Australia, London, Glasgow, Ottawa, California. We are all in Israel to attend a wedding that is taking place this week. #luckyus

The tour was organized by my fabulous relative (the mother of the bride) and here’s a recap of our day:

730 am – We were picked up the Sheraton Hotel in Tel Aviv. As we drove up north, the tour guide provided us with some interesting facts about Israel i.e there’s more museums in Israel per capita than anywhere else.

10:00 am – Arrived at the Atlit Detention Centre. where we had a guided tour of this national site which serves as an educational center for teaching the heritage of clandestine immigration. As you know I’ve been to Israel several times before but had never heard of this museum. What a great way to start the day.

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm – Arrived at Tishbi Winery for a wine and chocolate tasting. My cousin really knows how to impress her guests!!

See this sign? Do you think I turned right or left? LOL

1:00 – 2:30 pm – We were treated to a delicious lunch at Tishbi Winery. So tasty. So fresh. Of course lunch involved more wine.

2:30 – 2:45 pm – We went on a very quick tour thru Zichron Yaakov which is just gorgeous. (ps this was my first time in Zichron Yaakov)

5 pm – We arrived back at the Sheraton Tel Aviv and went directly to the 18th floor to enjoy these views. Not a bad way to end the day.

Huge thank you to my amazing cousin for organizing such a special tour. As you can tell I’m having a fabulous trip.

For more information about Israel, please click here

 

 

 

I’ve been on food tours in Barcelona, Jerusalem and New York and I truly believe it’s a great way to discover a city.

Therefore I was positively thrilled that I was able to go on a food tour of Levinsky Market with Delicious Israel.

Even though I lived in Tel Aviv for 4 years and have visited Tel Avis several times in the last 7 years, this particular neighbourhood was never on my radar.

This has now changed thanks to Delicious Israel who introduced it to me the other day.

The tour was friendly and fun and consisted of a few tourists from the UK, France and the U.S. Our tour guide was a native English speaker and was super knowledgeable and clearly passionate about food.

Not to mention that on this tour I learned a few things. For example, I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen cinnamon that looked like this before.

You see this green fruit next to the apple? Notice how its’ bigger than the apple? It’s an orange. ..not an over sized lime! How cool is that?

Plus I ate the most delicious hummus that was WARM. Once again, this was something new for me. I really did learn quite a bit on this tour.

The tour was certainly comprehensive and we were introduced to a variety of interesting spots in the Levinsky Market i.e a spice shop, bourekas, a hummus restaurant, a cool restaurant that served cured meats and craft beers, a famous bakery and more!! No one left hungry.

At the end of the tour we were given cute business cards. I swear I’m going to try my best to get thru this list by Sept 22nd. Wish me luck.

This company does more than just tours – in fact I really wanted to participate  in on their “cook and shuk” tours but the timing didn’t work out. I guess this means I will have to book this for my next trip!!

Please take a few minutes and click on their website. Not to mention that I highly suggest you book a tour on your next visit to Israel. You won’t regret it.

For more information:

Website: www.DeliciousIsrael.com

Instagram/Twitter: @DeliciousIsrael

Email: info@deliciousisrael.com

Telephone Number from ABROAD: +972 525 699 499

Telephone Number in ISRAEL: 0525 699 499

Disclosure: This tour was complimentary however all opinions are my own.

 

 

It wasn’t easy to choose a hotel in New York. I couldn’t decide to go the AirBnb route or do a mystery deal on Hotwire or just look for a good deal.

I ended up searching on Booking.Com. My criteria was:

-price and location (in that order).

I originally booked the Courtyard By Marriott New York Manhattan/Central Park, but was graciously upgraded to stay at the Residence Inn New York Manhattan/Central Park which is directly above the Courtyard Marriott (how convenient).

The price was right and the location was prime! Not mention that we could always find the hotel when we got off the subway as it’s the tallest building around.

Here’s what we loved about our stay:

1. It was convenient to get to our room i.e. we didnt have to walk a mile down the corridor to get to our room. (huge pet peeve of mine).

