concession street

Concession Street is included in my view of Hamilton’s downtown cityscape; I don’t need a car to get there but instead can opt for a healthy stair climb up to this little urban strip.  I have to be honest in that I don’t get up there as much as I would like to.  From time to time I’ll make my way up for a delicious brunch at Papa Leo’s.  I still have plans for some further Concession Street explorations to check out the bowling alley, and stop by their weekend farmer’s market.

I do have hopes for a continued revitalization of Concession Street and see it becoming like a mini-Locke or Ottawa Street on the mountain brow.  I love to see the pockets of redevelopment in other places in the city besides just James North and Locke Streets.  Concession Street here we come!  Can someone please open up a milk-bar and a coffee shop?  That way when I climb those stairs I can be rewarded with a delicious ice-cream and coffee treat!

On a recent visit to Concession Street I noticed a store called The Garage Sale Place.  Although, not a new antique store (it’s been open for 15+ years) it was my first time happening into the store.  It has all sorts of interesting gems to rummage through from old dressers, wardrobes and tables, to pachinko machines, mirrors, and picture frames all for some pretty bargain prices.

We picked up this mid-century basket chair for just $10!  It does need a bit of refurbishing but for $10 you can’t really ever go wrong.  It will fit nicely into the ever evolving nursery room that we’re currently putting together.  I see this chair perhaps under a sheep skin rug.

*The Garage Sale Place, 596 Concession St. 905.387.6337

big news

Things have been pretty busy around here the past few months.  My apologies for the less frequent blog posts as of late.  I’ve got a pretty good excuse. We’ve been busy doing a lot of organizing and preparing BECAUSE… in 3 months we’re having a baby! It’s our first so we’ve been having to dive into the world of crib, stroller and baby-goods purchasing -there’s so many products and things out there these days it’s overwhelming! We’ve also been rearranging, finishing up minor renos around the house and getting a nursery ready on top of day to day work and life.  I know, I know, things are only going to get busier.

I wondered a little if I would be someone who would post a baby announcement on their blog.  I know having a baby will occupy so much of my time as it already has. I was already finding it hard to omit from the day to day goings on and posts here.  So here it is my first baby post and pictures. Who knows maybe I’ll start another blog focused more on life as a newby parent.

This is me at the start of May.  At 5 months I felt huge, and was long into wearing maternity clothes.  But I guess really my clothes don’t look any different from what I would normally wear, so to everyone else I’m pretty much exactly as I’ve always been sans bébé in utero. I could already feel cute little fluttery kicks and summersaults just for me in my belly.

I’ve been told I’ve got a wee bump.  I’m anticipating in the next 3 months in the heat of summer that I might just start to expand exponentially. Bring on the flipflops, muumuus, and kiddie pools for feet soaking!  I’m all yours for a free wheeling summer of day-trips, swimming pools and ice-cream.

the rise of coffee culture in hamilton

Since moving to Hamilton three years ago, I have seen the growth of some serious coffee culture in this city.

Moving from Toronto, where hip independent cafés and coffee shops abounded, I have to admit I was a little skeptical about how I was going to be able to get my coffee fix in the Hammer. And after I moved, I was, indeed, taken aback that a city the size of Hamilton had a serious lack of “good” coffee shops.

I found myself trekking my way down to Locke Street to indulge in the fail-safe but generic Starbuck’s latte. I on occasion schlepped it all the way to Westdale for a cup at My Dog Joe. My only downtown saving grace was Julia Serna’s delicious fair trade Colombian coffee at what was then the temporary mall location of Hamilton Farmers’ Market. She’s still serving up a fine brew at the renovated Market, along with the amazing Red Hill Coffee stand, which I’m a big fan of, too.

But I digress. What it truly came down to was that I was at a loss for a local café. I wanted a place to sit, sip on a good cup of coffee, chat with a friend and enjoy the atmosphere of a true independent coffee shop downtown.

It didn’t take long after moving to Hamilton that I could tell something was brewing (ahem). I saw the opening of Detour café in Dundas. They expanded from an on-site coffee bean roaster, serving small-scale barista espressos, lattes and the like from their tiny shop in the back of a parking lot, to a full blown beautiful and always packed downtown Dundas café.

