Food, glorious food! Of all the pleasures of life, this one we absolutely can't do without. The wonderful news is that eating healthfully need not be a tedious experience. To that end, following are lists of fabulous places to eat, shop and take cooking classes in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I have first-hand experience with each one. As well, I'm sharing with you four of my favourite cookbooks.
I want you to know that research confirms the very best way to achieve and maintain optimum health is through reduced use of animal products and increased consumption of whole grains, vegetables and fruits, nuts and legumes (beans). So often I'm asked, "What will I eat if I don't eat meat?" Be assured, a whole world of culinary delights and gastronomic pleasures await you in your quest for optimal health. Have fun visiting the following web sites. Simply click on the name of each store, book, etc. Those without web sites are noted as such. Bon appetit!
Restaurants:
Pulp Kitchen, 898 Queen Street East, Toronto (416) 461-4612Pulp Kitchen has been on several of Toronto's top ten vegetarian restaurant lists for the past few years.
Boujadi, 999 Eglinton Ave. West, Toronto (416) 440-0258
Hailed as Toronto's best Moroccan restaurant by Toronto Life magazine, Boujadi has lots of delicious fare to offer vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike.
Cafe 668, 668 Dundas St. West, (416) 703-0668
Another top ten vegetarian eatery! Scrumptious food at fabulously inexpensive prices.
Naturally Yours, First Canadian Place (King & Bay St.), (416) 368-0100
Wonderful, nutritious, hot, vegetarian entrees for lunch.
Fresh, 147 Spadina Road, (416) 599-4442
Delicious rice bowls, wonderfully creative salads, addictive sweet potato fries, all at very reasonable prices.
Le Commensal Fine Vegetarian Cuisine, 655 Bay Street, (416) 596-9364
A friend took me there for lunch one day, and I've been in love with this restaurant ever since! The food is totally delicious, served buffet style, and you pay by weight. As well, the decor is lovely. Visit their website for a first-time customer coupon!
Fressen Restaurant, 488 Queen St. West, (416) 504-5127 (no web site)
Great decor, but even better food! This is Toronto's upscale vegetarian restaurant. Prices are higher than the restaurants listed above, but not unreasonably so.
Shopping:
The Big Carrot Natural Food Market, 348 Danforth Ave. (at Chester subway), (416) 466-2129Located in Carrot Common Mall, The Big Carrot is a haven of natural food products, fresh organics, body care products, health-related applicances, and more. Their on-site eatery features scrumptious vegetarian fare. Among other things, their website features nutritional breakdowns of fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, etc.
Ambrosia Natural Foods, 55 Doncaster Ave., Thornhill, (905) 881-7811
Located just north of Yonge and Steeles, I find that Ambrosia has the best prices of all the natural food stores in Toronto. They feature an extensive bulk foods area, as well as fresh organics, natural food products, body care products, and more.
Whole Foods Market, 87 Avenue Road, (416) 944-0500
Located in Toronto's upscale Yorkville area, Whole Foods is huge and chock-full of all kinds of natural food products. They even have a bakery with fabulously mouth-watering edibles.
Noah's Natural Foods, 667 Yonge Street, (416) 969-0220
Noah's has several locations throughout Toronto, which carry the usual bulk foods, natural food products, fresh organics and body care products.
Crawford Adventist Academy Store, 531 Finch Ave. West, (416) 633-0990 (no web site)
This natural food store is located in a school and is quite small. However, they carry brands that most of the other natural food stores don't carry, such as Worthington, Loma Linda, MGM, and Cedar Lake.
Cookbooks:
Vegetarian Cooking With Jeanie Burke, R.D.This book is "a collection of mouth-watering, low-fat vegetarian recipes to make your taste buds smile!" I had the pleasure of meeting Jeanie Burke in 2001 in Rockford, Illinois. Her recipes are as delicious as Jeanie is exuberant and, let me tell you, she is wonderfully exuberant. Among other features, her book contains a "How Should I Stock My Vegetarian Pantry?" section, as well as a glossary of uncommon vegetarian food products, meal planning tips, menus and great photos.
Tasty Vegan Delights, by Gloria Lawson and Debbi Puffer
This delightful book is a treasure trove of tasty recipes, discussions on healthy living, information on vegetarianism (for example: notes on protein for total vegetarians, and Vitamin B12), and a helpful glossary.
The Total Vegetarian, by Barbara Watson
This wonderful cookbook features 220 pages of tasty, easy-to-make vegan recipe. This book is a must-have!
Healthy Food Choices: A Pure Vegetarian Recipe Book, by Leona R. Alderson
I actually had the privilege of being taught "Home Ec" by Leona Alderson way back when! Her book is chock-full of simple, delicious recipes, and features nutritional breakdowns per serving, measurements in both imperial and metric, as well as answers to common nutrition questions.
Cooking Classes:
Vegetarian Cooking Classes with Nettie Cronish
Nettie Cronish is one of Toronto's most popular natural foods chef. Her five-evening sessions introduce food enthusiasts of all ages to the delicious world of vegetarian cooking.