Friday, January 04, 2008

Friday Lunch

When we finally got out, it was time to start looking for lunch. To the east of us on The Esplanade is the St. Lawrence Market in Old Town Toronto. We figured to take a look inside and see what they had.

Man, oh man! It’s essentially a farmers’ market with food courts. Lots of Japanese, Ukranian, Greek, Chinese, Italian and sundry other nationalities were represented. Stalls with fresh and frozen fish, meats, poultry, cheeses and other produce could be found although vegetables were a bit sparse which is understandable for this time and place.

We bought some pierogies and some turkey and beef “pepper sticks” (that’s jerky) from a Ukranian couple who make some great kielbasi which they allowed us to sample. Simply mouthwatering. Then we had a chicken parm sandwiches with peppers and onions from a stall that once appeared on Emril’s show because they do peameal bacon sandwiches. (We should have tried those but didn’t see the review on the wall until after we ordered.  )

It was a bustling place, the St. Lawrence Market, and well worth the visit. To get an idea, think Faneuil Hall in Boston or the market in central Baltimore but make it three to four times the size and remove all the touristy glitz. I suppose, if you got rid of all the touristy glitz and street theater on San Francisco's Wharf and put the whole place under one roof, you might come close to the Market in Toronto.

No comments: