“If you wanna keep it going, you gotta keep it small.” These words of the gregarious Mr. So, owner of the So Good Restaurant, summed up the theme of Apt613’s Jane’s Walk through Ottawa’s eclectic little Chinatown: small businesses, community and people who care.

What? People who care – in Chinatown? Isn’t Chinatown just the place where you go for dim sum, where the unspoken agreement is to throw down a 10% tip and get scowled at in return? No wait, that’s Toronto – or, at least, going anywhere with my parents. This is Ottawa. Amongst Canada’s most inclusive, Ottawa’s Chinatown is for everyone: it is a small, tight-knit community of artsy coffee shops that double as nightspots, Asian supermarkets, Chinese restaurants and a legion of similarly named Pho restaurants.

Hovering over it all is the massive Royal Archway on the corner of Bronson and Somerset, our third stop, made in traditional Chinese style in Beijing, donated and opened by the Chinese Embassy in 2010. Ottawa’s archway is unique in that it contains nine separate “little roofs”, the highest number of little roofs on an archway and a sign of honour befitting an emperor, explained Grace Xin, Executive Director of the Somerset Street Chinatown Business Improvement Area. Those Chinese characters on it – the top says “Ottawa” and the bottom says “Chinatown”. Chinatown, we learned, was originally two stores on Bank Street that somehow found their way to Somerset.

As is the case with most of Centretown, a majority of the restaurants there today were residences decades ago and were converted into businesses in the 70s, which was also the time Ottawa’s landmark Chinese restaurant/social venue Shanghai was established. On Saturday evenings, Shanghai hosts karaoke night with local hosted by local icon Chinadoll (aka Ed Kwan), who let us in on the origins of the night… and her name. “Eight years ago, a girl had her bachelorette here, and they wanted me to sing, and I had this wig on, and my brother said go on… and call yourself Chinadoll!” Saturday nights were never the same again. Mild-mannered establishment by day, venue at night. This was another theme of the walk.

While Chinatown technically does not have any bars or clubs, there is no shortage of venues for nights out. We stopped at two relatively new cafés, The Daily Grind and Raw Sugar Cafe.  Though they use the word “café” – these joints are more like bar/café/music venue/art gallery/restaurant/community centre, as their offerings go far beyond typical café fare. Together with Umi Café, these three independent cafés form a triangle of community events. Into Tex-Mex and Heavy Metal? Then try the Daily Grind’s Tex-Mex menu, and then stay for the weekly metal party. Into playing board games and listening to beats? Raw Sugar hosts “Beats & Boards” on Tuesdays. Weekly music guests and special events dot Chinatown’s social calendar at these venues.

Our next stop was Zen Kitchen, which opened four years ago, owner David Loan explained, with the guiding philosophy of a place where everyone can dine regardless of dietary restrictions or moral views. Offering a strictly vegan menu, they use no animal products at all – not even honey or dairy products. “If we need something that approximates cream, we’ll make it with cashews.” I wasn’t sure how that would taste – but I want to try. Zen Kitchen supports the “Community Supported Agriculture” model: they give local farmers money to grow stuff, and in return, farmers give them the fresh stuff. This approach seemed to be held in high regard by others in Chinatown, corroborated by Mr. So, owner of So Good Restaurant. “People don’t understand where that extra dollar in the price goes – it goes to the ingredients. And we believe people will pay that extra dollar for something better.”

We also stopped at Highjinx and found out that it isn’t actually a store (as I thought passing it many times) but actually a centre for non-traditional social work. Highjinx owner Karen Neilson told us are more like a community hub for the down trodden, they offer food to the homeless, furnish the homes of the less fortunate – and they do it all by selling antiques that are donated!

But enough about all this feel good community stuff – let’s get down to the real questions: why are there are so many pho restaurants and and why are they are all called PHO BO GA? Pho Bo Ga La, Pho Bo Ga La 2, Pho Bac, Pholicious… the list goes on. The second last stop of the tour was with Pho-guides Don and Jen of Foodieprints. The reason, they speculated, is that Pho entrepreneurs just aren’t that creative. But here’s the basic breakdown: “PHO” is obviously the delicious noodle soup we all know and love, “BO” means beef, and “GA” means chicken. Noodle. Beef. Chicken. Ottawa’s pho is of high quality because like the rest of the venues visited, they actually make the stock and the pho is different in each one. Simple enough – but what about “LA”? I asked. That, they did not know – one of Chinatown’s many mysteries.

