Big Bunny's Girl of the Month: Kurara Chibana

This month's feature is dedicated to all my Japanese readers. I present to you the lovely and talented Kurara Chibana, who was the first runner-up in the 2006 miss universe pageant (she should have won).

The little samurai outfit she's wearing in this one must have been someone's else idea. This is the kind of thing you might see in japanese porn. I like the sword over the shoulder pose because it reminds me of this movie poster for the Seven Samurai that I used to see in a video store's window. I can just imagine what they tried to get the swedish contestant, who dropped out of this year's pageant, to wear. I'm thinking it was a fur bikini with a viking helmet and battle axe -- i would've like to see that.

Recent Pickups: Sneakers

I've been accumulating some more sneakers.


First, are these black sambas. I have quite a few Adidas soccer shoes. What I like about the samba is that they are low and kind of wide, which means that the A.P.C. rescue will break well over them. This makes them a little more versatile than something the Chile 62, which are narrow and has a bit of high profile that is somewhat unflattering to the rescue. The big ass tongue on these is a little ugly. I've seen some sambas with smaller tongues, but they were in a white/cream and an unflattering shade of brown. I'm not sure if they were universals, which are sambas with smaller tongues, that were just labeled as sambas to get more people to buy them. In any event, these are going to be a rain shoe for me (i.e., they'll get worn on days where its raining or the forecast calls for rain) and they'll be fine for that. They have enough heft to keep wet denim from dragging on the ground and they won't get indigo stains).

Second, the Junya Watanabe x Converse chuck taylor. I've had my eye on these for a while. I couldn't bring myself to buy them at regular price, so I've been stalking them -- waiting for them to go on sale. I managed to get them for 30% (I bought them when I took down the Engineered Garments field jacket) off at TNT Blu, which I think is the only place that I know of that carries them in Toronto. I was kind of wavering between the black and blue check -- I almost bought both of them, but decided to get the blue ones. I did end up going back for the black ones a week later, but they weren't marked down.
Oh well ....

I like the whole Junya Watanabe concept of putting his take on a classic item. Here the check pattern is so simple, but really cool. I think everyone is expecting something like a vans checkerboard pattern. This is kind like that, but different. They look really good with jeans. I haven't seen anyone else wearing these in the city yet.

They also come with this great bag. An extra bonus.


Third, the converse jack purcell. It's funny, you can walk into any store that sells sneakers and see a wall of chuck taylors, but you have to kind of look around on the floor in front of the wall for the jack purcells and if you aren't careful you might miss them. I developed a fascination with these a few weeks ago so I decided to get some.
I like the thing at the front, its kind of like an extra bit of rubber, with the black detail. The purcells are also a little wider (or they seem to me) than the chuck taylor, which gives them a slightly better silhouette. These are just so simple and plain, they are pretty much perfect. They need a few indigo stains for the finishing touches.

These were fairly difficult to find in my size (10). I guess some people In Toronto have been making a move on them besides me. I went to Holt Renfrew on Bloor Street and the Italian guy who works in the shoe department told me that the large sizes didn't even make it to the sale. On queen street two of the shops that I favour were sold out of the big men sizes and pretty much left with the small sizes. I found these at Groovy, not a regular stop for me, but they were sold out of the bigger sizes in other colours and styles except for the white leather.

The white on the leather ones is flatter than that on the canvas ones, so they aren't overwhelmingly bright. I also wanted a black canvas pair (i think the black canvas ones look better than the leather ones), but I had no luck on queen street. I asked someone at Groovy about them and he said that they've been trying to restock them for a while, but they haven't been getting their orders filled. I did manage to find a black canvas pair in some shop on Yonge Street. I found this shop by walking south on Yonge from Bloor until I found a shop that carried them, I couldn't tell you the name of the shop, some asian woman was working there. I don't have any pictures of them yet. I don't think that the black ones will see much action during the summer, but the white whiles will be in my regular rotation.

Recent Pickup: Engineered Garments Field Jacket

I'm a big fan of field jackets. The extra pockets make them so practical. If you're carrying a cell phone, a camera and, perhaps a little snack, the field jacket is the most practical option available if you want to travel light. This one also comes with a built-in hood. I like the built-in hoods because one problem with the M-65 style field jackets is that the collar comes up straight and high, so it can look a little fucked up if you don't have a hoodie with a big hood with some weight to it because the hood gets turned inside out. (I use a black slim fit Spruce hoodie with my M-65 style Nom de Guerre jacket.) This jacket is not really olive green, its a shade or too off from that colour.

I've had my eye on this one for a while. I picked it up at TNT Blu. I thought the price was a little on the high side (they have a higher price point than Nomad on their Engineered Garments stuff; Nomad is where I prefer to get the EG stuff, but they didn't have this one) so I designated it for summer sale pickup. The field jacket is a staple of Engineered Garments, so I figured if I missed this one I could try again on the fall. I got this one at 30% off. I could've taken a chance and waited to get at more of a discount, but this one was the last one that would fit me so I decided to pick it up.

