My day with Michelle started with going to Sunset Grill, moved onto shopping at Loblaws at Maple Leaf Gardens and then continued with a trip to The Distillery District which I had not been back to since we visited Soma Chocolatemaker back in 2009!
Toronto Light Festival
Both being photographers, we wanted to check out the Toronto Light Festival with our cameras and go exploring.
They even had a walkway of light which was absolutely stunning! The sun had not quite set yet and it was freezing so we decided to get a small reprieve at…
Balzac’s
Balzac’s Coffee Roasters Distillery District location is absolutely gorgeous! This is their second location and is in a former old circa 1895 Pump House that they renovated into a two storey Grand Parisian style café.
The company likes places with historic significance and character and this place has it in spades. On a personal note, it was the most recommended place for me to visit since my return back to Toronto.
I was a little underwhelmed when I discovered they only have one flavour of hot chocolate (I tend to like milk chocolate the most) but a couple of foodie friends have told me since that you can get a spicy version!
Michelle and I continued to catch up while the sun set outside. We found it particularly amazingly copacetic when The Indigo Girls song Closer to Fine played above our heads. That felt like good luck (many memories).
The Festival
Once we warmed up and the sun went down we went on a light-seeking adventure.
From fire-red-lit dragons to…
Romantic stylized hanging lanterns.
Fire pits surrounded by snow…
Angel wings ready to take flight.
There was a lot of love and peaceful energy flowing around The Distillery District that night.
Truly a celebration of colour and moving light, I had never seen anything quite like it and the location was perfect for this type of lustrous occasion.
Union Restaurant
It took a while for us to get hungry again after our huge brunch but we were ready for food again. Michelle had been pleasantly haunted by a hamburger she had years ago and wanted to track it down. She had it at Union Restaurant many years ago and called to see if it was still on the menu.
Technically it was no long on the menu but they said they would make it just for us!
I can see why she was haunted! In fact, I am now haunted by the memory of this burger which may be the best one I have ever had. I would recommend asking for additional napkins thanks to all the cheese and sauce and goodness that oozed out of it. Absolutely beautiful. It melted in my mouth. Beautiful!
The service was lovely too. Even though Michelle mocked me for ordering it well done (Food Safe!) our server said, “Whichever way you prefer.” And it was still absolutely stunning! (Vindication)
When Michelle went to Union Restaurant all those years ago on Ossington she said there was very little around it. Now it is an up and coming location so be aware that parking might be challenging to find. A working parking meter even more so.
It is also quite hip so you may want to wear something nicer than polar fleece (mental note to myself for next time) and it will be quite loud. It is not a huge location but it is quite boisterous in a lovely way.
What an epic day!!! I took me quite a few days to recover but was absolutely worth it. When Michelle comes to town I know that there will be a lot of adventures ahead and I think I did quite well under the circumstances. It sure was a day I will never forget. Especially that burger, damn it.
The Light Festival is such a fab idea for the dark nights of winter! Nice to top off that outing with a wonderful meal, too.
It had to be pretty spectacular and a fantastic venue to get me out in that cold with my camera! LOL. Yes, that meal in that fantastic restaurant was the perfect way to end the fabulous day.