Editor’s Note: The trip also stopped by Purple Urchin Soap works and the Bridgehead Roastery, but Jason had to run as the Jane’s Walk was running long. Thanks to the owners for their participation.  

Photo courtesy of the Old Mill at Ashton.

Entering the pub, fittingly once an olde grist mill, the warmness and coziness of the place instantly enveloped me. Thick wooden beams supported both the walls and the ceiling. Said beams were plastered with coasters and footy scarves and pint glass collectables. If there’s one thing I love about a classic pub, it’s the wide wooden chairs. I slid myself into one and took a look around. The place was packed. Rumour has it the patio is a big draw in the summer, and with an open stage on Sundays from 2-5, followed up by a Roast Beef Dinner complete with Yorkshire pudding, mashed potatos and veggies, there’s plenty of incentive for folks in the area to keep popping in.

The laidback feel of Ashton seeps through the pub. I’ve come with my girlfriend, two friends, and their two-year-old son. Within minutes we’re chatting with the table next to us.

Our table ordered up some classic pub grub: fish and chips, bangers and mash, and grilled salmon. I was hungry, and the portions were large, but there was nothing on the menu about which I will write home to Mother. I was actually quite surprised at lackluster quality in both the mash and the bangers. The bangers weren’t that banging and mashed kind of crashed before it going. Epicurean tastes are not mine; I love comfort food, and while nothing was awful, I was surprised the fare was not better considering the excellent quality of the beer.

We procured two samplers with everything available. On this particular trip, I was lucky to have my Czech pal on hand. Not only is he a chipper beer enthusiast, but is also a part-time brewer and provides a good round of knowledge alongside all the tilting and swigging. While the following critique of the pints can be attributed to each member at the table, excluding of course the two-year old, who, for the record, seemed completely content with his trucks and his chicken fingers, the score out of ten for each pint lay predominantly to the Czech, with the rest of us providing a bit of the sway.

Vanilla Stout – This beer was jubilantly embraced by the table with wrap-around arms, and a long, deep squeeze in the strain of the Motherly. It was rich, smooth and very creamy. Subtle hints of coffee poked through in the aftertaste as did a hint of bitter.  A warm vanilla kiss that you’d gladly drive back home with capped it all off. “Delicious,” one said. “Hmmm, very,” said another. “Vrrrooom, vroom,” said the toddler.

Score: Strong 9

HopStravagnza – Everyone liked this beer, but everyone also found the name deceptive. Tasty, yes. Hoppy, no. It didn’t have any of that sourness you’d expect from a bitter. “Definitely not a handful of grass,” noted the Czech. “You can tell it wasn’t dry-hopped. That’s why it doesn’t have the initial punch most hop heavy beers do.” There was next to no nose on the beer, and while it was nice, it didn’t stand out in any particular way.

Score: Solid 6

Ashton Cream Ale – This was a classic cream: soft and buttery, nothing sticking out raggedy. It definitely gifted a slight fruit cuddle, and would be a worthy companion on the side of any lake, in any season. “Corn is usually added to cream beers to make them lighter,” said the Czech in the midst of simultaneously inserting a chip into his own mouth as well as his son’s, “but it doesn’t taste like they did with this one; you can really taste that wheat.” I’m personally a fan of cream beers, and enjoyed it thoroughly. The rest of the table wasn’t as excited.

Score:  Light 7

Ashton Harvest Brown Ale – the second most popular. This was a smooth, tubby brown. It had touches of coffee and was a little bit nutty, but the real kicker was its crisp caramel aftertaste. “This is flat out very good,” said the Czech after a meaty pull. “Just lovely.” While it was high-ish on alcohol (6.0%), it was very well-blended. Not always easy to pull off.

Score: Solid 8

Ashton Amber Ale – Everyone got a stroke of something different after laying the lips to this Amber. We had citrus, cherry pie and passion fruit notes. It was deliciously crisp, and had that firm hop-slap on the top of the mouth that we’d been expecting from the HopStravaganza. This beer had a great tingle, and if it asked you to dance, it’d be hard to refuse.  Very well-received.

Score: Strong 7, Light 8

Session Ale – What you might expect with most light beers (a horse-hair under 4%), this ale had sour touches of lemon and was easy on the palate. Though it was nothing special, a good-tasting light beer is always appreciated. You can picture the Session Ale in your hand on a hot summer’s day, kicking it porch styles or at a big summer festival. No pee scents here.

