Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! If you're looking to get your gobble on this weekend, plenty of places are offering up turkey dinners and brunches for the holiday, including EPIC Restaurant, Allen's, Black Creek Pioneer Village, Casa Loma, Palais Royale, and probably lots of other places that we don't know about.
If turkey ain't your thing, the Abbot on the Hill is hosting an Oktoberfest celebration all weekend, with proceeds to members of Canada's Olympic teams, who will also be benefiting from next Thursday's Gold Medal Plates gala at the Royal York. The coming week also features the final prix fixe dinner in the Harvest Wednesdays series at the Gladstone, a few wine dinners, and the start of Chocolate Fest '08.
The full list of happenings for the next week follows below, and as always, our Events page has more information on these and many other upcoming events in Toronto and area.
ending Fri, Oct 10, 2008
Bountiful, Beautiful Harvest
Toronto City Hall, 1st Floor Rotunda, 100 Queen Street West
free admission
Toronto photographer Laura Berman celebrates Thanksgiving and World Food
Day with a photo exhibition of local food entitled "Bountiful, Beautiful
Harvest".
[more info]
continuing until Wed, Oct 15, 2008
EPIC Thanksgiving Dinner
EPIC Restaurant, The Fairmont Royal York, 100 Front Street West
seatings available between 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM
$65 or $100 with wine pairings, plus taxes/gratuity - call 416-860-6949 to reserve
EPIC Restaurant Chef Ryan Gustafson presents a four-course Thanksgiving feast prepared with ingredients from the best local growers, including roasted organic turkey and all the trimmings, and finished with house made pumpkin pie.
[more info]
continuing until Sat, Oct 18, 2008
Lakeshorelicious
various restaurants in South Etobicoke
various times
various prices
Experience the styles and flavours thast make the Lakeshore community so diverse, as 13 unique restaurants in South Etobicoke offer a prix-fixe dinner menu.
[more info]
Fri, Oct 10, 2008 -- Sat, Oct 18, 2008
Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest
various locations in Kitchener-Waterloo
various times
various prices
Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest is a community based Bavarian Festival that is committed to significantly contributing to the social, economic and cultural vitality of Kitchener-Waterloo. Events include concerts, benefit galas, parade, car rally, and of course, the famous beer halls.
[more info]
Sat, Oct 11, 2008 -- Sun, Oct 12, 2008
Oktoberfest Olympic Fundraiser
Abbot on the Hill, 1276 Yonge Street
brunch seatings: 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM - dinner seatings: 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM
$20 - contact adam-onthehill@hotmail.com for details
On Thanksgiving weekend, join the staff of the Abbot on the Hill for our Oktoberfest Olympic fundraiser. Your $20 ticket entitles you to admittance, a choice of five authentic traditional Oktoberfest dishes for your brunch or dinner, door prizes, silent auctions featuring signed paraphernalia from our Olympic athletes, and if you are one of the first fifty in the door you keep you authentic branded glassware. A selection of authentic German and Oktoberfest beers will also be available. Proceeds from the two day event benefit five young ladies from the Women’s Olympic Hockey Team, and one of the Men’s Eight Man Rowing teams.
Sat, Oct 11, 2008
Explore Toronto's Culinary Neighbourhoods: Danforth
Danforth Avenue
1:00 PM to 3:30 PM
$40 for single tour - $125 for all four - call 416-973-4093 or email learning@harbourfrontcentre.com to register
A four-week series of tours through the city's fantastic culinary hot spots, markets and neighbourhoods. Get the insider's scoop with a cultural perspective, and learn the personal stories of Toronto's food experts. This week, baklava, spanokopita, cheese, pies, ricotta, mousaka and honey donuts are just a few of the tastes and smells you'll encounter on this cultural tour of the Danforth area.
[more info]
Sat, Oct 11, 2008
The Taste of Place: Chef Scott Vivian
Brick Works Farmers Market, Don Valley Brick Works, 550 Bayview Avenue
10:30 AM to 12:00 noon
$25 - email events@evergreen.ca or call 416-596-1495 x242 to register
The Taste of Place food workshop series features a stellar lineup of chefs who will guide you through a world of food - from field-fresh produce to the masterpiece on the plate. First, you'll shop the Evergreen Brick Works Farmers' Market with one of Toronto's finest chefs. With bounty from the market, participate in a hands-on cooking workshop in our new Chef's Corner, and enjoy the delicious results while chatting with the chef. You'll take home recipes, tips and a new appreciation of how our food goes from field to table.
[more info]
Sun, Oct 12, 2008 -- Mon, Oct 13, 2008
Black Creek Thanksgiving Dinners
Black Creek Pioneer Village, 1000 Murray Ross Parkway
seatings at 12:00 noon, 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM
various prices - see website for details
Give thanks and celebrate with a wonderful meal in the Half Way House restaurant and tour the Village.
