Southern Comfort

After Banjara replaced the Coffee Tim near Christie Pits park, a KFC (Korea Fried Chicken) was its neighbour. But soon after the Korean joint moved further east into Korea town, Madras Masala  took over the small space. In contrast to the butter chicken and vindaloo dishes of Northern India, Madras offered the cuisine of Southern India including the sea-food dishes of Goa. But its most distinctive items were the giant, thin pancakes called dosas. These came stuffed typically with spiced potatoes, onions, and other options, accompanied by a variety of rich dipping sauce and hot sambar soup.

For a while, Madras even offered an annual Dosa Festival where you can try exotic combination including Chocolate Dosas. Like Banjara, it was a favourite go-to place until I decided I needed to cut back as part of a healthy diet. But now and then, like Sunday's lunch, I dropped by for some Indian pancakes. Actually, this is a misnomer as Madras does offer "Indian pancakes" known as Uthappam. Having never tried any of the meat choices, I ordered the chicken dosa.

As always, it arrived thin and crispy, perfect for breaking off to dip in the coconut or tomato-based sauce. But unlike the usual potatoes, it was impossible to pick up the big curry chicken pieces with the dosa. You have to resort to knife and fork. One drawback of all dosas is the single flavour: all potatoes, spinach, or in this case, all chicken. For this meal, it also meant there was a lot of chicken. I'd love to see one with a more varied stuffing. But this is a minor complaint for a tasty lunch.

Good To The Last Drop

Kinton Ramen is one of the top Ramen shops in Toronto. Unlike last time, I wasn't here on Saturday just for noodles but to become a Kinton bowler. If you finish the entire bowl, you get a photo taken, a pin, and a tenth of the way to being a 10 bowler. I opted for the extra pork bowl at $12.80.

Having a seat looking into the busy kitchen gave a great view into the proceedings. Looks like every worker had a specific task. Only the noodles: from separating it into neat piles, to cooking it in individual strainers; or just searing the pork shoulder or belly. Given their volume, it was probably the only way to run the busy kitchen. But like sausage-making, watching food being made is sometimes not as glamorous as the final product. Seeing the thick, grey gloop that needed to be continually scooped from the broth almost turned me off my Ramen.

But not quite, because it was fragrant and rich. The typical bowl may give you only 1 or 2 thick pieces of pork. Though tender and delicious, it could seem stingy compared to the numerous slices of beef you get in a bowl of pho. On the other hand, when my bowl arrived, the extra pork was almost too much of a good thing. I need to go vegetarian for the next few meals to balance it out! In any case, draining the bowl was quite easy and needed no heroic effort. You just have to ignore the niggling thought about how much sodium you're consuming.

Scream Therapy

Friday night, a couple of local bands played at the Silver Dollar. First up was Hands & Teeth. It was an early slot but there was a good turn-out. I haven't seen them in a while and there were some changes. Jeffrey Pinto was missing from the line-up and the songs had a harder edge with more prominence given to guitar riffs and solos. They played entirely new songs tonight and though the vocal harmonies were still there, the new tunes were more muscular and jammy. Perhaps as a nod to Spring finally arriving, Natasha wore a light, colourful asymmetric maxi-dress.

Next up was Nicholas Doubleyou and the B-Squad. Their young fans crowded the stage to listen to their brand of earnest, shout-sing indie music. As always, the singer threw himself into every song. But having heard them a few times now, I'm no longer so keen of their one-note style. Compared to the book-end bands, their repertoire were definitely lo-fi.

Henry Fletcher of Henri Faberge And The Adorables also did a lot of shout-singing, though he reserved it for emphasis. But the variety in their music from latin-inflected groove, to oompa-loompa folk, to 50s pop made it very enjoyable. With a better mix than at The Garrison, the sweet harmonies of Julianne Wilding, Dana Snell and Robin Hatch (both grinning throughout the set from Fletcher's antics) were wonderful. But don't let the twee-esque vibe fool you. With ample participation from Fletcher, the area in front of the stage turned into a mosh pit for the last few numbers.

Throwback Thursday

After several years of hearing Maylee Todd's retro-funk style songs, she finally released her sophomore album, Escapology. The release party took place Thursday at The Blk Box, the underground venue at The Great Hall.