Score: 6

While the food at the Old Mill was quite underwhelming and also quite pricey, the atmosphere was welcoming and warm. For beers and a snack, it’s totally worth your time. Ashton beers can be purchased at Patty’s Pub and Quinn’s on Bank St., owned by the same folks as the Mill, and in a growing number of establishments across the city. You have to go to the source if you want to take home a growler, and it’s definitely worth the visit.

Since I’m on Twitter almost all day, it’s not often I get the opportunity to talk about what I eat for breakfast, so you can imagine my delight when I was asked to write a few words about the breakfast offerings of Art Is In Bakery. “What if we sold people sandwiches in a warehouse?” is a question that was clearly asked during the planning stages of this not-so-hidden gem. You might notice it because it’s in a giant building with a big sign that says “Art Is In.” Someone thought this through.

Let me be absolutely clear—I love this place, but genuine praise isn’t nearly as entertaining as jovial criticism. So with that in mind:

1) There’s almost always a line in front of me. I want my food now, not later, so you can see how this is a problem. I’d like it if everyone reading this article would go to the bakery only when I’m not there. Thank you

2) I have to sell blood to buy croissants. “If you can’t afford to buy a croissant, then don’t eat one,” you say, proving to me that you’re an idiot who’s never had a croissant from Art Is In Bakery. Sure, hypothetical idiot, why don’t I just stop breathing? It’s not even my blood! Gimme a break. Anyway, their food is expensive.

3) Carbs can be bad for you! Come on guys, why can’t you make carb-free bread that still tastes as good for the same price? How hard can miracles be, really? Have you seen smartphones? Whoa! Those things are nuts!

With that nonsense out of the way and more nonsense to come, let’s talk breakfast: my go-to choice at the bakery is their bacon and egg on English muffin breakfast sandwich. The only problem with this is they don’t always have English muffins, so I have to pretend like I’m not crying for the rest of the day.

However, if I’m being honest for once, it doesn’t really matter if they’re sold out of English muffins. Any of Art Is In’s breakfast offerings are better than almost anything else you can find in this city. Maybe in the universe. I don’t go out a lot. Whether it’s an English muffin or a croissant or a piece of sourdough toast, you’re in for a mouth-treat. I like to follow up a delicious breakfast sandwich with a cup of strong coffee, then another cup of strong coffee, THEN THREE TO SEVEN MORE CUPS OF STRONG COFFEE.

My final verdict? I’ve spent hundreds of dollars at this bakery. What do you think my final verdict is? Please help me. Please.

Art Is In is located at City Centre, across from the dry cleaners. I wonder if they have some kind of deal there if you get your stains at the bakery? I’ll try this and find out for you. You can keep up to date with Art Is In Bakery’s various offerings @ArtisinBakery, where they post gorgeous pictures of food, because they’re terrible people who are trying to murder me with sugar.

Since @iscoff wrote this story, Art Is In has announced that they will no longer be providing bread for third parties. We’re currently chasing this story! Check back in a few days.

If you’ve attended any one of a number of craft and foodie shows in the last while, you may have seen Richard slinging jars of homemade jam and other preserves to all takers. His tables drew quite a lot of attention from local foodies in the know about his history as founder and former head chef at Juniper, another culinary landmark in the west-end. It’s not often you see a chef of some local fame outside of their natural habitat, the kitchen. Anyone who asked found out immediately that he was already planning his triumphant return to the kitchen, but that this one would be a little different from his past ventures.

At its heart, Richard’s Hintonburg Kitchen is a local sandwich and takeout joint, with the addition of a freezer for the warm-your-own dinners that seem to be all the rage these days. But Richard’s attention to ingredients and detail separate his new establishment from the rest. Not many sandwich makers, however talented, have his background or experience, and they may find it difficult to match his passion and enthusiasm as well. He’s been writing breathlessley – and a little poetically – about his new menus on his website. As my food was being prepped, Lynda told me that everything Richard serves, down to ingredients like breadcrumbs, is made in house. He’s had some good help from Lynda as well as David Schaub, himself no slouch in the kitchen as stints at Whalesbone and other well-known establishments can attest to.

One of my very favourite things about Richard’s kitchen is that you can watch a master chef prepare your lunch from point blank range. I stood just feet away as he prepared what turned out to be some of the tastiest takeout I’ve ever had. At one point he looked at me and explained that he was making a last minute executive decision: the bread they had been using for the pork butt wraps hadn’t been up to snuff. He was sending in some sour dough to pinch hit, but it would turn my wrap into a sandwich. While it’s nice to be informed, who am I to second guess a chef of his calibre?

