As the city prepared for upwards of 20 CM of snow for the 3rd time in the last ten days, I couldn’t help but think of a few advantages of living in a condo instead of a house.

However, there is one thing that nobody would expect either a condo-owner or home-owner to do in this weather…

….Barbecue!

Before I purchased my King’s Court condo last Spring, I had actually showed the unit to my friend Pete and told him that he should buy the unit and never look back.

I told him about the sweet patio and asked him if he would make use of it by barbecuing, and he replied, “Hmmmm……yes, but probably only for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”

Point taken.

Last night, as I drove home through the blizzard that had engulfed Toronto, I only had one thing on my mind…

STEAK!

Yes, Tuesday night is usually my steak night, and my mouth watered at the idea of a juicy New York Tenderloin fresh from the grill.

But what about the snow?

SNOW!

There’s was already 10 CM on the ground, and you could barely see twenty feet in front of you due to the thick white flakes falling from every direction.

Well, let me put it this way: I have yet to make a steak in my kitchen oven, and I’ll be damned if a little precipitation is going to get in between me and my Broil Mate.

I have a very unique condo that is 585 square feet, and for some reason comes with a massive 440 square foot patio.  In recent weeks, I have excluded all but about 30 square feet of that patio, as I have pulled my BBQ right next to the back doorway of my condo.

I took the snow brush out of my car when I pulled into the underground parking garage, and used it to remove the few pounds of snow from atop my BBQ.  I then shoveled a small area between my door and my BBQ so I could cook without dragging snow inside.

Now, some people may call me crazy for barbecuing in a -15 degree snowstorm with wind gusts up to 25 KM/H, but I say they are crazy to spoil a perfectly good piece of beef by putting it in the oven and turning the dial to “broil.”

You know what else is crazy?

Not properly marinating!

If you’re gonna do it, do it right!  That’s what I say!

The difficult part of preparing any meal is timing.  It’s tough to ensure that your rice, broccoli, and steak are all ready at the same time, especially when you’re using your stove, microwave, and BBQ!

As I raced back and forth from the frigid outdoors to the now-lukewarm interior to ensure everything was cooking in unison, I could hear the wind howling from outside.  The inside/outside contrast had a heaven/hell type feel to it, since wearing my hoooded-fleece meant I would overheat in my kitchen but chatter my teeth as I checked on my steak outside.

When it came time to flip my steak, I realized the wind had blown my tongs into the snowbank!  I would have to use my bare hands…

…PERFECT!

Who ever said barbecuing in -15 degree weather when you can barely get the Broil Mate up to 400-degrees is tough?

Everything was coming along nicely, except for my exposed skin, which was really starting to feel the snow.  I was toughing it out, and that’s when the unthinkable happened:

A huge clump of snow fell from a balcony above me, and landed right on my head!  What’s worse, is that I didn’t have my hood on, and the snow went down the back of my neck.  MAN!  Don’t we all hate that feeling?  That cold snow hitting your neck, then making its way through your shoulder-blades and into the small of your back?

I was kinda chilly by this point…

But did I regret the decision to barbecue in the blizzard?

Not on your life!

The timer for my rice went off just as I heard the final sizzzzle of my steak on the grill, and I knew it was time.

A few minutes later, I cut into my juicy 14-oz steak to find a warm pink centre; a delicious medium-rare, and not a minute overcooked.

Living in a house versus a condo has many advantages, and vice versa.

When making the move from house to condo, frequent barbecuing is one of the luxuries that most people are forced to give up.  Many condominiums prohibit BBQ’s, and some condos don’t have outdoor space at all!

I made a decision early on that I would refuse to move into a condo without a space where I could cook beef, pork, chicken, or fish over an open flame on a regular basis, and I honestly think it’s the best decision I ever made.

Oh, yeah….not having to shovel your driveway, porch, sidewalk is also a plus, and parking underground means never getting up early to brush the snow the winshield or “warm up the car.”

But the barbecuing…..that is the biggest advantage.

Next time you are sitting at home wearing your slippers and drinking hot cocoa on a cold, snowy night, just picture me outside on my patio, trembling as I reach over and press the ignitor button on my BBQ…