Taste of Toronto: Hottest Food Destination in North America?

by Nicola Brown · July 3, 2015

Damon Campbell, executive chef at Shangri-La Hotel in Toronto (left), and Kerry Connelly, Director of Communications at the Shangri-La. Credit: Ryan Emberley

Check out the latest event updates below

For the second year in a row, Toronto is asserting its culinary might by hosting a deliciously packed four-day festival all for the love of food. Taste of Toronto, the only North American outpost of the international Taste Festivals, will be one of the biggest highlights of the summer for Toronto foodies and those who want to find out just how world-class the city’s culinary chops really are.

The highly anticipated food festival takes place from July 2-5 at Fort York just off Lakeshore Boulevard West, featuring some of Canada’s best homegrown talent and renowned international names like Iron Chef and Michelin-starred Masaharu Morimoto, Californian culinary pioneer Jonathan Waxman of Montecito, celebrity chef Lynn Crawford, and Michael Bonacini of the Oliver & Bonacini empire, to name a few.

If you’ve ever dreamed of cooking side by side a master chef, or you just wish you could get a feel for what Toronto cuisine is all about without traipsing to opposite corners of the city, you’ll want to get tickets for this event. And starting at $19 if you buy ahead of time ($30 at the door), they’re pretty affordable.

History buffs can even get a glimpse of Toronto’s oldest kitchen, part of the Officers’ Mess Establishment from 1815, on the Fort York grounds, and sample dishes recreated from old recipe books from the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Master class sessions and cooking demonstrations are on a first-come first-served basis, so make sure to get there early to grab a spot for your favourite session, and stock up on Crowns ($1 = 1 Crown) to take home some tasty souvenirs from the marketplace.

Get your hands on all the tasty treats and samples at this year’s festival. Credit: Ryan Emberley.

Toronto is the first city in North America to join culinary juggernauts like Paris, London and Sydney in celebrating its foodie prowess as part of the Taste Festivals. And with world-renowned celebrity chefs like Masaharu Morimoto and Jamie Oliver set to open new restaurants in Toronto this year, it’s clear the city has definitively established itself as a culinary powerhouse to be reckoned with.

Come dine with us!

Stay tuned for updates @AnewTraveller as we hit the tables at Taste of Toronto from July 2-5 to discover what’s cooking, how Toronto’s marking its spot on the international culinary map, and what you can expect to see from the city’s top tastemakers going forward. We’re bringing our eating pants—come dine with us!

Latest Updates:

Best Dish: Splendido‘s melt-in-your-mouth pork belly, “KFC”and brussel sprouts. We’ll take another 10 of those, please!

Best Drink: Whitehaven’s 2014 sauvignon blanc from New Zealand. Best paired with freshly shucked oysters. Bring on summer!

Best Demo: Chef Jonathan Waxman’s 6-minute “sloppy” steamed lobster carbonara with plenty of parmesan and butter. Yum!

Best New Chefs: Michael van den Winkel of Little Sister, Michael Bonacini of Oliver & Bonacini and Masaharu Morimoto who will be opening his first ever restaurant in Canada in Toronto later this year.

Best of the best @tasteoftoronto – Pork belly, KFC and brussel sprouts from @Splendido_TO #toogood #foodTO pic.twitter.com/QJkTm4iHmm

— Anew Traveller (@anewtraveller) July 5, 2015

Tuna ceviche on agua de chile tortillas by @Montecito_TO is perfect for this summer heat at #TasteofToronto today! pic.twitter.com/GVPOkLZvtF

— Anew Traveller (@anewtraveller) July 4, 2015

Loving the salmon theme @OliverBonacini @tasteoftoronto at the @Delta lounge tonight! #food #travel pic.twitter.com/GVytDwBnGe

— Anew Traveller (@anewtraveller) July 2, 2015

It's lobster time with @chefjwaxman's "sloppy" carbonara @tasteoftoronto pic.twitter.com/7huAO9TcBy

— Anew Traveller (@anewtraveller) July 2, 2015

Oysters and sauvignon blanc – the perfect summer bite @tasteoftoronto @whitehavennz @RodneysToronto #TasteofToronto pic.twitter.com/O8gfNQsv7G

— Anew Traveller (@anewtraveller) July 2, 2015

It's a perfect day here @tasteoftoronto for salmon sashimi! #TasteofToronto pic.twitter.com/LsQdiS4O9e

— Anew Traveller (@anewtraveller) July 2, 2015

Details

What: Taste of Toronto
When: July 2-5, 2015
Where: Fort York, 250 Fort York Blvd, Toronto, ON M5V 3K9
Cost: Starting at $19. You can buy tickets in advance online here.

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Nicola Brown

Owner & Principal at Think Forward Communication

Nicola is an international award-winning writer, editor and communication consultant based in Toronto. She has travelled to 32 countries so far and is always poised to head out the door again. Nicola loves both the visceral and intellectual dimensions of travel, and will passionately argue for its psychological paybacks, especially after a few glasses of wine. She lives for opportunities to illuminate the life-changing power of travel for as many people as possible.