With spring just a day away, Ottawa has seen some beautiful and unusual weather the past few days. Can you recall a March in which there was hardly any snow left on the ground? Or, how about days of endless sunshine? Nope, I didn't think so!

With the majority of elementary and high school students enjoying their March Break, I have seen many of them walking around Hintonburg and Wellington West Village in their spring/summery clothing. Many of them were just coming out of the bakeries with cookies and sweets in their hands while others had ice cream and popsicles. I myself have been walking around Wellington West Village in my bright red shorts and my Canada Olympic t-shirt during the afternoons (started running again) and dreaming of a delicious cold bubble tea. With such warm and gorgeous weather, I am eager for spring to come.

I love a good cold snowy Canadian winter, but there is just something about spring that makes me very excited. The days are longer and warmer and waiting at the bus stop for a bus seems less of a chore. Or perhaps it is the knowledge that spring means that the public will soon be able to purchase and taste locally grown fruits and vegetables.

Growing up in the suburbs, spring meant it was time for my parents to buy bags of top soil and for them to decide what crops and plants they wanted in their garden. My favourite childhood memory of spring were trips my family and I made to the ByWard Market on Saturday afternoons. There, my parents would take us from vendor to vendor, examining lots of beefsteak tomato and zucchini plants. Over the years, my parents added chives, strawberries, green onions, green beans, winter melon, fuzzy squash, bitter melon, potatoes, and more to our backyard garden. With so many varieties of vegetables, both Asian and non-Asian, I had my own farmer's market at my disposal.

I understand now that years of watching crops and plants grow from little seedlings to luscious foods have contributed to my love of cooking. Watching my parents nurture their garden has made me appreciate all the hard work that goes into growing one's own food. Although Don and I live in a building, I will be celebrating spring by planting my own garden of herbs and tomatoes on our balcony. And, I will be one of the first people in line at the farmers' markets once asparagus is available! I can't wait for the full arrival of spring!

And so foodiePrints readers, that is my spring story. Now it is your turn. What are your favourite childhood memories of spring? How do you celebrate the new season? And, what are your favourite spring foods?

Right now, I should be working on a draft for a lamb pho recipe to submit to Eleanor Hoh (@wokstar) of the Be a Wok Star blog to participate in a "#Pho buddies" food blog event this Sunday. However, I came across a Globe and Mail opinion editorial (op-ed) piece by journalist Margaret Wente that seems rather poorly informed, "Why are bloggers male?"

Why are bloggers male?
Source: Globe and Mail

Shortly after the Globe and Mail twitter account (@globeandmail) tweeted it, it enraged many on Twitter. Several, thanks to Ottawa's Joe Boughner (@joeboughner), have responded by listing favourite female bloggers and their corresponding blogs under the #xxbloggers hash tag.

In her op-ed piece, Wente made the following generalizations, among others,

1. blogging is "more of a guy thing"
2. the blogoshpere is male dominant
3. women are not interested in "spitting out an opinion on current events every 20 minutes"
4. girls don't have "male answer syndrome" so in school (particularly math class), they don't "shoot up their hands first"
5. women are not interested in "mental jousting"

I am not sure what to think about her piece or its intention.

Please note I have played devil's advocate before with some more than likely intentionally inflammatory words blogged by author and chef, Michael Ruhlman. Be it his "don't write if you can help it" or "foodies don't cook", I believe he is goading people to write better and learn how to cook, respectively. Both benefit him and the food community.

Conversely, Wente does not seem to be intentionally inflammatory. What benefit would a member of traditional media have to encourage more women into the blososphere where there are already many established and respected female bloggers; encourage bloggers to blog less frequently and with more breadth when blogging is already seen as a less "immediate" vehicle for expression; or encourage women to develop aggressive and impulsive behaviour in online communities when it is already difficult to cultivate trust? So, why highlight a gender inequality issue where there may not be one?

Let us define what a blog is. According to the online Merriam-Webster dictionary

a blog is a website that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer.

Source: Merriam-Webster Online

Accordingly, the word was added in 1999. Today, blogging has arguably expanded to include other media besides text (still the predominant form). There are video blogs (vlogs). There are photo blogs (photoblogs). There are audio blogs (podcasting). With the advent of Twitter and Facebook, there is also micro-blogging. Though, I feel it somewhat violates the definition as micro-blogging is conversational in nature, more transient, very lacking in context, and rather difficult to reference.