2. The view was spectacular. It was so spectacular that we kept the curtains open all the time.

3. The hot buffet breakfast was a definite perk.

4. Our spacious room had a full kitchen.

When I pulled out one of the drawers in the kitchen I discovered that it wasn’t a drawer but it was a dishwasher. As you can see, we even used it.

5.. The lounge had these cozy spots so I could watch the U.S Open and sip on my happy hour cocktail.

I adore Happy Hour menus.

6. The location was just perfect. We were exactly where we wanted to be..walking distance to Times Square, Central Park and 5th Avenue. PERFECT.

7.  I loved the decor of our room and the fact that it was a corner suite was an added bonus.

I truly had a wonderful experience at the Residence Inn Marriott Manhattan/Central Park and would stay there in the future. As always, I’m looking forward to my next trip to NYC.

For more information:

Website: Residence Inn New York Manhattan/Central Park

Address: 1717 Broadway Ave, NY, NY

Phone: 1 212-324-3774

Disclosure: The upgrade was complimentary however all opinions are my own.

I wanted to take advantage of the long weekend so I booked a quick trip to New York City. I was originally going to drive and then went on Travelocity and decided to fly. It felt like a smart move till our flight got delayed for a few hours. Ouch.

Sadly this meant that our lovely afternoon on the Go NY Tours –  Hop On and Off Double Decker  Bus Tour was reduced to two hours. However we were so glad we went regardless. We had a great overview of the city while enjoying the double decker bus. I can’t imagine not doing these tours. I really do think they offer tremendous value.

For dinner, it was recommended that we go to a Kosher Certified and Vegan restaurant called By Chloe.  (185 Bleeker St).  I was SO glad we went. The restaurant was hopping but scored a cute table outside to enjoy this super tasty kale salad.

After dinner, I was able to nip into Murrays Cheese  (284 Bleeker St) where I quickly bought three items: Vermont Butter (which I havent found for years), some unique crackers and this beer that had me buzzed in no time at all. (can you say, 13% alcohol). Sadly no time to even look at the cheese counter. ARGHHH.

Rushed back to the Residence Inn NY Manhattan/Central Park for a wonderful nights sleep in our beautiful corner suite that had an incredible view! (Blog post to foll0w).

On Saturday, my day included two critical elements of any visit to NYC – Shopping and Eating. (not in that order).

I started my day off at Smorgasburg in Brooklyn. (90 Kent St) What a great decision. It was my 3rd time visiting this fabulous outdoor food market since it started in 2011 and it keeps getting better and better. What I like best is the opportunity to see so many creative food vendors.

I saw a few of my favourite vendors from my previous visits: Bon Chovie (which I get on each and every visit) and Kelvin Slushie plus the Ramen Burger vendor.

 

I was in foodie heaven.

Late afternoon on Saturday included a walk thru Central Park where we stumbled upon a huge gathering of people and then figured it out: POKEMON GO!!

We also did some shopping on 5th Avenue and did some damage at the insanely huge UNIQLO (89,000 sqf).  Pretty grateful that there were no line ups at the cashier but as you can see from this photo. ..they are prepared.

Can’t wait for UNIQLO to open in Yorkdale Shopping Centre sometime in the fall. Seriously.

On Sunday morning, I scrambled to the US Open. I was only there from 1030 to 1230 but it was worth it. I’ve been watching the US Open for decades on TV and it was great to experience being there even though I wasn’t there to watch a match.

Just like that – it was time to head to Newark to catch our flight. I wish we had time to visit MOMA or the Whitney Museum or Washington Square or Chelsea Market but it just means I will have to go back, right?

Hope you had a wonderful weekend too.

For more information:

Go NY Tours Website: https://www.gonytours.nyc/double-decker-tours

Address: 2 E 42nd St, New York, NY, Phone: 1 212-664-0300

Website:  Residence Inn NY Manhattan/Central Park

Address: 1717 Broadway, New York, NY Phone: +1 212-324-3774

 

 

 

 

I’m a huge fan of serving appetizers before a meal. There’s something about putting it all together that really appeals to me.

