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estaurant News R August 2014 Vol. 29 No. 7
N A T I O N A L
C O V E R A G E
R E G I O N A L
F O C U S
A moveable
feast
By Leslie Wu, editorial director
TIM’S UNVEILS NEW FUTURE CONCEPT
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FOOD MATTERS: Restaurants and sustainable systems
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Life
Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010152
A day in the
TORONTO—When chef Neil Lomas and registered nurse Wendy Zeh found themselves with food allergies and sensitivities, they decided to combine their knowledge to create a haven for eaters with restricted diets.
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The married couple opened Feast (Fabulous Eats for the Allergic and Sensitive Type), an allergy-friendly gourmet food store and takeout, on Toronto’s Queen Street West in early July. “Allergy-restricted folks are underserviced,” Zeh told ORN. “People should be treated with the same respect or caution, regardless of what they can eat.” Not only is the store’s in-house kitchen free from gluten, wheat, dairy, soy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, and shellfish, but staff are trained and certified on food allergens through Anaphylaxis Canada. They have all signed an agreement stating they will not bring any products containing gluten or the top eight allergens into the store. Customers bearing outside ingredients are politely stopped at the door to keep the allergen-free facility intact. All ingredients and products at risk of cross contamination are verified with the distributor or manufacturer. Lomas and Zeh hope to eventually expand the allergy-free list to include items such as mustard. Continued on page 3
Devil’s in the details with new brewpub from Stout By Jonathan Zettel, assistant editor
TORONTO—The doors to a notorious Toronto jail have found a new home as owners of a craft beer pub are set to expand into a devilishlyFrom branded brewpub. Erin Gamelin and Craig Abbott, owners of Stout From grower to plate, ORN APPROVAL REQUIRED Irish Pub, will open Louis Cifer Brew takes a look at some of the The enclosed proof is sent for your approval. We will not proceed with the job until the proof is returned. Works at 417 Danforth Ave. in midfaces places along CHECK the CAREFULLY! DO NOT GIVE and VERBAL INSTRUCTIONS. Beyond this point we cannot accept responsibility for any errors. Alterations (other than typoSeptember and purchased doors from graphical errors) will be charged extra. process. Mark proof “OK” or “OK with corrections” as the case may supply chain be, signing your name so we may know that the proof reached the proper authority. the now-shuttered Don Jail to serve as an opening to the onsite brewery. SIGNATURE OF APPROVAL DATE
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From left: Erin Gamelin, Christine Nagy and Craig Abbott. Photo by Elise von Kulmiz.
“We really want to not only be ahead of the curve in the craft beer industry, but we want to be leading and spearheading the curve,” Gamelin told ORN. “We want everybody catching up to what we are doing.” The 4,500-square-foot space will house a glassed-in brewing system that can produce up to 1,000 hectolitres annually alongside a retail area and a full-service restaurant. Continued on page 3
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Interior of the Tim Hortons concept store.
Tim Hortons unveils concept store TORONTO—Tim Hortons unveiled a fullscale concept store at a company convention in mid-July at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. According to the Canadian Press, the concept store was set up to allow suppliers and franchise partners to imagine what could someday be possible at a local Tim Hortons. Some of the more striking ideas included coffee-flavoured beer on tap, a unisex washroom and a completely redesigned brand logo featuring a bright red coffee bean. The concept store also featured digital interfaces on the table, which would allow customers to order their food and have it delivered. A staff mixologist would create smoothies and health drinks to order and a variety of omelettes, crepes, cupcakes and poutine pretzels could also find their way onto shelves in the future.
The unveiling also showcased upgrades to the company’s Timmy Me application for smartphones. According to CP, the app will remember the users’ names and favourite food items, which could potentially reduce wait times. A grab-and-go section of the Restaurant of the Future would allow customers in a rush to grab from a selection of sandwiches, salads and hot food items. Even employee uniforms were redesigned with a red-trimmed asymmetrical neckline. While some of the changes might be implemented in the near future, chief operating officer David Clanachan told CP some of the ideas may never see the light of day. After 50 years in business, the company’s “Store No. 1” located at 65 Ottawa St. N., Hamilton, ON, will be renovated to include some of
Devil’s in the details with new brewpub Louis Cifer opens in mid-September.
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According to Gamelin, a section of the floor will mimic what she called a view into the underworld with glass flooring and red underlighting to display the aged-beer program in the basement. “What is better advertising than having them walk on it?” Gamelin asked, pointing out aged beer in Ontario is just starting out compared to markets in the U.S. “It’s a focus for us that’s going to bring a lot of attention to Louis Cifer,” she said. There will be a total of 26 draft taps pouring at least six flagship beers and four rotating taps of in-house, seasonal brews. The bar will also serve several draft beers from Ontario Craft Brewers members, a house-made root beer and two taps for wine through a partnership with Mike Weir Winery. Christine Nagy, a recent graduate of the Niagara College brewmaster and brewery operations management program, has been hired on as the brewmaster. On May 31, Nagy won the inaugural $3,500
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Golden Boot Scholarship at the Canadian Brewing Awards in Fredericton, NB for Fumé, her smoked saison. She said her primary focus will be to create a lineup of core beers and then move on to more adventurous creations, noting her favourite beers are saisons because they are yeast-driven and versatile. The brewery will have a bottling system and, in the future, produce cans as well. The retail store will have three available brews for growler sales and will also sell Louis Cifer memorabilia and beerinfused products such as ale marmalade and beer-based rubs. The menu will consist of items cooked with beer or beer ingredients with everything made from scratch, Gamelin said, adding the chef had yet to be hired. The venue—which sat on the market for nine months at $380,000—will staff between 45 to 50 people and can seat up to 214 people including a 20-seat patio and a 60-seat upper level, which will be used for special events such as a trivia night. According to Gamelin, the long-term plan is to sell beer to other licensees across the city and the LCBO. “It really just depends on how much we can pump out of here,” she said. Gamelin said there has never been a better time to be in the craft beer industry. “People are making different decisions than their fathers and grandfathers 50 years ago,” Gamelin said. “Things are changing and hopefully we will be a part of that change.”
the ideas unveiled with the Restaurant of the Future. “We wanted to create a showpiece here,” chief operating officer David Clanachan told reporters at the unveiling. “We wanted to see in this transformation of our Store No. 1 that it will pay homage to our history while embracing some of the new designs in technology that you are seeing now in our restaurants as well as our Restaurant of the Future.” Two adjacent houses were purchased to make room for the new 4,000-square-foot building, which will be two storeys and have two patios. The restaurant will act as a museum for the company with memorabilia and a walkthrough section on the second floor showcasing the company’s progression. Clanachan also announced the company would host a block party before the end of the summer in collaboration with the Hamilton mayor’s office. The event will close the road and allow members of the community to share their memories of the brand, he said. “The past will meet the future,” said Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina of the renovations. Bratina thanked the company for its continued support of the Hamilton community. “Our city is on the move,” Bratina said. “We are one of the poster cities for growth and rehabilitation.” In early July, Tim Hortons also launched a new CIBC Visa credit card with two active buttons. Cardholders can press one button to receive one per cent of each dollar spent in rewards redeemable at Tim Hortons. To redeem rewards, cardholders touch the second button when purchasing the company’s products. Each button is illuminated when in use and the card also offers payWave and chipand-pin technologies.
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Allergy-free dining Continued from cover
Lomas and his staff turn out savoury pocket pies made with locally sourced proteins from Rowe Farms, coconut milk caramels and organic, vegan butters with coconut milk and vinegar that Lomas said is reminiscent of beurre blanc. “This isn’t something you get trained for in chef ’s school,” said Lomas. “But you can’t own your own restaurant these days without knowing about allergies.” Lomas has opened restaurants such as Lily Restaurant Lounge in Toronto and worked as chef at now-closed Big Momma’s Boy in Toronto, owned by Zeh’s brother Michael Guenther. When Lomas developed allergies to a wide variety of ingredients, such as gluten, seafood, kiwi and cinnamon, “it all went downhill,” he said. In developing the Feast concept and recipes, Lomas and Zeh faced technical challenges, especially in developing dough for baked goods, which can be fragile. “You have to take everything you know as a chef and a baker and throw it out the window,” said Zeh. “You play with it, keep taking notes, and are constantly tweaking.” Lomas and Zeh are looking to take the concept further through catering and potentially franchising at a later stage, and believe that the market for Feast is constantly growing. “We’ve had so many firsts in the store: people’s first pie, or other things that they haven’t been able to have before due to allergies,” said Lomas. “We’ve seen people cry, they’re so relieved.” 881 Queen St. West, Toronto. (647) 3501881. Thisisafeast.com.
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kitchen managers and processors, talking to the unsung heroes that may not make headlines of magazines about food, but are crucial to its delivery. Like many of us, their day starts before they even get into the office, checking smartphones and tablets to put out fires before setting foot in the door. Keeping a 9-to-5 schedule is a shared impossibility for many of our interviewees, as well as an expanding job description that encompasses doing more with less. And yet, thriving on the pressure and unpredictability of the job is a highlight for some of the people we talked to; whether it’s coordinating 15 departments before the lunch rush or ensuring no detail gets overlooked in a 1,000-cover day. Regardless of whether they’re new at their job or have worked in their roles for over three decades, all of them demonstrated an enthusiasm and care for their work that shows in every word. And since no one knows what today’s job may look like in the future, perhaps that is the most essential career skill of all.
