It’s okay. We don’t bite. Really. (Image: Food Network Canada/Insight Productions)
TOP CHEF CANADASeason 1 | Episode 13
It’s been quite a ride. After 12 weeks of special guests, horsing around and glorious product placement, season one of Top Chef Canada has come to a close. And what better way to kick off the final episode than with a smart-alecky assessment of the final three contestants from Mercatto’s Rob Rossi? There’s Dale MacKay, with three wins to his name, who’s known, Rossi said, for “doing crazy high-end food” (translation: no soul). There’s Connie DeSousa, also with three wins, who does “sausages and home cooking” (translation: no sophistication). And then there’s Rossi, with four wins, who tries “to do a whole bunch of different things” (translation: has it going on). After the jump, the full rundown of the final face-off.
Chef Scott Conant had never thought of opening a restaurant in Toronto, but when he was approached by the Thompson Hotel group and asked to do just that, it seemed like a logical step for him and his now-famous brand, Scarpetta. “I have so many clients from Toronto who visit my New York and Miami restaurants, it just seems like a natural progression,” says the James Beard Award winner. “To expand on the east coast also means it’ll be easier to travel between the places, since a flight from Toronto to Miami is only three hours. It just made sense. Toronto is an alpha city, and it’s great to be a part of it.” 
This past Sunday marked the 20th anniversary of Toronto Taste, the annual event that unites Toronto’s food lovers and food makers for a day of innovative cooking, tasking and fundraising for Second Harvest. 60 of Toronto’s top chefs—including Jason Bangerter, Donna Dooher, Chris McDonald, Mark McEwan, Anthony Walsh and Anne Yarymowich—doled out top-notch cuisine to an estimated 1,600 guests at the ROM. We caught up with the chefs and asked them what’s in store for them and their restaurants this summer.
Don’t panic at the sight of shuttered windows at Madeline’s. The place closed on April 10 but will re-emerge in early June as Susur Lee’s next Toronto restaurant.
