Category: Uncategorized

Politics Dec 10, 2008 The Waffle 3 Comments What would the Holiday Season be without a series of Holiday Partys on and around Parliament Hill.  Each political party has its own, lobby groups and communication shops do too. The New Democratic Party was of course hosting its own fest, with food and booze and attempts at humour.  This year we were at 200 West Block, a very spacious room where this party has been held before.  The other location has been the Hall of Honour in Centre Block, but not this year. For those who have been around the Hill a long time, they know what to expect:  a buffet of salads – caesar, coleslaw, mushrooms, squash, garden, and carrots and raisins.  There are lots of different opinions about the selection – I personnally think it is not bad, everything being pretty fresh if not overly tasty.  The squash salad is…

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Recipes Dec 9, 2008 The Waffle 1 Comment For some strange reason, Melissa wanted to try this recipe she found in Chatelaine.  So we did, but we adapted it by changing the veggies. Beef ramen with veggetables 2 85-g pkgs beef-flavoured ramen-noodle soup mix 2 tbsp of vegetable oil 1 small onion, thinly sliced 3/4 lb top sirloin beef 1/2 cup water 2 tbsp of soy sauce 2 tsp hot chili-garlic sauce 1 tsp dark sesame oil 2 cups of chopped green and red peppers 1 cup of sliced celeri 1. Bring 4 cups (1 L) of water to a boil. Remove seasoning mix from packages and set aside. Place noodles in a large bowl. Pour boiling water overtop. Soak until tender, about 3 min. Drain and set aside. 2. Meanwhile, slice beef into small strips. Coat a large frying pan with oil and set over medium-high heat. Add onion and beef. Stir-fry until onion starts to…

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Restaurant Dec 6, 2008 The Waffle 2 Comments Whisper’s Pub and Eatery is a regular hangout of mine, especially in the summer.  Because that is where the Gargoyles of the OCSL usually go after a game, to chill out and usually recap what went wrong. From time to time, I do enjoy going there without a Gargs’ uniform, for a late week-end lunch.  And that is exactly what we did this Saturday.  We hadn’t actually planned to go there, but we just drove around and ended up in the friendliest pub in Westboro village. I went for their Swiss burger – swiss cheese, caramelized onions and mushrooms.  With fries. The fries are far from being the greatest.  They are pallatable, but I certainly was jealous of the salad Mel was having with her burger, and that is sad.  The burger was pretty decent, nicely cooked patty on a good quality bun.  The cheese is processed,…

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Politics Dec 2, 2008 The Waffle No Comments The Press Gallery Dinner used to be a big deal.  The Governor-General would perform, followed by all party Leaders, each of them pretending to be a stand-up comedian of some sorts, with more or less success.  It used to be off-the-record, but that has changed since, some blaming it on the arrival of the National Post.  Whatever happened, it got to the point were some networks, notably CTV Newsnet and CPAC, were broadcasting the Dinner live. Transforming yourself into a stand-up comedian is not an easy task, and you had to salute the courage of these politicians.  But some grew tired of the challenge.  First to capitulate was Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe, who vowed never to attend again after a bun-throwing incident provoked by a speech that wasn’t well received.  Ever since, BQ MPs and staffers’s appearance are scarce at the event. In…

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Restaurant Nov 22, 2008 The Waffle No Comments Humphrey’s on Bank is located in the old New Delhi Restaurant in the Glebe.  At the corner of Glebe and Bank street, in fact.  I first went a few weeks after they opened, and I was pleasantly surprised by their menu, which we could qualify as Indian fusion, especially what I thought ought to be their signature item: Tandoori Chicken Wings.  Ya, they kept the tandoori oven and were selling these delicately flavoured and nicely cooked wings.  I loved them and I did enjoy them a few times. Lots of their dishes are actually cooked over charcoal in the traditional tandoori oven. We were enlisted with The New Strongs  for the World Trivia Night at the Aberdeen Pavillion at Landsdowne Park, and we decided that Humprey’s would be a good spot to stop for a light dinner beforehand.  The place was fairly quiet – a nuclear family to…

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