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Editorial Director Leslie Wu ext. 227 lwu@canadianrestaurantnews.com Senior Contributing Editor Colleen Isherwood ext. 231 cisherwood@canadianrestaurantnews.com Assistant Editor Jonathan Zettel ext. 226 jzettel@canadianrestaurantnews.com Assistant Editor, Digital Content Kristen Smith ext. 238 ksmith@canadianrestaurantnews.com Senior Account Manager Debbie McGilvray ext. 233 dmcgilvray@canadianrestaurantnews.com Account Manager Kim Kerr ext. 229 kkerr@canadianrestaurantnews.com Production Stephanie Giammarco ext. 0 sgiammarco@canadianrestaurantnews.com Circulation Manager Don Trimm ext. 228 dtrimm@canadianrestaurantnews.com Controller Tammy Turgeon ext. 237 tammy@canadianrestaurantnews.com How to reach us: Tel (905) 206-0150
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n the race to the bottom line, a chain in the U.S. has created a new role designed solely for profit. Noodles & Co. is experimenting with “upsell waiters”; floaters whose goal is to boost the average check. “The server will stop at guests’ tables when they’re nearly done with their meal, ask if they’d like to order anything else, and bring the extra items to the table—no gratuity required,” according to Bloomberg Businessweek. As chefs become brand managers, maîtred’s shift to “experience co-ordinators” and roles combine and transmute in new ways, thinking about what we do and how we do it is becoming increasingly important. A decade ago, social media managers would have been deemed ludicrous for a large-scale restaurant, let alone a small independent. Yet
today, they are vital to the marketing strategies of some tech-savvy eateries. Although attention has moved to the back of house in recent years in the rush to spotlight the chef, many silent and supporting roles go unnoticed but are essential elements of the dining experience. Consumers may not appreciate the multitude of steps that it takes to get an item to their plate—even as they become more attuned to the farm-to-table cycle—but should any of those stages get interrupted, they would definitely notice an item’s absence as the entire process grinds to a halt. This month, we take a look at some of those silent but essential figures along the supply chain process in “A Day in the Life” (page 9). Using a simple loaf of bread as an example, we follow a path through the daily routines of
Bi t s Publisher Steven Isherwood ext. 236 sisherwood@canadianrestaurantnews.com
Editorial advisory CounCil Mickey Cherevaty Consultant, Moyer Diebel Limited Marvin Greenberg Consultant Jack Battersby President, Summit Food Service Distributors Inc. Barney Strassburger Jr. President, TwinCorp Paul LeClerc Partner, Serve-Canada Food Equipment Ltd. Michael Stephens Director of Retail, Inventory and Wholesale, LCBO Ralph Claussen Director Food and Beverage Operations Woodbine Entertainment Group Adam Colquhoun President, Oyster Boy John Crawford Director of Sales-Canada, Lamb Weston Tina Chiu Chief Operating Officer, Mandarin Restaurant Franchise Corporation Matt Johnston Vice-president, Marketing, Moosehead Breweries Martin Kouprie Chef/Owner, Pangaea Restaurant Joel Sisson Founder and president of Crush Strategy Inc. Leslie Wilson Vice-president of Business Excellence Compass Group Canada Chris Jeens Partner W. D. Colledge Co. Ltd. Volume 29 No. 7 Ontario Restaurant News is published 12 times a year by Ishcom Publications Ltd., which also publishes: Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News, Atlantic Restaurant News, Canadian Lodging News, Ontario Chains and the ORN Buyers’ Directory. 2065 Dundas Street East, Suite 201 Mississauga, Ontario L4X 2W1 Tel: (905) 206-0150 Fax: (905) 206-9972 In Canada 1 800 201-8596 Subscriptions: Canada: $52.33/year or $78.57/2 years, $102.67/ 3 years; U.S.A.: $58.85/year or $84.85/2 years, $108.70/ 3 years. Single copy: $5.95 (Plus taxes where applicable) Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to circulation department, 2065 Dundas Street East, Suite 201, Mississauga, Ontario L4X 2W1 Publication Mail Agreement No. 40010152 ISSN 0834-0404 GST number R102533890
MTY makes acquisitions MONTREAL—The MTY Food Group Inc. announced in early July it had acquired Café Dépôt, Sushi Man, Muffin Plus and Fabrika concepts. The company also gained two buildings in the $14.8-million deal. The deal includes 102 stores in operation, 90 of which are franchised and 12 corporatelyowned. All of the stores except for one are in the province of Quebec and produced $42 million in sales in 2013. “We expect that the 102 stores will be a good fit with MTY’s existing network,” Stanley Ma, chief executive officer of MTY, said in a statement. “The combination of those strong brands with MTY’s expertise will create exciting synergies.”
Bautista boosters juice TORONTO—Toronto Blue Jays’ all-star player José Bautista is looking to hit a home run in the foodservice industry. Booster Juice handed over the keys to a location at 2420 Bloor St. W. to the Major League Baseball player. “I love Toronto and I love Booster Juice, so to have my own store right here in the city that has been so good to me is a natural fit,” Bautista, who has been part of the company’s promotion for some time, said in a statement. “I look forward to getting to know my new neighbours in Bloor West Village and I hope everyone will swing by for a smoothie!” In celebration of the takeover, the company donated all sales from June 30 to the Bautista Family Education Fund, with a goal of $10,000.
TouchBistro adds PayPal NEW YORK—TouchBistro has announced the integration of PayPal with its mobile point of sale system. Customers will be able to use a PayPal app on their smartphones to purchase products from businesses that use TouchBistro without having to ask the server for the bill or wait for transactions to process. “There are two pain points that we have identified in the dining experience—ordering and paying—and we are now solving both with the use of mobile technology,” Alex Barrotti, chief executive officer and founder of TouchBistro said in a release. “Restaurants that are using TouchBistro POS solutions across North
Leslie Wu, Editorial director
a nd
America and have a PayPal account can immediately enable and begin using the integrated Pay at Table service.” According to a release, the first restaurant to use the new technology was Boëhmer in Toronto.
Denny’s blasts into retrogaming VANCOUVER—Denny’s has released three iOS and Android mobile titles based on classic arcade games. Hashteroids lets smartphone users blast hash browns from a ketchup bottle and is based on the classic Atari game Astroids. As a take on Atari’s Centipede, users shoot ketchup at eggs in Centipup and in Denny’s game Take-out, based on arcade classic Breakout, users bounce a ball off a plate, smashing through bacon and eggs.
Blind man wins human rights case against Toronto restaurant TORONTO—The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario has ruled a Toronto man was discriminated against in February 2013 after an employee at Ali Baba’s Restaurant told him he could not bring his seeing-eye dog into the restaurant. “It’s tough enough to get around being a blind guy, but to have to be fighting just for your rights all the time,” Gregory Scott Hill told the Toronto Star. The restaurant’s owner, Yousef Bani-Ahmad was ordered to pay Hill $5,000 in compensation and post signs welcoming service animals. Staff must also complete an online “Human Rights 101” training course, the Star reported.
Gratuity bill introduced TORONTO—The liberal government of Ontario has introduced a bill entitled “Protecting Employees’ Tips Act.” The bill will limit employers from withholding tips or making deductions from employees’ tips or “cause the employee to return or give his or her tips … to the employer unless authorized to do so.” According to the Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association, they will lobby to amend the bill to include allowing tip pooling to share with back-of-house staff, allowing managers and employers to be part of the tip
Bi t e s
sharing, “as long as they contribute to the service operation,” and allowing operations to distribute automatic gratuities to the house provided the fee is called a facility charge. At press time, the bill had moved to second reading.
Quiznos chain completes its financial restructuring DENVER, CO—Quick service restaurant chain Quiznos announced that the company had completed its financial restructuring and emerged from Chapter 11 on July 1. Quiznos chief executive officer Stuart K. Mathis said the restructuring “marks a new chapter for our company.” He noted the company appreciated the support of its franchisees, employees and vendors throughout the process. “With our financial restructuring behind us, we now have a stronger foundation to execute our comprehensive plan to strengthen performance, revitalize the Quiznos brand and reinforce its promise as a fresh, high-quality and great-tasting alternative to traditional fast food offerings,” Mathis said in a statement. The chain filed for bankruptcy protection in March and agreed on a restructuring plan to reduce debt by more than $400 million. Quiznos has about 400 restaurants in Canada, with all but three owned and operated by franchisees. According to a Quiznos spokesperson, none of the Canadian operations were included in the financial restructuring process.
Pita Pit opens 500th KINGSTON, ON—Pita Pit celebrated the opening of its 500th store in late June at 7925 McLeod Rd. in Niagara Falls, ON. “We’ve come a long way since our first opening in Ontario almost 20 years ago,” Pita Pit founder Nelson Lang said in a statement. “We’ve experienced outstanding growth in the past few years, and I am extremely excited about the opening of our 500th store worldwide.” Multi-unit owners Alan and Rana Matukaitis, who joined the brand in 2012 and have two other locations in St. Catharines, ON, operate the 500th unit.