[more info]
Sun, Oct 12, 2008
Introduction to Organic Gardening and Permaculture
High Park Children's Garden, High Park
10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
$50-$75 sliding scale - contact 416.536.9144 for details
This hands-on workshop introduces organic gardening, permaculture theory and seasonal hands-on activities. Topics: permaculture design; organic and permaculture practices; plant guilds (plants that grow well together, help soil tilth and support the larger ecosystem); soil building; cover crops and mulches; garden bed clean-up.
[more info]
Sun, Oct 12, 2008
Portuguese Festival
Downsview Park
times & admission info t.b.a.
A cultural celebration of Portuguese traditions.
[more info]
Sun, Oct 12, 2008 -- Mon, Oct 13, 2008
Allen's Thanksgiving Dinner
Allen's, 143 Danforth Avenue
2:00 PM to 9:30 PM on Sunday - 12:00 noon to 11:00 PM on Monday
$40 or $58 with wine pairings - call 416-463-3086 to reserve
Allen's hosts a three-course Thanksgiving dinner, with your choice of roasted Cumbrae's free-range turkey or baked double-smoked ham for the main course.
[more info]
Sun, Oct 12, 2008
Thanksgiving Royal Brunch
Casa Loma, 1 Austin Terrace
seatings at 10:30 AM, 11:00 AM, 12:30 AM & 1:00 PM
adults: $43.35 - children (4-12): $21.60 - children (1-3): $11.00 - children under 1: Free - all prices include gratuity, but not GST/PST - call (416) 923-1171 to reserve
Our Sunday Royal Brunch served in the stately elegance of Toronto's famous castle is an event to remember. The Conservatory and Library are spectacular settings for your meal. After brunch, enjoy a self-guided tour of the castle and a stroll through the estate gardens.
[more info]
Sun, Oct 12, 2008
EPIC Thanksgiving Brunch
EPIC Restaurant, The Fairmont Royal York, 100 Front Street West
11:30 AM to 1:30 PM
$45 plus taxes/gratuity - call 416-860-6949 to reserve
EPIC Restaurant Chef Ryan Gustafson presents a festive Thanksgiving brunch, including roasted organic turkey and all the trimmings.
[more info]
Mon, Oct 13, 2008
Thanksgiving Buffet Brunch
Palais Royale Ballroom, 1601 Lake Shore Blvd West
11:30 AM
$41.95 for adults - $20 for children 5 to 12 years
Celebrate the harvest and give thanks for a successful bounty of crops with a magnificent Thanksgiving Buffet Brunch skillfully prepared by Chef Steffan Howard and his crew. In addition to the classic Thanksgiving offerings, Chef Howard will take advantage of the Savour Ontario Pear Up October Program where he will feature cuisine with some of the finest Ontario Pears freshly picked at Bizjak Farms in Beamsville, just an hour and fifteen minutes west of us. Enjoy these tree ripened tastes sprinkled throughout our bountiful brunch. Also featuring live music by the Toronto All Star Big Band Trio.
[more info]
Tue, Oct 14, 2008 -- Sun, Oct 26, 2008
Chocolate Fest '08
various venues
various times
various ticket prices
The Toronto Chocolate Festival, successfully launched last year to great reviews, is back for its second year. This is the event where chocolate is featured in all its magnificent and tasty forms. Chocolate Fest '08 promises to present several delectable, delicious and simply decadent events. See the festival website for full details.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
Le Clos Jordanne & Domaine de la Vougeraie
Splendido, 88 Harbord Street
6:30 PM
$200
Splendido presents a gala dinner featuring wineries Le Clos Jordanne & Domaine de la Vougeraie. These flagship wineries from the portfolios of Vincor Canada and the Boisset family of Burgundy represent the balance of innovation, tradition and uncompromising quality. Chef David Lee will be preparing an enlightened tasting menu to accompany and highlight each wine served.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
Harvest Wednesdays: Late Harvest Prix Fixe Dinner
Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen Street West
seatings at 6:00 PM and 8:30 PM
$35 - call (416) 531-4635 to reserve
Enjoy a special three course dinner. Each week Chef Marc Breton will create a new menu inspired by the bountiful harvest of our CSA farming partner and featuring local fish, meats or poultry. Seasonal cocktails and suggested wine pairings from local vineyards will be priced separately.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
So Easy Eating Green Cooking Class
Culinarium, 705 Mount Pleasant Road
7:30 PM to 9:30 PM
$60 - call (647) 430-7004 to register
Learn how delicious it can be to get the 5-10 recommended servings of fruits and vegetables into your diet and sample the season's finest produce with a local tapas bar from Daily Apple, a Toronto based green living company. Lesley Stoyan and Chris Trussell - the founders of Daily Apple - will show you how to create an edible rainbow on your plate, and with food this delicious, you'll never look at plants the same way again.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
Chateau Montelena Tasting
