Food’s Greatest Stage: Loblaws at Maple Leaf Gardens

The Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens entrance and "HMR" zone.
Photo by Derek Flack, blogTO

We read advertisements... to discover and enlarge our desires. We are always ready—even eager—to discover, from the announcement of a new product, what we have all along wanted without really knowing it.  — Daniel J. Boorstin 

I tried to hate you, Loblaws, but you’re just too damn good.

When you bought Maple Leaf Gardens, “Canada’s most famous building,” in 2004, like many Canadians, I was horrified, outraged. Though I hate hockey, gutting this hallowed space to install a grocery store sounded like sticking a Wal-Mart in the Taj Mahal. But your siren charms have overwhelmed me. As your opening date approached last fall, I found myself growing more excited. What marvels might you showcase in all that space?  

When I finally entered through the main doors a few months later (I don't line up at 8 a.m. for too much anymore), you bewitched me with an adult Disney World of endless culinary possibility. Soaring ceilings and original cement walls whispered of the cathedral-like space of the original Gardens, a feeling enhanced by a leaf wall sculpture of blue stadium seats, huge murals honouring this sacred temple and its hockey heroes, and natural light flowing through large windows. 

Photo by Derek Flack, blogTO

Loblaw Inc.

Moving further into the store, I was greeted with several strong sensory triggers: fresh flowers and plants were displayed, garden-like, in the entryway and along the main east–west aisle, as well as throughout the fresh-food section. Directly ahead were the powerful sights, sounds, and smells of fresh-cooked food. The employees call this the HMR (“home meal replacement”) department, and it comprises a pizza and pasta bar, a sandwich counter, and a hot entrée area, heaven for the increasing numbers of harried urbanites who like fresh food but don’t cook. In an open area behind the HMR, long wooden tables covered in historical collages of the athletes, musicians, and politicians who have taken centre ice invite communal dining. Everywhere there are fresh, delicious, and colourful things to eat. It’s a bustling area, with chefs and servers waiting on lines of customers, and shoppers darting deeper into the store’s spacious aisles. Busy equals successful, busy equals quality, busy equals good.

Endless bounty in the the fresh-market area.
Photo by Derek Flack, blogTO 

Every department in the “fresh zone” is like a stand-alone shop, with its own design and materials. Huge wall signage announces the Deli, Patisserie, Grill, Canteen, Sushi, Bakery, “Fishmonger,” and Butcher sections. Steel on concrete, wood on wood panel, neon on white subway tiles, even letters etched on glass give each department its own identity. Some are actual stores-within-the-store, such as the Sushi Bar run by T&T Supermarkets, and the Ace Artisan Bakery. No grocery aisles or frozen foods are readily visible from here; these more pedestrian areas are all hidden “backstage,” away from the fresh-food mainstage.

Loblaw Inc.

The overall effect is of a glitzier, cleaner, more upscale St. Lawrence-style indoor market. The signage and displays emphasize the freshness, variety, healthfulness, and abundance of the food. I notice there are few gaps in the shelves or displays, as though a silent alarm instantly alerts the staff to any display that needs re-stocking. Abundance is the norm. 

This is grocery store as theatre, as spectacle. The glossy in-store magazine breathlessly describes the store’s wonders (“food experiences beyond imagination” and “international delights” are all “under one legendary roof”), with sideshow hyperbole: “See culinary masterpieces come to life before your very eyes,” it cries. “Witness the amazing 18-foot-high wall of cheese...Buy chocolate chiseled by the chunk...Revel in the bounteous takeaway options...Breathe in the smell of good things baking...ogle meat options beyond compare...!” An old-time carnival barker couldn’t have said (or sold) it better. 

Cooks prep meals in the in-store kitchens above the ACE Bakery outlet.
Loblaw Inc.

The magazine offers tips for healthier choices (all PC products, of course), and helpful advice from the in-store pharmacist and dietitian. This store doesn’t just want to sell you soup and crackers, it wants to improve your life. There are services aplenty: a cooking school, pharmacy, medical clinic, dry cleaner, PC Financial, Joe Fresh, and LCBO. There is live music and dance. Food and drink, health care, clothes, entertainment, a bank....Is this a store, or the village Hillary said it would take to raise me? Am I home?