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Canada’s minimum wages set to increase TORONTO—Minimum wage has increased or is set to rise in nearly every Canadian province this year. In Alberta, it will increase to $10.20 on Sept. 1 following annual hikes since 2012. On Oct. 1, Saskatchewan and Manitoba’s wage will increase to
$10.20 and $10.70 respectively. The most recent rise in Saskatchewan was in 2012 from $9.50 to $10. Manitoba saw wages increase in 2012 and 2013 to $10.25 and then $10.45. In Ontario, minimum wage increased in June to $11. The previous rise was in 2010 to $10.25.
Quebec’s minimum wage workers saw an increase to their base rate in May to $10.35. In la belle province, hourly wages increased in 2012 to $9.90 and in 2013 to $10.15. Nova Scotia saw its minimum wage increase by 10 cents to $10.40. It has seen slight raises for more than
Provincial minimum wage at year’s end in 2011 and 2014
three consecutive years, increasing from $10 to $10.15 in 2012 and to $10.30 in 2013. Prince Edward Island will incur two increases this year. In June, minimum wage increased from $10 to $10.20 and will be set at $10.35 in October. Newfoundland and Labrador last saw a minimum wage increase in 2010 to $10. In October, the province’s rate will increase to $10.25 with another 25-cent hike the following year. In the Yukon, minimum wage increased from $10.54 to $10.72 this year. In 2012, the territory saw two bumps, bringing the minimum wage to $9.27 and then $10.30. Minimum wage in Nunavut, British Columbia, New Brunswick and Northwest Territories will hold at $11, $10.25, $10 and $10, respectively. Minimum wage rates in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut have not changed since 2011. The last increase in B.C. was in May 2012 from $9.50 to $10.25. In New Brunswick, minimum wage has not moved since April 2012, when it saw a 50cent hike. A lower minimum wage exists in some provinces for liquor servers or employees who usually receive gratuities: Alberta ($9.20), B.C. ($9), Ontario ($9.55) and Quebec ($8.90).
New StatsCan study According to Statistics Canada, the average national minimum wage amounted to $10.14 in 2013.
DE C ODI NG
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Fast casual on the rise By Scott Stewart, The NPD Group There has been much discussion surrounding the emerging fast casual segment in Canada. As more operators enter—whether as new brands or entry from the U.S. marketplace— focus is shifting to how this segment is changing the market overall. The Ontario industry should pay the most attention to this trend, because the emerging segment is far more developed there than in other regions of the country. Although Ontario accounts for 39 per cent of Canada’s total population, it surpasses its proportional population share of the fast casual segment. As of December 2013, Ontario is home to 59 per cent of the country’s fast casual units. In comparison, only 38 per cent of Canada’s total restaurants reside in this province. Not only does Ontario house the most fast casual units, but it also has been the driver of the segment’s store growth for the country. Since last year, fast casual increased its national unit count by 101, with 98 coming into Ontario.
In the middle Fast casual development has implications on both quick service and full service restaurant operators, as it shares traits with each and is positioned between the two traditional segments. For example, 63 per cent of fast casual visits occur at lunch and supper, which is almost halfway between lunch and supper’s share of QSR (40 per cent) and FSR (79 per cent). Among these lunch and supper occasions, fast casual average eater cheques are $9.50, which is again finding a gap between QSR ($7.11) and FSR ($16.70).
Twist on the traditional With all the buzz in the Canadian industry surrounding the emergence of fast casual, the Ontario industry must be more acutely aware of this trend, as it has a magnified effect on this market. Not only are there more of these restaurants competing in the market, but their twist on the traditional foodservice experience is changing the way consumers use the industry. Among lunch and supper occa-
sions, fast casual consumers are more likely than QSR and FSR customers to be driven to visit by food quality, special tastes/cravings, and healthier choices. Fast casual customers consider food quality almost as important as a convenient location; while at QSR, food quality is less than half as important as a location convenience. This vast difference in drivers is an indicator that consumers are approaching this emerging segment differently than they treat QSRs and FSRs. As this segment continues to grow, it could further shift the way consumers think about and use the foodservice industry. Fast casual is growing quickly within the Canadian marketplace, with Ontario at the centre. With the overall marketplace already flat, and share battles the primary way to drive traffic gains, operators must be aware of this intensified competition in the Ontario region. Going forward, it will be necessary to better understand how the Ontario consumer wants to use the foodservice industry, and how current QSR and FSR operators can adapt to meet that need. While it is important to
In a study released on July 16 entitled The ups and downs of minimum wage, 1975 to 2013, analysts looked at “real minimum wage” over the years by translating the average of provincial wages over the time period into 2013 dollars to account for inflation and allow for comparison. According to the data, real minimum wage was “almost identical” last year and in 1975 at $10.13, but it varied within the time period. The real minimum wage declined to $7.53 in 1986 and increased to $8.81 in 1996. Up until 2003, it remained stable at about $8.50. Since then, real minimum wage has increase by almost $2, from $8.27. Last year, the proportion of Canadian workers earning minimum wage was 6.7 per cent, up from five per cent in 1997. According to StatsCan, the increased proportion—which mostly occurred between 2003 and 2010—was to some degree a result of increases in minimum wage rates in many provinces. According to StatsCan, 17 per cent of employees in the retail trade and 27 per cent of those in the accommodations and foodservice sector were paid the minimum wage rate in 2013. These sectors accounted for more than 60 per cent of those earning minimum wage in Canada. The proportion of employees paid at minimum wage varied by province in 2013, led by P.E.I. (9.3 per cent) and Ontario (8.9 per cent). Alberta had the lowest rate at 1.8 per cent.
VISIT DRIVERS - LUNCH AND SUPPER
keep in mind that fast casual still accounts for a small portion of the marketplace (0.5 per cent of total foodservice traffic), the sooner operators can understand what it is about this emerging segment that resonates with consumers, the sooner these operators can bring more Ontarians into their restaurants.
Scott Stewart is an account manager, Foodservice Canada for The NPD Group, which has more than 25 years of experience providing consumerbased market information to the foodservice industry. For more information, visit www. npd.com.
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Ryan O’Donnell
Margaux Whillans-Brown
Yva Santini
Savouring Stratford’s culinary scene By Kristen Smith, Assistant editor, digital content STRATFORD, ON—Visitors flocked to Perth County July 18-20 for the annual Savour Stratford Festival. “This year, we made a major change: moving the festival from September to July,” said Eugene Zakreski, Stratford Tourism Alliance executive director. He told ORN that organizers plan to keep the timeslot next year and find a way to get the area’s food producers more involved in the event.
Stratford’s restaurant community The area’s restaurants and producers partnered up for the grand tasting event. Pazzo Taverna executive chef Yva Santini said the festival helps build awareness of the area’s culinary community. “We have a lot of strong chefs that are tied really closely with their farmers and their producers,” she said. “This is my seventh year participating in Savour Stratford and I love it because we get all the chefs underneath one tent and we share an event together.” Ryan O’Donnell, Stratford Chef School junior instructor and chef de cuisine at The Prune, said in the beginning there was concern the festival would compete with the area’s restaurants, but it has been good for them. “It does a great job of telling the story of Stratford to a wider community,” he said. The culinary community recently started the Stratford Chef ’s League: a collaborative of about a dozen chefs partnering with Perth County producers for events.
Culinary star stage The organizing committee brought chefs from across the country—many of them graduates of the Stratford Chef School in honour of its 30th anniversary—to Perth County to represent their province within the festival theme: coast to coast to coast. “It’s not just Perth County that has a local food story with creative chefs, but right across Canada,” said Zakreski. British Columbia chef James Walt prepared West Coast seafood and local produce and spoke about the Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program and sustainable seafood. From Rouge Restaurant and Bistro Rouge
in Calgary, chef Paul Rogalski prepared a fallen gouda soufflé, telling the audience “if you let that soufflé fall, you’re left with a light biscuit.” Chef Rich Francis shared his “modern indigenous cuisine” by preparing seared elk baked in a bed of burnt coffee beans and vanilla and thyme, with an au jus and mushrooms, blueberries, browned butter, vanilla and marrow. Quebec chef Derek Dammann prepared lightly scored sockeye salmon with basil seeds, salmon eggs and a tomato jelly. Chef Dale McKay’s demo brought a “bit of Saskatchewan to Ontario” with walleye lake fish, lentils from the province and a tomato butter sauce. Chef Todd Perrin prepared a boudin blanc with cod and pork, served with a variety of house-made mustards. “If you’re from Newfoundland and you go travel and do food demos you have to talk about codfish or else they don’t let you back in the province,” said Perrin. “It used to be practically the currency of the land.” Perrin started his cooking career at The Church Restaurant in Stratford in the mid-90s and is now part the food scene in St. John’s with his nearby restaurant Mallard Cottage in Quidi Vidi, NL. Richmond Station chefs Carl Heinrich and Ryan Donovan prepared a dish using wild boar head and demonstrated some preserving techniques. “I’m just going to keep cutting pieces off and giving them to Carl, and this is essentially what we do at the restaurant: we bring in whole animals and I cut them into pieces and give them to Carl and he makes really delicious things with them,” said Donovan, who noted only one or two per cent of the animal is ever wasted, such as the eye ball. Vegan chef, cookbook author and owner of Toronto’s Public Kitchen Doug McNish demonstrated tempeh croquettes with a roasted red pepper cashew aioli.
