Food, Fitness, Fashion & Fun!

Once again this year my friend and I are planning to attend the Burlington Women’s Show since it is a do not miss annual girls outing!  This year we are eager to see some of the new features at the show including a fashion show hosted by style expert for City Line Lynn Spence and the volunteer models from the community.  There are going to be interactive demonstrations including Moksa Yoga, so wear something comfortable!  To top it off the event is going to be M.C.’d by Annette Ham CH TV personality.

We enjoy having hair consultations, seeing new fashions, trying various foods and beverages from local restaurants and learning about new products.  In the past there have been so many samples we were glad we didn’t eat lunch! Here are some of the restaurants confirmed to participate this year which we are keen to check out; Rayhoon, Jack Astors, Water St. Cooker, Gator Teds, Coffee Culture, and Tim Horton’s.  Shopping, of course is always a priority for us and we usually bring home some great items for gifts (or treat ourselves) such as jewellery and other accessories. 

We already have our tickets as the event is coming up soon, Sunday February 26^th from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. at Tansley Woods Community Centre.  We found that it is best to take the shuttle from Mainway Arena, as the parking lot last year was full when we arrived.  Visit the website for more highlights and details on how to get tickets. 

Need an added incentive?  The first 200 attendees will receive a gift bag full of goodies, samples and offers.

Be a Burlington Ambassador and invite your friends and family to attend the show with you.  See you at the show.

-TourBurl Girl

While our co-worker and friend are out exploring the Women’s Show, I will be getting together with friends to enjoy a Taste of Burlington.  This prix fixe culinary event runs until March 11th at twenty-five of Burlington’s finest restaurants. 

Taste of Burlington runs both a winter and a summer programme which means I always have a great reason to get out and try my favourite restaurants and we try to get out to at least one new one each season.  This year so far we are planning visits to LaCosta Nuova (I must try the Lobster Mac & Cheese) and Martini House.  Last summer we visited Honey West and Paradiso which are both great choices and we have visited The Stone House, Eatalia, Pepperwood Bistro, Siam Dish and more over the years.  We are always impressed by the quality of the food, the generous portions sizes (no skimping here) and creativity of the menus which get better every time!

This winter we are happy to see new additions to the Taste of Burlington including Rayhoon Persian Eatery, Local Eatery & Refuge, Earls, and the Garden Café at the Royal Botanical Gardens.

Red Canoe Bistro

Like many diners these days we are always conscious of trying to incorporate as much local Ontario food into our dining as possible and this winter many of the Taste of Burlington restaurants are adding local Ontario ingredients to their menus including Downtown Bistro, Jake’s Grill & Oyster House, Local Eatery & Refuge, Martini House, Paradiso, Queen’s Head Pub, Red Canoe Bistro, Rude Native Bistro & Lounge, Spencer’s at the Waterfront, The Water St. Cooker and West Plains Bistro.  Look for the Foodland Ontario logo on the website and menus.

For those with a sweet tooth be sure to visit Chocolate: The Exhibition at the Royal Botanical Gardens, then consider lunch at the Garden Cafe or head down the road to the West Plains Bistro for lunch or dinner. For those exploring the Burlington Chocolate Trail there are lots of stops along the way close to participating Taste restaurants that will feature chocolate on their menus including the downtown core (Alex Restaurant, Beaver & Bulldog, Martini House, Paradiso, Queen’s Head Pub, Rayhoon Persian Eatery, Red Canoe Bistro, Rude Native Bistro, and the Water Street Cooker.) In mid-town you can enjoy Local Eatery & Refuge, Jake’s Grill & Oyster House or Walker’s Fish Market and in North Burlington be sure to head to The Purple Heather. 

Whatever you choose be sure to go hungry, with 3 full-courses (appetizer, entree and dessert) you may need to bring a “doggy-bag” home.  Lunches are $15 or $20 and dinners range from $30, $35 or $40.  For individual menus and pricing be sure to visit the website and make your reservation today.

Eat Well!

Culinary Experiences in Burlington and area

Tourism Burlington hosted a free Culinary Tourism workshop last week featuring keynote speaker Rebecca LeHeup Executive Director from the Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance (OCTA). This is the first step in positioning Burlington and Halton as a culinary tourism destination.  There were 36 attendees including restaurants, hotel catering staff, farm markets, local farms, downtown business associations, attractions with food services and culinary events.  

The true taste of a place is rooted in its terroir. It starts with agriculture and the people who grow our food. It moves to the artisans that craft the food into tastes such as wine, cheese and beer. It travels to the plate through the craft of cook and chef. We celebrate it at our tables, and in our communities through festivals and events. To create a culinary tourism destination, in the eyes of the world, Ontario’s agriculture and tourism sectors need to tell the story of our unique region with pride. 

Rebecca shared her experiences developing the Taste and Arts Trails in Prince Edward County and how that area is now a recognized culinary destination.  She also talked about how culinary tourism has grown in the past 5 years and gave some excellent examples of initiatives that have generated great returns on investment in places like Stratford and Price Edward County.  The participants talked about what culinary products that we currently have in the region including numerous farm markets, many local farms such as Springridge and Chudleigh’s and culinary events such as A Taste of Burlington, Downtown Dining and Ribfest etc.

The participants were enthusiastic about further developing culinary experiences in the area so the next steps will be to complete a culinary inventory and strike a team to review this information and help develop a culinary strategy.  It was also agreed that the local culinary businesses would benefit from participating in a social media workshop in the fall delivered by OCTA which will encourage more networking and cross-marketing of activities. 

