REVIEW: 2016 TASTE OF TORONTO with Kevin Brazolot and Deb Draper
Each of the 21 restaurant hot spots produced their succulent masterpieces by mimicking (on a smaller scale) their restaurants, offering samples or full plate services, with well over 70 unique dishes in total to try from Toronto’s finest dining venues, click here to see all restaurants that participated http://tasteoftoronto.com/restaurants It does get expensive, but that is – in my opinion – part of the experience and what keeps quality high. No food and wine festival is ever cheap. With well over 200 artisans in the market place to sample and purchase products, we did not have far to go as the booths were strategically placed and fully wheelchair accessible with reasonable pricing.
Friday – Nota Bene & Soyrizo Vegan Tacos with sunflower sourcream, NB sriracha, corriander and sprouts (416) 977-6400 Chef David Lee is the third generation in a family line of Chefs. In August 2008, David opened Nota Bene, which became an instant success and was quickly awarded “Best New Restaurant” by both Toronto Life and enRoute Magazine. One year after opening Nota Bene, David was named the winner of the Toronto edition Gold Metal Plate in 2009. He has since become the sole owner of Nota Bene and re-launched the restaurant with a brand-new look, concept and menu in February 2016.
http://www.notabenerestaurant.com
Friday – Barque
Deb sampled State Fair Corn Dog with corn relish and curried mustard from the
new addition to Roncesvalles, located at the corner of Geoffery @ 299 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2M3 This is a classic southern barbecue, crafted cocktails, and seasonal desserts. The word’s out, so plan ahead make a reservation. smoke@barque.ca (416) 532-7700 http://barque.ca/smokehouse
Saturday we visited Tropic Love drink stand of pure organic fresh fruit smoothies. You simply choose from fresh pineapple, watermelon and coconut water, then they blend with ice right on the spot, with no additional sugars or additives and serve in its festive fruit complete with an umbrella topper. Tropic Love Concessions is all about letting you get some TLC. They are all about health and happiness and offer healthy products to market-goers across Canada. this year to see for yourself click http://www.tropicloveconcessions.com
emanuel.kats@tropicloveconcessions.com
Next, Kevin Brazolot stopped at Richmond Station where Kevin sampled the delicious
STN. BURGER featuring lettuce, beet chutney, aged cheddar, milk bun, rosemary fries, dill pickle & an onion ring. Deb and Kevin indulged in Richmond Station’s Organic Cappachino Ice Cream with a fresh waffle cone (his 1 to my 2). You can stop in and visit their location at 1 Richmond St W in Toronto and let Chef Carl Heinrich create your one of a kind plate. He was a winner of Top Chef Canada, Season 2. 647•748•1444
Wine Tasting connasseurs lined up early to explore Beaujolais Wine experience. It was a full house tasting and food pairing event with Kevin on his 1st ever! Beaujolais Wines are of French Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) wine generally made of the Gamay grape which has a thin skin and is low in tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not labeled varietally. Educating the crowd with knowledge of their Fruity wines to their bolder flavoured wines to the meat of the matter, their darker meater qualities. This interactive wine sampling session was hosted by Jamie Drummond an Edinburgh-born/Toronto-based Sommelier consultant, writer, judge and educator and Director of Programs/Editor of Good Food Revolution and Presented by world class Sommelier Michelle Jobin. Pairing up with a delicious bite sized beef slider from Barque.
Pillers Fine Foods we sampled sausage, yummy yummy sausage. A bit about Pillers, In 1957, Wilhelm Huber opened a small butcher shop in Waterloo, Ontario using family recipes and traditional European meat processing methods to provide his customers with authentic, great-tasting European deli meats. Two years later, his brothers Edward and Heinrich joined the company which became Piller’s Sausages and Delicatessens Limited. From those humble beginnings, Piller’s has become one of North America’s largest producers of European sausages and deli meats, famous for award-winning products such as Black Forest ham and air-dried salamis. To this day, after five generations of sausage makers, Piller’s still uses the same natural aging, curing, and smoking process that had customers lining up outside Wilhelm Huber’s butcher shop over 50 years ago. The company was acquired by Premium Brands Holdings Corporation in 2011 and is now known as Piller’s Fine Foods. www.pillers.com