Its cotton nylon shell, so I don't think it would that great in the rain, which isn't to important for me because I have this to wear when it rains. Its a little bulky, but I don't swim in it. It doesn't have a lining, so I can easily fit in some extra layers when it starts getting chilly. It's got a heavy duty double zipper, so you can unzip the bottom.

I think this will be fine for the early fall and maybe even past that with enough layers.

Recent Pickup: Michael Bastian Shirt

I've had my eye on this shirt for quite a while. It was a little above the price point where I'd make a move so I waited for it to come on sale so I could get it a more reasonable price (they knocked $100 off the price). I could've gambled and waited a little longer, but this was the last one in my size -- so I made my move. I got it at Holt Renfrew's summer sale. I original thought it was a chambray shirt, but its made from a cotton-linen blend. I like the work shirt details: the pockets, the buttons, the pencil thing on the arm. It reminds me of the shirts you see USN seamen wearing in those WWII movies. Although it looks like a work shirt, its cut slim. I'm not really a long-sleeve shirt during summer guy, so this probably won't see any action until September.

This Week In Music

I got a chance to listen a lot of music this week.

I started out the week with Charles Mingus "Paris TNP". This is a concert from 1971. I'm not sure if this a bootleg or a regular release. The sound quality is pretty good. This is all really solid stuff. If I had to pick a favourite, it would be the Duke Ellington Medley. I really like the album cover, check it out.

To find the Mingus I searched for Paris on my itunes. The next thing on the playlist after that was Grandaddy Black Session Le Studio 105 Maison De La Radio Paris (recorded in 23/6/03). It's a live performance on a radio show -- you can hear the host translating the singers comments to the audience into French. This is the only thing in my collection by Grandaddy. I never see anyone posting about them in the mp3 blogs that I know. Its strange because this stuff is really good. I think the band broke up a few years ago.

I also listened to RJD2 "Things Go Better Instrumentals". I have this thing for hip hop instrumental albums. I have a quite a few in my collection. This one is OK, nothing great.

DJ Shadow Endtroducing Deluxe Edition. This is great. DJ Shadow is a true artist. Apparently, this was put together with vinyl he picked up in the bargain bin. If I had to pick a favourite I would say the Number Song (Cut Chemist Party Mix). But there are quite a few standouts on this one.

I also worked my way through Little Brother "The Chittlin Circuit 1.5" and Mick Boogie and Little Brother "And Justus for All". Both of these are mixtapes. Little Brother is a crew from North Carolina. There stuff is different from most southern hip hop in that its not crunked out or like the other styles you get from the South. It can be a little jazzy at times and sometimes they like have these really lush harmonies underlying the beats. The beats are really good. An instrumental version of the Chitlin Circuit would be a nice pickup. "And Justus for All" is probably not on the same level as the Chitlin Circuit, but its still pretty good.

Last night I was listen to Dr. Octagon "Dr. Octagonecologyst". For those of you don't know this is Kool Keith from the Ultra Magnetic MCs with Dan the Automator producing. This has a really dark and sinister vibe in terms of the beats. Kool Keith's verses are all over the place, but he strings together a solid narrative. He was in Toronto a few years ago. He had a section of the stage roped off with velvet curtains. He told the audience that was the VIP section. Then he took some women out of the audience and disappeared into the VIP section for a while.

After listening to that I checked my ipod for more Dan the Automator stuff. I listened to Dan his "The Automator Presents 2K7". This is how a producer puts together an album with guest MCs. You give each of the MCs a dope beat and you tell them to structure there raps around basketball or sports. This is so good. I thought back to how disjointed Marco Polo's Port Authority was and part of it is due to the guest MCs just doing whatever. So the end result is that there is nothing there to hold the thing together.

Changing the Rating at Colborne Lane

I was chatting with one of my loyal readers the other day about my review of Colborne Lane. He raised some concerns that maybe I cut them a bit of break. After having dinner at Pastis I think he was right.

Basically the issue with Colborne Lane is the wine list. I think the markups are on the wine are pretty steep and you really don't get much in return. For example, on the high end of the list to pay something like $200-$300 for a Barolo that is only about 5 years old and will probably not get to its peak for another 10-15 years is pretty stiff. If you really want to spend a lot on wine, you're better off going somewhere else (like Splendido or Le Select Bistro) because here there doesn't seem to be a really deep set of selections on the list. Worse, spending $90 for wine that is just OK and is not noticeable better than Pastis's house wine ($20 per half-litre) is not OK. There should be more options that deliver more value for the dollar and better quality.

By comparison, Splendido (2 Bunnies) has many options that can give you an OK wine for the $45-$60 range. Jamie Kennedy restaurant (3 Bunnies) and wine bar (2 Bunnies) also has a great selection and they a much lower markup than either place and have some really good wines available at the $90 or less range.

