© 2010 Google, Map Data © 2010 Tele Atlas. Inset image property of Chute Gerdeman.
From our offices in Columbus, Ohio, a taste of Europe is just one hour away. We’re talking about Toronto, a bustling cosmopolitan city of 5 million that combines British heritage with a saucy dose of French je ne sais quoi. We recently visited and found a city in the midst of a condo building-boom, thriving neighborhoods of smart shops and great restaurants (what recession?). One of the highlights was a visit to The Distillery, which was, not surprisingly, an old whiskey distillery that quelled stateside thirsts during U.S. Prohibition. The maze of brick buildings has been converted to an intriguing complex of artisan shops. A Taste of Quebec was a cool, cavernous space that offered Canadian artisanal cheeses from small producers. We were treated to both samples and stories by the convivial owner who actually cooks up specialties on the weekends for customers. The tiered, interior-lit cases presented cheese at its loveliest, and we learned that everything tastes better when a story accompanies it. Read more…