My appetizer plate usually includes olives, cheese, roasted garlic, dried fruit and whatever else I have hanging around the fridge.

However recently I’ve discovered Espuna Tapas Essentials that have elevated my cheese board to another level. There’s a huge range of products and you will find them at major retailers like Metro and Longs.

ps see the package in the middle – I often snack on them in the middle of the day. #goodsnacktoo

Now my cheese platter looks like this!

Along with appetizers, of course there has to be an aperitif. Lately I’ve been enjoying the Aperol Spritz which has been described as “THE drink of the summer”. This aperitif is widely available at the LCBO for $26.55 , and had its own cocktail recipe book come out this year called “Spritz: Italy’s Most iconic Aperitivo Cocktail” by Talia Baiocchi and Leslie Pariseau.

To make this lovely cocktail you need:

3 parts Cinzano Prosecco

2 parts Aperol

1 splash Soda.

Start by adding ice to a glass, then pour the Prosecco, the Aperol and a splash of soda. Top with an orange (oops I forgot this step).

Happy Entertaining!!

I was in Ottawa this past weekend – one of those very (very) quick visits. i.e. drive in to Ottawa on Saturday and drive back to Toronto on Sunday.

Clearly when we got home, no one was in the mood to cook dinner or even go out for dinner.

This is where the foodora app came in handy. Oh how I love technology!

We were in the mood for Thai and within minutes I was able to place the order, add tip, and even track the delivery. When placing the order, I could even find out what ingredients were in each dish (in the event I was allergic to something or didn’t like a particular spice etc).

When dinner arrived, we ate in comfort (on the couch) – where we belong!!

I wanted to bring it to your attention that it’s possible to enjoy some of the city’s most decadent menu items without venturing down to Exhibition Place with foodora, Toronto’s leading on-demand meal delivery service?

Celebrate the end of summer with fair-type foods delivered so quickly that you’ll enjoy every ooey, gooey bite. For example!

The Notorious P.I.G from Bacon Nation
The restaurant cautions that this item is only for true bacon lovers. This hand-crafted beef burger is topped with bacon strips, peameal bacon, pulled pork, lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, onion straws and BBQ sauce and come served on a bacon brioche bun. It’s also served with fries.

Fran’s Triple Decker Reuben
This Toronto special features sliced corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Fran’s homemade dressing, on three slices of marble rye.

The Jurassic Junkie Thin Crust Pizza from Junked Food Co.
This ingenious Junked Food Co. pizza features creamy mac & Cheese, Dr. Pepper pulled pork, maple bacon, mozzarella and Junked cheese sauce.

The Lord Cheesus from OM Grilled Cheese
One of the city’s best grilled cheese sandwiches is the Lord Cheesus which comes loaded with cheddar, brie, brick, harvarti and mozzarella.

Don’t Even Go There from Old School
This cheesecake stuffed egg bread is rolled in toasted coconuts, topped with whipped vanilla cream and orange honey drizzle.

Foodora really left an impression on me and I have no doubt that I might be using this app more often!!

For more information:

Website: www.foodora.com

Twitter and Instagram: @foodora_ca

Disclosure: I was provided a discount code however all opinions are my own

I had the opportunity last week to check out some innovative menu items made with Nutella® at the Loblaws® store at Maple Leaf Gardens.

How could I say no?

Once I walked into the store, it only took me a nano second to spot the Nutella® Cafe.

 Then my eyes went right to the menu!!

There’s  Nutella® Pizza with a variety of toppings: Strawberries, Cookies ‘n Creme, Berry Medley, Pretzel, Pear, Puffed Rice, Tortilla, Banana, Tropical and Fruit. So many choices and one is prettier than the next!

b) There’s Waffles as well. As you can see from the photo, I had a bite and it was DELICIOUS.

Theres Crepes (sorry no photo) and even Nutella® Milkshakes.

