ETHICAL GOURMET / Remind me to Tell You About the Time I Looked in the Heart of an Artichoke

By BRYAN LAVERY Although the ethnic cuisines of Yunnan province may not be particularly well known in the West, they are touted as being among the best regional eating experiences in China. There are 25 ethnic groups in this southwestern Chinese province, all contributing within their cultural cuisine subgroups. Agrarian by nature, Yunnan is the birthplace of tea. Yunnan’s northwest corner is said to be the inspiration for Shangri-La, as described in James Hilton’s utopian classic,  Lost Horizon . A recent surge of interest in ethnic and regional Chinese cuisine is reflected in the growth and popularity of Yunnan restaurants in both Beijing and Shanghai. Encouraged by an explosion in cultural tourism the boom is a result of China’s modernization strategy which has put Yunnan on the gastronomical map. In downtown London, Five Fortune Culture Restaurant proprietors W enbei and Jie Liang Yin (Jeff) are part of the groundswell of restaurateurs offering an authentic "pur

Yixing Tang and Michelle Pierce Hamilton. Photo: Spencer Drake BY BRYAN LAVERY Tea sommelier and nutritionist Michelle Pierce Hamilton and her business partner Yixing Tang opened The Tea Lounge in a small charming house on Piccadilly Street east of Richmond. They recently launched a menu of cold drinks, iced teas and vegan-friendly lattes. Matcha, London Fog and cinnamon-orange spiced tea lattes are available hot or iced. There is afternoon tea service one Sunday per month. Book a sitting at the monthly Tea Flight Nights to experience a comparative tasting. A small in-house scratch menu and baked goods and healthful snacks from Petit Paris Crêperie & Pâtisserie, Boombox Bakeshop and Bliss Specialty Foods add to the experience. tealoungelondon.com London may be part of the explosion of indie cafés serving small-batch coffee roasts, which are part grab-and-go café and part bakery, but we’re a community of dedicated tea enthusiasts too. And now, with the ris

By Bryan Lavery This sleek and urban-chic downtown hot-spot has a sophisticated palette and an upscale mix of contemporary Asian-inspired motifs, art, cuisine and ambiance. Chefs combine the freshest ingredients with traditional flavours to create a unique menus designed to promote communal dining. From a design perspective, the attention to detail is carried through in many small but striking ways such as the design of the cutlery and dishes, seasonal exotic floral arrangements and the various choices of seating arrangements. The mosaic tiles around the bar have a chameleon-like ability to change into a myriad of palettes, creating a swanky, sexy cocktail lounge vibe with a colour changing remote control. Lighting can also be adjusted to set the mood particularly in the far end of the dining room, where private booth seating provides an intimate and comfortable dining experience. The cuisine is sophisticated and pushes culinary boundaries without breaking the tenets of

BY BRYAN LAVERY The genius of Vietnamese cooking lies in the adaptation of foreign influences to develop a distinctly unique and subtle cuisine with contrasting flavours and textures. Sour ­flavours are balanced by salty ones, and sweet notes are tempered by heat from chilies and ground pepper. There is a dependence on rice; noodles figure prominently and a wealth of fresh herbs, fruit and vegetables. As in China and East Asia, the Vietnamese serve their rice in bowls with chopsticks. Meat is an accompaniment rather than a central offering. The Vietnamese custom of wrapping fresh rolls and spring rolls in lettuce leaves and fresh herbs are a remnant of the original cultures that existed before centuries of Chinese influence. The Chinese contributed many culinary techniques including their art of stir-frying using the wok; the French left their traditions and penchant for aromatic filtered coffee with condensed milk and crème caramel; scented ingredients like lemongrass w

BY BRYAN LAVERY  Andrew Fleet , Executive Director of Growing Chefs! Ontario, announced earlier this year that the former Auberge Restaurant at King and Maitland would be the new home for the ground-breaking program that unites chefs, growers, educators and community members in children’s food education projects. They have worked hard to transform the former Auberge du Petit Prince restaurant into an innovative Food Education Centre. It is a venue where Londoners, young and old, can get excited about growing, cooking, sharing, and celebrating delicious healthy food together.  The enclosed sunrooms, dining rooms and bar have been turned into teaching areas. Upstairs features an additional three intimate rooms that can be used for private functions, corporate meetings and teaching facilities. The outdoor patio has been transformed into a spectacular Learning Garden.  Food literacy, when taken literally, means a person’s ability to correctly read food labels and Canada’s

