CORNED BEEF - A FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD

Living in small-town British Columbia for 15 years had very few drawbacks for me. I love the small-town life. And the two places where I lived in BC, Squamish and The Okanagan, had everything I needed close by. But not everything I wanted was available.

One of my favorite comfort foods is corned beef on rye. In all the time I lived in BC, I didn't have one corned beef sandwich. That's fifteen years without corned beef!! Now, It wasn't because corned beef wasn't available. It was. But they don't make corned beef sandwiches in the areas I lived they way I remember having them in Toronto; warm and piled a mile high. And that's the only way to eat corned beef! It has to be served on rye bread with yellow mustard, coleslaw and a pickle too. Everyone knows that!

So, the other night Lola decided to bring dinner home. I didn't know what she was bringing; it was a surprise. She walked in with a single brown bag and I could smell a familiar smell coming from within it. I wouldn't let her open the bag until I guessed the smell. It registered in my mind instantly, but it took a moment for the light to go on. DING! Corned beef!

I have to say...eating that sandwich was pretty amazing. It was just a corned beef sandwich, yes, but it was also a connection. It was a connection to the past and to something I enjoyed a long time ago. It was also a connection to my dad because he was the one who usually took me for corned beef at Shopsey's when I was a kid. He's dead now, so it was a nice memory for me.

Anyway, I looked on Chowhound for the best corned beef places in Toronto after that. That opened the door for the "experts" to tell me that we can't get good corned beef in Canada and that I'd have to go to New York for the real deal. "Yadda, yadda, quack, quack, quack." Whatever! I was quite happy with Lola's find, and she found it just for me and that made it taste even better.

She did a little research on the Net and found The Corned Beef House at 303 Adelaide West. The sandwich was perfect and I can't say as I've ever had better, New York or not! I'm looking forward to going in to have a sandwich and a cold beer in the restaurant soon rather than taking it to go. I'm also looking forward to trying some of their other menu items. Here's a link to The Corned Beef House's web site: http://cornedbeefhouse.com/

One thing I know: I'm going to introduce my kids to a big, fat corned beef sandwich at The Corned Beef House soon and I hope it will become a favorite of theirs. It's so simple yet so perfect!