Burlington offers a wide variety of sustainable markets, farms and restaurants featuring local products grown and produced here in the Region of Halton. From Burlington Mall Farmers Market, Busy Liz’s Farm Shop, Harvest Goodies, Our Father’s Farm, Halton Region’s Simply Local, Red Canoe Bistro, Spencer’s at the Waterfront, Oakville Sustainable Food Partnership, Royal Botanical Gardens and Springridge Farm, there is enough to peak interest and make palettes salivate as we explore the notion of making Burlington a Culinary Tourism Destination and how we can promote our region through healthy and sustainable products.

If you are interested in further information about culinary tourism in the area, contact us.  Check out the OCTA website for their article on the workshop and for more information about their services.

Tourburlgirl

Myrtle Beach S.C. and Burlington ON has 20 year Friendship

What does Myrtle Beach South Carolina and Burlington Ontario have in common?  Well besides both being on the water, having a beach and being beautiful places to visit, these two cities have had a friendship that has spanned 20 years. 

This friendship began with Burlington’s Teen Tour Band performing in Myrtle Beach annually during Canadian American Days from the late 1970’s to the late 90’s.  As a result of these visits, the Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce approached the City of Burlington more formally recognize this relationship.  On March 11, 1991 Burlington’s Mayor Roly Bird visited Myrtle Beach and signed a Declaration of Friendship with Mayor Robert Grissom, the Mayor of Myrtle Beach. 

Over the years, this friendship has focused primarily on sport and youth exchanges.   Myrtle Beach has sent athletes to participate in the Burlington International Games (BIG) and have brought VIP’s to participate in the Sound of Music Festival Grande Parade and activities.  The local tourism agencies have worked together to cross market our cities by setting up information booths at one another’s events and posting information on websites.  Myrtle Beach has also sponsored various local Burlington events including the Mayor’s and the Teen Tour Band Booster’s golf tournaments.  This year they supported the Taste of Burlington, a popular fixed price dining program by sending a chef from Myrtle Beach to the media launch and by providing a trip draw prize for diners. 

This week (March 2011) Myrtle Beach is celebrating their 50^th anniversary of Canadian-American Days and the Teen Tour Band along with Burlington’s Top Hat Marching Orchestra and No Strings Attached are performing during these celebrations.  “Canada’s Musical Ambassadors” as the Teen Tour Band is known, took first place in the North Myrtle Beach St. Patrick’s Day parade during this week’s activities. 

With over 500,000 Canadians travelling to South Carolina each year, many Burlington residents have bookmarked Myrtle Beach as one of their favourites.  In recent years with more direct flights to Myrtle Beach from Toronto and Niagara we hope to entertain more of our southern friends in the 3rd Best City to Live in Canada!  Our two cities have shared a long and prosperous friendship which will continue to grow in the future.

Pam Belgrade, Executive Director
Tourism Burlington 414 Locust Street, Burlington, ON  L7S 1T7
P: 905.634.5594 ext. 7241
Toll Free: 1.877.499.9989 F: 905.634.7220 belgradep@burlington.ca
www.tourismburlington.com

Family Day 2011

As a new statutory holiday has been added to our calendar year, we can embrace the day off, spend quality time with the ones we love and build a great yearly tradition.

February 21, 2011 is bursting full of great things to see and do in Burlington; the City of Burlington has decided that Family Day is a great day to have most of our recreation facilities open. At Tansley Woods Community Centre, you and your family are able to enjoy Gym Drop-ins, Family Fitness and many different Swims in their great indoor pool. Available for sale at Tansley Woods is the Family Day Pass; purchase a Family Day Pass and your family can participate in up to 3 activities at Tansley Woods Community Centre. Choose from the activities listed here. For those who love skating and want to keep Family Day a winter affair, check out Appleby Ice Centre for the Family and Public Skates or head down to the waterfront for some great outdoor skating on the Rotary Centennial Pond. Swimming is always great for kids, not only do they get to practice life saving skills; they have fun doing it without knowing they are! Aldershot Pool, Angela Coughlin Pool and Tansley Woods are all open for Family and Fun Swims.

If rosy cheeks and crisp air is more of what you had in mind for this Family Day, be sure to visit our Conservation Halton parks. Glen Eden is hosting their annual Family Day Dummy Race with great skiing, snowboarding, family activities and a BBQ. Join Mountsberg for a memorable winter experience for the whole family; Tales by a Winter Fire as well as Winter Wagon Rides are 2 great events both being held at the Conservation Area where bird watching, snowshoeing as well as cross-country skiing are encouraged.

A new event this Family Day is Burlington Kidfest being held at Corpus Christi Secondary School from 9am to 5pm. For $2 admission, you and your family are able to enjoy a pancake breakfast served by Mayor Rick Goldring at 8:30am, magic shows, inflatable jumping games, gymnastics, martial arts and dance workshops, a variety of sports, contests and games, special guests with activities and of course, smudge fundaes. This is definitely a worthwhile event to experience as a family.

Royal Botanical Gardens is always a great learning destination. On now is the “Glass under Glass” exhibit where you and your family are able to experience glass art in a glass house displayed inside the warm Mediterranean Garden. Also on at the RBG is Wild Music: Sounds and Songs of Life being held until April 10. On Family Day from 12pm to 2pm, take part in a dynamic and interactive drumming program with Wild about Rhythm Drum Circle; discover the origins of the drum and investigate the science of sound and vibration through hands-on demonstrations.

We hope you get out with your family to enjoy all that Burlington has to offer this Family Day. Check out our Facebook page and Twitter feed for updates throughout the day.