Rogers of Kawthoolei Farm Organics, Ingrid De Martines of Perth Pork Products and Monforte Dairy’s Ruth Klahsen demonstrated their passion for good, healthy food as they shared the stories of how they found themselves in their respective vocations. Flies has worked hard to maintain a balance between work and life, calling farming a “relentless” career: “if it’s raining or hailing, you still need to get up and go outside.”
Flies said she and her husband, Brent Preston, were both concerned with the state of the world. “We continue to farm because we want to be part of the solution,” said Flies, adding The New Farm never discounts its vegetables so as not to undercut price and she is optimistic about people spending more money on food. “Food needs to be valued in a different way in our society,” said Klahsen.
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Women in food On July 20, five women in food production and promotion gathered at The Church Restaurant for a panel discussion moderated by Alison Fryer. Susan McDonald from Smoky Creek Farms, Gillian Flies of The New Farm, chef Miriam Streiman from Mad Maple Country Inn, Pam
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KFC concept stores to serve up beer TORONTO—KFC will be offering beer at its two fast casual concept stores in Toronto as early as this fall. KFC Fresh launched as KFC Select in mid-December near Yonge and Bloor streets with the second outpost opening in late July at St. Clair Avenue and Weston Road. The chicken chain will offer domestic and international brands at its KFC Fresh locations, which sells chicken fillets, burgers, rice bowls and burritos. “It’s a natural fit as we continue to contemporize the
brand in Canada,” David Vivenes, KFC’s chief marketing officer, told the Toronto Star. Vivenes said the company has no plans to license its traditional KFC locations. According to industry analysts, offering brews could give KFC a bump in the fight for market share, where QSR outlets are seeing increased competition from fast casual chains. “Offering alcohol in fast food establishments is fairly new to Canada—and it’s not as common as one might think in
the U.S.,” Will McKitterick of IBISWorld Inc. in New York told the Star. Recently, Burger King and Subway began selling craft beer at the new Fort McMurray Airport terminal. McDonald’s serves alcohol in some European markets. “I have heard some [chains] have looked at [liquor licensing] in Canada and are starting to have discussions about the pros and cons,” James Rilett, vice-president of the Ontario division of the Restaurants Canada, told the National Post.
There are two ways to ensure your guests are eating delicious, nutritious Ontario Pork.
When they see this seal, and when they taste it.
Ontario Pulled Pork Ingredients 3-1/2 lb (1.75 kg) Ontario pork shoulder blade roast 1/2 tsp (2 mL) EACH: salt and pepper 2 Tbsp (30 mL) canola oil 2 onions, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 2 Tbsp (30 mL) chili powder 2 tsp (10 mL) ground coriander 3 bay leaves 1/4 cup (60 mL) tomato paste 1 14 oz (425 g) can tomato sauce 2 Tbsp (30 mL) packed brown sugar 2 Tbsp (30 mL) Worcestershire sauce 2 Tbsp (30 mL) cider vinegar 2 green onions, thinly sliced
Cooking Instructions 1. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat oil over
medium-high heat and sear pork until brown all over. Transfer to slow cooker.
2. In the same skillet, add onions, garlic, chili powder, coriander and bay leaves. Fry ingredients while stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, tomato sauce, sugar, Worcestershire sauce and cider vinegar, scraping any brown bits from bottom of pan; bring to a boil. Pour sauce into slow cooker, cover and cook on low until pork is tender, 8 to 10 hours. 3. Once cooked, transfer pork to cutting board and tent with foil; let stand for 10 minutes. With two forks, shred or “pull” pork. 4. Meanwhile, pour liquid from slow cooker into large saucepan and skim off fat. Bring to a boil over high heat and let boil vigorously until reduced to 3 cups (750 mL), about 15 minutes. Discard bay leaves. 5. Add pulled pork to reduced sauce mixture and lower heat to simmer until hot, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle with green onions. Serve on crust rolls with a green salad. For an appetizer, place pulled pork on a crostini and top with caramelized onions.
Ontario Pork is a natural fit on the menu and provides extraordinary value for food service operators. For more information about using the Ontario Pork logo on your menu or for other resources to support your business please contact Ontario Pork at 1-877-668-7675 or visit ontariopork.com/recipes.
Paul Dykeman, Frankie Tomatto’s
Innovation competition on track for growth MARKHAM, ON—Following its inaugural year, an innovation competition for hospitality students is set to return with a goal of national growth. Organizers of the second annual Frankie Tomatto’s Innovation Competition will call for entries in September for innovative ideas that can be realistically implemented in the industry. Entries can include food items, business models and technology. “We have a goal and our goal is to continue to expand this,” operations manager for Frankie Tomatto’s Paul Dykeman told ORN. “The big scheme is to have east versus west: Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes versus the Western Provinces.” Dykeman said Frankie Tomatto’s will eventually be dropped from the competition name, but the award will be called a “Frankie”. Last year, the competition had entries from several hospitality schools in Ontario, including the University of Guelph, George Brown College and Ryerson University. According to Dykeman, the student competition was the idea of Frankie Tomatto’s owner Hal Roback who approached Joe Barth, an associate professor for the school of hospitality and tourism management at the University of Guelph. Roback and Barth created a panel of industry professionals, including Dykeman, to organize and promote the event. The competition is open to groups of two to four students with at least one registered in a hospitality program. Students looking to enter the competition are asked to produce a 1,200-word outline of their idea. From the initial pitches, eight are selected to present to a panel of judges and two will be selected to attend the Restaurants Canada Show in March 2015, where the winner will be announced. First place prize will receive $3,000 and second place wins $1,000. Dykeman said innovation was something which helped Frankie Tomatto’s, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary. With its iconic replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the all-you-can-eat buffet-style restaurant located near the intersection of Steeles Avenue E. and Woodbine Avenue offers beef ribs, rotisserie chicken, pizza and Italian fare. “It’s really special that after 20 years, we have customers coming in with strollers and they’ll talk about how they were five years old coming here,” Dykeman said. The 425-seat restaurant has more than 140 staff members, some of whom have been there since the beginning. “Frankie’s is fun, it’s larger than life, it doesn’t take itself too seriously and there is a comfort factor to that. It transcends different cultures and different languages,” said Dykeman. “It’s wonderful that people have so many memories.”
Day in the Life: From plate to grower, Ontario Restaurant News follows the path of a loaf of bread through the supply chain, taking a look at some essential people along the way. By ORN staff
1. Equipment Manufacturer
2. KITCHEN MANAGER
1. EQUIPMENT MAN UFACTURER
Corporate chef and product development manager Rational corporate chef and Fredrik Rasmusproduct development manager son has been with Fredrik Rasmusson. Rational for five team years, starting with the of more company at its headquarthan 100 ters in Germany and moving to restaurant certihis role in North America in Februfied chefs who carry out the ary 2013. Originally from Sweden, where he did minimum four hours of training included his culinary training, Rasmusson moved to with the sale of each piece of equipment. Rasmusson says restaurants are taking Germany in 2001 and worked in two and baking bread very seriously for which Rathree Michelin-starred restaurants. After completing food and beverage tional has incorporated a new baking secmanagement training, he took a position tion in the May release of SelfCookingCentre 5 Senses. at Rational. The redeveloped baking application Rasmusson starts each day by responding to client queries. “That’s always my first was the result of baking a vast number of priority, to get the customer the answers goods from scratch in a recently created they need so I can help them through the bakery section of the food laboratory in Germany. day,” he says. Part of Rasmusson’s team is in GermaRasmusson says training is one of the most important aspects of his job, which ny and they test all the cooking processes applies to new customers, but also to a before a new product is released. “We have the final word to say ‘well, this is the way team of internal sales staff. “I make sure that they have the best the chef would like it’,” he says. Rasmusson’s job involves a fair bit of possible knowledge about our equipment; so I visit them in Canada, I visit them here administrative work—it’s not just cookin the U.S. and we have training a couple of ing and testing food, but also documenting and writing reports, he says. times a year,” he says. “I think the amount of work that Rasmusson gets support from Guerin Sykes, Canadian corporate executive chef doesn’t have to do with any cooking would be a little bit surprising for most people,” and key accounts manager. Rasmusson also manages and trains a he says.
Jay Arumuganathan, a kitchen manager at The Pickle Barrel, spends his day overseeing a high volume output at the chain’s location at Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue in Toronto. Arumuganathan started out his career as a dishwasher at an Italian restaurant, working his way up through prep and cook positions. Before his move to management, he was a line cook at two Pickle Barrel locations. “Since I know the line, I didn’t need that training when I moved to the kitchen manager position,” he says. “Instead, I took a month-long training course for the kitchen which involved ordering, scheduling, portion and cost control, labour and food costs, purchasing prep and inventory control.” Arumuganathan starts each day with a quick walk around with his team. “I ask about opening and closing, how they’re feeling and if there are any issues,” he says. Part of
Arumuganathan’s duties also include a taste and temperature checks to ensure products are up to par. Items such as bread will be received and go to the different lines in the restaurant, such as challah and English muffins to the breakfast side, or onion buns and rye to the deli bar. Due to the busy nature of the Yonge and Eglinton location—a weekend night can see 500 to 600 covers—Arumuganathan says much of his concentration is spent on how the food is plated and how quickly it goes to the customer. “We’re located in a business area, so we need to stick to that 30-minute window for service,” he says. With 15 to 20 staff members in the kitchen per shift, Arumuganathan emphasizes that team involvement is crucial to being prepared for high volume times, such as the lunch rush. Arumuganathan also takes over expediting, checking chit times and presentation for consistency. After lunch, ordering, spot checks, portion control and scheduling occupies his time. “Keep in mind that it’s the team that helps you run the restaurant,” he says. “Treat them in a way that indicates that they are the boss of their station. Listen to the staff to get an idea of the product and they will provide food that comes from their heart.”