Without openers, the sold-out crowd milled around for most of the evening. Although Harrison gave us some live mixing, and Alanna of Bonjay did a DJ set, it was a restless group. The late night start would have been all right with a fuller bill, but it seemed misplaced with only 1 performance. In fact, a few people left after 1 song, when Maylee finally came on around midnight.

After an effusive introduction by her room-mate, a comedienne dressed in a tight sparkling number and decorated with coloured beads on her face (fa-jazzling?), Todd bounded up on stage. She wore a glimmering dress with diaphaneous cape-like wings designed by her sister Leilanni, a Toronto fashion designer. The set began with the wistful Successive Mutations, with just her on the harp. With 4 slow numbers to start seemed risky as the audience was appreciative but didn't seem fully engaged. But after I Can't Stand It, they cheered upon hearing Baby's Got It, the first single from Escapology. Complete with dancers and choreography, the set proceeded with wall-to-wall dancing until the closing Do You Know What It Is.

The encore was a 20-minute set featuring all covers of classics including Pointer Sisters' Pinball Number Count, Hall and Oates' I Can't Go For That (No Can Do), and Isley Brothers' I Got Work To Do. A Soul Train dance line made an appearance after some encouragement from Maylee.

The evening was a smashing success. One minor issue was the slightly anemic sound. This was surprising as during the DJ sets, the speakers were powerful enough to vibrate your body from feet to chest. The mix was also a bit unbalanced and some of the finer touches were inaudible.

Killing Me Softly

I had such a great time at the Fleetwood Mac's Rumours cover show that when I heard that Dwayne Gretzky was having playing again Tuesday night at The Dakota I had to go down for a song or two. You couldn't actually fit 600 people into this basement venue, but the room was nevertheless packed.

The increasingly sweaty and vocal crowd sang along to every song. Dwayne Gretzky ran through a fair number of the same songs as last show but at 3 sets, there were also lots of other tunes. 3 sets? Yes. I don't usually stay for more than a set or two. But it turns out that tonight was a special occasion for a friend so I hung around. It turned into a wonderful late night (show ended at 2 am) but I'm definitely paying for it today.

Burning Bright

Saturday night, I dropped by The Rivoli to catch a few bands. First up was a trio called Air Marshall Landing. The guitarist had an injured foot and hobbled up on stage on crutches. He spent the set sitting down on a stool. But that didn't diminish the quality of their music: funky, catchy, with sometimes funny lyrics. Like most bands with a bassist on lead, there were complex bass lines although thankfully no wankery or indulgent noodling. It was eminently danceable music.

It was a great start but Viva Mars couldn't quite sustain it. Their sound, a melange of sonic distortion, earnest lyrics, and typical indie rock didn't grab me. But they had a good contingent of fans who sang along to their music.

It was the CD pre-release show for The Box Tiger. Though their debut album won't come out for another 2 months, a limited number of discs were available tonight. They benefited enormously from the impeccable sound of this venue. Unlike the muddied noise at The Garrison a few weeks back, all their instrumentation came through pristinely. What this mix revealed was quite a hard-rock edge, with hooky choruses for songs like Bleeding Hart, Set Fire To Your Friends, Knives, and Taller Than Trees. Add in a few enthusiastic fans, old and newly converted, and you had an excellent, high-energy set.

Record Store Day

I dropped by a few local record stores for Record Store Day and finally ended up at Sonic Boom. There was a bit of a frenzy though I was somewhat mystified. Most people were grabbing vinyls that could be purchased at any time, and only a few were looking for special releases made for this day. When I overheard two people discussing the merit of paper versus plastic inner sleeves, I knew I was deep in the Twilight Zone.

But I didn't come to argue analog versus digital, but to hear Language-Arts. Intrigued by a recent performance of this Grimes-esque singer/guitarist, I wanted to hear her with a full band. Turns out it was quite different, but a huge net gain. Without needing to loop her vocals or guitar, there was less of a drone feel to her music. In fact, with the addition of synth, bass, and a great drummer, her songs which sometimes seemed disjointed cohered into richer and more complex numbers. They also rocked, causing a bit of mental dissonance since she still bantered in a high-pitched little girl's voice. I wasn't the only one impressed by the performance as quite a few people came up after the set to pick up free download cards.

