Taste the BEST at Taste of Toronto
There’s no better way to treat your tastebuds than enjoying some cuisine at Taste of Toronto!
The 4-day festival welcomes the best food and drinks from over 70 producers and guests were able to sample what Toronto is serving up this summer.
Guests were also able to load a crown card, which gave them the opportunity to indulge in more than one dish or drink.
With the huge variety of culinary journeys and live demonstrations, it was definitely hard to hit them all.
One session that caught the attention of most was with celebrity chef and one of the judges of MasterChef Canada, Alvin Leung, who was also joined by Season 1 winner, Eric Chong.
The two chefs took to the stage to mix up a Sex On The Beach cocktail and they sure put on quite a show with Leung’s risky commentary.
“The tube comes in different sizes,” Leung says to the crowd as he slowly filled up a tube of Jelly for the cocktail.
After the session, event-goers were given the chance to take photos with the two masterchefs.
Another session that was worth checking out was the Toronto Life Chef’s Table, which gave event-goers a chance to attend interactive discussions to learn more about the many culinary masters and the establishments they work at around Toronto.
Alvin Leung and Eric Chong took part in these Q&A sessions, along with celebrity chef, Michael Bonacini, and many other chefs from Toronto’s best restaurants.
Damon Campbell, executive chef at the Shangri-La Hotel restaurant, Bosk, was speaking at the chef’s table during the session I attended.
Campbell welcomed us to the table and gave us an insight on his journey in becoming a chef.
Campbell said that for a restaurant like Bosk, it’s important for the product to be amazing and in order to get to that level of excellence you need to be organized and work with precision.
Campbell said his staff is extremely important to him and he gets them to strive for perfection by leading by example.
When asked what dish to try at Bosk, Campbell said the Crispy Black Vinegar Chicken is worth a try.
After the session, I was pleased to see that the dish was available for tasting.
I made my way through the festival trying shortbread cookies from Mary Macleod’s Shortbread, indulging in olive oil based dips from Olive Oil Emporium, trying grass-fed and organic meat products from Beretta Farms, and basking my mouth with Lee’s Ghee Artisan Clarified Butter on a pita chip.
Learn more on their official websites:
www.marymacleod.ca
www.oliveoilemporium.com
www.berettafamilyfarms.com
www.leesghee.ca
However, you don’t have to just be a food lover to attend this event; the festival also featured many wineries, breweries and drink establishments.
I learned how to make Pure Leaf Peach Tea Sangria, I became informed of juice cleanses from Juice Matters and Refuel Juice Bar, and I quenched my thirst with Palm Bay’s new Tropical Iced Tea.
It’s not a food and drink event without wine tasting. The event offered an array of sessions that allowed you to learn from wine experts and top winemakers across the province.
King’s Court Estate Winery, located in the Niagara region of St.Catharines, was showcasing their summer wine lineup. My palate tasted the Princess Rose, which is a new release of the “Royal Family of Wines.” It was very nice and refreshing. Their wine can be purchased on-line.
Check out www.ontario-wine.com/free-wine-club
Guest were also allowed to take a tasting journey in the Tasting Room, where they could attend sessions like New World Varietals, which showcased the best of the best wines, The Charlie Burger Wine Program, which offered a summer white wine tasting paired with Oysters by Richmond Station, and a session with Wines of Garnacha, which offered information and a tasting of Mediterranean wines.
As I left the event with my tastebuds exploding with flavour and my thirst quenched, I couldn’t help to think what another great year it has been at Taste of Toronto.
See you in 2016!
The 2nd annual Taste of Toronto transformed Fort York into a foodie’s paradise, and offered guests an experience to try dishes and drinks from the city’s best restaurants and world famous chefs.
The Taste Festival got it start in London, UK, twelve years ago, and has expanded to cities across the globe. This event gives people the opportunity to taste what their city has to offer.
For more information on Taste of Toronto check out their website at http://tasteoftoronto.com/
