There’s no confusion with Bryan Burke’s simple, ingredient and technique inspired menu. It doesn’t pretend to be anything it isn’t. (How refreshingly Canadian!) I noticed the changes at Joy the past year, with everything from the menu style to the delivery of the goods. Business has built up and it shows. Burke’s hallmark style is about superb, well sourced ingredients, simple straight ...

884 Queen St. E.
(647) 260-0811

At Tundra, the showplace bar and restaurant of The Hilton, Kevin Prendergast gets the big picture. The business and art of food and drink is theatre. And like theatre, it relies on technique, skill and the ensemble work of the team. Kevin was into Julia Child and The Galloping Gourmet’s TV programs as a kid, way before there was a Food Network. They inspired him to become a chef. Now, Kevin’s...

145 Richmond St. W.
(647) 258-9430

Once a week, with his rock band, he sings covers from the Beatles to Weezer. The rest of the time Carl Dahl performs as Executive Chef of two Oakville hotspots "Julia" and "Ritorno". On any given day, at the mercy of his sous chefs, Chef Dahl can be found in either location cooking Italian and Latin American cuisine to an eager local dining public. Born in Montreal, Dahl’s family moved to Bur...

312 Lakeshore Rd. E
(289) 291-5300

Once a week, with his rock band, he sings covers from the Beatles to Weezer. The rest of the time Carl Dahl performs as Executive Chef of two Oakville hotspots “Julia” and “Ritorno”. On any given day, at the mercy of his sous chefs, Chef Dahl can be found in either location cooking Italian and Latin American cuisine to an eager local dining public. Born in Montreal, Dahl’s family move...

261 Oak Walk Dr.
(647) 258-7978

Smoked mango jam flavoured with star anise, cinnamon and vanilla, anyone? That's what happens when you grow up with a French-Canadian mother and a Guyanese father - You get Marben's chef, Craig Alley, and his stylish take on contemporary cuisine. When Craig looks up at me over the chef's table in Marben's kitchen, enormous, black eyes meet mine with friendly scrutiny. He looks serious and he is...

488 Wellington St. W.
(647) 259-8739

At the base of Canada's tallest office building is an unlikely farmer. Tawfik Shehata, Vertical restaurant's executive chef, is known for his inventive menu and taking "going local" to new heights. Born in Egypt to a family of educators, he was raised in Toronto, and very early on drawn to cooking the diverse flavours of the Mediterranean. Following an apprenticeship program at George Brown, he...

100 King St. W.
(647) 258-7985

"I'm a purist," Scott Vivian says with a touch of zeal in his voice. “My menu is ninety eight percent Canadian with locally farmed produce and I don’t just change my menu seasonally. I change it daily. Twice,” Vivian adds in a quiet voice, with firm emphasis. Scott Vivian’s culinary past is eclectic and perfectly fitting for Toronto. Born in Montreal to an Italian father and an Indian m...

9 Church St.
(647) 258-9423

Brad Clark nearly didn’t have a career as a chef. His first forays in the kitchen as a youngster saw him thumbless after an accident with a mandolin blade. Thumb back in place and fast forward to a young teenage boy and Clark’s still in the kitchen, finding his way in life. From cooking for his roommates to starting out in casual eateries, it wasn't long until he was moving up through the kitc...

1097 Queen St. E.
(647) 258-9422

"A Mediterranean Mystery" could have been the lunch billing but executive chef Steven Wilson solved it before the day's end. After arriving at The Local Company on The Danforth recently, we media guests were greeted with pre-lunch cocktails made with a spirit re-invented from ancient Greco-Roman times featuring Mastiha, a flavouring found only in certain areas of the Greek island of Chios. Billed ...

511 Danforth Ave.
(647) 258-7234

While the day was grey, for a brief moment the sun broke through the clouds long enough for my interview with one of Canada’s most interesting chefs, Philman George. You see, Philman isn’t a chef available for a reservation, a tasting menu and unless you are a member of the Toronto Island Yacht club or have visited Barbuda’s Lighthouse Bay Resort, chances are you haven’t dined in eithe...

504-264 Queens Quay W.
(416) 203-0492

When Jason Inniss and Bertrand Alepee worked together at one of Toronto's haute French hangouts, they joked around about how great it would be if they had their own restaurant as partners. The two became fast friends and as anyone who works in close kitchen quarters knows, either friendships are forged or pots are flying. Luckily, theirs is a solid friendship and partnership, complete with the awa...

