ETC
12-CULTURE
JAN 25, 2024
Explore Maestro’s Restaurant Winterlicious Iqbal Alibhai Senior Reporter
Rina Camarra, who owns Mastro’s Restaurant, a 60-year-old eatery in North York, is an example of the history hidden in Toronto that the annual food festival Winterlicious can highlight. The Wilson Avenue Italian eatery, near Dufferin Street, is one of more than 200 restaurants in Toronto participating in the Winterlicious Festival’s 20th anniversary this year from Jan. 26. to Feb. 8. Camarra, the 84-year-old owner of the restaurant, has always kept the menu dedicated to an authentic Italian experience. Camarra said Mastro’s first opened in 1964 with 12 tables on a two-lane street without a sidewalk. It is now Mastro’s 60th anniversary. The restaurant has seen many storms over the decades, including recessions, epidemics, and the growth of Toronto as a city. It has weathered them all. Camarra said many of the people who lived in the community have left, moving to Vaughan and other parts of the Greater Toronto Area.
IQBAL ALIBHAI
Rina Camarra sees Winterlicious as a big opportunity for her restaurant and to build relationships. Although the neighbourhood in, reserve a table for us because around Mastro’s has changed, the we’re going to be there Friday, restaurant has become a destination Saturday, and Sunday and we for regular diners, she said. would like to be there [all] three,” Camarra said that these regulars Camarra said. come from far and wide to eat at her Winterlicious is one of two fesrestaurant, bringing their children tivals, the other being Summerliand their children’s children. cious, which runs between May “Sometimes they’ll call me from and June, offering Torontonians the States. We know we’re gonna be the chance to explore Toronto’s
cuisine. Camarra said she has participated in Winterlicious in the past and found it to be even more successful than the Summerlicious festival. A Toronto news release said Winterlicious first began in 2003 as a way of increasing business during the slow months of January
and February. Toronto said that the festival became important to the city and its businesses when the SARS epidemic hit and there was a decrease in diners. The release said patrons can choose from pre-fixed menus with different price points, between $20 and $55 for lunch and $25 to $75 for dinner. The release recommends reserving a table early because the popularity of Winterlicious makes it hard to get a table on a first-come, first-serve basis. Toronto said since the program began, participating restaurants served more than eight million meals, and generated over $353 million in stimulus for local restaurants. For Camarra, Winterlicious is a chance to make a one-time customer a customer for life. “We found that a lot of new people came, who weren’t just coming once, they came again and again,” she said. Mastro’s is only one of the many different culinary tastes available to Torontonians for a reduced price, with over two hundred other restaurants waiting to be enjoyed.
Humber dropout’s show wins six Emmys
Arushi Roy Chowdhury. Culture Editor
Winning an Emmy was probably not on Matthew James Matheson’s radar when he was still a culinary student at Humber College, in the year 2000. Matheson has starred in Vice’s Munchies and It’s Suppertime, and played host to YouTube shows like Cookin’ Somethin’ w/ Matty Matheson, before he went on to become an Executive Producer on FX’s The Bear. The hit series about the inner workings of a Chicago restaurant took home six awards in the Comedy categories at the 75th Emmy Awards. The show won the Best Comedy Series along with best writing, and secured three in the acting genres, and for writing and directing. Matheson dropped out of college just before graduating to tour with a friend’s metal band. He landed his first job at Le Select Bistro on Queen Street in 2004. Here, Matheson became proficient in French dishes under the guidance of Chef Rang Nguyen.
That was just the beginning of his career in the culinary arts. Matheson has since been the proprietor of numerous restaurants and authored two books of family recipes and anecdotes called Matty Matheson: A Cookbook in 2018, and Matty Matheson: Home Style Cookery in 2020. His first restaurant, Maker Pizza started in 2015 and now has multiple outlets all across the GTA. Matheson opened Cha Phe Rang and Prime Seafood Palace in 2022. Prime Seafood Palace was recommended in the Michelin Guide for its food and ambience, Streets of Toronto said. Beyond his culinary talents, Matheson also owns a workwear brand called Rosa Rugosa in collaboration with Ray Natale. He has successfully managed to combine his love for cooking with his television ventures. Matheson has since been an active part of shows like Dead Set on Life and Selena + Chef. He has explored the roles of an actor with his portrayal of Neil Fak on The Bear since 2021. Yash Sharma, a Culinary Man-
NIHARIKA NAYAK
Matthew James Matheson served as an executive producer on The Bear, which won six Emmys. agement student at Humber Lakeshore campus, is a huge fan of Matheson’s character on the show.
“He is a chef, who plays a chef and that’s what makes him so special,” he said.
Matheson’s fame is attributed to his comedic persona and affable demeanour, according to his fans.
