In early 2016, shortly after hundreds of Syrian refugee families arrived in Toronto, The Depanneur reached out with an invitation to share our kitchen. From that small gesture of hospitality emerged Newcomer Kitchen, which evolved into a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating social and economic opportunities for newcomer women while enriching the culinary landscape of our city. Now, 5 years and thousands of meals later, a small group of the original participants have teamed up to form their own catering business, Syrian Sisters. Tonight’s menu features a selection of traditional Syrian dishes that were among my favourites from the Newcomer Kitchen project.

Iván Wadgymar has some unfamiliar job titles for a Torontonian: Tortillero, Molinero, and Sembrador, each one taking him deeper into the heart of a culinary tradition. As a Tortillero, he runs Maizal Tortilleria making artisanal Mexican tortillas and totopos (aka tortilla chips) using locally grown organic corn. As a Molinero he processes raw corn using the traditional nixtamal method that transforms it into the raw masa dough that is the foundation of much of indigenous Mesoamerican cooking, making it more digestible and nutritious in the process. As a Sembrador (sower), he grows his own heirloom varietals of corn and other vegetables, herbs and spices in the sustainable permaculture tradition of the small milpa farms of Mexico. Together, he connects land, seed, process and product in a way that is a celebration of both our local terroir and his hispanic heritage, putting the culture back into agriculture. Along the way he both protects and reveals the unique flavours of a culinary tradition that is both ancient and very much alive.

Bosanska kuhinja (Bosnian cuisine) is a balance between Western and Eastern influences; like much of the food of the Balkans, it is closely related to Turkish/Ottoman and Mediterranean cuisines, with some Central European influences. It is a place that is deeply rooted in its foodways, with traditional dishes that have been made from the same recipes for hundreds of years.

Pre-order online until TUE Dec 14, 10pm Pick up on WED Dec 15, 6-7:30pm Tourtière – the iconic French Canadian meat pie – is a classic part of the Christmas Eve réveillon and New Year’s Eve meal in Québec. Chef Sonya Gammal is a true tourtière aficionado whose time-tested recipe has become a much-anticipated annual […]

Well, this is it — The Last Supper — and I could not ask for a more perfect person to cook it than Chef Greg Couillard. In the 80s and 90s Greg blazed a trail through Toronto’s restaurant scene, equally famous for his spectacular talent and his enfant terrible reputation. He was one of a handful of revolutionary chefs that transformed fine dining in Toronto from a provincial enclave of old French fare and stuffy steakhouses into an explosion of colours, flavours and spices that reflected the energy and diversity of a rapidly changing city. He did to food what glam and punk did to music; similarly his rapacious addictions and wild child personality left as much chaos in its wake.