Last year I was invited to participate in the Downtown Halifax Business Commission’s Big Day Downtown campaign. I guess they liked what I posted because I was invited back this year. Only there was a twist. All the participating bloggers were asked to “try something new.”

Where last year I just kind of winged it with the in-laws, this year I actually had to come up with a course of action. Since I naturally narrowed it down to food experiences, I had to think long and hard about where I was going to spend the $100 prepaid credit card that comes with the opportunity. I’m pretty adventurous when it comes to food and while looking over online menus I thought my options would be limited. While getting my hair done  before heading off on my Big Day Downtown, the amazing and lovely Pam at Aspirations helped formulate a foodie plan of attack.

Raspberry Fizz

First stop: The Bicycle Thief. Sadly they were not open at the time Cokebaby and I headed down to the waterfront. We still have plans on checking this spot out though. Had they been open our plan was to try their polenta board and cocktails. Instead we went to Ristorante a Mano for appetizers. He had a Campari & soda to start. I asked the very helpful and friendly server for a unique recommendation and she came back with a Raspberry Frizz: a cocktail made with Bacardi Razz, Chambord, Raspberry sorbeto, and Prosecco float.

Appetizers

The appetizers were very tasty. Vongole Gratinate: Clams stuffed with housemade Italian salsiccia, baked, served on half shell ($9). Truth be told, the only time I’ve ever eaten clams has been in deep-fried strip form with a side of fries. These were a far cry from their fast food cousins. We also shared the Polenta con Salsa di Fichi e Formaggio Caprino: Polenta rustica with caramelized onions, fig relish & goat cheese, baked al forno ($11). Even though I’ve been to Italy a couple of times now and have had incredible food experiences, polenta was not among them. In fact, the only time it’s crossed my palate has been in the form of those pre-made rolls at The Italian Market. I know, I know. My bad. It’s clearly what Velveeta is to cheese.

Delicious as this first course was, the real adventure took place at Bistro Le Coq, the new French restaurant on Argyle Street. Having travelled to Paris and the south of France a couple of times now, I was excited to see what this place had to offer. The atmosphere is perfect. There are three sections—bar, lounge, dining room—each with a distinct decor. It’s amazing to see that they were able to completely transform the old Mosaic space.

The staff are all fluent in French and they just look charming in their black and white uniforms. You’re greeted in French and offered seating in any of the three areas to suit your mood. We headed to the dining room which is done in a modern country kitchen style. To start we each had a cocktail from their very interesting bar menu. Here, I will admit to being a lame blogger because I forgot to write the names down as I expected to find the items online after. All I can tell you is that Cokebaby’s drink tasted like the most refreshing iced tea and mine had a lovely pear liqueur.

A French feast

When we asked our server for recommendations, she listed a number of items rather than the blanket “everything” statement that is so unhelpful. That said, I really wish I could have tasted a little bit of everything. Since that wasn’t realistic, Cokebaby and I decided to share a few plates.

Duck prosciutto: house cured duck breast, berry compote, our pickles ($9). Cokebaby doesn’t even like pickles yet he was so impressed with these ones that he MADE pickles the following weekend. Apparently the new brunch menu includes eggs Benny made with the duck prosciutto and, believe you me, I will be coming back for that.

Classic steak tartare: topped with a soft poached egg, truffle oil drizzled crisps ($12). Here’s where I’m going to pause for a second because, let’s face it, steak tartare? The very idea has always grossed me out a little. I mean, sushi’s one thing but raw cow seems like tempting the gods of food borne illnesses. However, I was on an adventure. First thing’s first: I was expecting hamburger meat. What I got was high quality, lean steak that was hand ground. The egg was perfectly poached and oozed over the meat to create a subtle combination of flavours. The texture, in fact, was no different that sushi.

