The Flying Banzini

Today I officially taste test my first restaurant recipe…; For a long time I have said, I will smoke two kinds of meat: pork and turkey. Why limit myself? Probably I will smoke more than that. And, what should the sandwiches my called? I don’t like #1, #2, etc. They should have names. Right now […]

The difficulty of being a restaurant… My brother-in-law and his wife are visiting from Alberta. Last night we went for supper to Mambo Nuevo Latino in the Byward Market. Some parts of our dining experience were brilliant. Our server was fantastic. She was knowledgeable and personable. My appetizer, gazpacho, was delicious. And, my entrée was […]

Here is my starting take on the menu… Daily, we season and smoke our own pork and turkey. We make and smoke our own sausage. We make our own gelato. I am leaning away from build your own. Instead there will be a short lunch and supper menu. There will be a choice of breads: […]

The Flying Banzini is not fine dining. But, I want it to be nice, warm, inviting, and interesting. I have become obsessed with flooring. My requirements are: (1) Hardy — must stand up to the punishment of being in a commercial space;(2) Easy to clean — my restaurant will always be clean. This is very […]

Why am I opening a restaurant? Great question. I have limited business experience – I did create the Canadian Poker Tour and publish two different magazines, but that’s about it. Rather, almost all of my significant experience is as a radio personality or, dare I say it, as an entertainer. And this is why I […]

Why kind of restaurant am I going to open? That’s the question I get the most often. The answer is, “I’m not sure.” I do have some ideas, though. I do know a couple of things: I do not have $1 million to spend. So, it will be a modest start. And, I need the […]

I moved to Ottawa one year ago. For six months, I looked for work in radio but I didn’t find any. This was, for a long time, really disappointing. Even depressing. I love radio. And, I think I am a pretty compelling radio host. Nobody here seems to feel that way, though, so the quest […]