Jay Arumuganathan, a kitchen manager for The Pickle Barrel.
2. Kitchen Manager
5. MAN UFACTURER For Jeff Silverstein, making bread is in his bones. Along with brothers Mark and Brian, and father, 83-year-old Sonny, Jeff is a third-generation to take on the family bread making facility Silverstein’s Bakery in downtown Toronto. Officially, his title is vice-president of sales and marketing, but “each day is almost like a different hat you put on,” Silverstein says. Silverstein, who has been with the company for almost 40 years, says he worked his way through the operation to learn the business, spending time in production and delivery as well. “We work with a philosophy of ‘whatever it takes’,” he said, adding
he had to make deliveries recently because three of the company’s drivers were off for various reasons. “Each day is really different in our business and we operate 24-7,” Silverstein says. His primary role is customer service, which he says is key to standing out from the competition. Silverstein says he meets with many chefs and foodservice professionals across the industry. “These guys all have a real passion for what they do, and part of what makes it so very rewarding, is dealing with them because anybody who’s got a passion makes the job easier when they love it as much as you do,” he says. Silverstein says he is a member
of the Les Toques Blanches’ Toronto branch and says it’s a good group to socialize and network with away from work. The bakery, he says, has flour delivered and bakers make the different varieties of dough, which are proofed, baked and packaged onsite. Silverstein’s products include bagels, buns, baguettes, challah and rye breads. According to Silverstein, the operation is mobile enough to accommodate many special requests from foodservice professionals. “When I meet a new chef and say, for example, he’s from Switzerland and he’s got an old family recipe, we’ll try and duplicate that for him,” Silverstein said.
5. Manufacturer
3. PURCHASING MANAGER
3. Purchasing Manager
4. DISTRIBUTOR
4. Distributor
4,000 covers. His day includes dealing with requests from the catering manager, such as product specs and availability, as well as managing seasonality and coordinating with the executive and sous chef on the culinary team. On an average day, he interacts with 15 differKal Kopman, purchasing ent departments within manager at the Metro Toronto the MTCC, ranging from Convention Centre. accounting to parking and technology services. “One thing that may be surK a l prising about this job is how vast it is: Kopman, I could be coming out of a meeting for purchasing manager at the Metro Toronto Convention requirements for fine dining and go right Centre, describes his typical day as one of into talking about upgrading toilet cleanconstant motion. “I spend a lot of the day ing programs and from there to discusrunning from department to department, sions about new ideas for tabletops,” he says. “It’s a renaissance man’s dream job.” like a hamster on a wheel,” he laughs. In addition, he is constantly co-ordiKopman, whose background includes eight years of buying experience for nating with the MTCC’s 100 suppliers, event-based catering companies and re- making sure the supply chain is running tail purchasing, has been responsible for smoothly. Due to the sheer size of the all purchasing requirements for the Metro 14,000-square-foot kitchen space and the Convention Centre since November 2013, fact that on any given day, there are up to from food and beverage to china and uni- 18,000 meals being served in the convenforms. His education includes a three-year tion centre, Kopman’s job involves a lot of Purchasing Manager’s Association of Can- careful planning. “We currently deal with about four ada certification and a four-year bachelor bakeries and all our bread comes in fresh of e-commerce from Ryerson University. Along with a purchasing administra- at 5 a.m. the day of, requiring certain stantor and a co-op student, Kopman facili- dards that I need to establish with suppliers tates the flow of product throughout the about receiving,” he says. “Due to the large MTCC’s massive kitchens. One of his first volume, I can’t call in and ask for 4,000 events included simultaneous occasions in mini pretzel wiener rolls to be delivered in the north and south buildings, each with two hours.”
Jeff Silverstein, vice-president, sales and marketing for Silverstein’s Bakery.
Flanagan Foodservice distributes to more than 5,000 restaurants and foodservice operations across the province of Ontario. Ruth Doig is the company’s category manager for grocery and frozen food and it is her job to orchestrate the delivery of products from suppliers to restaurants. “We’re really the logistics person and the conduit between those two,” says Doig. “We look at developing a comprehensive product offering that will support our sales team in meeting whatever our customers needs are currently and into the future.” In order to get information about products to the customer base and the sales team, Doig says the company hosts food shows, produces a publication highlighting new and existing products, produces flyers and calendars and holds sales meetings on how to sell the product at a customer level. Customers can also view products on the company’s website. According to Doig, she is always on the lookout for new products. “We want to see what’s new, what will be a possible fit within our customer mix. We’ll often go out to our sales team and ask, ‘This is something that’s new, have you been asked for it?’” says Doig. “Or the vender community will come to us with a new product … so it really comes from both sides.” Doig says most of the bread distributed through Flanagan Foodservice is frozen and either proof-andbake, parbaked or fully cooked. “In most cases we find our customers are moving toward that parbaked/fully baked offering because it’s just ease of use and there is little or no waste,”
says Doig. Bread manufacturers, says Doig, have made great strides in created a variety of high-quality, gluten-free products to match customer’s demands. “We certainly see a continued interest in artisan breads and breads with benefits having such things as flax seeds,” says Doig. “We are seeing customers wanting a cleaner deck with less additives and preservatives and there was also a push for reduction in sodium levels.” Customers order product from Flanagan Foodservice and it’s delivered in company trucks, with supply replenished from manufacturers. “Most of our bread suppliers are right here in Ontario and they use Canadian wheat, so that really speaks to the local movement,” she says. One of the challenges is to manage through seasonal spikes in business, says Doig. “We have a purchasing system that assists in doing that to make sure that our service level is the best we can possibly offer,” she says.
6. PROCESSOR Arva Flour Mill owner Mike Matthews’ family has been running the mill since the 1910s. “I’ve been involved my whole life, but I’ve been the owner since 2005,” says Matthews. The mill itself dates back to 1819, when it was built on the banks of Medway Creek in what is now called Arva, just north of London, ON, and is Canada’s oldest continuously operating, water-powered mill. “I feel it’s a piece of history and I try to do it as authentically as possible.” “Our product is truly artisanal. There’s no computer or flashing red light if something goes wrong. You have to touch the flour and feel it to know that it’s being milled properly.” Matthews has taken business
courses over the years, but learned most through experience. “It’s never really a typical day around here,” says Matthews. He noted it’s also not a typical mill— they maintained a number of practices that have died off over the years. The day often starts at 6 a.m. with some paperwork and invoicing. With one full-time time and seven part-time employees, Matthews takes on much of the work, including ensuring the equipment is working, contacting potential new clients, following up with current customers and dealing with distributors. Using equipment from 1903 means Matthews must check the equipment daily in case a piece needs to be fabricated. “I’m the grounds
crew as well, so I’ve got to make sure all the grass is cut and the gardens look nice,” he says. The mill produces a hard wheat, a soft wheat and a spelt flour. “I deal directly with farmers. All my grain, even my hard wheat, is grown locally—I source pretty much all my product within 20 kilometres of the mill,” Matthews says. He says 70 per cent of the mill’s business is through the retail store. “Our biggest clients are distributors, they’re the ones who can actually get it out to the restaurants,” says Matthews. “Up until about the time I took [the business] over, we didn’t have a distributor. People had to come here and pick it up or we delivered inside London.”
Mike Matthews, owner of Arva Flour Mill.
7. Grower
6. Processor
7. GROWER
Levi Wood, president of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association.
Levi Wood, president of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association, is one of the more than 50,000 Canadian farmers growing wheat on more than 22.8 million acres of land. The 30-year-old grew up on a farm and has been actively farming since 2008. His family has been farming since 1887. He went to university for commerce and worked in the finance sector before the prospects in agriculture seemed sunnier. Since then, he has also completed an MBA at the University of British Columbia, which included a specialization in international business at Hong Kong University.
INDEPENDENT OPERATOR While much of the bread that lands on restaurant tables touches many hands throughout the foodservice industry, there are operators who cut straight to the chase. Carrie Surrette is the owner of Heartwood, a vegetarian/vegan restaurant that buys flour directly from a local mill—who also grow the grain, package the flour and distribute it—so her team can bake pizza crusts, sourdough and foccacia bread three times a week at her Halifax eatery. “For us, it’s extremely important: our focus is on quality products so we wouldn’t be able to find or purchase from a baker with the quality of a product that we make ourselves,” Surrette says. Many Heartwood customers have allergy and food sensitivity concerns and they want to know precisely which ingredients have been used and where they come from, she says. Heartwood has a wheat-free kitchen using only organic kamut and spelt flour purchased from Speerville Flour Mill in Speerville, NB. Surrette says the only ingredients in the house-made bread are flour, sea salt and some oil. The restaurant also adds onions to its focaccia bread. The bread is started in the morning, and it takes between three and four hours until it is ready to be worked with. The restaurant’s baker comes in around 3 p.m., bakes the bread and leaves it sit overnight so it is ready for sale the following morning. Heartwood uses the bread for all of its sandwiches and bread to go with soup. They also sell the bread in-store to customers. The starter for the sourdough bread was created by Heartwood founder Laura Bishop and has been used in the store for 17 years. Surrette bought the location from Bishop two and a half years ago after selling her health food store in Moncton and moving to Halifax.