Fry Me

On a blustery Saturday morning, with a last gasp of winter gripping Toronto, I went to the Hogtown Vegan for some brunch. I wanted to try the new Northwood near Christie Pits park, but they no longer offer their prix fixe brunch.

Hogtown Vegan tries to replicate the greasy diner experience, so you know everything will be deep-fried though nothing will be animal-based, not even the eggs. We ordered tofu rancheros ($12) with homefries, an omelet ($12) with an upgrade to collard greens ($1.50), and peanut-butter and banana french toast. Everything was as greasy as can be expected, perhaps a little too much so as even the tortillas and toast were deep-fried. The collard greens were fresh but a bit tough and could use more cooking time.

My favourite was the pb and banana french toast: sweet, nutty, and smokey from the tofu bacon. It was a nice balance of flavours. I wasn't enamoured of the omelette. Fake egg? I'd rather have a thing stand for itself (tofu) instead of being an ersatz imitation. Also, saute onions are not necessarily caramelized ones. Generally, I'm more partial to vegetarian cuisine that explores its own space.

I Heard It Through The Grapevine

Tuesday night, I was not at the Air Canada Centre for the Fleetwood Mac concert but the Great Hall for cover band Dwayne Gretzky's front-to-back performance of the former's 1977 album Rumours. A sold-out 600 person crowd were also on hand. But the audience skewed fairly young, with only a smattering of faces that was alive at Rumours' release. Why such a callow crowd? One reason as overheard during the night: "I could spend $200 or $20".

Though they promised something special for the occasion, only doe-eyed, red-haired Robin Hatch in a black dress looked like 70s Fleetwood Mac. The rest wore the typical assortment of plaid shirts and tees, although Allie Hughes did dress up in a tight black-spotted dress. But their performance was sufficiently special as they played through an energetic, note perfect run from Second-Hand News to Gold Dust Woman. Everyone knew most of the songs though The Chain really got the crowd going.

After a short break, Dwayne Gretzky came back for a second set of 12 covers including 10th Avenue Freeze Out, Psycho Killer, and ending with With A Little Help From My Friends. With Rumours and the new set list, Allie and Robin took the lead more often (Heartbreaker, Barracuda, I Want You Back). A big crowd pleaser was their harmony on Lauryn Hill's version of Killing Me Softly.

Encore chants of "one more song" became "ten more song" and finally "play all night". It wasn't ten more songs, but they did play 2 long, extended numbers, Blinded By The Light and Bohemian Rhapsody, to send the happy horde home.

Wet and Wild

Sien Savanh

Saturday night, I went to Sabai Sabai for a special 8-course meal ($55) celebrating Songkran, the Thai/Laotian New Year. Also known as the water festival, there were lots of water being sprayed around the room in the form of water guns and finger bowls.

After we blessed each other by marking our faces with white paste, we ordered a pitcher of Midnight Moonson ($32). This concoction of spiced rum, ginger, Thai basil, lime, and coconut sugar syrup went down fresh and tasty. It also packed a bit of a punch.

The amuse-bouche came in the form of chewy, house-made Sien Savanh (spicy Laotian beef jerky). The meat was strong and concentrated. A nice start to the evening. The first course was Yum Ma Muang. My only complaint with this green mango salad was that they toned down the tartness (a failing of all Thai venues). However, the large, firm dried shrimp added some earthy flavours.

The Mee Grob (sweet and sour crispy noodles) was the first stand-out dish: perfectly fried, sweet, and crunchy. The tofu was firm and delicate. But the follow-up was disappointing. I couldn't discern any grilled mackerel in the Meung Pla. The fourth course, a hot and sour beef soup called Tom Zap reminded me of Vietnamese pho for its use of fatty beef and tripe. The spiciness came from the soaked chili pepper instead of chili oil, making it less irritable on the throat.

