Food on the way . . .

Spring is coming, but not quite here. While we wait, local art galleries can give us glimpses of other worlds and ideas to brighten and enlighten our lives.

Close to home we are blessed with many galleries that make for a great outing.

Here are just a few:

The Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, located in the Centre in the Square at 101 Queen St. N., Kitchener, usually hosts travelling exhibits in its large main gallery and its Eastman gallery.

As well, there is a smaller gallery used to display works from the permanent collection of the gallery, which specializes in contemporary art.

The current main-gallery exhibition, Pandora's Box, is labelled “for mature audiences only.” It continues until March 27 and will be followed by Expressions, the gallery's annual show of works by local students, from kindergarten through Grade 12.

Admission to the gallery is free.

It's open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and 1 to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

The Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery at 25 Caroline St. N. in downtown Waterloo specializes in presenting travelling exhibits of works in clay and glass.

Sometimes the works on display tower over visitors to the gallery and sometimes they are very small.

The current exhibit, continuing to March 21, shows kilns throughout the ages and from all over the world, with tiny stick figures working at each one. Also on display are glazed cylindrical vases, higher than a man.

Admission to the gallery is $5 for adults, $3 for students and seniors. You can enter its magnificent gift shop at no cost.

The gallery is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

The Homer Watson House & Gallery at 1754 Old Mill Rd., Kitchener is a centre for regional art. It's located in the former home of painter Homer Ransford Watson (1855-1936) in the Doon area of Kitchener. The winter exhibition, continuing to March 14, is the annual juried show of the KW Society of Artists.

After March 20, there the gallery will host a multicultural show featuring three local artists.

Admission is by free-will donation. The gallery is open noon to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.

Gallery on the Grand is a spacious gallery with a new home at 580 Lancaster St. W. in the Bridgeport area of Kitchener. Contemporary works by local and international artists are shown in pleasant surroundings. Unlike the other galleries described here, it is privately owned.

It's open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

The Macdonald Stewart Art Centre at 358 Gordon St., Guelph is at the edge of the University of Guelph. The grounds feature 35 sculptures from the centre's Donald Forster Collection.

Inside the building, originally the first comprehensive school in Ontario, are seven galleries on three floors. Currently there are three travelling shows: Natalka Husar: Burden of Innocence, until April 18; Gunilla Josephson: E.V.E. Absolute Matrix, to April 4; and Risking the Void: Cameron Porteus' scene sets, to April 4.

The gallery has several outstanding works by Canadian artists and is known internationally for its collection of Inuit drawings. An excellent gallery shop sells both original art and prints. Entrance to the centre is by donation. It's open noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.

Cambridge Galleries incorporates exhibition spaces in the Cambridge Public Library buildings at 435 King St. E., Preston and at 1 North Sq. on Queen's Square in downtown Galt, plus an exhibition space called Design at Riverside that is in the University of Waterloo School of Architecture building at 7 Melville St. S., close to the Queen's Square gallery.

Reflecting the fact that Cambridge was once a centre of textile manufacturing, Cambridge Galleries has a large collection of modern fibre works.

The current display from the permanent collection at Design at Riverside, continuing to April 11, is a fine opportunity to see these works.

The Queen's Square gallery will show works by elementary students from the Cambridge area from March 13 to 28 and the Preston gallery will feature works by the Cambridge group Studio 30 from March 20 to April 25.

Admission to gallery exhibits is free.

 • An outing to any of the above galleries can give you a new outlook on the world through an artist's perspective. And there are many more area galleries that deserve a look.

For online links to the websites of several area galleries and artists, visit www.therecord.com/community/web_directory/artists_galleries.html

 • Casa Mia Deli & Cafe:

7 Father David Bauer Dr., Waterloo, near the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery. (519-725-2272). Deli sandwiches, soups, grilled pannini and sushi. Daily specials. Open 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and 9 a.m.

to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

 • Melville Cafe: 7 Melville St. S., Cambridge, inside the UW School of Architecture. (519-624-3984) Salads and sweets, gourmet teas, soups and sandwiches. Open 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Friday; 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends. 10 per cent off for seniors on Wednesdays.  • Cherry Blossom Restaurant:

86 Gordon St. at Wellington, Guelph. (519-821-8204). Thai-Vietnamese Food. Good lunch prices. Bubble tea. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.