Wood farms about 1,900 acres in Pense, SK, about one third of which is wheat each year. He says each day is different and depends on the time of year. The crop was seeded in May and will be ready for harvest from mid-August until October. Before harvest, he is checking the crop for progress and watching for threats that might reduce yield. “We’ve had more rain in the last five years than we think is sort of normal for this area, so there has been a lot more crop diseases,” he says. “There are two sides to it: one side is actually growing the crop and
the other side is figuring out when you’re going to sell it,” he says. He added you have to factor in a number of things including harvest times in other parts of the world. If the grain isn’t sold immediately, it is stored in bins before entering the grain handling system. “The more storage you have on your farm, the more options you have about how to manage your crop,” he said. From there, it is hauled by truck to a grain elevator, where is cleaned and sent out by rail. Wood’s grain could end up at a mill in Canada or the U.S. and he says much of it will be sent by train to a port and shipped to overseas customers.
HEALTHCARE Susan Bull, manager of nutrition and foodservices for Scarborough Hospital’s General and Birchmount campuses, tries to lead by example,down to the small details, such as not entering the kitchen without wearing appropriate footwear and headgear. “I walk the talk in terms of maintaining standards. If I expect the team to get here in a snowstorm, so do I. It goes a long way towards the staff feeling good about the relationship.” A manager at the hospital for the last 26 years, Bull oversees 110 people between the two campuses in shift work positions: a combination of foodservice co-ordinators who oversee the menu day to day, menu clerks, diet technicians, cooks, and dietary helpers. Bull and her team handle three daily meals for 275 people at the General campus, which is traditional hot plating and 215 at the Birch-
mount campus, which uses cold plating rethermalization. With a bachelor’s degree in science from Western University, Bull is a registered dietician with Dieticians of Ontario, and says she never stops learning. Whether it’s computer technology or new equipment, Bull must stay on top of technological advances and adapt to new programs such as a recently rolled out bedside ordering system where staff use a wireless system on wheels to ask patients daily what they feel like eating in an effort to avoid food waste. Bull oversees a complex ordering system that has unique demands due to hospital protocol. Although a twice-weekly bread order is contracted to big suppliers and is a standing order with quanti-
ties that do not fluctuate often, the hospital has gradually shifted its stocking system to a “just in time” model. The exception, says Bull, is that some bread is kept in the freezers to use for sandwiches in case of an influx of people from an external disaster. The stored bread is then rotated out and turned into toast after a certain period.
Susan Bull, manager of nutrition and foodservices, Scarborough Hospital.
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BeverageNews A MONTHLY REPORT ON THE BEVERAGE INDUSTRY
Breweries team up in Hamilton
Above: The site of the new brewery. Left: (from left to right): Kyle Wilson, brand ambassador; artist Dan Griffin; Bob Russell, co-founder; Matt Johnston, co-founder; Jeff Tkachuk, chief financial officer; Ryan Morrow, brewmaster; Linda Yahya, public relations and social media manager.
HAMILTON, ON—Two craft breweries have joined forces to open a brewery in Hamilton. Collective Arts and Nickel Brook brewing companies will both occupy the 67-year-old facility at 201 Burlington St. E. The building has been empty since 2010 after Labatt closed the facility, laying off 143 workers. The two breweries will lease the building from the Hamilton Port Authority under the banner of Arts and Science but will remain independent companies. Matt Johnston, co-founder of Collective Arts, which opened in September 2013, said the move allowed both breweries to “hit above their weight.” The new facility will pump out 40,000 hectolitres annually, and “it will bump us up to the top tier of craft brewers in the country,” he said. Johnston said he hopes the move will also contribute to the revitalization of Hamilton.
“Hamilton is an industrial city that is really trying to bring both creativity in the sciences and the arts to the city through McMaster University on the science side and then a lot of emerging artists are moving there,” Johnston told ORN. “We feel that collectively we bring that in.” Johnston said there will likely be ways the two companies can work together, which could include a collaborative release. Currently, Ryan Morrow is the brewmaster for both companies. The space is projected to open late 2014 and will contain a retail space with a hospitality area to follow in early 2015. Growlers, bottles, kegs and cans will be available. Collective Arts co-founder Bob Russell said the company is always pushing the envelope and seeking out new opportunities. “We’ve found a very interesting place where
we can engage the art community and engage the public and once you do that, there are logical areas that you extend your brand into, and so we’re exploring some of those areas right now,” Russell said. “I think 2015 will be a very exciting year and I think you’ll see new beers from Collective Arts once we are in the brewery, but [you are] also going to see some very forward thinking in other types of beverages.” Both Russell and Johnston are Hamilton natives. Collective Arts calls for visual artists, musicians and filmmakers four times a year to be featured on its labels, which can be scanned by a smartphone to link with the creator’s information. In June, the brewery’s flagship beer Rhyme & Reason took home gold at the 12th annual Canadian Brewing Awards in Fredericton, NB, in the American style pale ale category.
MacLean’s transitions from farmhouse HANOVER, ON—A rural Ontario brewery is expanding into a new building, boosting production of craft beer in the area. MacLean’s Ales is moving from a 100-hectolitre per year farmhouse system into a 5,000-hectolitre per year system in a brewery near Hanover, ON. “Sales have really shot up since news of our expansion,” founder and brewmaster Charles MacLean told ORN. MacLean said that although rural consumption of craft beer is not on pace with the percentages seen in the province’s city centres, he feels it could go from five per cent now up to 15 per cent within the next 10 years. The 5,400-square-foot brewery is big enough for the team to double capacity with room on the 1.2-acre site for further building expansion. Currently the brewery employs five full-time positions, which MacLean said could nearly double in a year.
MacLean said the brewery will produce three year-round beers including a pale ale, a farmhouse ale using local ingredients and an India pale ale. He also has plans for six seasonal beers including a stout, a porter, an English special bitter, a scotch ale, a bitter and an old ale. The brewery also comes with a pilot system for research and development and MacLean said he plans on producing barley wines and barrelaged brews. Key to the brewery’s philosophy is choosing local first, MacLean said, although he pointed out both Ontario hops and malt are in short supply and high demand. “We’re committed to using as much local raw ingredients as possible but we also have to maintain the quality and consistency,” MacLean said. Nicholas Schaut of Big Head Hops will help the brewery grow one-third of an acre of hops to showcase local ingredients and provide the
groundwork for a hops picking festival. The site will also include a retail store and a kitchenette, a 25-seat hospitality room and a 40-seat patio. MacLean said the space could be rented for weddings or events for up to 200 people but will not turn into regularly open pub or restaurant. Along with the expansion, MacLean’s is now available at 100 LCBO stores across the province. “We don’t get to pick the 100 stores they go into,” MacLean said. “We’d like to get up to 200 stores, and we have the capacity now to do that.” MacLean is a member of the Grey County Chefs forum and said he spends a lot of time working with chefs, pairing his beer with a variety of local foods and boosting tourism in the region. “People are interested in local food and also interested in local beer,” he said. “What I really want to see is something to rival Prince Edward County.”
Canada picks up Decanter World Wine Awards LONDON—Canadian wineries took home awards at the 2014 Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) including top prize for an Ontario icewine. Inniskillin Wine Estate’s 2012 vidal icewine took home an International Trophy for Best Sweet Wine Over £15 per bottle at the awards, which took place in London, U.K., in late June. “This Decanter Trophy validates the work of Canadian icewine producers and reinforces the reputation of icewine as one of the world’s great iconic wines,” Tony Aspler, DWWA regional chair for Canada, said in a release. According to the DWWA, the wine was the first Canadian icewine to win an international trophy. Last year, Inniskillin took home a bronze medals for its 2008 Vidal Icewine and its 2008 vidal oak-aged icewine. Only 33 of the more than 15,000 wines entered in the DWWA received international trophies. Regional, gold, silver and bronze awards were also handed out. Canada receive four regional awards: Jackson-Triggs, 2010 Entourage Grand Reserve Brut, Okanagan Valley, BC; Laughing Stock Vineyards, 2011 Syrah, Okanagan Valley, BC; Nk’Mip Cellars, 2012 Qwam Qwmt Chardonnay, Okanagan Valley, BC; and Pillitteri, 2012 Vidal Reserve Icewine, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON. Four more wineries from the Okanagan Valley took gold awards alongside five gold-winning wines from Ontario’s Niagara Peninsula. Wineries from Ontario and British Columbia received 37 silver medals, 79 bronze medals and 45 commended awards. Judges awarded 10,455 medals in total at this year’s awards, including 125 regional trophies, 454 gold medals, 2,003 silver, 4,378 bronze and 3,620 commended. Regional trophies are chosen from gold medal winners in a particular region and then compete for international trophies in specific categories defined by wine style. France took home seven international trophies and Italy won four. The DWWA have taken place annually since 2004.
