Fit for a King (Ston)

The fertile farmlands surrounding Kingston are at the heart of the city’s thriving locavore food scene.

Juniper Café

AS FARM-TO-TABLE DINING continues to be at the forefront of the food scene in cities around the world, it’s easy to overlook the smaller communities who pioneered this popular approach to eating. If you want to taste some of Ontario’s best homegrown cuisine, go to the places that have been honing and perfecting the locavore dining philosophy long before it was on trend.

Located less than a three-hour drive from Toronto, Kingston is a convenient destination for a food-focused weekend getaway, or a culinary pitstop en route to Ottawa or Montreal. The rich rural landscapes surrounding Kingston are the driving force behind the city’s exciting locavore dining scene, with the city’s chefs eager to showcase the area’s seasonal bounty.

Relationships with farmers and producers are the foundation of Aquaterra’s seasonally-driven menu. Patchwork Gardens in Battersea, Enright Cattle Co. in Tweed and Elginburg's Limestone Creamery are just a few of the suppliers this elegant restaurant works with to source vegetables, meat and dairy products for its ever-changing menus. This gem located in the Delta Hotels by Marriott Kingston Waterfront also keeps things local with its VQA wine list, which features bottles from some of Ontario’s top wineries, including Rosehall Run, Huff Estates and Closson Chase.

Aquaterra’s executive chef Brent McAllister is known for bringing a contemporary Canadian approach to bold Indian and Thai flavours – opt for the Chef's Test Kitchen menu to sample some of the most inventive dishes chef McAllister and his team are currently creating. Endorsed by Ocean Wise and recommended by the Vancouver Aquarium as ocean-friendly, the restaurant’s daily fish features are another fan favourite.

Locally-sourced ingredients also take centre stage at Chien Noir, a French bistro located in downtown Kingston. The restaurant updates classic bistro fare like duck confit and mussels provencal with farm-fresh ingredients. As the weather warms, their sunny courtyard terrace is an inviting spot for sipping craft beers from breweries like the city’s own Skeleton Park Brewery and nearby farm-based brewery MacKinnon Brothers Brewing Co.

For a lunch or lighter meal, head to the Juniper Cafe in the Tett Centre, a charitable arts hub set on the scenic Lake Ontario waterfront. The cafe sources over 80 per cent of their ingredients from local farms and producers throughout the year, with many highlighted on their weeklychanging menu so customers can know exactly where their food comes from.

From a savoury breakfast melt made a Bekings Poultry Farm poached egg to a Wallace Co-Op roast beef sandwich with Wilton Cheese Factory's cheddar sauce, fresh, Ontario ingredients are key to the cafe’s tasty dishes.

Wherever your explorations take you in Kingston, you’ll find chefs embracing the diverse, beautiful produce and proteins grown and raised in the nearby farmlands, and transforming it into meals that you won’t soon forget. ●

To learn more and plan your own Kingston culinary getaway, head to visitkingston.ca

Downtown Kingston

Aquaterra

MacKinnon Brothers Brewing Co.