My Sundays are normally dedicated to sleeping in (til a whopping 9am), drinking from brunch through to dinner, and generally being lazy, incoherent, and nonchalant. But throw an event like Abbey’s Kitchen Stadium and I’ll be inclined to forgo my routine with the promise of F&B substitutes.
The aforementioned Abbey’s Kitchen Stadium at The MOD Club, or #AKS if you’re looking to troll the Twittersphere for insider shouts and Instagrammed glory, was a battleground of bites Sunday. Hosted and organized by Abbey Sharp, the four-chef smackdown was raising dough for My Food My Way, an organization that aims to proliferate healthy relationships with the “culture of food” amongst up-and-coming generations via initiatives like the Recipe Lab Innovation Project and the Urban Farming Innovation Project.
Ms. Abbey tapped four of the city’s top cheferoos – Matt Pettit from Canadiana seafood haven Rock Lobster, Matt Basile aka Fidel Gastro aka Mr. Unable To Commit An Edible Error, Rocco Agostino who helped pioneer the thin-crust ‘za trend with Pizzeria Libretto, and Bruce Woods of Woods Restaurant (whom I personally know not nearly enough about to make a gigglable quip… must change that soon) – to duke it out in an Iron Chef/Chopped-style melee of mouthables.
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Each chef prepped two signature dishes using the day’s not-so-secret ingredient: the new Neal Brothers chips. (Speaking of, we were given two bags as swag when leaving the event, neither of which’s residency in my house lasted more than 12 hours.) These primo palatables were then judged by an esteemed panel of food-lovin’ folk: James Cunningham, the cunning linguist who hosts Eat St.; Bruce Croxon, one of the nasty dragons on Dragon’s Den; Jordan Hastings, Alexisonfire drummer and co-founder of Dine Alone Foods; and Peter Neal, one of the bros behind those chips that barely made it past midnight in my house.
Deeming a victor was not an easy task for the day’s critics. Matt Pettit’s Cowboy Corn (butter and Sweet and Smoky BBQ chip crusted cobs with cilantro crema and micro greens) was sweet and savoury simplicity…
Rocco Agostino’s creative employment of the Pink Salt and Vinegar chips for his gnocchi took the prize for innovation in my eyes…
Matt Basile’s Sweet and Smoky BBQ chip sausage with caramelized onion aioli was plump perfection, and his Himalayan chip Marrow Mash was beautifully presented…
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And then we have Bruce Woods. His Sweet and Smoky BBQ chips with duck confit, poached quail egg, and Bernaise was the most refined execution of the day. And his maple and brown butter glazed donuts with white chocolate dollop and bacon coated with Pink Salt and Vinegar chips were… You read the ingredients, need I say more? Well, I mean, I should say he won…
While the judges analyzed the dishes on stage, Oliver Stern – Google “cocktails + best of Toronto” and an article bearing his name will likely appear on page one – from the Toronto Temperance Society offered up some complimenting cocktail pairings for them to taste alongside the chefs’ bounties. This was likely my least favourite element of the event; not because it didn’t make sense but because I’ve had Oliver’s cocktails before, and knowing how amazing they are it’s hard to not revert to petulant child mode when you see someone else getting what you want most. I’m as selfish now as I was 20 years ago…
Boisterous and bellying, I left Kitchen Stadium both heavier and lighter. The former because of the chip-centric delights, the latter because eating for a good cause means you actually only have to count half the calories ingested. (That’s a total fact.)
This was the first of four instalments for Abbey’s Kitchen Stadium. Keep a keen eye on her site for tickets to the July and September editions, and then all the winners (plus one wild card voted in by fine internet-savvy folks like yourself) will convene for the ultimate battle in October at the Delicious Food Show.
