Toronto Life

A CULINARY CHALLENGE WITH A TWIST

“Chef Artois” brings life back into local restaurant­s

- photograph­s by dale andrews

Toronto Life is partnered with Stella Artois to launch Chef Artois, an eight-part cooking series showcasing renowned chefs, their restaurant­s and their inspiring trademark dishes. Hosted by acclaimed Canadian television and radio host Pay Chen, the culinary competitio­n is designed to support the restaurant community, and is aligned with Rally for Restaurant­s, an online gift card program that provides restaurant­s and bars across Canada with immediate financial relief from the pressures of the global pandemic.

Each of the episodes saw renowned chefs—including Kiin’s Nuit Regular, Marben’s Chris Locke and Momofuku Ko¯jin’s Eva Chin—unveil the recipes behind their signature dishes. But on Chef Artois, the chefs don’t actually do the cooking: two guests don aprons and put their skills to the test in a head-to-head culinary battle to see who can best recreate the original dishes. The winner claims the title of Chef Artois and a $1,000 prize pack.

Just as Toronto is a patchwork of nationalit­ies, the resturants featured on “Chef Artois” represente­d a wide range of global cuisines: Thai, Spanish, Jamaican and Hawaiian, to name a few. And the dishes the contestant­s were asked to make, including seafood paella, tandoori scotch eggs or royal Thai dumplings, demanded some serious chops.

Head to rallyforre­staurants.ca to buy a gift card to your favourite restaurant. The program ensures restaurant­s get the much-needed funds right away, and as a way to thank patrons for supporting local establishm­ents across Canada, Stella Artois adds an extra $10 to the value of each gift card.

To watch the series, go to torontolif­e.com/chefartois

 ??  ?? EPISODE 5 CONTESTANT­S AMANDA MENDONCA AND RALUCA URLEA
EPISODE 5 CONTESTANT­S AMANDA MENDONCA AND RALUCA URLEA
 ??  ?? KIIN’S ROYAL THAI DUMPLINGS
KIIN’S ROYAL THAI DUMPLINGS
 ??  ?? HOST AND JUDGE PAY CHEN
HOST AND JUDGE PAY CHEN
 ??  ?? MARBEN CHEF CHRIS LOCKE JUDGING WITH PAY CHEN
MARBEN CHEF CHRIS LOCKE JUDGING WITH PAY CHEN
 ??  ?? MARBEN’S TANDOORI SCOTCH EGGS
MARBEN’S TANDOORI SCOTCH EGGS
 ??  ?? KIIN CHEF NUIT REGULAR
KIIN CHEF NUIT REGULAR
 ??  ?? EPISODE 4 WINNER ASHLEY HASSARD
EPISODE 4 WINNER ASHLEY HASSARD
 ??  ?? MADRINA CHEF RAMON SIMARRO
MADRINA CHEF RAMON SIMARRO
 ??  ?? GUSTO 501’S HANDMADE ORECCHIETT­E
GUSTO 501’S HANDMADE ORECCHIETT­E
 ??  ?? MOMOFUKU KŌJIN’S HULI HULI CHICKEN
MOMOFUKU KŌJIN’S HULI HULI CHICKEN
 ??  ?? KI’S TORCHED SALMON SUSHI
KI’S TORCHED SALMON SUSHI
 ??  ?? KI EXECUTIVE CHEF HING WONG JUDGING
KI EXECUTIVE CHEF HING WONG JUDGING
 ??  ?? LAPINOU’S TOMATO VINE GARGANELLI
LAPINOU’S TOMATO VINE GARGANELLI
 ??  ?? GUSTO 501 CHEF ELIO ZANNONI JUDGING
GUSTO 501 CHEF ELIO ZANNONI JUDGING
 ??  ?? EPISODE 3 WINNER NIC MARTIN
EPISODE 3 WINNER NIC MARTIN

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