On Sunday, November 13, we gathered a diverse group of chefs, sommeliers, food enthusiasts and hospitality titans for our annual celebration of Canada’s rich culinary landscape. With the help of acclaimed guest chefs Nuit Regular and Darren MacLean, plaid-adorned diners feasted on a bounty of wild game and uniquely Canadian ingredients, honouring our country’s home-grown harvest.

In loving memory of Chef Andy Seldon, Chef Jacky Lo and Peter Oliver, the evening’s menu showcased a meeting of culinary minds, resulting in a truly unforgettable celebration of all things wild and delicious. Thoughtfully composed using wild-caught Canadian game and fish from our very own backyard, dishes including offaly good mushrooms on toast featuring moose heart and liver, a royal beaver fever sausage roll of foie gras, blood purée and smoked heart, 7-day aged Tamarack Farms quail and a curried fawn-due of kabocha squash and young coconut meat wowed the crowd. The result was spirited night of conversation and camaraderie over an awe-inspiring multicourse feast that filled us with insurmountable joy and gratitude.

In honour of the beloved leader and co-founder of Oliver & Bonacini Hospitality, Peter Oliver, all proceeds from this year’s event were donated to the Leacock Foundation, whose mission is rooted in the belief that all children, regardless of their circumstances, have limitless potential. Over the past 30 years, under Peter’s leadership, the Leacock Foundation has provided fee-free, enriched literacy and leadership opportunities to empower youth from underserved communities in Toronto and Eastern Cape, South Africa.

We’d like to extend a big thank you to all those who joined us.

Featured Chefs:

Chef Nuit Regular (Pai, Kiin)
Chef Darren MacLean (Shokunin, NUPO, Eight)
Chef Ron McKinlay (Canoe)
Chef Ryan Lister (Liberty Commons, Sap, The Rabbit Hole)
Chef John Horne (O&B)
Chef Anthony Walsh (O&B)

Thank you as well to our sponsors Local Spirit Distilling Co., Lost Craft Beer, Le Vieux Pin and LaStella wineries, Encore Canada and to Jessica Lajner for providing the evening’s live music.

Photos by Hector Vasquez.