The Occasionally Magnificent Seven

Tyler Cobbett’s Eastern Canada

Posted on by Anna

Suffice it to say that things are pretty busy for us. In an ideal world, I would have carefully researched every city we will be visiting to find out which is the top-rated boutique ice cream parlor, the most authentic farm tour, the best museum for local art, etc, etc. In the real world, I am walking down the street, Googling these things on my phone in one hand while holding Rowena’s hand in my other to keep her from being killed by a bus.

So what happens if you send me a 700-word email, complete with links and instructions not just on where to go but precisely HOW to eat the food once you get there? You get your very own blog post! Here’s our friend Tyler:

He looks pretty mean, but he’s actually a big teddy bear. This picture is from our
church’s kids’ musical, in which Tyler played the bass guitar.

Tyler is originally from Canada and lived there for 40 years. How on earth he ended up in the SF Bay area I’m not exactly sure, but he’s basically the Rick Steves/Anthony Bourdain of eastern Canada as far as I can tell. Let’s see how his recommendations worked out:

This is an outstanding art museum a bit outside of Toronto which I don’t think we would have found without Tyler. As it turned out, it was beautiful, kid-friendly, and featured mostly Canadian artists (not to mention the usual nice museum cafeteria). Lovely, peaceful, civilized morning.
Ferry from downtown Toronto to Centre Island was a big hit.
Centreville, the kids’ amusement park on Centre Island, an even bigger hit!

As it turns out, much of Tyler’s advice suggests that he is a big foodie, like me. So, I really just HAD to go and sample a bunch of fatty, carbolicious Canadian treats. Sigh.

Nelson loved the hot dogs from La Belle Province, but Rowena is expressing my general feelings about poutine. It’s hard to make it look very appealing, and after a few bites, I really lose steam. I tried and tried so many different types. Tyler says it has to be less than 50 degrees Fahrenheit to really enjoy it, so that’s going to be my excuse. Apologies in advance to all you poutine-lovers.
St. Hubert’s was a big hit. Think Chick-Fil-A with vegetables and gravy. Uber family-friendly.
Butter tarts are a big thumbs-up. Should have eaten more of those. Sorta like chess pie.
Here we are at The Big Apple en route from Toronto to Ottawa. Guess what their specialty is? Any place with a giant plaster photo op is worth a stop, but I must say that my apple pie is way better than theirs.
OK, stop the presses. To be fair, I didn’t go to the actual bagel place Tyler recommended in Montreal (this is one of those cities where everyone argues about which of the awesome bagel shops is the best), but the bagels we had here (St. Viateur’s) were (I say this with the heat of shame on my cheek) better than New York’s.

Speaking of cheeks, I searched forever for the bread on the left, but it was completely worth it. It’s called pain de ménage (household bread) or, better, pain a deux fesses (literally, “the bread has two buttocks”). I mean, the fact that it tasted great and had a tender crumb is just a bonus here.

Thank you again Tyler, for this wonderful and delicious guided tour of your beloved eastern Canada! We welcome such advice from all of you. If you notice that we are headed to your homeland, send us your favorites, edible or otherwise. We need all the help we can get!

3 thoughts on “Tyler Cobbett’s Eastern Canada”

  • Fun post. I don’t think I’ve got any “locals” advice for you, you headed to New York and being from Jersey and awl.

  • We’re planning a trip to Montreal next summer. Thanks for the tips and insight!

  • So glad you had fun in Ontario and Quebec. Not sure how you’ll ever get the kids back onto leafy greens!

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