It’s not every day you will hear me chirp, “I’m so excited to visit York Mills Station.” But I do confess the required journey outside of the city for my first visit to Auberge du Pommier had me squealing with excitement as my subway car blasted up Yonge Street. Spilling out of the station, I had to circle around the street a few times to figure out where on earth I was and which direction I should be walking. When you can’t see the CN Tower it’s rather challenging to sort yourself out without a compass.
And so it was that I found myself on a sunny evening in the middle of June at the stunning gardens that lead to the front of Toronto’s favourite lil Auberge. I pulled open the doors and pranced into Oliver and Boncacini’s little cottage north of Bloor. I whisked myself through a sun filled dining room and popped onto the patio. A glass of sparkling gracefully floated to my fingertips upon arrival. You really couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day. The sun was shining, the garden was lush and in full bloom and planters teaming with ice played home to endless bottles of Cuve Catherine produced by my friends at Henry of Pelham.
Over the course of the next two hours food champions and Toronto’s top media sipped and nibbled their way through Executive Chef Marc St. Jacques inspirations. Chef Marc is one of Canada’s most lauded kitchen superstars and recently captured the gold at 2013 Canadian Culinary Championships. Needless to say I was looking forward to sampling a few bites.
We had gathered at Auberge that evening to celebrate and help curate the canapés offering at this years Canada Day in London which will take place in Trafalgar Square. Chef Marc created a total of eight canapés which floated around the patio that evening for everyone to sample. Guests were then given four shiny chocolate loonies to plop into ballot boxes in an attempt to determine which would be served at Canada House in London. I sipped on a bottle of Summer Weiss by Muskoka Brewery while a few announcements were made and the favourites were tallied. In the end two of the four winning canapés were personal favourites!
The evening drew to a close as guests enjoyed their final tasting through a Canada House Dinner menu which will be offered up to special guests at Trafalgar Square on June 30th. Starting with a cool lobster centric salad and finishing off with a classic Canadian butter tart was the perfect way to gracefully bid the day adieu.
Mulling about the patio at Auberge du Pommier in celebration of Canada’s unique culinary offerings was a real treat. I was so impressed by the top drawer service and unique creations by Chef Marc at Auberge du Pommier. On my next visit I do fancy sitting down at one of their tables in the dining room. There’s only so much standing up one can do you know…
Canapés
Bloody Caesar
horseradish custard, shrimp salad
Devilled Egg *
foie gras mousse
Elk Sausage *
blueberry mustard
Fried Oyster
three bean salad
Peameal Bacon Sandwich
gougere, dijon mustard, frisee, pickle jam
Potato Salad *
potato gaufrette, domestic caviar, chive blossom
Smoked Fish Salad
lemon creme fraiche, horseradish
“Kraft Dinner” Croquette *
Canada House Dinner:
Coleslaw
chilled lobster, salted cabbage, marinated veg, celery seed aioli
Steak on the BBQ
grilled rib eye, oxtail-stued tomatoes, charred zucchini, corn pudding, steak sauce
Fruit Cocktail
market fruit, consomme, summer herbs, flowers
Butter Tart