Yum Ma Muang

Mee Grob

The final 3 courses came out together: Laap Gai, a chicken salad eaten with sticky rice, slices of grilled northern Thai sausage, and a whole snapper in Panang curry. The salad was a minor let-down. Though the combination of lime juice, herbs, and rice was great, it was too watery an execution of this popular dish. The sausage was a revelation as the use of Asian herbs gave it unusual zest. The fish was tender and tasty, justifying the chore of extricating the tiny bones. Its curry sauce was rich and simply sublime.

The dessert was an array of choices at the bar. So I grabbed a little bit of everything. They should be familiar to anyone used to Asian desserts: various combination of agar, sticky rice, coconut, sweet bananas, and other common ingredients.

Having spent 3.5 hours stuffing myself with delicious food, I abandoned all thoughts of additional activities and waddled home.

Meung Pla	Tom Zap
Snapper Panang, Thai Sausage, Laap Gai	Dessert

New Kids On The Block

On Saturday, I went to Theatre Passe Muraille for a re-mount of playwright Jacob Richmond's Legoland, An Atomic Vaudeville's production. This was probably due to the successful of the follow-up hit Ride The Cyclone last year.

Before Cyclone, Legoland first introduced us to Uranium. We experience this Saskatchewan town through the eyes of the Lamb siblings, 16-year-old Penny (Celine Stubel) and 13-year-old Ezra (Amitai Marmostein). Having grown up in the nearby hippie, non-conformist commune of Elysium, they found all aspects of the outside world, dubbed Legoland by their elders, to be endlessly fascinating. Even if it was just a local Walmart.

The play was ostensibly Penny's "don't do crime" presentation, a mandated social service sentencing for selling drugs (prescription meds) and attacking a boy-band member turned gangsta rapper (Johnny Moon aka JK 47) in Orlando, Florida. How they got to that point involved a convoluted, often comic and sometimes poignant story acted out in pantomime, puppetry, and even a song or two.

Both Stubel and Marmostein played their role with gusto. Penny was a precocious, deeply passionate teenager who had trouble fitting in at their boarding school. Her bullied life had extra resonance with the recent case of Rehtaeh Parson, a girl from a small town in the Maritimes who committed suicide. Ezra wasn't quite as affected by his outsider status, as he lived in his own world of fake accents, Nietzsche, and dead-panned non sequiturs.

Overall, it was a fun, amusing play that skewered popular culture: over-medicated children, high school cliques, manufactured pop music, and so on. Unfortunately, set against Ride The Cyclone, the richer, more accomplished musical comedy follow-up, it suffered a little in comparison. The laughs are bigger in Cyclone, the pathos deeper. And of course, there are all those toe-tapping numbers.

Bare Essentials

Les Sans Culottes

Friday night at The Silver Dollar, several bands with female singers took to the stage. The 8 1/2s came on with a statuesque singer backed by a female bassist and amazingly, two Mr. Clean look-a-likes. Their first few songs were klezmer-rock (Count On You, Montenegro) with dark cabaret lyrics. Given her rich, throaty delivery, the singer reminded me of Ben Caplan, except without the voluminous beard. The rest of their set consisted of more short, pop-punk type songs (River). The only turn-off was the ubiquitous guitar solo wankery which is passe in 2013.

Patti Cake was next, fronted by a fantastically coiffured singer in a colourful mu-mu. With two back-up singers and several other players, they played bouncy, quirky indie pop. With songs like Boy Detective, Bananas, and Lindsay Lohan, it was about fun dancing. Kritty Uranowski probably harboured diva yearnings with her grand stage hand gestures on torchy numbers like Covert American and Nobody Loves Me. She needed to dial back her big voice a bit since the sound guy had put too much gain on the vocals.

Head-liners Les Sans Culottes came from Brooklyn. Yet they sang entirely in French. Parisian ex-pats? No. It was obviously all an affectation, especially the faux-accent English explanations about the songs. I would claim ironic hipsterism, but they were well past their twenties. In any case, it was great fun music. Using very simple lyrics (e.g., "Allo, allo, je t'aime, je t'aime") which matched wonderfully their punchy 60s a-go-go music, they got the crowd dancing to Magic Baguette, Telephone Douche (a detachable shower-head), and Laisse Tomber Les Filles.