That said, Wente claims there are few to no women operating websites that contain commentary, reflections, or the like. I beg to differ. In Ottawa alone, we have 60 food blogs at last count. Of these, I know of only 5 male food bloggers and two couple bloggers. Need I even point to mommy bloggers, some of whom double as food bloggers? Actually, there are enough dedicated mommy bloggers Mashable even has a Top 10 list of misconceptions about them. And, as fellow Ottawa food blogger Leslie (@defnotmartha) of the Definitely Not Martha blog pointed out, there is an online community for female bloggers called BlogHer. It holds an enormous annual convention.

At this juncture, I cannot come up with a way to positively interpret Wente's piece. Then again, foodiePrints is just a food blog. I am just a guy. I must suffer from "male answer syndrome." So, I must be responding impulsively to encourage discord.

In light of these deficiencies, I may have to tell my better half the posts she writes for foodiePrints isn't blogging.

Perhaps Wente would prefer we invent a new term. If b-logging is for boys, would she prefer g-logging for girls?

Update: As per Kelly Rusk's (@krusk) recommendation, I just pulled the Globe and Mail links, including the one to their twitter account. Rusk, a great blogger in her own right, explains why I could find neither rhyme nor reason to Wente's piece. The Globe and Mail is link baiting. They are purposely trying to outrage people, inciting them to blog, tweet, and include links to their site.

Imagine my surprise when I came across a tweet by fellow Ottawa food blogger Jodi (@simplyfresh) of the Simply Fresh blog that read something like this:

@SimplyFresh (Mar 17, 03:19 PM)
@FoodiePrints @RonEade - great article on @apartment613 about you!

Honestly, my response was to retype the Twitter url. I thought the web UI had somehow corrupted itself, adding foodiePrints' handle to the tweet.

@apartment613 is the twitter handle for Apartment 613, a popular multi-faceted community blog that aims to showcase the more creative side of Canada's capital, Ottawa. It gives some much needed attention to our thriving music, art, theater, and food scenes. I follow the blog via their RSS-feed and Google reader, enjoying their coverage of local events, especially their photos of live indie bands. Many photos are taken by in-house photographer Ming Wu (@ming_wu).

Sometime this afternoon, Apartment 613 blogger/editor Ryan Saxby Hill (@saxby) posted an entry, listing a handful of local food bloggers. After all, somewhat restaurant-rich and with multiple culinary schools nearby, Ottawa should be a food obsessed city.

foodiePrints on the Apartment613 blog
Source: Apartment 613 Blog

Besides us, Saxby's piece includes Ron Eade (@roneade and Ottawa Citizen Food Editor), Shari Goodman (@whisk_food_blog) (one of my favourite food bloggers), and Dominic Maggiolo (a freelancer who writes for Apartment 613). Also mentioned is the Ottawa Foodies forum, which is operated by Mark Warburton (@warby).

Suffice it to say, the post made my St. Patrick's Day. We are honoured to be listed with the likes of Eade's Omnivore's Ottawa and Goodman's Whisk: A Food Blog.

And yes, my team (Jenn) and I are pho obsessed. Another pho piece will be forthcoming shortly. This one is a recipe.

At the end of February, Carol Paschal organized another outing for the Hintonburg Supper Club, this time at the Viva Loca Cafe (1233 Wellington Street W.), located inside the Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC). In the months since Viva Loca opened its second location, Don and I have only eaten there once, ordering their delicious oat and whole-wheat pancakes from their weekend brunch menu for takeout. Made to order, they were light and fluffy. When we received the email for February's event, we became excited to try their dinner menu.

In addition to their regular lunch and dinner menu of panini grilled sandwiches, gluten-free wraps, savory crepes, chili, soup, and salads, Viva Loca offered supper club members a table d'hote menu ($17.95). For starters, they offered the soup of the day or a mixed green salad. For the entree, there were three options.

1. Hearty chunky chicken stew loaded with fresh vegetables and served with artisan bread.
2. Roasted vegetable lasagna layered with fresh pasta and cheese and served with artisan bread.
3. Ham and fresh asparagus buckwheat crepe with cheese sauce.