One (slightly creepy) aspect of all this perfection struck me on a recent visit: I slowly realized as I trolled the more traditional grocery aisles that all the shelves were perfectly "faced": in other words, there were no items missing. I looked around me but didn't notice any restockers, elfin or otherwise. I suddenly got that weird, I'm-being-watched feeling as I reached for the Triscuits. Was the stock being replenished automatically by merchandising robots humming away behind the rows of boxes and cans? Or were there hundreds of CCTV cameras monitoring our every selection, sending signals to teams of stockboys standing at the ready? Aisle after aisle was like this. It became a challenging game to find a "missing tooth" in the displays. Out and out creepy, I tell ya'.

As area councillor Kyle Rae promised, the new Maple Leaf Gardens seems to have had a rejuvenating effect on the fading Church and Wellesley Village community. It appeals to the discriminating, the moneyed, those who know how to choose well—or at least those willing to learn. As a supervisor told me, the goal is to provide an experience “like nothing you’ve ever seen,” a place offering knowledgeable staff and unparalleled choice. 

Loblaws at Maple Leaf Gardens offers a new way to belong. I can be a better person here, make better choices, see new things, learn new skills. How can my needs not be met in a place of such abundance? This is a community, one I want to join: I can lunch with friends, be entertained, I have room to move freely, I’m catered to and cared for, I’m welcome. 

Who wouldn’t buy in to that? 

Small Slices of the Big Apple

Photo: The High Line, 10th Avenue Square. Photo by Iwan Baan

A non–bird's-eye view of the same location.
Photo by Flickr user korpics
(See more images here, and check out the rest of the High Line’s Flickr pool.)

When a client recently told me she was taking her NYC-virgin husband to the Big Apple for his birthday, as a card-carrying, stalker-level fan of the city, I couldn’t resist sending along some suggestions. They planned to arrive mid-day Thursday, and leave Sunday afternoon, so any in-depth exploration was unlikely on such a short timeline. Instead, I e-mailed a selection of notes, links, and other random suggestions (all fun; some free!) collected from my own visits, and I thought I'd share them with (both of) you. At the risk of sounding a little like Stefon, the New York City correspondent Bill Hader does on SNL's Weekend Update ("New York's hottest club is..."), here's my selection of bite-sized NYC hors d'oeuvres:

My clients were lucky enough to be staying at the Plaza (!!) an experience I can only dream of, so they were beautifully situated to take full advantage of the crown jewel of the city, Central Park. Like other major NYC attractions, the park is too big to bite off much at once, but I suggested they try to ramble through as many parts as they could.

The lovely Bow Bridge in Central Park

Next on the list is a recent contender in the green-oasis category, The High Line, a new park built on a decommissioned elevated freight railway that snakes up the west side of Manhattan for almost 23 blocks. Opened in 2009, the park has been constructed in sections. A citizens’ group saved the structure and secured it as a public park; in combination with the N.Y. Department of Parks and Recreation they are currently working on the third and final segment. A quick scan of the High Line web site and blog will give you some idea of the mind-boggling range of experiences and activities available, as well as the positive change that can happen when passionate citizens organize with a clear goal.

The High Line at dusk

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) is a must, of course, but any attempt to take it all in at one go does both this venerable venue and the visitor a disservice. My suggestion for first-timers is to take the excellent hour-long highlights tour, offered daily by keen and knowledgeable docents who will give you a digestible sampling of the Met’s many delights, saving you that horrible “I ate the whole thing” feeling. A bonus at the Met is that admission is basically pay-what-you-can; they have a “recommended entry fee” of $25 for adults (kids under 12 are free), but if you can tolerate the evil eye of the cashier, you can pay whatever your budget allows.

New York City has many world famous museums, but it’s also stuffed with smaller, quirkier versions. A favourite of mine is the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side, an area itself worth a wander, especially streets such as Orchard, lined with quirky milliners' and haberdashers' shops. There’s a lovely cafe, 88 Orchard, on the corner of Orchard and Broome.

Another is the medieval Cloisters Museum, also part of the Met; though it’s quite a hike to the north, it’s worth it, and the views over the Hudson from the terrace are spectacular.

It can take some trial-and-error getting used to, but in my opinion the transit system itself (the Metropolitan Transportation Authority [MTA]) is one of the must-see’s of the city. If you stay above ground in cabs and on the sidewalks, you haven’t really “done” New York! Many of the stations are decorated in gorgeous mosaics, there’s always some kind of performance going on underground, and the size and complexity of the whole thing are boggling. And contrary to their general reputation, I’ve found New Yorkers to be extremely helpful and tolerant of hopelessly lost tourists, often approaching to offer assistance as I’m standing on the platform trying to make sense of my transit map.