In the end, my wife and I tried the aforementioned pork butt sandwich, a self-proclaimed ‘really good grilled cheese’ and some spiced potato wedges served with a yoghurt dip. The pork butt was fantastic, but next time I’d eat it in-house. Food this good doesn’t deserve to be wrapped up in foil, even for a few minutes (all this to say that the bread was made a little soggy by the wrap-job.) My grilled cheese stood up just fine however, and more than lived up to its name. The wedges were nicely spiced, and the yoghurt really set them apart.

Certain elements of Richard’s kitchen are still in the works. There wasn’t any sign of the aforementioned preserves that Richard has been selling, and Lynda assured me that the freezer would eventually be filled with pre-prepped food for people to pick up for dinners at home. But if for nothing more than the experience and some really fantastic food, I’d recommend taking a lunch break in this Hintonburg kitchen the first chance you get.

The last time I celebrated St. Patrick’s Day was in St. John’s, where my night was a blur of green beer, green hats, free Miller t-shirts (because Irish) and two bars (I’m guessing on that last one).

Of course, one of the fun parts about March 17^th is that, when done right, you can never accurately compare this year’s festivities to any other year’s shenanigans  When celebrated perfectly, you deliberately forget it for years to come until that unexpected package shows up on your doorstep and starts asking for child support (because Irish).

When Jared and I arrived the place was packed, but a seat was available by the stage beside the speaker. One of the band members of Paddy’s Hangover—I think I overheard a customer call him Robbie—who made a joke about how close the speaker was to our table. The music promptly started and we were treated to foot stomping shanties intended to magically sweep us away to a fishing village in Eire.

This is the part of the night where I would order something like “Leperchaun’s Legs”—green chicken wings—with a side of Guinness and Jameson’s. Instead I hit the water like a champ and ordered a warm goat cheese salad. Jared tells me the beer was delicious and I believe him because he laughed uncomfortably at the waitress when she asked him if he wanted more, suggesting that he foresaw the danger in that course of action.

That’s around the time when some customer started swining a green t-shirt around his head doing a stompy dance that I can only describe as “the folksy-goosestep.” I saw him speaking with Robbie from Paddy’s Hangover, so in keeping with my obsessive need to find connections, I’m going to say that he was the band’s dancer.

Did I mention that Jared and I had our laptops open? Jared kept insisting that I try the new Sim City—the latest installation of city building simulators that allows you to do “everything you wanted to do in previous Sim Cities.” Except invade other neighbourhoods, apparently.

To be honest, I was only sort of listening to him because “Dirty Ol’ Town” was playing and it triggered a memory from St. Patrick’s Day last my my Newfoundland friends and I tried to get the band to play Dirty Ol’ Town twenty times in the same night.

As has come to be expected from The Clocktower, the food was really good and the service was great. Our green-hatted waitress patiently accommodated our repeated requests for WiFi access and she was quick to bring anything we asked for even though people were falling over themselves dodging the kicks of The Folksy Goosestepper.

And while I may not get to enjoy a debilitating hangover today, I take comfort in knowing that I may have at least punctured my ear drum from sitting so close to the stage.

With a little help from the polling worlds of Twitter and Facebook, we have found some of Ottawa’s go-to poutine destinations.

1-  Sasha’s Chip Wagon. For weeks people have yelled that it is the best without question. Open until 4 a.m., this ByWard Market favourite – tucked between Zaphod’s and Kinki’s is a must at any time of day. The fries are crispy, the gravy is thick and peppery, and the curds are the real, fresh ‘squeak in your teeth’ kind. You may have to wait a bit to get your order (they refuse to serve any fries left out of the fryer a moment too long) but trust me, it is worth every second.

Price – $7

2-  The Standard. The Elgin Street hot spot may not be known for their poutine, but it is definitely worth checking out. Known to frequently change up the ‘ad on’ options (they offered a sausage and spices option one summer – to die for) you always have the option to put a little extra into the fairly medium sized appetizer.

Price – $10

Add ons – $5

3-   The Smoque Shack.  This poutine makes the list for their BBQ chicken gravy, which is unreal. A must try: top it with shaved brisket – you won’t regret that decision for a second.

Price – $10

4-  Elgin Street Diner. A huge fan of Montreal’s ‘shoe-string’ fries, I searched Ottawa for a poutine that had the perfect thin potato. Elgin Street filled this gap in the poutine community. Don’t be thrown off by the black sludge looking gravy: it is as thick as it looks, but delicious. At $8.99 it is a little pricey on its own, but add it as a side to a sandwich for only $3.99 and you get more than you can eat.