Toronto Lawn Tennis Club, 44 Price Street
6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
$84 for members - $99 for guests
Presented by the Society for American Wines. From one of California's top wineries taste 7 vintages of a wine that has consistently scored in the mid 90s. Plus an opportunity to taste the Chardonnay that put California into the big league of world wine! Accompanying canapes will be served that have been carefully paired to these exquisite wines.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
Bountiful Wednesdays
Stonegrill On Winchester, 51B Winchester Street
seatings start at 5:00 PM
$40 (plus taxes & gratuities) - call (416) 967-6565 or reserve online
Every Wednesday, Stonegrill On Winchester teams up with Henry of Pelham family estate wines and Riverdale Farmer's Market, to produce a menu featuring organically raised fruits, vegetables, meats and fish. The 3-course prix fixe menu features local seasonal dishes and desserts feature organically grown Ontario strawberries. Experience the true taste from farm to table.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
cafe Taste October Wine Tasting: Fielding Estate Winery
cafe Taste, 1330 Queen Street West
8:00 PM
$40 - call 416.536.7748 to reserve
cafe Taste presents their monthly wine tasting night, this month featuring a portfolio tasting of the wines from Fielding Estate Winery. The winemaker may also be on hand for a 'Meet Thy Maker' Tasting.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
Taste of Ontario
Nella Cucina, 876 Bathurst Street
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
$60 + GST - contact joanne@nellacucina.ca or 416.922.9055 ext 21 to reserve
Nella Cucina Culinary School and Aphrodite Cooks have developed a new and delectable series of classes entitled Taste of Ontario. Each class will feature a selection of Ontario's finest food purveyors or farmers, where guests will be invited to sit back and relax as each producer/farmer presents a tasting of their favourite products, talks about their craft, and answers your questions. As a delicious bonus, many purveyors will be offering their often hard to come by products for sale after the class.
[more info]
Wed, Oct 15, 2008
Local Lunch at Palais Royale
Palais Royale, 1601 Lake Shore Blvd West
12:00 noon to 3:00 PM
admission by donation - proceeds to The Dancing Classrooms Project and Evergreen
Chef Steffan Howard will be purchasing locally grown products every Wednesday at the new Evergreen Brickworks Chef's Market. Created in partnership with the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, this new market will connect local farmers with chefs in Toronto. The market will provide our chefs with easy access to locally grown food, to simplify distribution channels, and to strengthen networks between chefs and local growers. To show support for this great initiative by Evergreen, Steffan will be preparing a totally Ontario grown lunch for Palais Royale staff on Wednesdays in October and November, and we want to invite you into our kitchen, meet our staff and have lunch with us. We can inform you about buying and cooking locally and at the same time get to know our neighbours.
[more info]
Thu, Oct 16, 2008
Gold Medal Plates
Fairmont Royal York, 100 Front Street West
6:00 PM
various ticket prices - see website for details
Gold Medal Plates is the ultimate celebration of Canadian Excellence in food, wine, and athletic achievement. Celebrating in six cities across Canada in 2008, Gold Medal Plates will feature superb wines and the premier chefs in each city, paired with Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes, in a competition to crown a gold, silver and bronze medal culinary team in each city, and subsequently nation-wide. Chefs competing in Toronto will include J.P. Challet (The Fifth), Lino Collevecchio (Via Allegro), Ryan Gustafson (Epic, The Fairmont Royal York), Jonathan Gushue (Langdon Hall Country House), John Kwan (Lai Toh Heen), David Lee (Splendido), Patrick Lin (Senses Restaurant), Lorenzo Loseto (George), Mark McEwan (North 44) and Scot Woods (Lucien).
[more info]
Thu, Oct 16, 2008
TSO Fine Wine Auction
Ritchies Auctioneers, 380 King Street East
5:30 PM
free admission - call 416.593.7769 ext 358 to register
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra, in association with Ritchies Auctioneers, will be conducting its annual auction of fine and rare wines, with all proceeds to benefit the TSO and its educational and outreach programs.
[more info]
Thu, Oct 16, 2008
The Variety Show: Part One - Mostly Merlot
Vineyards Estate Wines, 228 Queens Quay West
7:00 PM
$15 for single seminar - $48 for series of four
The Variety Show is a series of four wine tasting seminars presented by sommelier Glen Siegel. Part one: Merlot, everyone's favourite grape... to hate, at least since the film Sideways came out. Join Glen as he restores this mighty French grape's reputation.
[more info]