I heard stories of the Domestique café in Dundas, which opened in 2010. It caters to coffee enthusiasts and the local cycling community. Their infamous Early Surly coffee blend that could wire a deadbeat is likely what propels those avid road cyclists up that mountain of a climb on Sydenham Road.

Not long after the café culture started in Dundas, I noted gutting and renovating had started at Hotel Hamilton — a former laundromat among other past incarnations on the corner of Mulberry and James Street North. With the main floor’s gorgeous moulded ceilings and mosaic tiled floors being revealed and refurbished, I dreamt the space would one day be home to a downtown independent coffee shop. I remember chatting with one of the developers of the building and he mentioned they were looking to lease the space to a café with the feel of something you might find on Queen West in Toronto. I couldn’t wait!

Pretty soon Mulberry Coffee Shop opened its doors. It was just what the neighbourhood needed. In the short time I’d lived in Hamilton, I saw all this inspiring change happen.

exterior of Mulberry St. Coffee House, Hotel Hamilton

Mulberry Coffee House -gorgeous molded ceilings

Mulberry latte

There have been several new coffee shops and cafés that have opened up since then. There’s Cannon Coffee Co. — better known as “The Cannon” — on the corner of Cannon and Ottawa streets. They serve my favourite latte in the city using beans from all of the local Hamilton coffee roasters that I love: Detour, Red Hill, & Speakeasy. There are Red Crow and Radius, both of which opened up recently on James Street South. On King William, there’s the recently opened Baltimore House’s gothic/Victorian themed café and wine bar and also Homegrown Hamilton (formerly Sky Dragon) with their in-house roasted-fresh coffee beans.

Red Crow Coffee & Espresso Bar, 211 James St. South

Homegrown Hamilton, 27 King William St.

What I love is that many if not all of the new coffee shops that have opened are also serving up some phenomenal brunches, snacks and baked goods, giving us Hamiltonians a multitude of options for coffee and treats. Each place is unique, and local, adding their own flavour to the ever-developing coffee culture in Hamilton.

What I’ve discovered since my move is that anything Hamilton may be missing — like, say, a microbrewery or a vegan restaurant or a juice bar — will likely be on its way soon. If it isn’t, get on it: It’s true you can do anything in Hamilton.

My top three coffee shops

1. Detour Coffee: airy, bright atmosphere, great sweet treats, baked goods, soups, salads and the like, fabulous Detour roasted beans; 41 King St. West, Dundas.

2. The Cannon: contemporary style and design with a great people-watching window, best latte in the city, delicious daily lunches and brunches; 179 Ottawa St. North.

3. Mulberry Street Coffee House: love the casual atmosphere, my downtown go-to place for meet-ups, a cup of coffee to go, ginger molasses cookie or a savoury muffin to tide me over; 193 James St. North.

You can also find this post printed in The Hamilton Spectator June 9th 2012 here.

caledonia

It’s a different world just a short 30 minute drive away from downtown Hamilton.  Straight up Upper James for a few kilometers, and you will hit the small and quaint town of Caledonia.  I had no idea it was so close!  We wanted to check it out over the weekend for the city-wide garage sale.  However, leaving the house after 10am meant that we had basically missed most of the good deals and sales.  With the rain managing to hold off for the afternoon it was still worth the trip to discover some of these Caledonian gems.

Searching the residential back roads for good sales we came upon a stretch of road along side the river, and when we came upon this I couldn’t help but gawk at the old Grand River Mills.  What a building!  It was a wheat flour mill built in 1853.  Powered by the flowing river, it milled wheat into flour from 1857 until the 1960′s! Currently you can’t enter the building, but since it is a designated historic building you can rest assured that it is being preserved.  There are plans for its eventual reuse that I believe are currently in the works.

After scouring a few more garage sales and coming up empty handed we decided to make our way.  Our first stop before crossing the river back to town was at this antique shop at the old Haldiman House, which just so happens to have been built by James Little, who also built the flour mill by the river.

Next to the antique store was an 85 year old snack bar called the Oasis.  We grabbed an ice-cream there for our first of what was to be several Caledonia treats.

Heading back over the bridge I spotted Jones Bakery.  Another old establishment still baking with a brick oven!  We sampled a butter tart, and some bread.  Prices for treats in Caledonia sure can’t be beat.  Steve made a payment of less than $2 and it covered everything.  We should have bought a fresh rhubarb pie.

