How Much Could I *Possibly* Eat at the Delicious Food Show?

So, it wasn’t the Toronto Underground Market that I checked out this Saturday, but the Delicious Food Show which I won tickets to back in September.  Since I’d been to TUM last month, I figured it would be okay to miss one in favour of something a little different. While it didn’t have that same, fun, camaraderie-inducing spirit, it was still an interesting show that featured a lot of higher end food and products.

Our first stop was to Cosmo’s Smoked Meats Ltd., who’s fantastic array of meat and cheese was staggering – and attracted quite a crowd. After sampling several yummy kielbasas and various cheeses, we walked away with a rich 4-year old cheddar and a 3-pack of hot sausages. Can’t wait to dive into those tout de suite!

Giant brick of cheese & sausages? Yes, please!

Continuing on our meanderings, we came across the fine folks who were giving out sumptuous veal meatballs stuffed with chevre. Oh, my. Next to them was the vendor we affectionately referred to as, “the goat cheese lady.” She had several kinds of cheese to sample, but we couldn’t say no to the triple cream goat’s milk brie. Served in a little condiment cup, this cheese was the epitome of luxury. Soft, creamy, just slightly tangy, it’s a good thing they didn’t have more – and that there was an impressive barrier between me and the rest of that cheese. I would  have done bad things to get more.

Rounding the corner, we found a Rodney’s outpost! There is a special place in my heart for Rodney’s oysters as they were the first I ever had. We bought half a dozen to split between the two of us and happily slurped up the briny treats. The sweet seafood sauce was particularly good on them (I’m not a big Tobasco fan) and we were very happy to see Marie Sharp’s hot sauce on the table. Not only is it our favourite brand of hot sauce on the planet, it’s from Belize! (My husband’s family is from Belize and we just took our first trip there together last year. We loved it so much that we’re returning this winter.)

Marie Sharp's Hot Sauce

Oysters downed, we tried a few other hot sauce booths but weren’t terrifically blown away by any. Then, lo and behold, we found the Marie Sharp’s booth! We already have several at home, but they were featuring some new flavours that were on the sweeter side…and then the insanely hot side. We chatted with the lovely folks for a while and, naturally, the lady who imports the sauce knows my husband’s family. Small country, small world. (Awesome hot sauce.)

And with what does one follow up oysters and hot sauce samples? Why, Belgian waffles of course! For my money, the Belgian waffle from The Wafflebar was the best thing I ate all night. Hot and fluffy on the inside and a little bit crispy on the outside, this thing was pure evil in the best way possible. Drizzled with caramel AND chocolate sauce and topped off with a dollop of whipped cream, the hubby and I were no doubt a site to see eating these things while attempting not to look like three-year olds. Whether or not that mission was accomplished, the waffles were wonderful and I highly recommend that you seek these fine wafflemakers out.

We also stopped by The Nutty Chocolatier and I sampled the red velvet fudge. I gather this is a new addition to their already large array of products and I suspect it will be very, very successful. I may just pop down to the one in the Beaches and buy out their entire supply.

“Okay…I think we’ve had enough samples,” I said. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.” That was the conversation we had four minutes before happening upon Hank Daddy’s BBQ booth. Oh, hello. While we opted not to have the pulled pork parfait – though there was temptation -we did get the pulled pork sandwich and a smoked sausage with sauteed onions and mustard. You know you’re getting a good sausage in a bun when it snaps when you bite into it. Really, really good.

“Okay, now we’re REALLY done. Let’s go wash our hands and head out.” Oh, but wait! Bunner’s bakery is giving away free cupcakes? Well, let’s not be silly. We definitely need one of those. I generally find vegan and gluten-free products pretty lacking in..um…everything, but I must say that these cupcakes were pretty damn good. We both had the red velvet and chocolate variety and not a crumb was left.

I was impressed by the variety of products – food and otherwise – that were available at the Delicious Food Show. I don’t know that Liberty Grand needed to have such a clubby presence, though. The music wasn’t bad but I often found that it was in competition with other vendors and it felt a little…out of place to me. Overall, though, I’m glad I went and tried just about every food under the sun.

Tags: cheese, cupcakes, food show, FoodNetwork presents, hot sauce, veal, waffles