Tag Archives: Circusjo

Jul 22 2012

a moment of Silence,please

We recently found out one of the best burger joints in the city (Toronto) closed its doors:(

The GrindHouse Burger Bar on King St. near Spadina.

Rumor has it you have closed your doors..is it true?

Damn, they had one of the best in the city.

We were lucky enough to get to showcase them last year when we were first starting out. GrindHouse  brothers Rob and Tim Pettigrew, and Mark Matusiak  owners/chefs  prided themselves on having all their menu items made in house and free of refined sugars and preservatives.The burger meat was ground on the premises,naturally raised and hormone, antibiotic and GMO free.They also prided themselves on catering to those who were gluten intolerant. And if that wasn’t enough, going above and beyond they also made their own condiments and toppings that you could also buy a few jars to take home with you.

It wasn’t a typical burger joint.With a stage,sound system and lighting,the place was also home to many aspiring karaoke stars and comedians.

So let’s backtrack a bit.

It was the early summer of 2011 when I wrangled up 4 Broads who brought their sassy selves and healthy appetites to The GrindHouse. The *Burger Broads* were new on the scene and they were our 3rd place to showcase. In good faith I had hired a videographer/editor to do his magic.The shoot went well, the burgers were amazing and Rob was charming, gracious, passionate and funny.The camera loved him!

However, 1 month went by, then 2 , then 5 and I still wasn’t able to acquire the finished copy of the video.When push came to shove it turned out he hadn’t even begun editing so I asked for the footage and i would do it myself. Well, he sent the footage but whatever format he used I couldn’t see it.It was a lost cause. I still had photos albeit not that many.For some reason the photographer was selective about what photos he gave me.

The lost cause ended up being a valuable learning lesson.I no longer source out and trust people I don’t know.The filming is now done by myself or husband and the photos are taken by either by my husband, one of our own Broads, CircusJo and or/a close friend. And it’s been working out great.

The turn around and delivery is much quicker and I’m also becoming a better director and editor..although editing isn’t my forte, it is fun and makes me crazy when I’m in the throes of it..

There is no better way to learn than by just doing it.

It turned out the videographer was of the shady sort and months later when i was contacted by the police to find out what my relationship was with him, I found out I wasn’t the only one  part of a bigger scam and that he had also been to court for an alleged shooting. OY!  I am usually persistent until I get what I want but this time around I am glad I dropped the ball 5 months later and let it go.

We don’t want and don’t need that kind of bullshit around here!

One afternoon earlier this Spring, I met up with  editor, KJ Mullins of News4U.net after a conversation on twitter about the top 5 burgers in Toronto.We decided but of course to hash it out over a burger at GrindHouse with but of course GrindHouse being on the list.After much deliberation we came to the decision and then I pinned her with a button and made her an honorary Burger Broad.

Afterwards, I met with Rob and told him what had gone down and he was more than happy to let us come and do it again.. except, well it didn’t happen.Through the course of figuring out a date and waiting for a reply we found out that they had closed their doors.

So here it is.. a shout out to a great burger and a great joint that will be sorely missed.

These are just some photos (by Steve Oakley) of days gone by, burgers loved and Burgasms had.

In Burgers We Trust,

Ms.D-Madame of The BroadHouse

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Apr 23 2012

Circusjo’s Society of Burgers

Hello Burgertonics!

I’ve taken it upon myself to devise the first ever Society of Burgers, conspicuously known as (SOB). A place of higher consciousness in terms of finding the true meaning of life thru burgers. As you know, I’ve been on a long and weary journey but it has taught me great things. From my notes from near and far, I now take you on another kind of journey, a journey of enlightenment and realization thru….The Book of Burgerology!

I have categorized, what i believe to be the 6 most common personality traits, based on the way we dress and luv our burgers.

How do you dress your burger? Are you one of these personalities?
Where do you fit in?

Read on and let us know where you squat. Or, do you think you have a personality type that isn’t on our curriculum yet, then let us know, if it’s a fit we’ll add it.

Join The Society! A Call to Arms….

The SOB needs your interaction! We want to know which personality type reigns supreme.  So, rally up the troops and get recruited! Leave us your email addy and we will send you an official SOB e-badge. This elite club is privy to meet -ups, eat-outs, burger challenges and gatherings hosted by the broads…..lucky you!! Summers just ahead and that means BBQ’s, Burgers, and Patios…get on board with the broads…you know you want to!

More from the Society….The Book of Beast Meats

The next interactive chapter of SOB…What’s your beast meat? I’ll take a look at the various types of beast meats such as beef, turkey, lamb burgers etc and the personality types who luv them!

Now lets see where you fit in!…….

The Book of Burgerality

The Nudist: The bare bones of burger personalities. Adds nothing, wants nothing.  They take naturalistic pleasures to the extreme; uninhibited to the exposed flavours of their manifesto meat sandwich. Usually found to be  intelligent and discerning but heavily lack imagination and creativity.

The Nerd: likes to play it safe by adding only one or two toppings to their beast-meat. They would luv to break out and explore more toppings but are painfully shy and may need much encouragement from others outside of their own group. Unfortunately, most in this group lack the balls needed to move past this stage. The Nerd’s best bet is to hook up with a Partier…trust me!

The Worker: This personality type plays it safe by only playing within the classic and basic toppings such as ketchup, mustard, lettuce etc. They are people of consistency and order. Their only adventurous play comes with mixing and matching the order of toppings, but it always ends up tasting the same. They relish in a life of uniformity and predictability and wouldn’t change it for nothing…..unless otherwise told to do so.

The Showoff: These attention craving hamburglars luv it hottt!..or think they do. With clenched cheeks and watery eyes they take no prisoners…because they can’t breath or see…and are most likely to disappear soon after a meal to a quieter and more comfortable private space so they can reflect on what they just did to themselves, then promise themselves that they won’t do that again, but they are helpless against their own egos. They are wannabe dare-devils who, if not careful, could easily crash & burn.

The Partier: they luv to take chances and will try anything at least once! They have no fear and luv to ketchup with what’s trending and new. They like to think of themselves as ‘out of the box thinkers’ and are very socially motivated. This personality type is somewhat outspoken and impulsive and sometimes could be confused with the Showoff. The Partier is carefree and loose minded, experiencing a lot in short bursts…. but forgetting most of it by morning.

The Extremist: the ‘no holds bar’ personality type. They are not only willing to try anything and everything, all the time, day or night, rain or shine…all you have to do is dare them… but they show no shame in combining items that would make the Nudists recoil in horror and make the Partiers look like amateurs. They live always on the toasted, crumbly edge of life and luv to grind it out with other like minded individuals, trying to always ‘up’ their game.

So there you have it! Don’t forget to leave your type with us and if you would like to be a member of the SOB Society, then you know what to do!

Circusjo..