Jones bakery had a fine selection of candy too, beautifully displayed in that old-fashioned way.

Well, we left Caledonia empty of garage sale finds, but I left feeling satisfied having explored a new area that I’d never been to before.

a long one

We planted clover in the backyard last year so that we didn’t have to stare at dirt anymore, and so that we never had to cut grass again.  Sometimes, however the clover gets a little long as you can see here.

Steve recently found a variety of seed that grows short clovers at Tregunno Seeds on Catharine Street North.  We’ll have to try it out since some of the clovers in our backyard are just so super long.  I’m gunning for integrating Irish or Scotch moss into the mix, but I think that might just be wishful thinking and potentially impossible.

needlework

If you have the slightest itch towards craftiness, and sewing then you need to make your way down to Needlework on James Street North.  It carries beautiful fabrics, patterns, crafty books, sewing and embroidery supplies.

I love that there is now a sewing place downtown, and that I no longer have to get in a car to grab some fabric, or a button.  Not to mention if you don’t have a sewing machine or if you just want a different sewing/work environment you can pay by the hour to use their in-store machines.

On top of it being just about the prettiest store ever -high tin gold ceilings, bright and airy, and filled with creative inspiration one would usually only dreams of- it also offers fabulous classes. Next month’s workshops sound amazing; a leather moccasin making class umm hello!? Awesome!

Over the weekend I attended my very first ever introductory embroidery class at Needlework.  Our talented instructor for the day Kate Jackson taught us some basic embroidery stitches to get us novice embroiders on our way to creating our own masterpieces.

The samples below are from Kate Jackson (our instructor), Kate Hunter (partner of Needlework & avid embroiderist), and someone who I know is on their way to becoming a fantastic embroiderer -today was her first time and look at her stitches!

Next month Kate Jackson will be back to teach two more classes: Machine Embroidery, and Hand Embroidered Monograms.  I’m especially interested in going to the Monograms class.  I think that embroidered lettering is so gorgeous.  My goal is to one day have the alphabet from A-Z in a variety of fanciful embroidered stitches.

It was great to meet Liz Simpson (partner of Needlework) and all the lovely folks that came to last Saturday’s class.  I hope everyone enjoyed continuing their projects for the day in the comforts of a shady and breezy garden patio stitching away.

For another sneak peak at Liz and Kate’s store check out Beaux Mondes’ post here.

*Needlework, 174 James St. North, 905.667.5663, Open Tues-F 11-6, Sat 11-5, Sun 11-4

cbc hamilton

We finally have CBC in Hamilton in its newest ever format… digital!

Nearly a month ago CBC launched its first ever digital only news station.  Welcome to the digital age and welcome to Hamilton!  The station combines a number of news sources with different social media formats such as the already active #HamOnt Twitter community and local bloggers. Hamilton veterans Paul Wilson (writer of the infamous Hamilton Spectator Streetbeat) and Roger Gillespie (former managing editor of the Hamilton Spector), are part of the small team of Hamilton CBC reporters covering the news here in Hamilton.

Not only is it fabulous to see another news source reporting and supporting Hamilton culture, but it is great to see the CBC presence on the street level too.

CBC Hamilton is officially in their new digs in the former Friendship Gift Shop on James St. North.

I’ve noticed this great logo plastered on bus shelters all over town.

A special treat from the CBC Hamilton opening at the last art crawl.  CBC cupcakes yum!

Its refreshing to see an integrated approach to reporting that interacts with the community from the ground on up.  I’m looking forward to seeing how the CBC presence in Hamilton continues to develop over the years.  Perhaps it will even attract some bigger Hamilton features on CBC Radio and Television.  Or perhaps it may bring CBC guests to the city for special talks or broadcasts.  Tonight Nora Young – host of CBC Radio’s Spark – was in Dundas to do a talk about the “Digital You”.  Seems like a great start so far!

PS. -Thanks CBC Hamilton for the shout-out yesterday in your new feature Best of Digital Hamilton.

the weekend of the bbq

The weather was devine this past weekend.  We enjoyed three consecutive lovely outdoor backyard barbecues!  The third BBQ was at our place with some old friends from Toronto.