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O N TA R I O R E S TAU R A N T N E W S
By Kristen Smith
I
n chef Dan Barber’s book, The Third Plate, he discusses a cuisine going beyond raising awareness of the provenance of food in which food culture reflects the landscape. “The right kind of cooking and the right kind of farming are one and the same,” wrote Barber. During a talk at George Brown College in Toronto, Barber noted that growing good wheat is expensive from a biological perspective. “If we’re not supporting all the things that make wheat so delicious, we’re in big trouble,” he said. To demonstrate whole farm cooking, Barber created “rotation risotto” to be served at his restaurants Blue Hill in New York and Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills. An ode to everything but wheat (and without rice), the dish featured other grains, legumes and a brassica puree. “The best flavours come from diverse systems,” Barber said. “The trick and the challenge is to support it—and support it means [to] eat it. We’ve got to eat the crops that support a truly sustainable landscape.” He thinks chefs are in an ideal position to be proponents of a sustainable system and many are putting the pieces together, but as a whole, there needs to be an understanding of what constitutes regional eating, which he says might result in thousands of micro-cuisines. “What we need to do is know the niche,” he says. Although farm-to-table can be an overused and perhaps abused descriptor, Barber points to the influence of chefs in helping to broaden the movement. “The promise of farm-to-table cooking is that menus take their shape from the constraints of local agriculture and cel-
ebrate them,” he wrote. He points out that a growing number of chefs are advocating for change in the food system. “As someone whose job it is to address the end result, how can you not care about the beginning?” he asks.
Back to the roots For decades, chefs across the Canada have committed to cooking with food that has been sourced sustainably. For chef Brad Long, this means being part of a sustainable cycle and putting his purchasing power toward those who are stewards of the land and treat livestock ethically. “You can’t just say ‘let’s do better’,” says Long. “If you want to change the process of how we treat animals, you have to actively support the ones who do it right.” Long says he has felt resistance to supporting local, sustainable food because some feel it sounds wishy-washy, unnecessarily complicated, expensive or impractical. “I’m a capitalist entrepreneur and I know—both at foundation and from end to end of process—that profit is the first priority of sustainability, which means I stand in a very complicated place each and every day,” he says. “You can’t haggle for price, or the great grower or artisanal producer, or they won’t be there for long. “I want to take care of my supply chain, I want to stabilize my supply chain, I want to love my supply chain,” says Long. After hearing that chefs and farmers wanted to work together, but were missing the time and resources, Paul Sawtell and Grace Mandarano started 100km Foods Inc. in 2007. “We’ve found that we’re selling more within each of our
accounts … in the beginning, I think we were more of a niceto-have, fringe item on some people’s menus, we’ve become a little bit more of a mainstay,” says Mandarano. She says source-identifying the company’s 75 producers is an important part of the business. “There is really a terroir to food. We don’t think of any kind of food as a commodity, because either the soil is different so it actually tastes different, or some farmers grow something larger than another farmer or differently than another farmer.” When it comes to sustainable, local and organic food, Mandarano says the question becomes: “Do you do imported, organic or conventionally grown, local? And the answer is you try to move as much as possible to local organic,” she says. Mandarano says the farmers are always paid a fair price, which 100km Foods marks up for its service. As she and Sawtell were planning the business, they “realized that we had a fair trade issue in our own backyard.” She says an important component of sustainability is financial viability. “It’s all fine and good to want to do the right thing, but the only way we can affect change in the world is to be part of it,” she says. Brent Preston and Gillian Flies run The New Farm, a 100-acre organic farm near Creemore, ON. “When we first started, we grew everything imaginable and we’ve whittled it down to the stuff that really grows well here,” says Preston. The couple’s salad mixes, beets, specialty potatoes and greenhouse cucumbers can be found in restaurants and some retail locations.
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www.ontariorestaurantnews.com being a huge part of the province’s history. “People around here have been picking fiddleheads for years; our woods are filled with wild mushrooms,” Vergen says. “As chefs, we can put on the blinders and we see a beautiful, sexy product that we just have to work with and is inspiring us,” says Vergen, but for something to be sustainable, it’s necessary for the business model to work. Vergen pays $3.50 to the enthusiastic guys down the street, for a bundle of organic rainbow carrots, when he could get a bag for not much more. He says you have to consider how you use them—“you want to showcase them.”
Supply and demand
Blue Hill at Stone Barns.
“We wanted to do something that was going to have a positive impact environmentally,” says Preston, who uses little mechanization, minimizes the farm’s input and offsets electricity use with solar power. He says while many chefs have been leading the charge with respect to sustainable food, more restaurants are becoming interested because customers are demanding it. “Restaurant customers are asking about providence, asking about terroir, asking about where the ingredients are coming from and they want to know the stories behind the food, so that’s really driving our business and driving the demand from restaurants for our product,” Preston says. The more farmers and chefs understand each other, the better farmers can understand the supply needs (reliability and consistency) and chefs can figure out the best way to get local and seasonal products on their menus, says Preston. “I’m having increasing trouble with the emphasis on local as opposed to sustainable and organic,” says Preston, adding industrial, chemical-based agriculture is the dominant model in Ontario. He says people need to be thinking about what the terms sustainable, local and organic mean and asking questions. “Chefs are absolutely in the forefront of this whole movement and I think it’s a really important, broad movement that is developing around good food,” he says. “The power that chefs have in our society today is absolutely unbelievable.” Paul Rogalski, chef and co-owner of Rouge Restaurant and Rouge Bistro in Calgary, says there needs to be some collective work done toward some common solutions in the field of sustainability for the sake of
lasting food systems and the recovery of the oceans. “Sustainable is a very, very big word and I think a lot of people are viewing it as a trend, but it’s a reality more than anything else,” says Rogalski. When Rouge started its restaurant garden a dozen years ago, Rogalski says initially it was for the flavours. “I know food well enough to know that if you pick something, the sooner you eat it, the better it’s going to taste,” he says. “The garden really taught me a lesson that Mother Nature controls everything; we can react to it, but we can’t change what’s going on with the weather.” He thinks “farmers are, and should be, our new rock stars.”
Rethinking local economy When it comes to running a restaurant, food needs to be consistent. “It comes down to, we’re all business people, but we’re also in a powerful position as the ones who are dealing with the food and that gives us the ability to share that message,” Rogalski says. “I think it’s powerful coming from us; as food handlers we’re looking at quality, we’re looking at travel times, we’re looking at flavour.” David Cohlmeyer, Cookstown Greens founder and sustainable good food consultant, is working on a study with the University of Guelph in an effort to determine which farming practices provide the best tasting and longest lasting carrots. Cohlmeyer has planted carrots on his property near Thornton, ON, and is comparing those grown with: high nitrogen and potassium used by conventional growers; compost used by most organic growers; additional micronutrients used by some growers; and using compost tea. The
harvested carrots will be analyzed for secondary metabolites, flavour profile, phytochemicals, yield and shelf life. Cohlmeyer uses an example of Cookstown’s leeks, which he sold for about $2 a piece, to demonstrate the divide between thinking about cost and plate cost. The way the controller looked at it, they could get three for $5. But from the chef ’s perspective, the more expensive leeks are clean, which Cohlmeyer says his staff took extra care to not let dirt splash in, and since the cook didn’t have to cut it down the middle to clean them, it increased the possibilities of how it could be used. “Bottom line is the chef said that the plate cost of these leeks is the cheapest, but on the surface they look like the most expensive,” says Cohlmeyer. He says the commitment needs to come from the restaurateur and must be part of the business plan. It should also be transparent. “What is local? Quite often, it’s ‘local, when possible’, which is code for when it’s cheap enough,” says Cohlmeyer. Jesse Vergen, chef and partner of the Saint John Ale House in Saint John, NB, says while part of the motivation to buy local is putting money back into the community, the appeal is definitely the freshness, flavour and nutrients. He says New Brunswick has one of the most interesting and diverse areas for local food, with oceans and agriculture
Leavoy Rowe Beef Co. partner Chip Leavoy said when they first started the business in 2005, there was a lot of demand from the foodservice industry for U.S. beef. “We take no small amount of pride in our role in developing a great local meat supply chain. It was, of course, spurred on by chefs,” Leavoy says. “The local, seasonal ingredient approach is classic cuisine.” He says the company’s local beef brand, Wellington Country Premium Beef, has grown over the years. “Unlike some other trends that have become more faddy, I think the local trend is here to stay,” Leavoy says. Earlier this year, McDonald’s announced it would begin sourcing “verified sustainable beef ” in 2016. Sherry MacLauchlan, director of government relations and sustainability for McDonald’s Canada, says without a working universal definition of sustainable beef, the company has to work with its
suppliers, with non-profits and with national associations, such as the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, to develop a global framework. The Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef has drafted a definition, principles and criteria, which was out for public comment and is being reviewed. Jeffrey Fitzpatrick-Stilwell, McDonald’s Canada senior manager of sustainability, says the recently launched Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef “will take those high-level principles around treatment of employees, animal welfare and land those good things” and figure out what this translates to in Canada. “If you’re going to say that animal health and welfare is an indicator of sustainable beef, which everybody would, which indicators do you look to say this producer is producing beef in a sustainable manner?” explains Fitzpatrick-Stilwell. While they are doing a lot of work around indicator development, he says the roundtable—which brings together producers, provincial and national associations and agriculture ministries—is also looking at what is already in place. Fitzpatrick-Stilwell says the pilot group is looking to determine the Canadian method of verifying sustainable beef, which will end up informing other regions. He says it is important to have collaboration along the entire value chain. “When we get to the end state here, the goal is for everybody to understand … and be onside with the indicators.” The end goal, he says, is for everyone, not just McDonald’s Canada, to be able to use the term “Canadian verified sustainable beef.”