Salade Niçoise: with seared rare ahi tuna crusted in sesame ($10). I am a huge fan of this type of salad. There are different variations of ingredients depending on the chef but my favourite includes boiled potatoes which this one had. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say it was disappointing—I mean, the Ahi tuna was seared to perfection—this dish was probably my least enjoyable part of the meal. For starters, the olives weren’t Niçoise style. The dressing was a little bland and missing the zing of Dijon mustard. It really needed anchovies, too. For a salad it was lovely, just not what I expect in a Niçoise.

Pommes frites: done in duck fat, sprinkled with parmesan, truffle mayo ($7). Enough said, right? Decadent beyond words but oh so very good. If you’re just visiting for cocktails and snacks, don’t miss out on these.

The plan was to head to The Middle Spoon for dessert. Honest it was. This was the location of the Big Day Downtown launch and I was hoping to finish where it all began but…our server mentioned their soufflé: chocolate & Grand Marnier cream ($8). Neither one of us had ever eaten soufflé. How could we resist? Kudos to her for mentioning it would take 25 minutes to make and giving us enough of a heads up so we wouldn’t have to wait too long. We finished off our evening with an espresso each ($3.50) and a soufflé that was like cocoa clouds with a touch of orange. Sorry, there was no time for pictures. You’ll have to trust me when I write it was worth the wait.

One final purchase I have to mention in my “try something new” adventure downtown: the Honey Lavender Ale from Garrison Brewing Co.: Brewed with English lavender harvested from Meander River Farms and wildflowers honey from G.G. Smeltzer & Son in Shubenacadie, this strong yet accessible ale features original flavors. At the time of this post they only had a two week supply left so I recommend checking it out. This ale is probably one of the most distinct ones I’ve ever had. It’s no wonder they consistently win awards.

1. 
   GarrisonBrewing We’re nothing if not sneaky RT @AliasGrace: @garrisonbrewing The Honey Lavender is very nice. Sneaky because it’s so understated at first 11 Sep 2011 from TweetDeck

— this quote was brought to you by quoteurl

All in all, another fantastic Big Day Downtown. The new twist provided a challenge but one that I was very happy to meet. My taste buds were quite pleased.

Remember the scene in The Simpsons where Homer is daydreaming about the land of chocolate? Well, that was me in the south of France only it was with foie gras. Um, wait a second. That sounds kind of gross on a lot of levels. Well, even though I only had it twice in the nine days we were in France, it was equally as glorious as it was horrendous. But, like they say, when in Rome do like…Hedonismbot.

Here are some gastronomical highlights from the trip:

Photo credit: cwbuecheler from Flickr

Picnics—By far, our favourite thing to do when travelling in Europe is checking out the fresh local produce and putting together meals to go. In Nice, we frequented the Cours Saleya Market & Monoprix, while in Avignon we enjoyed the offerings at Les Halles & 8 à Huit. Things we looked for included sundried tomatoes, olives Niçoise or en herbes de Provence, fresh baked bread, and, of course, fabulous cheeses. Whatever you do in France, if there’s an open display of cheeses that aren’t pre-packaged, for goodness sake don’t touch anything. In Paris, Cokebaby got his hand slapped for reaching out. Just remember, cheese is like a religion here. Don’t sully the altar. There are also plenty of pâtisseries and chocolatiers to go around for dessert.

Wines of the region are rosé and Côtes du Rhône which you can purchase for incredibly reasonable prices. Even champagne is dirt cheap here. For special treats we tried Muscat de Beaumes de Venise (a sweet fortified wine) and pastis (an anise-flavoured liqueur usually served on ice with a pitcher of water that you can use to cut it to your liking). In Nice, we found a great wine shop called Côté Vin where the young shopkeep was keen to speak English and gave us some great recommendations for local (and organic) wines of the region without an ounce of pretension.