96 Tecumseth St.
(647) 260-0794

"There's nothing better than waking up and loving what you do," affirms Win Lai Wong, Executive Chef of Spice Route. Her father, a master wok chef, exposed her to great food early on. Hanging around his restaurant as a child, her curiosities and talents began to emerge. She quickly developed a sophisticated palette that, combined with years of hard work, has lead Wong to running one of the busiest...

499 King St. W.
(647) 260-0803

As I step into Woo, I can see the city skyline from the south-facing windows. Modern, clean lines with a spacious dining room and bar fill the fifth floor of the Toronto Life Building, at Yonge and Dundas Square. Executive Chef Chris Kanka meets me to discuss the latest with Woo. The fusion-inspired menu has gone from à la carte and buffet dining to just buffet. Kanka lets me in on a secr...

10 Dundas Square E. Suite 500
(647) 260-0846

First time away from home; studying at McGill University and missing Mom’s great cooking; Ezra Title had to fend for himself. What he discovered as he started to cook was how much he enjoyed it. “I’ve always been creative in some sense, and I love working with my hands. It’s something I really took to,” shared the chef. Not a popular vocation among his peers at that time, but a perfe...

167 Rushton Road,
(416) 347-3609

I’m in the rooftop garden and apiary with Chef Ryan Gustafson. Yes, the Fairmont Royal York Hotel’s rooftop garden. A veteran of many Fairmont hotel properties, in Canada and abroad, Gustafson loves Toronto; the avid walker, researcher and political science junkie is right at home. Gustafson, Epic’s latest chef, has recently returned from a year in Dubai. Here in Toronto, he gets to pick som...

100 Front St. W.
(647) 258-9438

When I walk into Nota Bene, it's like a blank canvas. I love the muted mystery of the dining room, waiting for the place to fill up. Ultra modern design with signature cool Matteo Grassi chairs, a hallmark of any restaurant Franco Prevedello is involved with. But I’m also waiting for Chef Lee’s to make his presence known and he does, in the way least expected. David slips into the lounge, sans...

180 Queen St. W.
(416) 977-6400

We sat on the edge of our seats, chins cupped in hands, and wide-eyed with wonderment, as our eleven-year-old classmate, Anthony Rose, demonstrated the perfect pour in his wine seminar to his grade six class. As fate would have it, he also revealed his calling. Years later we sit in a cozy booth at his Drake Hotel restaurant and reminisce. While most of his friends growing up liked good food,...

1150 Queen St. W.
(416) 531-5042 x113

Art and baking have several things in common. Both require focus, creativity, and the ability to create sensory pleasure through disciplined execution. However, the beauty of pastry art lies within the connection between the mouth and eye of the beholder, anxious to taste what the eye sees. The eyes do eat first or so the saying goes. Chef Christophe Measson leads the pastry team at the Art Ga...

317 Dundas St. W.
(416) 979-6688

While the old saying goes “never trust a skinny chef,” for Chef Claudio Aprile of Colbourne Lane, it's “never trust a chef that doesn’t have a lot of stamps in his passport.” Having eaten his way around the culinary world and having cooked in kitchens from Canada and the U.S. to Thailand and the U.K., Aprile has traveled off the beaten track for his training. His school: life. His menu: ...

45 Colborne St.
(416) 368-9009

Nick Liu is a collage of culinary technique, a montage of imagery. He once aspired to become a visual artist and now this artistic approach is an important part of how he cooks and creates new dishes for the Niagara Street Café. Liu's transition to cooking began with a summer job at 360 Restaurant and the encouragement of Executive Chef Brad Long. He soon enrolled in George Brown College ...

169 Niagara St.
(647) 258-7237

Speaking with Mario Vena, Master Chef of La Reserve, is like having a sotto voce conversation with a Hollywood actor. With feelings directed by tradition and simplicity, Mario pauses for emphasis before he speaks, “When I feed people, I want satisfaction, so I let my passion guide me.” Born in Italy, Mario hails from Cosenza, otherwise known as the part of the “boot” most rooted in ant...