Reuben-esque

The North-West corner of Dundas and Dufferin has been sitting vacant for quite some time. But recently the Hogtown Cure opened up shop there. Unlike other new restaurants in the area, they are aiming for slightly cheaper fares. Additionally, they have counters offering prepared meals like a piri piri dinner or deli selections including cheeses, and freshly made sausages and cured meats.

However, I was there Friday night after work to sample their menu. From a selection of deli meat board, tacos, or salad, I settled on the Reuben sandwich ($9.50). It came with a nice fresh slaw with just a hint of sweetness but the pickle was too soggy. However, the Reuben was excellent. The beef was rich, fatty, with dark, earthy mouth-feel, the sauerkraut had good texture, and the whole-seed mustard added a nice tanginess.

This is a good addition to the neighbourhood as it offers more than just brunch or dinner. They should highlight their grocery options to get more foot traffic from the commuters debarking the Dufferin bus or Dundas street-car.

As Fickle As April Weather

Toronto is experiencing wild April weather: warm, rainy, snowy and all variations. With ice pellets raining down on the city, I went to the Enwave Theatre Thursday to experience another fickle phenomenon: women. Nova Battacharya and Louis Laberge-Côté had their world premiere of Akshongay.

Meaning together in Bengali, the hour-long dance recital explored the idea of being bound to ideas, stories, and ultimately other people. The lights came up on the two dancers wrapped in colourful South Asian shawls, seated and facing each other. Nova began chuckling and her amusement became loud laughter. Louis' shoulders started shaking, but you soon realized it was sobs. Throughout the piece, his anguish and joy came from his interactions with his mercurial partner.

The 1st section had them moving deliberately, holding mudras and other Indian poses accompanied by sparse electronic sound effects grounded with tabla percussion. Louis pursued and doted on Nova, while her reaction to his ardour was more ambiguous. In the 2nd section, the music switched to Western classical music. Nova had donned her sari in the shadows while Louis spun and balanced one-footed. After he put on a suit jacket offered by Nova, the two danced and raced around the stage in giddy romantic ecstasy. It ended with them, once again seated, sensually undressing each other. But this idyll didn't last. In the final section, Nova stomped and raged while Louis rolled around trying to avoid her anger. It ended with him several times preventing her from jumping off a ledge.

Though the beginning of the piece started abstractly, there was a strong narrative throughout, especially for a contemporary piece. The underlying references to Shiva (male deity) and Durga (female deity) were clear, especially in the various multi-armed poses. Meanwhile, the image of a ferocious woman standing over a prone man hearkens to the classic depiction of Kali (goddess of destruction) and Shiva.

When In Rome

It's easy to miss 241 Strada on Spadina. First, you don't expect an Italian restaurant just inside the edge of Chinatown. Second, formerly a warehouse, there was only a narrow door and no windows from the outside. But inside, the owners took full advantage of the huge space: thick wooden pillars rising to the extremely high ceilings, communal tables at the front, smaller ones at the back, and a bar area that ran the length of the room allowing you to sit by the bartender, across from the pizza oven, or closer to the kitchen.

For brunch, Strada offers breakfast pizza, which seems to be regular pizza with an egg on top. But on Saturday, I opted for one of the standard pies. First came the squash fritti appetizers ($8). The presentation seemed a bit hazardous as each deep-fried squash was skewered on a nail. This was taking rustic a little overboard. Although there was nice crunchiness, overall it was a little too greasy and the squash flavour was muted. The pureed salsa verde added a welcome tang.

The Zia Rita ($15) was a thicker-crust pizza covered with nduja sausage, roasted onion, and rapini. Both the sausage and the onions were richly flavoured but the blanched rapini was too long and watery. I would prefer them chopped and saute to bring out the dark, slightly bitter undertones. The dough was a bit over-salted. Strada won't win any pizza crowns in Toronto. But if you're in the mood for some dolce vita (or evening liveliness) in Chinatown, then I'd dropped by for a visit.

Built For Two (Hundred)

Lula Lounge usually hosts an older set, being a restaurant/lounge that showcases World Music, Jazz, etc. But a large young crowd arrived Thursday night to dance to some fun music. Oddly enough, there was something nostalgic about the evening.