I planned the food around the theme of a summery Caribbean meal.  For the starter, I made my first attempt at coconut shrimp.  It was pretty easy, just shell and clean the shrimp, pat dry, salt and pepper liberally, coat in flour, dip into egg and then cover with unsweetened shredded coconut and deep fry.  I used a hot pepper jelly as a dipping sauce.  Overall I was pretty pleased with the turn out -crispy, quick and savoury sweet.

I had to do a bit of research on how to make jerk-chicken (another culinary first for me).  I combined two recipes (recipe one & two) and did a trial run once with a few tweaks and improvements.  As a base I marinated the chicken in a homemade jerk-chicken paste of green onions tops, red onion, garlic, all spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, scotch-bonnet peppers, molasses, brown sugar, a splash of dark rum, and fresh ground black pepper, and thyme leaves.  I ground up the ingredients into a paste and let chicken marinade for 24+ hours.

We cooked the chicken on low heat on the barbecue but with all the marinade and chicken juices dripping into the flames, there was some serious blackening of the chicken.   In the end this worked perfect for the look and taste of a proper jerk chicken.

The scotch bonnet peppers in the marinade were pretty hot!  So for a nice complement I made a cool mango, papaya, avocado, cucumber, coriander, mint and lime salsa.  I had a bean salad left over from the day before’s BBQ, and just added some potatoes to make another cooling side dish.

For this meal I had to plan in advance to make sure I had ripe mangos, avocados, and plantains.  Plantains take some time to ripen nicely and I wanted them to be in their optimal pan-frying condition.  I discovered that the riper they are the faster they brown and the easier they are squish (with a fork or rolling pin) for a tasty pan-fried delight.  All this was served along side a pot of hot coconut rice.

The first dessert, made by our friend Andrea, was a gorgeous flan with raspberries, and blackberries on top of a layer of custard.  Note the letter “S” on the cake (for the S’s of Steve and Seema). So cute!  The dessert was perfect -fresh, light and summery!

Our friend Vern brought some homemade butter-tart squares which were gooey, and amazing.  You need to take a peak at Vern’s blog!  She has some mouth watering recipes and great posts about her dining discoveries plus her all time restaurant favourites.

A gorgeous weekend enjoyed with friends and family!  I’m looking forward to many more culinary delights this summer in our backyard!

spring crawl

This month’s artcrawl is going to be a good one!  SO many things going on;  Steve and our talented friend Jamie Lawson both have their solo openings tomorrow night, there’ll be the super-fabulous vintage dress sale that White Elephant is hosting, and CBC Hamilton will finally have their official doors open for the crawl too (yay)!

Some sneak peaks…

Steve’s show is called Straits, and is amazing!  It features new 2D and 3D works using mixed media, metal, and routered wood.  His show will be up at b contemporary gallery at 226 James St. North until June 2nd.

Up on the 3rd floor of 126 James St.  North, be sure to check out Jamie Lawson’s exhibit Albedo in Sylvia Nickerson’s Open Studio.  His work is looking fab, and he will also have some prints for sale to adorn your lovely walls.

To get your one of a kind 1940′s-60′s vintage dress you must check out White Elephant’s Dreaming of Dresses -vintage dress sale!  They’ve got the combined super-power forces of Ottawa’s Victoire, Hamilton’s Peacock Chic, and Toronto’s Love in the Afternoon to put on the best vintage dress sale you’ve ever seen!

With the quickly warming weather this art crawl is sure to be a busy one.  I heard that last month the count was 6000 people!  Well done.  If you do plan to stop by the crawl it runs form 7-11pm and please remember to bring a non perishable good to Cannon & James North (specifically baby formula and baby food)!  Help your community!

dwelling on a whim

The AGH held its annual Spring Art Sale from May 3rd to May 6th.  The sale featured work from 50 artists (local Hamilton artists and artists from the surrounding GTA) exhibiting artwork varying from painting to pottery, jewelry and ceramics. I went and checked it out over the weekend for Doors Open Hamilton.

Of all the amazing art on display I was immediately attracted to a ceramic piece by artist Lana Filippone.  I adored her dainty and sweet creations and wanted to take each one of them home with me!

This work is from her series “Dwelling on a Whim” -playing off the theme of “childhood daydreams”.  The artist describes her work as having it all: “bunnies with tree houses on their backs, to grumpy birthday party guests-of-honour”.  Adorable!!

I see these pieces going perfectly along side high-tea, and crumpets.