{"id":31742,"date":"2017-10-17T11:00:28","date_gmt":"2017-10-17T15:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=31742"},"modified":"2021-08-24T16:05:58","modified_gmt":"2021-08-24T20:05:58","slug":"toronto-chef-changing-perception-french-cuisine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/toronto-chef-changing-perception-french-cuisine\/","title":{"rendered":"A Toronto Chef Is Changing Perception Of French Cuisine"},"content":{"rendered":"

To see why Colette Grand Caf\u00e9<\/a> in downtown Toronto\u2019s Thompson Hotel is such a hot destination, step inside. Cream-colored Louis-style chairs, powder blue velvet banquettes, toile-upholstered armchairs, and pale marble tabletops throughout the space are anchored by the restaurant\u2019s navy-and-white stripe motif; upon entering, diners are transported to a bright and airy seaside bistro in Southern France.<\/p>\n

This elegant, breezy atmosphere is part of what drew Jennifer Dewasha to the executive chef position at the restaurant. \u201cFor most of my career, restaurants have always been very dark,\u201d Dewasha says. \u201cNot Colette. It\u2019s feminine; everything is softer. When the sun is shining here, it makes you feel good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Colette is a far cry from Dewasha\u2019s first restaurant job. As a teenager, she was a hostess at Frankie Tomatto\u2019s, an Italian buffet restaurant in suburban Toronto known for its Leaning Tower of Pisa replica. Though the camaraderie there pushed her toward a career in cooking, hospitality has always been in Dewasha\u2019s blood.<\/p>\n

Her father grew up in the Wahta Mohawk Nation community north of Toronto, where she spent many childhood weekends and summers. There, families would often host large gatherings with hundreds of people to feast on sweet summer corn.<\/p>\n

\"toronto<\/a><\/div>\n

\u201cEverybody would come up and we would sit by the river and eat,\u201d Dewasha says. \u201cThat sense of community was carried on later in my life when I first started cooking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dewasha trained at Toronto\u2019s George Brown College and graduated from its Aboriginal Cuisine program, but a life-altering meal at New York City\u2019s Gramercy Tavern showed her the potential of fine dining. \u201cThe service at Gramercy was so amazing that, 20 years later, I can still tell you my server\u2019s name: Terry,\u201d she says. \u201cHe knew we didn\u2019t have a lot of fine-dining experience, but he guided us through the cheese course and port pairings. It turned on a light bulb in my head\u2014I wanted to learn more (about fine dining and hospitality).\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2005, Dewasha headed to Las Vegas to work for legendary French chefs and restaurateurs Daniel Boulud and Jo\u00ebl Robuchon. At their respective restaurants, she expanded her repertoire of cooking techniques and deepened her knowledge of French cuisine, including fine cheeses, about which she knew little previously.<\/h3>\n

\"toronto<\/a><\/p>\n

Iceberg wedge salad with pickled onions and blue cheese dressing. Get the recipe here<\/a><\/strong><\/h5>\n

Seven years after leaving Canada, Dewasha returned home to Toronto. While interviewing for a sous chef position at Caf\u00e9 Boulud, she met Tyler Shedden, the restaurant\u2019s executive chef. Shedden says he was impressed by Dewasha\u2019s calm temperament. He hired her immediately. \u201cI jokingly call her the Silent Assassin,\u201d Shedden says. \u201cShe\u2019s not super vocal, but when the time is right, she will tell you what she thinks.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was Shedden\u2019s mentorship that lured Dewasha away from Boulud to take the executive chef post at Colette earlier this year. When he moved from Caf\u00e9 Boulud to his current position as culinary director of Chase Hospitality Group\u2014which owns six Toronto restaurants, including Colette\u2014Shedden wanted to arm the staff there with a mature, experienced leader. He saw Dewasha as the perfect fit.<\/p>\n

Colette\u2019s menu is grounded in French technique, but while other bistros turn to rich duck confit or meaty terrines, Dewasha and her staff focus on vegetables. \u201cThe (perception) is that French food is heavy and rich, fatty and filled with cream, but it doesn\u2019t always have to be like that,\u201d she explains. \u201cWhat I learned from Daniel is that it\u2019s the things you take from the garden (that are most tasty).\u201d<\/h3>\n

Dewasha cites Shedden as one of her most influential advisors. Now she\u2019s eager to play that role for other budding chefs, especially women. Many successful female cooks have passed through Boulud\u2019s restaurants and in her own kitchen\u2014Dewasha\u2019s current staff includes a female sous chef, pastry chef, and cooks from diverse backgrounds. Colette also stands out from other eateries by hosting female-focused events, including a special gathering for International Women\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re willing to learn, no matter what gender you are, I\u2019m going to treat you the same and try to help you,\u201d Dewasha says. \u201cThere\u2019s a mix of personalities and nationalities here\u2026people who are experienced and people who are not. The most important thing is that people get along.\u201d For diners at Colette, the proof is in the food.<\/p>\n

Photographed by: Suech and Beck<\/i><\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Toronto Chef Jennifer Dewasha takes guests to France at the Colette Grand Caf\u00e9. Her menu is grounded in French technique, but her focus is on things from the garden.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":31747,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26354],"tags":[1489,1488,1487,1490],"coauthors":[1486],"class_list":["post-31742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-colette-grand-cafe","tag-french-cuisine","tag-toronto-chef","tag-tyler-shedden"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA Toronto Chef Is Changing Perception Of French Cuisine - culture: the word on cheese<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/toronto-chef-changing-perception-french-cuisine\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Toronto Chef Is Changing Perception Of French Cuisine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Toronto Chef Jennifer Dewasha takes guests to France at the Colette Grand Caf\u00e9. 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