Friday Five: Back in the Highlights Again

This week's Friday Five:

1. What was your highlight in dining for 2016? Oh, god, so many highlights:
   
   
   • The massive porterhouse steak and buttermilk fried cauliflower at Harbour Sixty
   • The truffle mac and cheese and "Donald" Eggs Benedict (soft poached egg and duck confit on top of jalapeño applewood cheddar biscuits with truffled hollandaise) at Prohibition Gastrohouse
   • The gnocchi with vodka sauce at That's Italian Express
   • The butter tarts, pecan tarts, lemon curd tarts, and salted caramel custard tarts at The Little Tart in Haliburton
   • The Thanksgiving Waffle from Fran's at The Ex
   • The baked goat cheese and Nico pappardelle with veal at Grazie Ristorante
   • The pork tenderloin with caramelized onions, sweet peas, and potatoes at Five Doors North
   • The Waff Out Loud (soy marinated strip steak and crispy chicken with ginger maple and spicy berry compote on a homemade waffle) and Smoked Ribs & Fried Cheese from Inspire
   • The entire chef's tasting menu at Aburiya Kinnosuke in NYC
   • The porterhouse steak and creamed spinach at Wolfgang's Steakhouse in NYC
   • The Maine blueberry pancakes with maple butter and brioche French toast with caramelized bananas and roasted pecans at Clinton Street Baking Company in NYC
   • The "Sweet-Savoury-Crunchy" Eggs Benedict at L'Avenue in Montreal
   • The tasting menu at Bonaparte in Old Montreal
   
   
2. What was your highlight in relationships for 2016? No romantic relationships for me this year, but I made some wonderful friendships with some of my colleagues, and have created stronger bonds with old friends.
   
   
3. What was your highlight in entertainment for 2016? I went to some truly amazing concerts this year, including Lindsey Stirling at the Sony Centre, Deftones at International Centre, and Metric at Air Canada Centre (where I actually got to meet them and go on stage with a bunch of other VIPs to sing "Dreams So Real" with them!).
   
   
4. What was your highlight in self-improvement for 2016? I like to think I've learned how to be a more effective leader, a more creative makeup artist, and a more respected manager this year.
   
   
5. What was your highlight in completing something for 2016? Well, I worked hard to get promoted this year, and ended up getting promoted twice, so I like to think that I completed my major career-related goals this year.