If the usual suspects came tonight, they would feel at home with the opening set by The Magic. With a full band tonight instead of just the two brothers, they played songs with a heavy 70s retro feel complete with funky bass, wah-wah synth, and falsetto singing. Dressed in cat-themed sheath dresses or red turtlenecks with gold tassels, the singers wailed and shimmied on stage. Whether it was Magic Love, Mr Hollywood, or Call Me Up from their Ragged Gold LP or new songs Right By Me and If I Were You, you can't help but shake your booty.

Anyone buying a Hooded Fang CD based on tonight's performance would be in for a shock. They have abandoned their layered sunny pop for noisier pop-punk. Tonight, they played all new songs composed in this vein. Though they seemed lackadaisical last time round, they were now more settled and cohesive in their new sound. They can still put a catchy hook or two in their music.

The raucous audience came for The Bicycles' CD release party. This sugary twee pop band came out of the Toronto scene circa 2006. Having disbanded in 2010, they unexpectedly reunited for new album Stop Thinking So Much. Many were obviously happy to hear music from their "youth" and danced throughout the night. Though their set had its share of sweet harmonized pop, especially numbers from their older music (B-B-Bicycles), their new songs ranged from country to straight up rock. No doubt the variety came about because they all contributed to the new album. Despite her ferocious drumming on most numbers, Dana Snell's songs such as Appalachian Mountain Station were more wistful folk.

Instead of returning to chants of "encore" or "one more song", The Bicycles came back on stage after the crowd sang "happy birthday" to band-member Matt Beckett. For fans devoted (or ironically hipster) enough to toss bras on stage, it was a chance for a little more dancing (and even a small amount of crowd-surfing).

In Bloom

No new shoots have poked through the ground yet, but hope springs eternal. Meanwhile, I headed down to The Drake Underground Tuesday night to warm myself with the smooth and honeyed vocals of Emilie Mover.

Quite taken with both her live show and new songs a few weeks ago, I was anxious to get my hands on her new album Mighty Time being released today. Tonight, she focused almost exclusively on new material including Fishes, True Love, Ride With The Tide, and You Don't Treat Me Right. Hurting songs never sounded so sweet or wistful. For this show, she had some back-up players sitting for a few song including Jessie Cowe on harmony and the beatific buddha on percussion. Her covers Only Him Or Me (Townes Van  Zandt) and Tonight You Belong To Me fitted nicely with her own material.

Nicki Bluhm (And The Gramblers) are best known on Youtube for their Van Sessions, where they record covers while driving in their tour van. From San Francisco, this was their first visit to Canada. With bearded men (including a ringer for The Macho Man Randy Savage) and Nicki with long hair and bangs, they looked like 70s era Fleetwood Mac. Not surprisingly, their music had that classic country-tinged Americana sound. I wasn't enamoured with some of the new country numbers, but when the songs veered into blue-grass and honky-tonk (Stick With Me, Go Go Go, I'm Your Woman), they played catchy and fun music. Their set came mostly from their two albums (Toby's Song, Driftwood) with a few songs (Till Am Blue, Santa Fe) from an upcoming release. I was particularly taken with their 3 harmonies, acoustic cover of Sarah Siskind's In The Moutain.

A New Hope

Though it's still a bit nippy and there's snow on the ground, Spring officially arrived last week. With an early Easter week-end, I went to a pot-luck brunch on Sunday. As there were mostly Asians at this get-together,  no turkey, roast beef, or other traditional Easter fare made an appeareance. Instead, we had a gamut of Asian dishes.

There was a hybrid corn soup with cubes of tofu. Next was a beef stew with multigrain bread. Some maki, mostly vegetarian, were unwrapped. Though without wasabi, they were a bit bland. Finally, you can't have an Asian spread without some fried rice and chinese sausage or soft noodles with bbq pork. For dessert, it was a fruit spread of watermelon, blackberries, cantaloupe, and sweet mangos.

But there was a surprise in store. The hostess has prepared some Easter-themed cupcakes with little chocolate eggs in a nest of marshmallow square shreddies. To announce the gender of their second child, an appropriately coloured filling could be found inside. After a couple of bites, a pink gooey filling oozed out. I guess a baby girl is arriving later this summer.