John had to go to Ottawa for a work thing last week so I begged to tag along. Ottawa is pretty awesome in the fall, although the summer weather wasn’t helping to speed up the autumn colours. I was really happy to be able to wear Birkenstock’s the whole time though.
I spent Friday morning at the National Art Gallery and was thrilled to find Kent Monkman’s installation, Casualties of Modernity, there. Even though I’d seen this before in T.O., I can’t get enough of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle –“A leading authority in the diagnosis and forensic analysis of numerous conditions afflicting Modern and Contemporary Art.” Below is a one-minute video to show you why…
Walking kilometers in the art gallery made me really hungry. I knew just the place to go in nearby ByWard Market—a tiny restaurant called Corazon de Mais. I wrote a story about the co-owner, Mariana, last year and I can vouch that her burritos are the best! Here is her story.
A shared passion and vision
Mariana Torio’s love of food began in Mexico in her grandmothers’ kitchens. “I would visit and we would cook together,” she recalls. Those early lessons proved a good foundation for her later studies at the esteemed culinary university in San Angel, Mexico (CESSA), where she obtained her degree.
After graduation, Mariana moved to Oaxaca to work as a chef in a restaurant bar. She eventually fell in love with a colleague, Eric Igari. They shared a passion for Mexican food and the same vision. “We always wanted to open our own restaurant,” Mariana says. Eric moved to Ottawa in 2006 and Mariana followed two years later.
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