From left, Abe Conlon, Nathan Duensing, Paula Navarrete and Johnny Spero try out Jamaican patties in Toronto's Kensington Market.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
By midnight – when the eight-hour eating extravaganza ended – executive chef Paula Navarrete of Momofuku Kojin and her three American guests (also chefs) could barely move. Over the course of the evening, they had dined on everything from sweet corn tempura to rare steak. They drank Ontario wines and craft beers. They even managed to make quick stops for Jamaican patties and Salvadoran pupusas in Toronto’s Kensington Market.
Tasked with giving her guests a small – but fulsome – sample of Toronto’s diverse cuisine, Navarrete had taken executive chefs Abe Conlon (Fat Rice in Chicago), Johnny Spero (Reverie in Washington) and Nathan Duensing (Marsh House and L.A. Jackson in Nashville) on a whirlwind tour of her favourite haunts (Emporium Latino, Tutti Matti, El Rey, etc). It was a precursor of the kind of culinary treat that awaits those attending the upcoming Tastemaker Tour, which kicks off at Toronto’s Evergreen Brick Works May 10-12 before heading to Washington (July), Chicago (August) and Nashville (October).
While wining and dining their way through Toronto’s west end, the foursome chatted with The Globe about the new look of dinner out, why it’s important to buy local, and how their upbringing influenced the dishes they serve every night.
Dining out has changed
Duensing Having really delicious food isn’t enough any more. We’re obligated to create feelings and memories for people. People want to go out and have a certain experience. They want to feel a certain way and there is a connection with the food.
Spero Washington was always very much a steak and potatoes kind of town. In the past 10 years, but specifically the last five, it’s been kind of ridiculous the diversity of chefs and restaurants opening up. But we’re not seeing 250-seat restaurants any more. They’re smaller, more intimate and with more personality. They are places where you know everybody, from the chef to the front of house.
Paula Navarrete says diners in Toronto 'want to go out and have a really good time, but they also care about the restaurant’s (and the chef’s) story.'Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Navarette It’s an exciting time to see all the different restaurants and cultures and foods coming together. It’s now fun to eat in this city [Toronto]. People want to go out and have a really good time, but they also care about the restaurant’s (and the chef’s) story. And they want to know where the product comes from.
Conlon Chicago’s always been a progressive city and it’s known for its food and dining experiences. Recently, more independent restaurants have been popping up and they’re moving away from white tablecloths. The settings are more casual and lively – much like Fat Rice – but the food isn’t compromised. It has to be first-rate.
Menu makeovers
Spero The biggest thing we talk about is approachability. We keep our menu small and minimalist. Everything in the kitchen I touch, and the menu is very much the same way. It tells you who I am, where I’ve been and where I’m going. I also try not to alienate anyone. When I create a menu I often think, “Would my dad be comfortable eating here?”
Duensing Every dish I design comes from a part of me. I grew up in the country in Southern Illinois on the Mississippi River, growing food, pickling, farming and butchering. My grandfather was a really good cook. He loved food and passed that onto me. My menus are always a connection to the food from my childhood.
Abe Conlon says that Chicago's restaurants are becoming more casual and lively, but the food has remained first-rate.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Conlon My background is Portuguese and my menu revolves around heritage Eurasian recipes of the Portuguese-speaking world. I like to take traditional dishes, like Fat Rice, which is an old dish similar to paella, and celebrate them, educate people about them, and try my best not to mess them up.
Navarette Our whole menu was designed around seasonal products from Ontario. I worked at Sanagan’s [butcher shop in Kensington Market], which uses only Ontario meat. My love for local started there. But Kojin’s menu also includes a lot of recipes I grew up with, like Tita’s Mash, my grandmother’s mashed potatoes with cheese curds and eggs, which is then baked.
The calling card
Spero People would start throwing rocks at my window if I didn’t serve our whole roasted duck, glazed in beet juice and black licorice.
Duensing Our whole snapper with a simple cornbread crumble.
Conlon Our dumplings with crumbled pork and scallion, or curry with mushrooms.
Navarrete Tita’s mash, our griddled flatbread with grass-fed butter.
Communication tastes good
Navarrete When I worked at Sanagan’s I got to know the farmers personally. And those relationships are something I work hard at every day. Fresh, seasonal, local produce fuels Kojin’s menu and dictates our dishes.
Spero It’s not just about buying commodity proteins and vegetables. It’s about keeping our farmers in business. It might cost you a bit more, but if you care about the product you’re putting out there, you don’t have a choice. It’s not about making cheap food taste good. It’s about doing justice to the incredible produce local farmers grow.
Duensing We generate our menu around new greens, blossoms, et cetera, coming in. It’s day-in, day-out communication with all our farmers. Their produce inspires everything our customers eat.
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Gayle MacDonald