Le Atmosphere (Nice)—On opera night, we tried finding a recommended restaurant called Chez Palmyre. Finding no signs of life there on that night (or any other) we wound up on the very touristy Cours Saleya Strip where we were reeled in by an employee. Yes, yes, tourist trap antics. But we were running late and it was literally a two minute walk from the opera house. We went with the formule which got us a starter, main, and dessert for 13,50€. Each of us had a fish soup (served with croutons and rouille), grilled sword fish with roasted vegetables in rice. For dessert I had a creme caramel while Cokebaby opted for chocolate mousse. For the price, service, and quality of food we weren’t disappointed.

Maison Nani (Avignon)—We kind of hit the jackpot with this little gem of a restaurant. The atmosphere is warm and homey, the service impeccable, and the food was everything we wanted it to be (and then some).  On our first day, we arrived close to the end of lunch service so we missed out on the specials but after our meal we vowed to come back early to check them out. Both days the place was filled with locals and the owners were around greeting everyone personally. Our meals ranged around 8-12€ and you could purchase a 75cL Cotes du Rhone wine for about 4€. The wine came in unmarked bottles that brought the term house wine to new meaning but who can argue for the value? I indulged in a foie gras salad served with toast. Simple but delicious. For dessert I couldn’t resist the café gourmand: a cup of espresso with a sampling of Chantilly cream, a cake that tasted like homemade Ferrero Rocher, crème anglaise, and a raspberry crumble for under 4€. On the next visit, I was very happy to get the special tart of the day made with broccoli, onions and olives, with a side salad, and vegetables (potato salad, cucumbers, tomatoes, mustard fennel, lightly salted and boiled string beans).

Photo credit: jenny downing from Flickr

O’Neill’s (Avignon)—At supper time many of the restaurants along the main strip were closed, we assumed, due to it being low season. Back alleys turned up international cuisine for very reasonable prices. It probably would have made some sense to have Chinese food for the lunar new year but, frankly, we didn’t come to France for the Chinese food. So, we stopped in at O’Neill’s Irish pub. Um, yeah, that didn’t make much sense, right? The thing is they had a bunch of French items on the menu. While Cokebaby enjoyed his pizza Alsace (ham, olives, mushrooms and Emmenthal) and a pint of Kronenbourg blanc, I was happy to receive the yummiest (and biggest) salade Niçoise with a goblet full of vin chaud (a.k.a. Glögg or mulled wine).

Le Courtois Café/Pâtisseries (Nîmes)—A family-run business since 1892, this gorgeous spot is situated in the same courtyard as a palm-tree and crocodile fountain (the city’s emblem). The dining room had crammed seating but elegant Old World decor. Cokebaby and I felt like the veritable bulls in a china shop and if the weather had been a bit warmer we probably would have enjoyed the experience more on the patio. That said, the food was delicious and the service both pleasant and efficient. This was my second and last foie gras salad. Not quite as delicious as the first but it came with a tasty side of scalloped potatoes. Cokebaby’s poulet Basquaise (chicken served in a clay pot with peppers and smoky spices) was not the most memorable meal but he enjoyed it nonetheless. On the way out we passed the display case of pastries and, although incredibly tempting (and probably where they excelled in terms of food), we passed them up in order to move on to the sites of the city.

Restaurant du Gesù (Nice)—This was a quaint little Italian restaurant situated at a cobblestone square across from a church. We opted to dine outside in the enclosed patio next to a heat lamp. The food here was simplicity at its best. We shared plates of gnocchi (potato pasta) with Gorgonzola, and ravioli with pistou (basically pesto without the pine nuts). On the blackboard they had featured a wine of the month which we tried out for 14€ (this time it came in a corked and labelled bottle). By the time we were served our meal the place was packed with locals and students.

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Our last day in Nice was spent trying to cram in as much food and drink into our faces before we had to fly back. We had croissants, café crème, wine, cheese, beer, pastries, and more. By the end of the night I was wholly and truly satisfied that I could indulge no more. Thankfully, vacations do have to come to an end sometimes. Otherwise, I’d be the size of an elephant. That or I’d have to take up smoking as an appetite suppressant which I’m convinced is the only way everyone stays so thin in France. Kidding..!