Price – $8.99 large; $3.99 with a meal

5-  Oz Kafé.  The token ‘outside the box’ fave. Replacing traditional ingredients with scalloped potatoes, old cheddar and jus and adding toppings like grilled apples, smoked duck and caramelized onions, this “poutine” melts in your mouth. At a great price, all poutine lovers have got to give it a try.

Price – $9;  without the duck – $5

And yes, we know these entries are controversial. Make your case for your favourite poutine below – we’re always up for eating more!

Fantastic music, great beer, delicious food, all local. Cheap, too! Just 30 bucks for the whole thing, and that gets you access to 40+ artists across several venues, all in the same, very cool, strip on Wellington near Irving.

Tonight’s lineup features NDMA, No Kinds of Love, Kenny Voita and The Glorious Moon Rockets.

Find more info here.

Oh, and here’s some music that’ll be playing during the festival. Just in case that wasn’t enough reason for you.

No Kinds of Love – Foggy Notion

NDMA – She Wants to Dance

Ladies of the Canyon – Every Minute

For those who don’t know, 28-year-old chef Steve Wall – formerly of Luxe, Town, Whalesbone, and the list goes on – recently took a chance and ventured into the jungle that is restaurant ownership with his wife, Jen. And with Supply and Demand, located in West Wellington Village, he’s emerged a conquistador.

In most of my food reviews I tend to get caught up in food and atmosphere of the whole place and forget to take extensive notes and photos. And while I wasn’t as bad as I normally am this time, I was lucky that right there along side me was my fellow partner-in-crime for the night,  Ottawa Chef Matthew Carmichael. Ever since I interviewed Carmichael this summer about his Mello’s pop-up experiment, we’ve become pretty good buds. Even if most of our conversations consist of words like fish sauce, oysters, creativity, fresh, local and acidity, I like to think we have a pretty good time.

But back to Supply and Demand. Chef Wall’s menu consisted of 18 items – all fresh and primarily raw. “Let’s order all the raw stuff!” I said, and Carmichael quickly agreed. He also agreed to two dirty martinis, which were promptly placed in front of us.

Arriving first was a dozen east coast oysters — the larger ones from New Brunswick — garnished with fresh shaved horseradish. The horseradish and house dill sauces mixed with the salty flavor of the fresh oysters to give you that nice little fizziness you look for when slurping back a few zinc-filled slime rockets. Carmichael noted that the freshness of the oysters was really brought out by the fact Wall submerges them in ice – something I’ve never seen in Ottawa.  Apart from one or two of the larger oysters having a bit of bite to them, they were almost perfect — which explains why we ordered another round.

Chef Wall welcomed this idea with a smile as he shucked them away behind the bar in front of us. (Ask to sit at the chef’s bar for an amazing view of the kitchen’s inner workings.) Carmichael was really impressed by the kitchen’s design: it was so simple, with a linear movement from the back to the front. The dishwasher would pass plates across the counter to the cooks, then to the pass where they were checked by Wall and served to eager diners. Wall himself worked the raw bar at the kitchen’s front — understandable, since as Carmichael told me, a raw dish almost always takes more skill to perfect than a cooked one.

(Oh, wait: did I mention the bread and lobster butter? I could probably eat this all day; the pungent lobster flavour shines through into the slightly salted bun. It’s the broken-hearted foodie equivalent of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream.)

Next up was albacore tuna sashimi: it was melt-in-your-mouth delicious, punctuated with notes of acidity and finished off with the added texture of puffed rice grains. Not much more to say here because both I and Chef Carmichael were too busy eating to chat about it. We also tried the scallops with celery root and pomegranate — an interesting combination, but we both would have liked to see the scallops sliced a bit thicker. Though, if you like dishes with some acidity to them, then this is your ceviche-like jam.

Then, it was onto the razor clams. I’ve been dying to find a place that serves razor clams regularly in Ottawa. Razor clams have to be fresh, and these babies were fresh to death (I think they came from Montreal just that very day). Carmichael noted a hint of anise pollen in the sauce that finished it off, subtle but telling of the man behind it’s refined palette. I won’t reveal details but I am fairly certain one of us tipped the plate to drink the remaining liquid, despite how beautifully it was plated. That’s how good it was.

The duck tartare was an overall amazing dish with a smoky finish. The addition of corn nuts added great texture – I have no idea how he came up with this combination but it was stroke of genius. There’s nothing I can say about the purple mustard that came with it, other than that I am craving some now. We followed that with the beef tongue — a last minute addition, but we just had to have it. Paired with a bottle Beyond the Pale brew, we thought it was going to be the perfect way to finish off the night.

