Cora's restaurant for breakfast

My wife and I went to the Cora's restaurant in Victoria. I had gone to one before (its a franchise) in Moncton and wrote about it in my blog here.

I had yet another mango-bananna smoothie...yum! My wife had coffee that was average. I had the ham-egg and cheese in a crepe thing (can't remember the name) with a half plate of fruit. My wife had the Cora's Special. It consists of two eggs, real pork sausage (my wife was quite impressed at the taste and quality), bacon, fruit and potatoes with a variety of extras you can have on top.

Our breakfast at 830am lasted me till 230pm...and that's saying a lot.

Victoria has lots of great breakfast eateries: Floyds Diner, Shine Cafe, Blue Fox, John's Place...and several more. This does have something different and should do well here at it.

Postcards of the Interwebs - 19 Feb 2013

Here is another round of links from the interwebs:

Another planet with life possible just 12 light years away: I find it very cool that observations from so far away combined with rational calculations can provide a theory that was put out there to be refuted or confirmed. That's the wonderment of scientific discovery.

 Bag End of Tolkein's Books/Film: Just a nice drawing of Bag End and what it looks like from the top down.

Sub-Absolute Zero: Yes, Lord Kelvin theorized that nothing could go below absolute zero but by playing with energy states it can be possible. It also looks like dark energy is theorized to look like.

Downton Abbey Cut Out Dolls: I used one for a birthday card for my wife and thought that i'd share the website.

Oldest Earth Rock Found: This rock tells a story of a different old Earth. Not one of lava and flame but one of oceans.

Toy Story, live Action: A cute movie version of Toy Story with live actors and action. Clever and done with Disney's approval.

A New Kind of Magnetism: A new type of quantum magnetism for radical new possibilities for storage of data and long range communication.

Little People: Has to be seen to be believed and admired.

Castle: A lovely picture of an old castle.

Fry's Bakery

Fry's Bakery is located across the road from its original location in Esquimault and run by the original owners great-grandson. They have a wood fired oven that was hand made and they specialize in European breads and do it well. I particularly like the olive loaf, their sausage & sauerkraut pocket, and their fresh sandwiches.

Give them a try for delicious breads and pastries.

Choux Choux Charcuterie

Choux Choux Charcuterie is a fantastic little food store that sells fresh and packaged delights from local establishments and places far away. Although it does not have the selection Ottavio's has, it has different things and is more conveniently located in downtown Victoria.

It has a small cozy store feels and the staff is knowledgeable and friendly. They also prepare fresh sandwiches for those wanting immediate food on the go. My wife and I bought items here for a Downton Abbey marathon, a few weeks ago, and were suitably pleased with the combination. Try it out...your stomach will thank you.

Woken by a Possible Drug User

Shortly after 5 am, my wife and I were woken by a frantic doorbell ringing. Thinking it could be the neighbor, we quickly dressed and went downstairs. We heard loud yelling coming from the back of our neighbors so I went outside to investigate. Once outside I realized that it was not coming from inside the house but from behind it. The yelling and screaming was feminine and raspy, as if she had been yelling for a while. I slowly walked around the corner and saw a woman in mismatched pajamas,  with a disheveled appearance and sneakers. Once she saw me, she paused in her demand to have someone help her. That's when she started screaming.

Constant screaming.

This was not the pleas for help kind of screaming but the kind once would make when "cornered by a chainsaw wielding maniac that you saw cutting your friends and family (and favorite pet) down with only you left in a remote location just before the end credits roll" kind of scream.

As a counterpoint to the force of the scream that left me temporarily stunned was the thought of...why. I was dressed in tartan blue pajamas with a bright orange vest. Not the figure you want on a movie poster to convince someone to see on the big screen or buy for a dollar in the bargain bin.

The screaming didn't stop as I told her its ok and asked her name. She just decided that it would be a good time to try to go through my neighbors back patio door. She tried several times before calming down and resuming speaking incoherently.  After I sat on the grass and continued to speak calmly and slowly, with a hand out to show her I was unarmed and for her to stop, she calmed enough to tell me her name. I tried to get her to talk but she started again speaking incoherently, crying out for her mother, god and the saint she was named after. She was not making sense and bouncing around in her conversation.

The police arrived and she started screaming again, probably because seeing two large men with bright lights pointed at you tends to invoke panic.

Anyways, they calmed her and got her in an ambulance. She loudly demanded they inject her with drugs as it was her right. The whole event took 30 minutes till the time I was to wake up anyways.

So remember folks, don't do drugs. Spend your money on models and games instead. You'll be much better off.

Blighty's Bistro

I treated my wife to her birthday supper on Saturday at Blighty's Bistro, located in Oak bay. We've eaten there before many times and had another enjoyable experience. Its kinda West coast style with good portions and excellent flavors.

I started with the Kale Salad (Green Kale, roasted beets, toasted walnuts, goat cheese) and it was lightly steamed to still give it a slightly crunchy texture, which is difficult to do without going overboard. My wife had the Stuffed Date salad (Blue cheese stuffed dated wrapped in prosciutto, oven baked and served with greens).

Our mains came quite quickly after we finished our starters. My main was the Bison Tenderloin (Maple shallot and butter glazed bison tenderloin on mashed potato, local roasted beet and yam, vegetables) and my wife had the Lamb Tagine (Moroccan style stew with chick pea, apricot, slivered almonds and Israeli cous cous). My meat was prepared to perfection and my wife found hers nicely spiced and seasoned with delicious cous cous.

To finish I had the Apple and fruit crumble with Ice Cream and my wife had the Sticky Toffee Bread Pudding. She found her's too sweet and that they used too much molasses but I found mine perfect. Our deserts arrived after quite some time so the owner gave us one of them for free for our troubles.

A lovely experience and a place we will go to again and again.