I’m not by any means a culture vulture. At least by some standards. Sure, I like watching some indie or foreign films, am passionate about world food and wines, listen to a wide variety of music, and am fairly well travelled. That all being said, when it comes to things like ballet or opera performances my experience is pretty limited. By that I mean mostly through secondary school field trips. (For the record that’s a long time ago).

It’s not that I don’t enjoy these types of cultural experiences. It’s mostly because a good deal of my adult (and therefore able to afford things) life has been spent in a small city. Frankly, since moving here it seems to me that the options are fairly limited and I’m not about to repeat the brutally uncomfortable experience at the Halifax Metro Centre when we went to see the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo with Cokebaby’s family and accidentally heard some beautiful opera performed by Measha Brueggergosman.

In fact, outside of that experience, one of the few others I’ve had with opera is through a very small collection at home that includes safe bets like Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman. However, on our trip to Italy last year we made it to The Barber of Seville at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice and were so amazed that we wanted to repeat the experience. It was an opulent opera house and overall wonderful performance which I enjoyed immensely despite undergoing the early stages of a sinus infection that would make the flight home almost unbearable.

At the Cours Saleya Market

This is all to say that we had some high expectations of the Opera de Nice on our recent trip to southern France. So, on our first day on vacation we took in a day of walking around Old Nice, stopping by the opera house to find out that all the main tickets were sold out and that we’d have to come back at 16:30 (not 6:30 as I almost made the mistake) to purchase last minute tickets in the upper tier. It was to be expected so instead of being disappointed we spent the rest of the morning touring through the market stands where we picked up some souvenirs and the best sun-dried tomatoes ever made.

Eventually we made it back to the opera house where I’m pretty sure I asked the ticket agent in French if he wanted two seats at the opera. To his credit he didn’t laugh at me and continued to converse in French without switching to English. As the assigned seating was sold out he lamented that the only tickets available presented poor to no visibility. But they were also only 8€ each.

From where we were seated we could see only part of the stage and that was only when standing. Although there was an overhead with captions to follow, that too was half obscured. It seemed that I understood all but every fifth word but it also seemed that every fifth word was the most important.

The opera itself was one that we’d not heard of: Les Contes d’Hoffman. Not Le Comte Hoffman as we originally thought while listening to the performance. A somewhat important distinction. You see, one of the main characters sounded like he was the Count from Sesame Street and every time he entered the stage with that distinctive laugh I thought we were about to get a lesson in French numbers (which actually would have at least been educational in some way). The unmistakable laugh only further confused my understanding of what was going on because I naturally assumed he was “Count” Hoffman when, in fact, he was actually the “nemesis” Lindorf.

From the set of Les Contes d'Hoffman

Then, at some point—no word of a lie—a giant baby’s head emerged on the stage. For a little while it was all we could look at. We were transfixed and beyond perplexed and losing the plot line with every passing second that we weren’t paying close attention to the words or overhead.

That’s when it got really weird. A bald-headed robotic woman sprang out of the head. All bets were off at that point. It felt like we were watching a live-action episode of The Simpsons. I imagined Lenny and Carl standing by the enormous tête asking, “Ain’t you never seen a bald chick leap out of a giant head before?”

Even after the automaton proceeded to sing the very beautiful aria, Les Oiseaux Dans La Charmille, we couldn’t put the oddness out of our minds. Yet we persevered.

Then, the stage was flooded with identical blind couples tapping their way with white canes across the stage. By the time Act II came along Cokebaby and I were entirely lost.

Apparently there was an Act III but we never saw it.

For us, the opera didn’t end when the fact lady sang. In fact, there was no fat lady at all. And maybe in the absence of one, it ends when the bald chick leaps out of the giant head. I’ll have to test that theory out on our next operatic excursion.