Kid friendly Crumsby’s Cupcake Café: Estevan Village

Crumsby's Cupcake Cafe

image credit: Mama in the City

While recently shopping at Estevan Village (2500 block Estevan Avenue) with a friend and her little girl I got the chance to visit Crumbsy’s Cupcake Cafe. I have wanted to try this new cafe since earlier this past summer I spotted its sign advertising cupcakes and its pretty, seaside holiday inspired decor. My long anticipated visit lived up to my expectations. When we stepped inside we found customers sipping tea served in brightly coloured ForLife teapots while lounging pretty outdoor style furniture finished in matt white paint. The holiday furniture is beautifully complemented by the brightly painted blue and yellow walls and the whimsical decorations, such as the tin picture above, perched on shelves.

Tea is served in cute ForLife Teapots

As the name of this cafe suggests Crumsby’s sell a range of cupcakes – in child and adult flavors – as well as mini-muffins in interesting flavors (raspberry oatmeal and lavender lemon). My friend and I both choose a mini-cakes which were delicious while my friend’s little girl had a healthier muffin.

For parents a highlight of Crumsby’s is the play area located  on one side of the cafe. A lot of thought has obviously gone into this space which is furnished with beautiful wooden toys, a large chalkboard and child sized furniture. While my friend and I chatted, drank tea and munched our lovely cup-cakes her little girl played very cheerfully. Indeed she was having so much fun when she thought her mum was coming over to take her home she bolted to the other side of the cafe. What ensued was a very amusing chase around the cafe until eventually the little run away was captured. Luckily for her it wasn’t time to head home. It was muffin time!And she seemed to enjoy the muffin very much. It seems that this little girl is not the only one to appreciate the play area as the cafe was mainly packed with mums and dads with little ones.

While Crumsby’s has many attractions for parents it is definitely a place that the childless will also enjoy. If you want to see a little more of the charms you can check out some lovely pics of the cafe interior and its changing flower displays taken by one of the women who works at the cafe. (see FlickR) or just check out the cafe itself, with or without a little one in tow!

image credit: Mama in the City

Details:

Crumsby’s Cupcake Café 250-595-2221. 2509 Estevan Ave.

Visit sunwing farms!

Tomato, basil and ricotta salad

Sun Wing farms, growers of fabulous tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers a( and a few other things) will be closing for the winter in a bit over a month. If you get a chance I’d suggest heading out there and picking up a selection of their lovely tomatoes for some late summer salads. Find out more about sunwing at: http://www.sunwingtomatoes.ca/

Some cucumber and tomato salad recipes (based on NY times 101 salad ideas)

Cube watermelon and combine with tomato chunks, basil and basic vinaigrette.

Mix wedges of tomatoes and peaches, add slivers of red onion, a few red-pepper flakes and cilantro. Dress with olive oil and lime or lemon juice.

Slice cucumbers thin, toss with red onions and salt, then let sit for 20 to 60 minutes. Rinse, dry, dress with cider vinegar mixed with Dijon mustard; no oil necessary.

Cook whole grape tomatoes in olive oil over high heat until they brown lightly, sprinkling with curry powder. Cool a bit, then toss with chopped arugula, loads of chopped mint and lime juice.

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/01/18/5-farmers-markets/

THE ROAD TO CANTERBURY- ends Aug 1

The guys who did Grimm Tales last year are this year doing The Road to Canterbury which they describe as a”modern-day re-imagining of The Canturbury Tales (by Grimm Tales author Sebastien Archibald).” The play takes place in Mt. Douglas Park and the audience follows the cast around the park as they tell five re-imaginings of The Canturbury Tales.  This play is extremely well done and very, very funny. I would thoroughly recommend going to see it. It ends Aug 1 so hurry! All details are at:

http://www.itsazoo.org/home.htm

AAGGV – World upside down until Aug 30

We saw this exhibition at the recent Urbanite at the AGGV. I was a little disappointed at how small the exhition was but nevertheless I would say it is definitely worth a visit. There are a number of high quality work that are very interesting. One that I keep coming back to in my mind is Planet of the Apes. Currently many of friends are travelling around the world on  holidays and seeking an authentic [insert name of country’ experience. Planet of the apes questions what it might mean to experience authentic national dress, or costume or custom.

• World Upside Down June 5, 2009 to August 30, 2009 The World Upside Down is one in which the symbolic order is turned on its head. It is a world visualized by artists where killer rabbits hunt humans and Superman is a hero of the Soviet Union. It is the Planet of the Apes and a planet where British aristocrats lose their heads when they find themselves dressed in “African” fabrics. In each symbolic inversion an artist turns a hierarchical dichotomy on its head illuminating and challenging the visual conventions that maintain social order. In most cases the dichotomy itself breaks down under the strain of its own absurdity and we are liberated through this particular form of satire. When power relations are suddenly turned on their head, we have the opportunity to recognize that some behaviours that we take to be natural and necessary are merely conventional. For this reason, contemporary artists using inversion tend to seek out existing hierarchy, often satirizing the most venerated works in the Western canon. This exhibition also extends out into public spaces to include a commissioned billboard by Terrance Houle (with Jarusha Brown) who use photography and video to parody the complexities of contemporary Aboriginal identity. In his Urban Indian Series, Houle depicts himself going about the tasks of daily life – shopping for groceries, working at the office – while dressed in his powwow regalia, highlighting the perceived but far from actual schism between traditional Indigenous identity and contemporary life. World Upside Down is curated by Richard William Hill, organized by the Walter Phillips Gallery, The Banff Centre and produced in collaboration with the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, and the Musée d’art de Joliette. This exhibition is presented with the support of the Museums Assistance Program of the Canadian Department of Heritage, the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts. CASTING CALL Presented as part of the exhibition, Terrance Houle’s public performance, Casting Call, involves Aboriginal collaborators “auditioning” for roles in famous Hollywood westerns. Responding to the Hollywood practice of casting white actors in “Indian” roles, Houle’s performance undergoes this convention, humorously destroying the credibility of Hollywood stereotypes in the process.
  See http://aggv.bc.ca/current+exhibitions.aspx#2129 for more details.