Day 3 of 9 in Prince Edward Island

After a great "free day" for our guests yesterday, this morning we would be boarding a bus for some sightseeing for most of the day. We needed to pack a light lunch for the bus ride so I ventured off for an early walk through Charlottetown in search of a deli sandwich. The first place I went into was a little bakery/deli about a block from the hotel, but unfortunately their deli person wasn't in until later. Then I remembered passing the restaurant called "The Merchant Man" last night and that they had a branch of their establishment called "MM Grab 'n Go" so I headed in that direction. I met a lovely young lady and we had a great chat about food as she made me a freshly prepared smoked meat sandwich with sprouts and all the fixings I could want. 

 

 

 

On the way back to the hotel lobby to meet up with the group...

  

...I happen to pass the Anne of Green Gables Store with a Lamborghini parked out front! No, you don't need to earn that much to shop there, I just thought it was cool for 2 reasons: 1, let be honest, I'm a Guy and that's a Lamborghini!; and 2, today was our Anne of Green Gables Tour day.

When I got back to the hotel...

 

...our bus driver Bob was there to greet us and take our group on our next adventure. He turned out to be a lot of fun and has a great sense of humor. See that sliding door - this was particularly funny. Why? Well, closer to our end of the travel day, we had stopped at a local gift shop so we could do some shopping. Afterwards I came out to see Bob with a wire coat hanger trying to unlatch the door lock from his driver's door, so I asked him "what's going on Bob?" He replied "I locked the keys in the bus. They're in the ignition." He was very frustrated with his carelessness. I asked him if he wanted help and he politely declined. I went around to the other side of the bus where our tour guest Patricia was standing and I took both hands and was able to silently open the sliding door. Patricia was very happy with my success, but I told her "shhh, don't say anything." I was able to enter the bus without Bob seeing, and I crawled over to the ignition and removed the keys. He was still struggling, and very focused with getting the wire hooked onto the door latch mechanism, when I stood up INSIDE THE BUS with the keys in my hand and I said "Do you want me to bring these to you!'. The look on his face was priceless! He had no I sea I was able to get in, and it was a hilarious moment as I opened the door and handed him the keys. The great thing is that we have him as our bus guide for the next 2 bus rides and we get to razz him about that... Seriously though, we are happy to have him because he is a good sport.

We left the hotel and did some sightseeing along the way:

 

 

...and then we arrived at the Campbell Home that Lucy Maud Montgomery called the "wonder castle of my childhood".

 

It was built in 1872 by her Uncle John and Aunt Annie Campbell and it is still in the Campbell family to this day. Today we met Pam Campbell and she is a second cousin to L.M. Montgomery. It was here that she visited many times as a child and when it came to her wedding day she was married in this very house.

 

This is the exact organ in the house that was used at her wedding on July 5, 1911.

 

After a look around the house and a house drawn carriage ride around the property we were invited to have tea and cookies with the Campbell's. Then we got to try our hand at planting blue potatoes in the field.

We then departed on a short scenic drive along the north side of the island to Cavendish to the Lucy Maud Montgomery Home which is a Canadian Historical Site and is located within Prince Edward Island National Park. 

 

All that's left of her original home is now just the foundation. We visited the museum & book store on the property and met with David MacNeill who is her first cousin twice removed. He told us of the history of the property before we headed through the Haunted Woods behind what was once was her original home.

 

That trail took us to the Cavendish Cemetery...

 

...and the final resting place of Lucy Maud Montgomery...

 

...and then the trail took us to where other family homes sit.

 

 

...and we got to explore inside these homes that are rich in history and artifacts from a time gone by.

We then met up with our bus driver Bob again and he took us on a tour...

 

Along the north coast of PEI to experience...

 

...the red cliffs and waves of the north shore.

From there we travelled to the dunes:

 

...and after some local shopping...

 

...we made our way back to Charlottetown just in time for the hotel to greet us with a complimentary wine & beer reception.

We met as a group and reminisced about our adventurous day. By this point we needed supper and so we made a reservation at the Gahan House Pub & Brewery and we all ate and drank together there... And below my sign-off is again a random selection of photos of our meals.  Tomorrow we are checking out of the Hotel on Pownal in Charlottetown and making our way (via a great winery and amazing local Chef) to the most well known 5-star property on PEI: The Inn at Bay Fortune and the home of Chef Michael Smith. Stay tuned!

Until next time... Happy Cooking!

 

 

 

 

 

Day 2 of 9 in Prince Edward Island

I was contemplating before I left for this trip whether I would be packing work-out clothes or not. I decided to bring them and that's where my day started: in the hotel fitness room! There was one tour guest that not only worked out as well, but was already in the gym when I arrived, and was still working out when I left. So if you think I'm dedicated, she's really the one that deserves your admiration. Good job Eva!

Today was a free day for our guests because of the long travel day we had yesterday to get here. Some took advantage of this and slept in and others just went about the day at their leisure. Lucky for us, today happened to be the day that Charlottetown hosts the annual "Farm in the City" street market with over 150 vendors commemorating the end of the Fall Flavours Festival.

After a complimentary breakfast at the hotel, I went strolling through the streets of Charlottetown as the market didn't start until 11am. There is a lot of history here and the architecture depicts that nicely. 