"The restaurant is well-known for its terroir-driven Ontario cuisine, using the estate’s acreage as inspiration for the seasonal menus". - Bryan Lavery By Bryan Lavery As we turned into Langdon Hall’s discreet driveway and drove up the winding road, we passed through wooded acreage dusted with a light snowfall and arrived at the 75-acre hilltop estate’s main house, which is the centerpiece of the estate.  Built in 1898 as the lavish summer retreat of Eugene Langdon Wilks, (a great-great-grandson of John Jacob Astor), the imposing main house is inspired by Georgian and Classical traditions of the Federal Revival Style. The property, with its expansive gardens and Carolinian trails, is situated in the countryside just outside the hamlet of Blair, which is now part of Cambridge. Langdon Hall is manifestly what food guides used to call a "restaurant destination" but it also offers guests an impressive experience with luxury suites, Victorian garde

BY BRYAN LAVERY “...an ethical and sustainable culinary philosophy, attentively caring about the provenance of their food and how it is grown or raised. Gushue shapes a formative, season-based and from scratch, farm-to-table dining experience that is both accessible and fresh.” Bryan Lavery  We were looking for a new and top-notch culinary experience, and had been anticipating chef Jonathan Gushue's return to the culinary scene. Our host/organizer made reservations at The Berlin in Kitchener, well in advance. The Berlin was already making a name for itself as a culinary destination. It was a given that we would be dining there. Jonathan Gushue is the Newfoundland-born chef who was instrumental in Cambridge`s Langdon Hall receiving a coveted Five Diamond Award, and also being named the 77 th  best restaurant in the world on the S. Pellegrino list several years ago. The Berlin, which opened in December 2015, is named in homage to Kitchener-Waterloo’s German herita

Chef Ian Middleton & Chef Aaron Linley After a three-year hiatus, Long Table Dinner, the  Stratford Chefs School's fundraiser,  washeld at the newly revitalized and pedestrian-friendly Market Square on September 10 th . The school had been holding the actual event location as a last-minute surprise. Inspired by “Diner en Blanc,” guests mostly dressed all in white gathered around one enormously long table to enjoy a four-course dinner of incredible local food complimented by Caves Springs VQA wine.  The festivities began with guest mingling and being served Revolution cold brew coffee gin and tonics and Cave Spring Dolomite Brut. Passed around hors d’ oeuvres included smoky eggplant tart with creamy local goat cheese; cucumber, rainbow trout rillettes with fresh horseradish on cucumber slices and devilled eggs with crispy bacon and pickled jalapeno. This was followed by a dinner comprised of platters of local organic vegetables, boiled eggs a

By Bryan Lavery Hospitality and the culinary arts have always gone hand in hand. In London, Ontario, we have a history of exceptional restaurateurs, chefs and culinary retailers. Among the latter are Ann McColl Lindsay and David Lindsay, the former proprietors of the legendary Ann McColl’s Kitchen Shop, one of Canada’s finest cookware shops. Ann and David met, married and taught school in Windsor, Ontario from 1961 to 1968. They resigned their positions, sold their red brick bungalow, and embarked on a year-long food pilgrimage across Europe while camping in a Volkswagen van. Travelling in the van with a gas burner allowed them to truly enjoy the local terroir. The first six months of their trip ,  which ended at the French border, is described in Ann’s memoir  Hungry Hearts – A Food Odyssey across Britain and Spain . The second volume,  Hearts Forever Young,  includes their travels in France, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Den

BY BRYAN LAVERY

BY BRYAN LAVERY Our regard for food has flourished into an interesting film genre.  Big Night, Julie and Julia, Tampopo and Babette's Feast are examples that fill me with appreciation for films where food and the culinary arts are the true stars. Small wonder the film, Julie and Julia, which depicts the life of chef Julia Child in the early years of her culinary career gives the audience the opportunity to savour the remarkable nature of Julia Child's achievement. The film contrasts Child's life to food blogger, Julie Powell, who aspires to recreate all 524 recipes from Child's collaborative cookbook, Mastering The Art of French Cooking . It is a film that has been warmly embraced.  Big Night is the film that comes closest in approximating many of my own experiences in the restaurant business. It is the story of two brothers operating an Italian restaurant serving authentic fare in the 1950's, when "Americanized" spaghetti and meatballs define