Fabulous whitefish sandwiches from Epic at the Royal York.
We came, we saw, we ate.
Second Harvest's Toronto Taste fundraising event was, by our observation, a resounding success. Spread out over Cumberland Street and the Village of Yorkville Park, over 30 of Toronto's top restaurants, as well as a number of wineries and breweries, offered samples of their finest fare. While tickets were $225 a pop, attendees were offered unlimited food and drink, plus the opportunity to rub shoulders with some celebrity chefs including Michael Smith and Mark McEwan (anyone who lingered too long at the One booth could also have earned themselves a cameo in an upcoming episode of McEwan's TV show The Heat), not to mention event host and TV personality Carlo Rota. It was wonderful to see attendees dressing up (I was tempted to start snapping photos of cute outfits as well as the luscious food) and even a little bit of rain didn't put chefs or guests off their game.
Here is a collection of pics taken by Greg and I throughout the evening. There wasn't a lot of signage or a list of who was serving what, so some of the food porn doesn't have a chef or restaurant attached to it. Apologies in advance to the chefs who I haven't been able to match to their food. If you were there and can identify the chef/restaurant of the mystery dishes, please let me know.
Finally, thanks to the organizers for such a fabulous event, to all the chefs and restaurants who made it a true feast for the senses and to the many, many volunteers who went out of their way to ensure that guests had forks and napkins and clean plates. Congratulations to you all - truly a job well done!
Sustainable shrimp gazpacho from Michael Smith.
Do not feed the chefs! Martin Kouprie of Pangaea plots an escape.
This was a fabulous steak and lobster canape from Far Niente. Topped with hollandaise sauce - one of our favourites of the evening.
Loved these little sardines on crisps.
Millcroft Inn wins for the best display. Check out those antlers.
Smoked salmon lolly with asparagus chaser from Oliver and Bonacini at the Board of Trade.
Yes, Michael Smith is very tall.
Ice cream and berries from Pangaea.
Mark McEwan and a tray of seared tuna.
John Higgens of George Brown Chef's School; the students are serving up a rhubarb crumble.
This gentleman from Far Niente prepares to brown the hollandaise on his surf and turf dish.
We called this the fishing boat. A seafood salad with shrimp and squid.
The hungry crowd.
Tiny cupcakes from Dufflets.
Salmon cured in Blanche de Chambly beer from beerbistro.
Donna Dooher gets down to business.
Brad Long, artfully arranging pea shoots.
The staff of life at Ace Bakery.
those lovely sardines were from Chiado
great pics - looked like a delicious event thhat you needed to arrive for hungry! That's a lot of chef superpower in one place!
Thanks Debra - I knew there was something from Chiado in there!
You helped sponsor a fantastic event! Congratulations!
Great foodie essay + pics! My fave was the Anjou Pear Ice Wine gelato from Gelato Fresco. Did you try it?
This event was incredible!! I recommend everyone to go next year.
Sadly, there are a few items depicted that I either didn't see there or was too late for but I'm so glad that I got to experience the last hour. Beer Bistro's salmon and beer was fantastic. Wanda's had an amazing little dessert.
I got there long after you left, and only because I decided to walk over to take some shots while my laundry was drying. Didn't think I'd get in but was in the right place at the right time and ran into someone I know who had an extra pass. It was the highlight of my weekend.
The gentlemen from Far Niente with impressive torch technique is Frank Romano. He used to work with Claudio Aprille at Colbourne Lane and Senses.
Oops, I forgot to say that the lobster and beef from Far Niente was amazing. I went back for seconds.
Farniente team was on fire, Willan the Villan was a great spokesman and delight to speak to.....