Halifax

Halifax is a beautiful and foggy place, with the amount of fog only equal to the amount of university students thronging it's streets. We were staying with a really good friend of mine, and didn't have much planned. It turned out to be a great last city, and a nice finale meal was in store for us at a local restaurant. We had a great time in the city, managing to fit in some fish and chips, a trip to the maritime museum, a quick visit to an SMU football game, and a great dinner in just two short days.

We first hit the museum, got sunk into a little history. We were particularly interested in the Halifax explosion, as I didn't know much about it. Turns out it was the biggest man made explosion before Hiroshima. Pretty epic stuff, and all because some idiots couldn't drive their boats properly. There is also an impressive array of model boats, some done extremely detailed. All in all a pretty worthwhile experience, though not much in the food department.

After the museum we met up with our delightful hosts for a few seconds before visiting a local restaurant to see what's going on in Halifax. The restaurant is known as Chives and bills itself as an all-canadian bistro. Cool concept, and I was recommended to check it out by two maritime chefs. Craig Flynn, the chef at Chives, is one of the chefs pushing the hardest to use local products in Halifax. He has an impressive array in his reach, so that's understandable. The maritimes boast some amazing food production, with everything from seaweed to beef and most stops in between. There is absolutely no reason there aren't more restaurants utilizing local products. It's coming around slowly. Craig, however, wasn't present when we first checked in, he was out visiting a producer, so we spoke with George. George is the front-of-house manager, and a genuinely nice guy. He not only gave us a brief overview of what the restaurant is, but also where they want to go and how they intend to do it. He even convinced us to come in for dinner the following evening. Slick talker to say the least.

Following the visit to chives we went to Sara's and made bouillabaisse, basically an ultra-classic fish soup, and though we were missing a couple components, it came out decent but lacking something. Actually, making it this time made me determined to try it again soon and really concentrate on getting the maximum flavour out of the ingredients, and seeing if I can simplify to be really tasty, rustic soup. As it was intended to be, I think.

After bouillabaisse we hit the town, played a new(new to me) drinking game called murderball, and went to a bar that serves outrageously cheap drinks. Needless to say the next morning wasn't pleasant. I haven't been such a slouch in a long while. In any case, we did make it out of the house in time for dinner at 5, and arrived at chives fashionably late.

The dinner was really a nice finish off to the trip. The food at Chives is really uncomplicated, direct, and tasty. Chef Craig was kind enough to do a overview tasting menu for us, and we basically got the gist of what he is shelling out for his loyal patrons. I didn't take pictures of every course, but I did of a few. All in all it was a stellar experience, especially with local wines to pair with every course helping round out the feeling of place. Excellent stuff.

After chives we took a roundabout route through a football game home. It was time to take it easy, we were still suffering from the night previous, and now stuffed to the brim with food, so sleep was near, and movement was far away. Definitely a decent day, regardless of the vicious hangover. Funny how food can do that.

The following day we ran by the farmer's market for a quick bite to eat and some easy lunch before departing Nova Scotia. Its a beautiful market, brand new and seeking LEED certification for it's environmental initiatives. Jammed with people, probably one of the most well attended farm markets of the trip. Amazing market and products. Goodbye Nova Scotia!