Trish Stratus and Elizabeth Falkner joined the judges this week (Image: Top Chef Canada)
Last night’s episode of Top Chef Canada started with some heavy-handed foreshadowing. Sounding downbeat, Vancouver’s Kayla Dhaliwall told the confessional cam that after embarrassing herself in the first three challenges, she never wanted to find herself on the bottom again. Toronto’s Becky Ross, on the other hand, was flying high as she lifted weights and did pushups on the the balcony of the chefs’ penthouse (a move she actually admitted was an intimidation tactic). We were ready to call it at this point. One of the two chefs was going to win, and the other was going home. The only question: would the producers pull the classic role-reversal, with Kayla taking the win and 0ver-confident Becky taking a fall? Or would they go for the double-fakeout? Find out in our recap, below.
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Fried chicken and doughnuts, the ultimate savoury-sweet-trashy combo, have come to Leslieville courtesy of siblings Devin and Luke Connell and chef Graham Bower, the team behind the midtown lunch stop Delica. The tiny takeout shop is a pocket of nostalgia, with cheery staff sporting pointed caps and bow ties and the room decked out in mint-green paint. The free-run chicken is brined and double-deep-fried until tender and golden but surprisingly greaseless (add a squirt of mustard seed–laced honey or tandoori barbecue sauce for kick). The rotating doughnut menu lists seven flavours, such as eye-poppingly citrusy mango-yuzu and white peach–maple. The dense, cakey rings make Timmies treats seem like sad doughnut simulacra. There are only a few seats, so it’s best to hit nearby Jimmie Simpson Park for a retro picnic.
Devin Connell (Delica Kitchen) was torn between two loves: a really good, artisanal doughnut and super-crunchy fried chicken. “I knew I wanted to open a place that focused on one thing, did one thing only, and did it really well, but I couldn’t decide,” she told us. “Then, one night I woke up and thought, ‘I don’t have to choose! Why not do both?’” And so, with Paulette’s Original Donuts and Chicken, Connell—of the Ace Bakery Connells—along with brother Luke and chef Graham Bower (Pangaea, Globe, Delica), is bringing her idea of a very happy meal to Leslieville. “We don’t shy away from what our food is: it’s not healthy food. It’s happy food. And it’s made with wholesome ingredients.” 