Dessert was a selection of home made treats, date squares, apple & plum crisp, cookies (including a gluten-free option) and carrot cake, along with coffee or tea. Don and I decided to order from the table d'hote for that evening's dinner.

Due to the number of people attending that night's dinner, GCTC closed its doors with a sign to the public, saying it was closed for a private function.


Viva Loca Signage

In the daytime, Viva Loca is a wonderfully bright eatery. The sun streams through its floor to ceiling windows that surround it. Despite the concrete stairs and walls, the dining area is comfortable and the staff, warm and inviting.


Inside Viva Loca

Displays of dessert greeting patrons

Starter – Soup of the Day or Mixed Green Salad

Potato and Leek Soup with Artisan Bread

That chilly evening, Don and I chose the soup of the day to start: a cream of potato and leek soup. Made with a vegetable-based broth, the soup contained thinly sliced leek with large chunks of red potatoes. While I enjoyed eating the large chunks of potato, I was surprised at how the soup was made. I had expected a soup with more body. What we were served that evening was a very thin soup, whose cream finish seemed slightly curdled. The leeks were also slightly overcooked. Despite its loose texture, the soup had great flavour. The accompanying slice of multi-grain artisan bread was delicious. It was nicely toasted, giving off a wonderful scent of toasted caraway seeds in its crust.

Entree – Roasted Vegetable Lasagna layered with fresh pasta and cheese and artisan bread

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

For his entree, Don chose the roasted vegetable lasagna. It was layered with a generous serving of cheese, fresh vegetables, and marinara sauce. In fact the serving was enormous. Overall, Don told me the vegetarian lasagna met his expectations. He would have preferred the pasta cooked more al dente and the sauce, slightly thicker. Again, the slice of multi-grain artisan bread made a nice accompaniment to the lasagna, perfect to sop up the marinara sauce. The salad was fresh and crisp.

Entree – Hearty Chunky Chicken Stew loaded with Fresh Vegetables and artisan bread

Chunky Chicken Stew

For my entree, I chose the hearty chunky chicken stew. Coming in from the cold and watching people walk by bundled in their winter gear, the stew seemed like the perfect choice to me. When the bowls of chicken stew were served, I heard other supper club members express worry the servings were rather small. However, the serving was just right. It was filling. The stew, chunky and satisfying. Each bowl contained a generous helping of fresh vegetables (carrots, mushrooms, potatoes, onion, and celery) and large chunks of chicken breast. The stew was nicely thick and well-seasoned.

Dessert
For dessert, many supper club members chose either the date square or apple and plum crisp. Few chose the carrot cake.

Don chose the date square.

Date Square

Again, as with everything else served that evening, the serving portion of the square was large. According to him, the square was more square than date. The pastry, crisp but thick. The date filling was sweet, but not cloyingly so.

Never one to turn down an apple crisp, I was excited to try Viva Loca's apple & plum ginger crisp.

Apple & Plum Ginger Crisp

It was my first time tasting apple paired with plum in a dessert. When my plate came, the crisp looked delicious. The fruit filling was quite tasty. Not overly sweet, the plums and apples were thinly sliced, skin on. The streussel topping was very thick, crisp, and sweet. After a few bites, it became obvious there was too much streussel and not enough fruit. The distribution of the ginger was somewhat uneven. With every bite, I could taste ginger, but some bites had large pieces of ginger, while others did not.

In general, the meal was rustic and filling. Don and I were impressed with the sheer variety of dishes, flavours, and textures that were made with seasonal and local ingredients. We plan on returning to try their brunch menu.

Total: $40.57 (after taxes, before tip)

Particulars:
Viva Loca
1233 Wellington Street W.
(613)728-8482

More after the jump...

Originally, the "Elite" Brunch Club was supposed to visit the legendary Von's Bistro (819 Bank Street) in the Glebe, our November event.

Von's
Unfortunately, as we would discover that Sunday (November 29, 2009), many of the more popular eateries that serve Sunday brunch do not take reservations. It is first come, first serve. Besides Von's, this includes Jak's Kitchen (479 Bronson Ave), Benny's Bistro (119 Murray St.), and Stoneface Dolly's (416 Preston Street).