Chef Jesse Vergen’s greenhouse at his Quispamsis, NB, farm.
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Bacon Nation goes bricks and mortar
Andrew Motta and Dan Ayan.
TORONTO—From the Canadian National Exhibition to a food truck, Bacon Nation has now found a home at 170 Spadina Ave. in Toronto. The team calls the location the “National Bacon Headquarters” and offers an all-bacon menu. “We built a business model around bacon and there’s a lot of appeal around it,” owner Dan Ayan told ORN. “Bacon is the ultimate comfort food … it’s been a great response so far.” Ayan and his brother Andrew Motta
opened the 2,000-square-foot location on July 1 under a two-year lease, after which time the space will be closed for condo development. According to Ayan, the deal will allow the company to see if a bricks and mortar location is viable. Ayan said there are plans to incorporate a breakfast menu and a late-night menu into the existing 40-seat restaurant menu resulting in a 24-7 operation. Menu items include the Drunken Stupor with Canadian bacon, double-smoked bacon strips, an egg, whisky barbecue sauce and
beer-battered onion rings on a kaiser; and the Banana Bacon Split Sandwich with Nutella banana spread, bacon strips and cream cheese on cinnamon raisin bread. “This is our first attempt at the menu,” Ayan said. “Some things will stay and some will go.” Company branding includes bacon-themed taglines, such as “go pig or go home”, “pork star”, “the notorious P.I.G.” and “home and bacon land”. Bacon Nation got its start in 2012 and has since served up baconwrapped, deep-fried Mars bars and combos advertised as having 7,000 calories, including the company’s Notorious P.I.G. burger and bacon cheddar fries with a bacon milkshake. “We started [at the CNE] because International Bacon Day is on Labour Day weekend, so we wanted to have a celebration,” he said. This year, the company will be serving a bacon-wrapped coca-cola chicken breast at the CNE. Last winter, the company purchased a food truck, which Ayan says “is great for grassroots promotion.” With nearly 16,000 Twitter followers, Ayan says social media allows Bacon Nation to let customers know where the food truck will be. 170 Spadina Ave., Toronto, (416) 435-0800, @BaconNationCA.
O N TA R I O R E S TAU R A N T N E W S
Fire strikes at Bonduelle’s Tecumseh plant TECUMSEH, ON—A fire at fruit, vegetable and legume processor Bonduelle Canada’s Tecumseh plant on July 18 damaged refrigeration piping and other areas. The 75 employees on site that day were unharmed, said a company release. Full canning production had resumed within the week. “In addition to the dry warehouse buildings, the pea, beans, corn, carrot, celery and Brussels sprouts receiving and preparation areas were not impacted. The refrigeration piping was damaged but the freezing tunnels were not harmed,” the company said in a statement released on July 21. The Tecumseh fire department ruled out arson as the cause behind the blaze that affected nearly 5.5 million kilograms of frozen vegetables and unpacked goods, reported the CBC. Fire damages were estimated between $40 and $50 million. The Tecumseh plant produces nearly 35,000 metric tons of frozen goods and 29,000 metric tons of canned goods, primarily for Green Giant, which Bonduelle supplies exclusively in Canada, according to the company. There are close to 200 employees on permanent contracts, and up to 250 seasonal employees at the site. The plant is one of seven in Canada, two of which are in Ontario: Ingersoll and Strathroy. The other four plants are located in Quebec.
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Left: Philip Sanders, Canadian Association of Foodservice Professionals. Middle: Dan Craig, Delta Toronto Hotel. Right: Andy O’Brien, CEO of M&M Meat Shops Ltd.
Philip Sanders has been appointed to the role of Credential Food Executive (CFE) Chairperson for the Toronto branch of the Canadian Association of Foodservice Professionals. The CFE program is an extension of formal mainstream education and accredits foodservice professionals through a series of milestones and validates the acquisition of new skills, knowledge and professional acumen. “The main goal for me is to increase awareness about this very worthwhile credentialing program,” Sanders told ORN. Sanders is a registered dietitian and the national director of operations and training with Burlodge Canada and has been involved with the CAFP since he was a student at Centennial College and Ryerson University. Dan Craig will be helming the kitchen at the Delta Toronto hotel when that property launches at the end of November in Toronto’s downtown business core. Joining the hotel as executive chef on Aug. 1, Craig most recently worked as executive chef at e.b.o restaurant in the Delta Hotel and Conference Centre in Burnaby, BC. Craig has extensive overseas experience. He trained in Australian restaurants in Sydney and Melbourne, and in 2007, he competed against 26 other countries to win the Grand
Gold Medal at the La Chaine Des Rotisseurs International Competition, in Adelaide. After working in Australia, Craig studied at Le Cordon Bleu, in Paris, after which he moved to Bourges, in Central France, to train under Francois Adamski at the two-Michelin-starred L’Abbaye St. Ambroix. Starting as a commis de cuisine, Craig was quickly promoted through the ranks to chef de partie. Craig uses his skills in traditional French cuisine as a springboard for creating inventive plates anchored by sustainable ingredients. Meat retailers M&M Meat Shops Ltd. pulled in two foodservice industry veterans after its purchase by Searchlight Capital Partners in late July, according to the Canadian Press. Searchlight appointed Andy O’Brien as chief executive officer and Sam Florio as chief financial officer of M&M. O’Brien was most recently chief executive officer of The Works Gourmet Burger Bistro chain, and formed Fresh Brands Inc.—the company that purchased The Works in 2010 —with Bruce Miller and Sean Bell. O’Brien was also the former president of Kelsey’s and Montana’s until 2009. Florio was formerly the vice-president of finance and business planning for Cara Operations Ltd.
Cooking on camera
M&M was founded by Mac Voisin in 1980. Voisin will remain on with the company in an advisory role. “Canadians love and trust M&M Meat Shops because they can count on the quality and convenience of its products,” Voisin told CP. “I am confident that the new team will continue to ensure that the brand remains a Canadian favourite.” The Kitchener-based company has about 400 stores nationwide. Denis Richard resigned from his role as president and chief executive officer of Imvescor Restaurant Group and also as a director of the company, effective July 17. Richard will be pursuing other opportunities, but will still assist in the ongoing strategic review announced by Imvescor in April, according to a release. Chief operating officer Yves Devin, appointed to the chief operating officer position in April, will step in on a temporary basis until Richard’s replacement is found. Richard previously stepped aside as president and CEO in June 2013, but remained on the board of directors during the transition period. Chief financial officer Ming-Ming Wong was appointed CEO in the interim at that time. Richard was reappointed to the
WINDSOR, ON—A casual full-service eatery in Windsor, ON, is giving diners a glimpse into its back of house, without using an open kitchen. Mauro Pippo, co-owner of Mauro’s on Erie, recently rigged up a camera in the kitchen and is displaying the behind-the-scenes action of the dinner rush every night on a television near the bar. Pippo has more than 30 years experience in the restaurant industry and last year, opened the 77-seat restaurant, which has an additional 50 seats on two patios, at 999 Erie St. E. Head chef Joshua Deneau makes everything on site, including lobster-stuffed ravioli daily, bread, cured sausage and bocconcini cheese.
post of president and CEO in January 2014. Richard, who joined Imvescor in 2011, has a law degree from the University of Moncton, and was the founder and managing partner of Windward Capital, a mergers and acquisitions advisory firm. Before that, he was senior vice-president of strategy and M&A at BCE Emergis. Moncton, NB-based Imvescor owns franchised and corporate stores throughout Canada under four brands: Pizza Delight, Mikes, Scores Restaurants and Baton Rouge. Second Cup announced in early July that Chris Sonnen would join the company as vicepresident of operations and coffee experience and Vanda Provato will take on the position of vice-president of marketing. “I am thrilled to welcome both Chris and Vanda as vital members of the leadership team at Second Cup,” Alix Box, president and chief executive officer said in a statement. “They each bring unique talents to complement our team and I look forward to working with them to build a strong and profitable future for Second Cup.” Most recently, Sonnen worked with Canadian restaurant and hospitality groups, and Provato comes from a stint as vice-president of marketing at Indigo Books and Music.
“We’re always changing our menu,” he said. “Everything is fresh. We go out every morning picking up fresh stuff.” Average dinner price is between $12 and $32, with three items over $20. Pippo said he had the idea to put the kitchen on display via camera 15 years ago, and that Deneau is on board with the idea. “As soon as I turn it on, everybody’s saying ‘Oh, you keeping an eye on your kitchen?’ I say, ‘No, you can actually watch your food being made,’ and then you see everybody’s head turn and they’re looking at the camera,” he said. “When it’s packed in here and you watch these guys working, it’s incredible. I have absolutely nothing to hide from customers, so why not show it to them?”
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