Or so we thought. Because then Chef Wall looked at us.

“You’re having the pasta, right?” he asked.

I look at Carmichael. He looks back at me.

“All right. Let’s do it. The squid ink? We have to, right? It’s made fresh. How could we not?”

And then the heavens opened up. Wall brought us some of the most amazing pasta dishes I have ever had in my life. And ladies and gentlemen, I’ve been to  Sfoglia in New York City so I’m no rookie when it comes to pasta.

Now, octopus might be some of the most intelligent creatures in the world, but Wall also turns them into some of the most tender things to eat in the world. And while good, the pasta wasn’t quite as amazing as the next dish he served us: the gemelli with duck. This was probably the best gemelli I’ve ever had, and Carmichael agreed, too. We might have been dining as friends before, but when this shared plate was put down in front of us, it was a battle to the death.

I left that night with a smile on my face, only to remember it was Wednesday. But that was okay, since this meal made the long snow-filled week that much better.

The jukeboxes may have been removed from Fontenelle years ago, but this Saturday (February 16), 1960s French pop is back. From the well-known to the obscure, Vanier-born DJ Mimi la Twisteuse is bringing her vinyl collection of French yé yé to Après-Snow at Fontenelle, an evening component of Vanier’s Winter Carnival. Having hosted the always packed monthly Franco-dance party Zoï Zoï in the mid 2000s at The Boat in Toronto, and now the co-host of Montreal’s weekly radio show MondoPQ, dedicated to French pop, rock and soul of the 1960s and 70s, Mimi is excited to DJ in her hometown – and for the first time ever in the Ottawa / Outaouais region.

Born in Vanier, and having grown up in Papineauville, Mimi grew up with music – crediting her father for having the latest sound system and gadgets, at home and in the car (attention dads out there!). Then, through the owner of Le Pick Up, the record store where she worked, Mimi discovered the likes of Jacques Dutronc and the vast repertoire of 60s French pop. By 1994, she made her radio debut with the CISM program “Dans le garage,” and by 1999 made Volume 10 in the series of cult compilations, “Girls in the Garage.”

We asked Mimi to think back to one of her best nights as a DJ. She recalls living in Toronto in 2005, hosting Zoï Zoï at a club in Kensington Market with DJ Soju. The Francodelic nightswere such a huge success that the Toronto Star deemed the parties in the “Top 20 Toronto cultural events.” Amazed at the interest others showed towards Quebec artists like Renée Claude, Michel Pagliaro or Les Sultans, Mimi reflects, “We had television crews come in, line ups at the door, a write up in the Toronto Star, celebrities attending, radio and TV interviews… Those are great memories for me.”

Her favourite records today? Mimi notes a soft spot for a couple, including the Baroque inspired pop songs of a 19-year old French girl, Clothilde, on a 1967 EP. In particular, she points to Fallait pas écraser la queue du chat – and to the near pop perfection produced by Germinal Tenas. She also points to a Brit rock influenced 1968 single, Helga Selzer by little known French artist Bernard Chabert. So taken by his work, she blogged about his music, only to receive a response from him – now working as a well-known reporter in France.

For what is “quite possibly one of my favourite songs ever,” Mimi suggests Patrick Coutin’s 1982 J’aime regarder les filles – pointing to the “outstanding guitar build-up and growing intensity that make this song a classic.” Best of all? “Someone finally posted it on YouTube!”

“I see myself as someone who’s here to say ‘listen to this!’ and to pay tribute to these artists.” And this weekend, the music is on at Fontenelle. With the diner – one of Vanier’s oldest, open in 1949 – open for breakfast and lunch, the doors will be open from 7-10 pm exclusively to host the evening cocktail party, with drinks and small bites on hand from local restaurants including SushiME, Todric’s, Mitla and Hearty Bakery. And, of course, Mimi promises a “lounge, laid-back set, with a good dose of French, American, British and international pop… I go with the flow, depending on the crowd’s reception. If people suddenly feel like dancing, I’ll be ready for them!”

Until about 10, that is. After all, it won’t be long before the early morning crowd arrives for Fontenelle breakfast, served from 4am, 7 days / week.

PS: Special thanks to Montreal artist, Mathieu Trudel, who first introduced readers to Mimi la Twisteuse through a comment on this post in December. Trudel himself produced a fun little promotional video for MondoPQ, Mimi’s current radio show co-hosted with Sébastien Desrosiers.