When I discovered Von's did not take reservations, I asked the restaurant over the phone if they could even accommodate our numbers (8 minimum, 10 maximum). A male voice said they could, so long as someone comes early to reserve seats. Brunch club member Izzy (@spoonsie) volunteered. She arrived an hour early to warn the restaurant of our impending arrival. During that hour, Von's owner and a waiter took turns coming up with tentative offers to accommodate us and then seated new arrivals in what would have been our seats. At first, Izzy was told the restaurant could accommodate us. A pair of tables would be made available. Then, two tables in opposite ends of the restaurant could be made available. Then, only one table could be made available. Then, Izzy was told we could sit around the bar. Finally, the restaurant could not accommodate us at all.

As brunch club members began arriving en masse (and on time), we gave up. The waiter actually came out to apologize to us when 8 of us gathered together in front of Von's window to decide what to do. She said we could wait another 15-20 minutes for the original tables we were promised (but could not guarantee) or we could go elsewhere. She pointed out the Arrow and the Loon (99 Fifth Avenue) usually has lots of available seating. They did, so we chose to gather remaining members there.

Now, I understand higher end brunch is only profitable for eateries if turnover is high. Even then, margins are small. Brunch is a way of generating buzz for a restaurant, introducing it to new patrons so they may return for dinner. I understand the kitchen and much of the front of house staff more than likely worked the dinner service the previous Saturday evening. After last call, the remaining patrons leaving, and clean up, it is often early morning Sunday (1:00 to 2:00 am). This leaves a scant handful of hours to sleep before returning to the restaurant to prep for Sunday brunch. As food writer and former chef, Ivy Knight, once described, "Brunch is Hell."

My question, if you notice your dining room is turning over quickly and you prefer to seat smaller groups of patrons, why entertain accommodating a larger party? This is what Jak's would tell us during the following brunch event. That waitress even did her best to get us a pair of tables, letting us reserve one table first. When she realized the brunch rush had started, she told us it was impossible. We paid for our coffee, tipped (enough for one cover), thanked her, and left.

That said, the brunch club still met for November and we had quite a bit of fun. The brunch at the Arrow and the Loon was average, but the company made up for it. This event would be the first Andrew and Biff (@biff_da_bear) joined us!

Biff
Biff is a very busy bear. When he's not working search and rescue on a ski hill, he bakes. He blogs. He tweets. He travels. He takes pictures. And, he writes restaurant reviews. Andrew is his handler.

Regarding the Arrow and the Loon's brunch menu, it serves the usual suspects: pancakes, eggs, ham, sausage, bacon, home fries, french toast, fruit, and combinations thereof.

I ordered a "Tony's Own" Eggs Benedict ($11.99), a restaurant special:

Tony's Own Eggs Benedict - Home Fries View

Tony's Own Eggs Benedict - Eggs View
As per the menu description, my "Tony's Own" came with smoked salmon, spinach, portabello mushroom, and goat cheese. Strangely, after the waiter saw me take pictures of my dish, he insisted on pointing the mushroom (the dark strip across the hollandaise) was mushroom and not bacon. I thanked him and dug in.

The poached eggs were cooked runny. The spinach was not quite wilted. The hollandaise had not split. Everything was served on a slightly soggy piece of toast. While not badly executed, the dish was served lukewarm. The eggs and smoked salmon had just about come to room temperature.

Jenn ordered "The Works" Omelet ($10.99):

The Works Omelet
This particular omelet is called "the works" because it is made with mushroom, onions, peppers, bacon, sausage, and ham.

Jenn found the omelet rather overcooked on the outside and dry throughout. It seemed, to accommodate so many fillings, the omelet was cooked for some time on each side to ensure the center was done. She also found her toast somewhat stale and cold.

My thoughts: the restaurant does not normally accommodate such a large group for brunch. When we arrived we found the pub largely empty. In order for us to be served at the same time, some dishes may have cooled.

Total: $28.22 (after taxes, before tip, and including one coffee)

When it comes to pub-style brunches, Sunday brunch at the Arrow and the Loon would more than likely be better in smaller groups.

We had better at the Lieutenant's Pump (361 Elgin Street), our recommend for middle-of-the-road brunch.

Particulars:
The Arrow and the Loon
99 Fifth Avenue
(613)237-0448

More after the jump...