8432 Leslie St.
(905) 695-9036

Big and gregarious, Master Chef Olaf Mertens is talkative, cheerful and not shy in the least. Maybe it’s because of his bi-continental background: he was born in Germany but grew up in Canada. At age 18, he left the Great White North to apprentice at Berlin’s finest culinary academy. He returned to Canada in his twenties, where he became Executive Chef at Rogues Restaurant in Mississauga...

50 Burnhamthorpe Rd. W.
(647) 260-0607

Executive Chef Domenic Chiaromonte arrives at our table with a wafer, a stainless steel bowl and a kind of torch-like device that looks like something out of a CSI lab (it actually holds liquid nitrogen). In just a few seconds, he prepares Hot Cold Ice Cream, or Dragon’s Breath, a refreshing palate cleanser that causes a startling, yet enjoyable, quick freeze on your tongue with visible cold ...

177 Whitmore Rd.
(905) 850-5699

Award-winning Chef Johnee Savarimuthu has come a long way. He grew up in Southern India in Chettinad, but has travelled the world and now, Toronto is lucky enough to call him our own. Johnee started cooking at the age of 19 and joined the food craft institute, presently known as SIHM, at the age of 21. Right after completing school, he worked for Taj hotels and earned the title of Sommel...

1033 Bay St.
(416) 923-8159

Exuding limber energy, charm and enthusiasm, Chef and co-owner of The Harbord Room, Cory Vitiello has, for almost half his life, worked in kitchens. After turning his parent’s home kitchen into a catering operation, they decided to send him to the Stratford Chefs School. An externship at Scaramouche saw him climb from Garde Manger to Senior Chef de Partie before he was off to Australia to work...

89 Harbord St.
(647) 258-7956

The white-roomed cottage that is Auberge du Pommier is not only an institution in the eyes of the city but on an international level as well. Executive Chef Jason Bangerter has brought that international flair with him from his years of training around the globe. But Jason almost became a teacher. During a year off out west after graduating high school to figure out if teaching was to be his c...

4150 Yonge
(416) 222-2220

“I tend to mish mash things across cultures”, says Roger Mooking, executive chef at Kultura and Nyood. His culinary influences are diverse: ranging from Chinese, to French, to Caribbean. Born in Trinidad to a family which owned and operated Chinese restaurants and bakeries, he says: “one of my very earliest memories is of cooking--wrapping wantons. I can draw a picture of it.” After mo...

169 King St. E.
(647) 259-8628

Chef Robert Buchanan is a professional with meticulous taste. A one time construction worker turned culinary artist and now Executive Chef and co-owner of Acqua Ristorante e Bar. Armed with an unshakable confidence, Buchanan is a true industry professional who doesn’t concern himself with food critics or living the life of a star chef – that is, no more than concerning himself with fresh ingre...

10 Front St. W.
(416) 368-7171

Tall and handsome, with a flash of grey flecked dark hair, Jean Pierre Challet strides quickly into the dining room of The Fifth Grill. He's been up early, shopping at Kensington Market to prepare for a busy Saturday night. Back from a break, Challet has a small window of time to talk. JP strikes me as introspective, intense, focused, yet with a wry sense of humour. This all translates to the ...

225 Richmond St. W.
(416) 979-3005

Susur Lee is the master of his domain. He is a commanding figure in the small immaculate kitchen of Madeline’s, or striding through the passageway to Lee, the sister restaurant next door. Calm and focused, he is secure in the knowledge that his kitchen brigade of thirteen knows what is expected and is ready to perform. Every evening. Susur has been on various international Top 50 lists, incl...

601 King St. W.
(416) 603-2205

“I never wanted to be the number one guy,” says P.K. Ahluwalia. Over a glass of wine in his charming second floor restaurant Dhaba, he explains that even after five years, his greatest joy is still working hard at pleasing his patrons, and he adds, “I’m a happy man.” P.K. followed a circuitous route to get to this point in his life, and he has certainly found his niche. The restaurant...

309 King St. W.
(647) 260-0770

To earn money for a set of drums, 12 year old Jason Rosso got a job at a neighborhood Italian restaurant. Almost immediately, he worked on the line. The die was cast. By the time he was sixteen and finished high school, he’d been working four nights a week as a cook. Homework? Forget about it. “The first day I was in Chef’s School at Humber College in proper chef whites, I knew this was ...

55 Mill St.
(416) 203-2121