BRACEBRIDGE, ON – The third annual What’s Cooking Bracebridge –
The Great Muskoka Cookbook Adventure is coming up! September 30 –October 2, 2016, Bracebridge will host chefs, authors, and culinary specialists from across Canada.
This year’s event will include cooking demonstrations and interactive classes from critically-acclaimed cookbook authors and culinary personalities including: Matt Basile, Michael Hunter and Mike Ward.
Matt Basile is the creator of the Toronto-based street-food brand Fidel Gastro’s which originated as a pop-up selling street food in underground markets across the city. Since then, the brand has expanded to become one of Canada’s most recognizable food trucks, a street-food inspired cicchetti bar called Lisa Marie, Matt hosts the reality TV show, Rebel without a Kitchen and recently authored ‘Street Food Diaries: Irresistible Recipes Inspired by the Street.’
Michael Hunter, ‘The Hunter Chef,’ is an outdoors man, a keen forager, a hunter and a wild game enthusiast. He is the chef and co-owner of Antler Kitchen and Bar, a Toronto restaurant which celebrates Canadian gastronomy and highlights local, seasonal and wild foods. A quick survey of Chef Michael Hunter’s Instagram account proves he’s passionate about wild game and foraged foods. “For so long, I’ve been working for corporate restaurants, and I can’t do that anymore,” he says. “I want to celebrate regional ingredients, and I want to be a part of defining Canadian cuisine.”
Matt Basile and Michael Hunter will be headlining What’s Cooking Bracebridge at the ‘Smoke and Bones’ Signature Dinner presented by Canadian Living; this event will take place at the Bracebridge Sportsplex on Saturday October 1st. Earlier that day, Michael Hunter will also be host to a foraging hike and expedition on Wilson’s Falls Trail.
Along with Matt and Michael, What’s Cooking Bracebridge will feature many other celebrity chefs, cookbook authors and culinary specialists. The line-up includes Toronto based chef, Mike Ward. Mike has cooked in some of Sydney’s and Toronto’s most acclaimed restaurants (Zigolini’s and The Basement in Australia, Prego Della Piazza and Shark City in Toronto), he also owned and operated several catering companies over the years. Throughout his career Mike has shared his passion and experience through group and private cooking lessons allowing keen home cooks to develop their skills. Mike Ward will be featured at the Grand Tasting Marché on Friday, September 30th at Muskoka Brewery.
All What’s Cooking culinary sessions are being held in Bracebridge at participating restaurants and other businesses including: Gagnon’s Your Independent Grocer’s, The Creative Cook, Riverwalk Restaurant, Kelly’s Kitchen Irish Pub, Muskoka Natural Food Market, Muskoka Brewery, The Griffin Pub, and Patterson Kaye Resort.
For a full line-up and program listing of What’s Cooking Bracebridge, and to purchase tickets please visit www.canadascottagecountry.ca or the Bracebridge Visitor Information Centre at 1 Manitoba Street, next to the Silver Bridge.
For further information contact: Beth Kelly at 705-645-0027.
What’s Cooking Bracebridge is administered by the Muskoka Lifestyle Centre (MLC), a not-for-profit entity working on the advancement of the Bracebridge tourism brand, focusing on hands-on and interactive learning activities, commonly referred to as experiential tourism (one of the fastest growing elements of tourism). The Tourism Brand is focused on economic revenue generation in the shoulder season (October through April).The three elements or ‘pillars’ of the Tourism Brand are: Culinary, Arts, and Muskoka Lifestyle. The MLC is a partnership of the Bracebridge Chamber of Commerce, Bracebridge BIA and the Town of Bracebridge. The MLC and What’s Cooking Bracebridge receive administrative and financial assistance from these partners, as well as past financial assistance from FedNor, Celebrate Ontario, Explorer’s Edge (RT012), and Foodland Ontario.