I took home a Nutella® Banana Panini which is one of my favourite combos. It was indeed a great choice.

Besides eating, I had a great conversation with Executive Chef Mark Russell who is behind this initiative.
So help “Spread the Word” about the Nutella ®Cafe at Loblaws®. It’s worth visiting. Promise.

I’m always happy to visit Loblaws® at Maple Leaf: underground parking (free for an hour when you spend $20), a gorgeous grocery store, Joe Fresh and an LCBO. What more could one want?

For more information:

Loblaws, Maple Leaf Gardens, 60 Carlton St, Toronto, ON
Phone: (416) 593-6154

Twitter: @LoblawsCarlton

Hashtag: #MorewithNutella

Disclosure: I was compensated for this post, however all opinions are my own.

Last month, I took a personal day so I could preview the movie “Bad Moms’ and get spoiled at the beautiful Chateau des Charmes!

The invitation looked like this and I had a feeling it would be a fun event and I was right!!

I knew immediately that I had made the right decision to take a personal day off, when I was served a mimosa on the bus.

When we arrived at the theatre, we grabbed our seats and then proceeded to laugh our way through the movie. The cast is stellar and there are a few scenes that are nothing but hysterical.

I loved the characters, the acting and even the music!!

After the movie, we went directly to  Chateau des Charmes. (1025 York Rd, Niagara -on-the-Lake). When we arrived, there was staff greeting us with more drinks. Again, I knew I made the right decision!

Then we headed to their beautiful new tent for a delicious lunch.

The movie indeed brought back a lot of memories for me as I’ve had my “moments” as a “Bad Mom” over the years! For example:

As  I write this, I’m reminding myself that I MUST submit the bus form this week. See what I mean? LOL

I liked this movie so much that I gathered few friends and we all went to see the movie together at Yorkdale. Indeed everyone enjoyed the movie. (including me despite the fact that I had seen it).

I’m not a movie critic, but I can tell you that this film is certainly entertaining.
So grab your mom or your friends and go have a laugh!

PS Thank you eOne for inviting me to this event.

The CNE Media preview is one of my favourite events of the year. Especially the food. That doesn’t come as a surprise to you, right?  Indeed I cheated on my low carb diet. I just had too!!

Here’s just a few items that you will find at the CNE this year!!

1.) The Big Pickle Dog – Sadly I didn’t get to try it but I will as I’m planning a second visit to the CNE. #onevisitisntenough

2.) The Chocolate Diablo – Vanilla soft serve coated in cookie crumble, cocoa puffs and wasabi peas with a sriracha caramel drizzle. I loved it. Something about the crunchy and sweet and savoury combo, really appeals to me!!

3) The Cartoon Dog – No doubt there was a trend this year to sprinkle cereal on many different items! Trust me – I’m ok with it.

4) Blueberry Pie Milkshake: I didn’t try it but it sure did look pretty!

5) Deep Fried Butter tart: This was decadent AND brilliant too!

6) Try to imagine a traditional cheesesteak between a chocolate eclair, topped with bacon, whipped cream and chocolate icing.  Yes – this exists. Talk about creativity!! P.S  this can be found at Philthy Philly’s in the Food Building). 7) Tim Hortons Froot O’s Donut: Bring it on!!

8) Canadian Bacon Taco – this was probably my favourite. NO CARBS and freaking delicious. Way to go Bacon Nation!! 

9) Deep Fried Peanut Butter Cups: What can I say? I like anything deep fried and anything that involves a Peanut Butter Cup.

10. Chimney Stax is offering a frozen yogurt dessert in one of their famous rotisserie-baked breads. See…. not everything I eat was fried!!
By the way,even though food captures my attention, I have to admit these giant prizes captures my attention too.

For more information:

CNE – Aug 18th to Sept 5th, Exhibition Place, Toronto

Website: http://theex.com

Hours: http://theex.com/main/hours

Tickets: http://theex.com/main/guest-info/tickets/ticket-prices