I'm re-rating them as a 2 Bunny spot, which is still really good. It just doesn't meet the bar for 3 Bunnies. Here are the edited links to the previous two posts on the place:

http://big-bunny-bigbunny.blogspot.com/2007/05/second-visit-to-colborne-lane.html

http://big-bunny-bigbunny.blogspot.com/2007/05/drinks-at-colbourn-lane.html

Rating: 2 Bunnies

Notes on the Bunny Rating System:

• 0 or no Bunnies, it's a waste of time; don't go.
• 1 Bunny, the place is worth checking out.
• 2 Bunnies, you should go out of your way to check out the place; the food is really good and the place is cool.
• 3 Bunnies, you absolutely have to go there; the food is exceptional and the place is really cool

Dinner at Pastis

This is a bistro on Yonge street just south of the Summerhill liquor store. Its owned by an old French guy called Georges. I think the official name is Pastis Express. An earlier incarnation of the place was called Pastis, which was more of a high-end restaurant. We went on Wednesday night and it was packed when we got there for dinner at about 8:00. It was still pretty full when we left at 10:30.

The crowd is a little on the older side, but i was surprised at the number of women in there 30's that were there. Given the location its going to the local for people living in the Summerhill and Rosedale neighbourhoods, which means that most of the people who can afford the real estate around there are going to be older. I've been here a few times in the past and the crowd looks to be a pretty much the same, so its not like the place has really turned over. In keeping with the whole bistro thing, I think the atmosphere is pretty relaxed. The place was also pretty loud. I don't think they had any background music, or if they did I can't remember it.

The place isn't much to look at in the inside. I think they were going for a Provencal style interior because the walls were covered with the rough plaster work that painted a dark cream or yellow. The exact colour was a little hard to figure because it was kind of dark. There are some banquettes on the north wall and at the back of the main dining room. The rest of the room is filled with tables. I was kind of expecting a quaint fake french interior, so you like those bistros you see on the left bank in the movies. So at least the guy should get some bonus points for trying to be original.

The service was pretty good. The owner doubles as the maitre d'. I had my messenger bag with me and he asked me if I wanted it placed behind the bar. I told I would just sling it over my chair and then he suggested I use an empty chair to place it on. When we were leaving he checked to see if I had my bag (he didn't see me walk out with it). I like that kind of stuff. The waiter we had was fine. He was polite, efficient and professional. I think they had a woman working as a "bus boy", but all the waiters were males (so there were no waitresses).

The wine list has some really impressive stuff. Unfortunately, you'll probably end up paying a premium for them. The markup on the wines does seem to be a little on the high side. However, the house wine is a tremendous value. We had a half litre of both the white (a chardonnay) and the red (i forget what it was). Both of them came out to $40 and the wine tasted better than a lot stuff that is at a higher price point. For example, a few weeks ago I had a bottle of pinot noir at Colborne lane that was about $95. The house wine at Pastis was better than that bottle. So even though the bottles at Pastis can be a little pricey, the house wine tremendous value for the price (good quality for what you pay).

I had the fish soup to start. It comes with croutons, cheese and this garlic butter on the side. You can add as much as you want, so you can fix it the way you like. I especially like the garlic butter as a complement. The fish soup is tasty even without these condiments. Adding them just brings out the flavours even more.

I had the calf liver with the frites as my main. The calf liver was cooked just right. It wasn't to try and it wasn't to raw. The frites are cooked to a really crisp texture, so you can dip them in the calf liver juice and they don't get really soggy. There were some positive comments made about the steak with frites. I think that would be the can't-go-wrong-with-it item on the menu.

For desert I had the desert tasting plate. It comes with a small creme brullee, a little ice cream with chocolate and a piece of chocolate cake. All of these were good. I had a cup of coffee and it was pretty fresh. There was a favourable comment made about the cheese plate. I had a look at the cheese it looked like it was set up in an easy to understand way: so mild to sharper cheeses and fruit and enough bread.

There were three of us at dinner and we split the bill evenly 3 ways. It came out to $72 per person (starter+main+desert+house wine). I think that's a really good deal: good food and decent wine at a reasonable price. The starters are in the $10 range, except for the foie gras. The mains are in the high teens or low-20 range. The deserts are like in the $8-$10 range. The three desert sample plate I had was $10 and I think it would be the best bet for desert.

As an additional comment, I think that french bistros are dying in this city unnecessarily as people get swept up by this whole restaurant/lounge shit. It's too bad because I think the food that the bistros serve is a lot better than the stuff you see at these restaurant/lounges, or as they like to call them in this city resto lounge.

Overall, this is not a spectacular dining experience. However, they serve good food at a decent price. This a solid place that worth a visit if you don't mind the older crowd or you find yourself in the neighbourhood.

Rating: 1 Bunny

Notes on the Bunny Rating System:

• 0 or no Bunnies, it's a waste of time; don't go.
• 1 Bunny, the place is worth checking out.
• 2 Bunnies, you should go out of your way to check out the place; the food is really good and the place is cool.
• 3 Bunnies, you absolutely have to go there; the food is exceptional and the place is really cool