Smoke Break #915: What All The Books Do After The Lights Dim And The Staff Go Home

Great animation from bibliomaniacs Sean and Lisa Ohlenkamp. The two spent a few sleepless nights with a crew of 20 piling, switching, and stacking books to make the sequences work. As the cover reminds us at the end, “there’s nothing quite like a real book.” The next time you’re in Toronto, set aside an hour for a twirl in the stacks at Type Books, where this was lovingly and – one assumes – painstakingly filmed (via Colossal).

TAKE ANOTHER BREAK

Fifteen Minutes With Celebrity Chef And “Fabbrica” Cookbook Author Mark McEwan

photo: James Tse

Mark McEwan is one of Canada’s foremost chefs and restaurateurs. He the host of Fine Living Network show “The Heat with Mark McEwan” and head judge on Food Network Canada’s “Top Chef Canada”. From his home base of Toronto, he owns and operates several restaurants, among them Bymark, North 44, and ONE, as well as his eponymous food store, McEwan. We had a lovely dinner at CinCin with him recently, after putting to him the following questions…

Name the thing that you eat that is bad for you that you will never stop eating? Fatty meats, aka pork belly.

Default drink/cocktail of choice? Dry vodka martini with olives.

Name three drinks/cocktails you’ll never have again? Cosmos, Black Russians and Grasshoppers.

The Canadian that you admire most and why? Paul Martin, because he saved us from a US style banking system.

Your role models? Heather Reisman, Ralph Lauren and Steve Jobs. They are timeless, innovative characters that fight through anything.

Your favourite sound? The surf.

Your least favourite sound? Exhaust fans. Read more

Field Trip #623: Heading Out To Toronto To Speak At “Terroir IV”

(photo: Zaniac)

I’ve just finished watching the closing ceremonies and wiped my upper lip clean of the last of its beer froth. Now it’s time to pack for a red eye flight to Toronto, as I’ve been invited to speak at Terroir IV, the 4th annual hospitality industry symposium, with several other food writers and not a few chefs. My particular contributions, I think, will center on new media and the restaurant trade (ie. blogging, twitter, etc.), but I’m really stoked to be on the panel for the Media In The Kitchen discussion:

We want to be culinary stars. The media establishes what is hot for the consumer and the knock down effect is what makes them patronize our restaurants or indulge in the newest culinary ‘trend’. Do local media have a responsibility to help support our culinary culture? A panel of five top food journalists will help us unravel what stories’ make top press and how we elevate ourselves as a culinary destination.

Moderator: Bonnie Stern

Presenters: Sasha Chapman, Adam Sachs, Mitchell Davis, Corby Kummer, Andrew Morrison, Alan Richman & Gabriella Gershenson.

I’m really excited and honoured to be part of such a line-up. I mean, Alan Richman? Wow. I believe we’re all staying at The Drake, which should be plenty of fun, and it will be awesome to stumble around my old stomping grounds once again. We’ll also be dining out for every meal over the four day trip, so look out for lots of updates on Twitter. If you’re not yet following us, come along and say hi @scoutmagazine.