"Shad Crossing," by mosaic artist Ming Fay, part of the Delancey St. station.

Despite its sometimes overwhelming size, New York is really like a Met museum of distinctive neighbourhoods. To avoid overwhelming yourself, pick a few and explore. Perennial favourites such as Greenwich Village, Soho, and Chelsea rarely disappoint. Jump on the subway downtown, get out at Houston or Christopher St. and just wander. Stop by the famous Magnolia Bakery at Bleecker and 11th and pick up something nummy to scarf down in the shady park across the street.

There are also a few cool "restaurant row" kind of streets a little further south; e.g., Thompson St., south of Washington Square, where you'll find cute little Porto Bello Restaurant, among others. I ventured to Porto Bello on my own one evening and was waited on hand and foot by a team of charming Italian waiters—does it get any better?

First-timers will want to check out the iconic Times Square, for sure, but don't get stuck eating in the heavily touristy area that surrounds it; mediocre, chain-restaurant food and high prices are all you’ll find. Nearby there are lots of excellent and competitive independent restaurants, all along the inappropriately named Hell's Kitchen section of 9th Avenue, from about 50th or 52nd down to 42nd or so. Many NYC places allow you to book ahead using OpenTable, which is a handy service if you're short on time. Two Hell's Kitchen favourites of mine are Pietrasanta, on the corner of 9th and 47th, and Fragolino, between 45th and 46th. (As you can tell, I'm a fan of la cucina Italiana—or maybe it's those waiters again!)

Nearby (W. 46th) there's a fun cabaret bar—very Manhattan-slash-struggling-performer—called Don't Tell Mama. A good after-theatre drinks option, if you're up for that.

There's certainly no shortage of storied, over-the-top experiences available in the Big Apple, but if you’re looking for O.T.T., special-occasion kitsch, and have saved up some cash for a blow-out meal, I recommend the Russian Tea Room. Weekday lunches are usually not busy, the place is slathered in gold leaf and red vinyl, and they have a flight of vodkas that will prep you for viewing the bizarre giant glass bear aquarium and "Fabergé egg" trees in the mirrored dining room upstairs, if you can talk them into showing it to you.

Want a break from Manhattan? If you have time, I highly recommend hopping across the East River and exploring Brooklyn. The Park Slope area to the west of Prospect Park (another gorgeous Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted effort by the architects of Central Park—I rode the 100-year-old Carousel there last year!) offers street after street of gorgeous brownstones with a lively commercial stretch along 5th Ave. for dining and shopping. Nearby are some worthy cultural institutions, including the sleek art deco Brooklyn Library, the breathtaking Brooklyn Botanic Garden (a favourite of borough brides), and the excellent Brooklyn Museum (which also operates on a “suggested contribution” entry system).

 The enchanting Bluebell Wood at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
Photo by Rebecca Bullene.

But my heart belongs to the historic Brooklyn Heights neighbourhood. A north-to-south amble along these streets clustered in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge, or even better, down the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, lands you on gorgeous Remsen St. or lively Montague. Stop by Connecticut Muffin on Montague for a rejuvenating snack.

The Brooklyn Heights Promenade. Sure, there's an amazing view of lower Manhattan to the west, but I prefer peeking into the historic townhouses on the east!

Finally, here’s a list of some more free NYC activities:

• Exploring Central Park and Prospect Park
• Watching the street performers/acrobats at the southeastern corner of Central Park, in Times Square, and in the park near City Hall
• Strolling across the Brooklyn Bridge
• Taking the Staten Island Ferry out past the Statue of Liberty (just turn around on arrival at the far end and get right back on).
• Visiting the exuberant Flatiron Building and the nearby Eataly market/store by Mario Batali

I also enjoy exploring the grand and boutique hotels and their opulently decorated—and suitably hushed—bars, especially the oldest grande-dame ones near Central Park, such as the Carlyle, home of the famous murals in the Café Carlyle and Bemelman’s, or the St. Regis, which features Maxfield Parrish’s version of Old King Cole in the bar of the same name. I may not be able to book, but I can look!

 The Café Carlyle, stomping ground of Woody Allen and the late, great Bobby Short, with murals by artist Marcel Vertés.

Ah, New York. Whether I devour you, core and all, or sample you in dainty bites, you’re always a remarkably tasty snack.