To be honest, the trials, tribulations and general craziness involved with moving house have monopolized my time in recent weeks (specifically, my time for having fun and blogging).
Something else that moving has resulted in, however, is the chance to try new restaurants (sometimes after painting or putting stuff away, cooking is the last thing we want to do!)
I'm not saying you have to move to a new house or new city to get excited about discovering different restaurants (we were still exploring new places in Toronto after nearly five years), but in Hamilton, we have had a blank slate with no preconceived ideas about what's good, new or the latest 'cool' place to eat. We've been relying on online reviews as well as recommendations from people we know.
As I've said before, I'm no restaurant reviewer. But as someone who enjoys discovering new gems, here are a few places we've been to recently that merit a return visit!
Having never tried Ethiopian food before, I honestly didn't know what kinds of flavours and foods to expect when my husband suggested we try Wass Ethiopian on James Street South one night, after he saw it mentioned on Twitter. I was super intrigued and excited to try it out.
We visited Wass on a random weeknight and instantly felt welcomed and comfortable. The restaurant is unassuming, but the food is an awesome adventure. We ordered one of the combination platters (meat and vegetarian dishes) and dug in with our hands. The flavours were fantastic.
Given that we went to Wass in the evening (and if I drink coffee after 7pm I don't sleep!) we didn't get to partake in the famous Ethiopian coffee that night. This alone means we'll be making a return trip, but rest assured, we'll be going back for the food too!!
In Toronto, we were blessed to have lived in a neighbourhood with THREE awesome Indian restaurants. Since we moved to Hamilton last winter, we had been on the hunt for something comparable.
After craving it one night, we did a quick internet search and noticed some particularly great reviews for The Flavour of Himalaya on King William Street downtown.
We decided to go for it, and ended up having a fabulous Indian meal for less than $30 for the two of us (and hubby even got a beer.) Incredible.
While we've found these great restaurants which may become Hamilton faves, we're still on the hunt for an awesome wine bar or bistro-type place. (And as always, are always keeping our eyes peeled for more of our faves: sushi restaurants or BBQ places).
Any and all suggestions and reviews are welcome :)
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
Hamilton's history and my old house
For someone who grew up in the suburbs where most buildings dated from the 1970s or later, my recent move into a 100-year old Hamilton house has proved to be both exciting and daunting.
On the one hand, the house needs work, as most 100-year old houses do (and I’m sure this will never end!).
But my fascination for history and interesting stories has had me champing at the bit, since before we moved in, to find out more about this place – who built it? Who has lived here over the past century and what did they do for a living?
Essentially, I’m excited to discover more about Hamilton’s own history through my old house.
While we do have plans to research the house’s past properly through the city’s records, a quick walk around the place provides some evidence of the house’s (and Hamilton’s) evolution – a bricked-up old door to where we think the "service entrance" to the kitchen used to be, a conversion into apartments at some point, various additions and removals and now, big plans to eventually convert it back to its former glory.
Over the years, I’ve heard stories of people unearthing treasures and random artefacts from days gone by when fixing up houses like this. I was excited to start our exploration and see what we could find.
Fortunately, we didn’t have to renovate anything to get the first clues into the history of our house. This started on the day we moved in. Tucked up between some pipes in the basement, my husband found a little book on the history of the British Royal family, ending at King George VI and praising the power of radio communication for its impact and ability to broadcast the King’s Coronation ceremony around the globe. The book’s publication date was 1937 and it was perfectly preserved.
One day later, he was putting more things away in the basement and came across something even older – the top of a wooden crate, with someone’s army rank, name and our address stencilled on it. I knew it was ancient – the postal code was a different format than we’re used to.
As any amateur history buff might do, I instantly Googled the man’s name. It turns out he served in World War I – likely the first owner of this house, or their son. I find it absolutely fascinating that, through a century’s worth of owners, renters and renovations, these pieces of history have survived intact in our house.
I’m hoping these are just the first of many clues into our property’s past, and that we get a few more glimpses into early 20th century Hamiltonian life.
Have you found any interesting relics from the past in your old Hamilton house or apartment?
This post was originally published on OpenFile Hamilton's website.
On the one hand, the house needs work, as most 100-year old houses do (and I’m sure this will never end!).
But my fascination for history and interesting stories has had me champing at the bit, since before we moved in, to find out more about this place – who built it? Who has lived here over the past century and what did they do for a living?
Essentially, I’m excited to discover more about Hamilton’s own history through my old house.
While we do have plans to research the house’s past properly through the city’s records, a quick walk around the place provides some evidence of the house’s (and Hamilton’s) evolution – a bricked-up old door to where we think the "service entrance" to the kitchen used to be, a conversion into apartments at some point, various additions and removals and now, big plans to eventually convert it back to its former glory.
Over the years, I’ve heard stories of people unearthing treasures and random artefacts from days gone by when fixing up houses like this. I was excited to start our exploration and see what we could find.
Fortunately, we didn’t have to renovate anything to get the first clues into the history of our house. This started on the day we moved in. Tucked up between some pipes in the basement, my husband found a little book on the history of the British Royal family, ending at King George VI and praising the power of radio communication for its impact and ability to broadcast the King’s Coronation ceremony around the globe. The book’s publication date was 1937 and it was perfectly preserved.
One day later, he was putting more things away in the basement and came across something even older – the top of a wooden crate, with someone’s army rank, name and our address stencilled on it. I knew it was ancient – the postal code was a different format than we’re used to.
As any amateur history buff might do, I instantly Googled the man’s name. It turns out he served in World War I – likely the first owner of this house, or their son. I find it absolutely fascinating that, through a century’s worth of owners, renters and renovations, these pieces of history have survived intact in our house.
I’m hoping these are just the first of many clues into our property’s past, and that we get a few more glimpses into early 20th century Hamiltonian life.
Have you found any interesting relics from the past in your old Hamilton house or apartment?
This post was originally published on OpenFile Hamilton's website.
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