  

 

 

What a beautiful cathedral.

 

The old city hall building.

 

In my travels I stopped at Receiver Coffee for a cappuccino and people watched out the window.

 

Then the market started and the streets were filled people and vendors from all over the island: every kind of vendor that you could imagine from farmers to cheese makers, craft breweries, restaurants, etc.

 

Live music...

 

...and even an old fashioned Blacksmith that fanned the fire of his archaic forge with a hand crank fan.

 

 

Some of us met up together later at The Old Triangle pub for some pub grub and live Celtic music. The food here was amazing and the atmosphere made you feel like you were in the heart of Ireland. I would highly recommend this establishment to anyone. Great meals at great prices with friendly staff and a warm cozy pub feeling to it.

 

 

I started with a pint of Guinness, or what Patricia in our group calls it: "A Pint of the Priest" (she drank me under the table today, by the way).

 

Then I moved onto a second pint and some classic Bangers & Mash (the best I have ever had). This was a huge meal prepared very well and the price was only $14.

 

By the time I moved onto bread pudding for dessert (made in-house, huge, and incredible for only $7.95) accompanied with a glass of Tallisker scotch, Patricia had 3 pints of Guinness and a double Irish coffee! We were there for over 3 hours and enjoyed every minute of it. We are planning to go back there again on Thursday night. Once we rolled out of there we met up with other people in our group and after a quick freshen up we went to the Craddagh Oyster House for more food and drinks. Again, this is another place I would highly recommend for seafood. The mussels, prawns, scallops, and chowder were all amazing! 

Now I am back in my room at the hotel, reminiscing of our adventures of the day and the friendships we are forming, all the while thinking of the new day tomorrow that will bring us a new set of adventures and more memories to cherish.

Until next time... Happy Cooking!

Oh, and I thought I would also leave you with some random food shots of our evening at the Claddagh Oyster House. Enjoy:

 

 

 

 

 

Day 1 of 9 in Prince Edward Island

Well this is it. The day has finally come that we start the 3rd official Chef Dez Culinary Tour and we have arrived safely in Canada's smallest province: Prince Edward Island.

It was a very early start this morning. We met up with all of our tour guests at 4:45am at YVR in

preparation for our 6:30am West Jet flight to Toronto, then a connecting flight to Charlottetown, PEI. I went to bed at 7:30pm last night and only got about 4 hours sleep, but some of our guests didn't go to bed at all (they have been up since Friday morning) and took advantage of the flights to catch up on their sleep. We are 4 hours ahead of all our friends and family back home on the West Coast, so my plan was to be tired for tonight here in PEI. You see when it's 10pm here, it is only 6pm back home, and unless I am really tired, there is no way I am falling asleep at what feels like 6pm. This will make the transition in time change much easier. We'll see how I sleep tonight and I will update you tomorrow.

 You can see the Confederation bridge that connects PEI to New Brunswick in this photo. We will be crossing that bridge and spending an afternoon in Shediac later in our trip.

The flights today were uneventful, except for a bit of delay in Toronto, but that couldn't stop our excitement. We made it on time to Charlottetown and checked into our first of three properties we will be staying at: The Hotel on Pownal. We will be staying here for our first three nights. This contemporary hotel is the sister property of The Great George Hotel - where we will be spending our last 3 nights. They have welcomed us with open arms.

Before everyone got settled into their rooms the hotel greeted us with a wine & cheese reception

exclusively for our group. I then handed out the official Chef Dez Scavenger Hunt details. The grand prize for this hunt is a Large Big Green Egg complete with stand and shelves, valued at over $1600. There is a possible total score of 26 points. If more than one person gets all 26 points, then we will do a reverse draw to determine the winner at the end. This winner will be announced on the evening of Saturday October 8th at our wrap-up dinner... So stay tuned!

The rest of the ending was free to the group to either relax or start exploring the nightlife in Charlottetown. Everything in Charlottetown is pretty much in close proximity of everything else, so it makes it very easy to explore through self-guided walks. We all ended up going out for dinner together at a local pub called Fish Bones. It was good food. I had a seafood chowder.

Since it was a long day of travelling, the whole group gets tomorrow as a free day to relax and explore at their leisure, after our complimentary breakfast. One of the things on my list for tomorrow is to check out the Old Triangle Pub for some classic pub grub and live Celtic music!

For now, however, it's goodnight for me. I wish you pleasant dreams from the other side of the country.

Until next time... Happy Cooking!

Preparing for Prince Edward Island

Sorry there hasn't been a new blog entry from me for the past couple days. I have been busy packing and preparing for the Chef Dez Culinary Tour to Prince Edward Island!

Our tour group will be spending 8 nights & 9 days in Canada's smallest province experiencing not only their cuisine, but also their history, architecture, art, music, and drink. Basically experiencing how they live on a daily basis and immerse ourselves in it.

We leave early tomorrow morning, so stay tuned as I will be making entries about our adventures!

Speaking of adventures, the itinerary for our Castles, Pubs, and Distilleries Tour of Scotland & Ireland is now up on my website at www.chefdez.com

This is a luxury tour that you will not see on any travel site. Contact Caryn Zimmerman ASAP if you are interested in joining us as there is very limited availability!

Until next time... Happy Cooking!