A blog about food, Niagara and more

Staff Spotlight – Nick

by Chef DeGrace on May 05, 2012 (0) Comments

Historically in the hospitality industry, there has been a divide between the back of the house (Kitchen Staff) and front of the house (Servers, runners etc.) The tension can reach epic proportions that can impact business and foster hostility.

At the Pillar and Post these two opponents have long been at peace.  As a cohesive team, we back each other, help each other, and flourish together in order to produce a memorable experience for our guest.

Our Restaurant Supervisor Nick is a testament to this positive environment.  His passion and loyalty to the team and Vintage Hotels shines in everything he does.  As a Chef I have to say, it also helps to have someone so motivated by food that we could probably pay him in chickens.  With guest satisfaction as his main focus and constant kindness, I feel privileged to work alongside Nick and  see him grow.

 

New Menu-Lounge

by Chef DeGrace on Apr 24, 2012 (0) Comments

It has been a while since I have had a chance to blog!  Life here at the Pillar and Post has been wonderfully hectic for the kitchen brigade, which is a blessing.  We have changed our breakfast menu; our brunch and we are now just a few days away from launching the new lounge menu.

The Lounge is one of my favorite spots in the hotel and I think I love it for the same reason all the staff at Vintages, our guests and the locals frequent this haunt-its welcoming and reminiscent of a British pub with warmth and elegance.

The menu will still be approachable and we will be renewing some favorites and adding a few dishes that scream delicious comfort and decadence.  The most talked about menu item thus far has to be the Poutine.  This isn’t your average Poutine my friends, we are adding crème fraiche, double smoked bacon, demi glace, skins on French fries and local cheese curds. How could any of that possibly be a bad thing?

 

I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do

by Chef DeGrace on Feb 29, 2012 (0) Comments

On Sunday February 26th we hosted a wedding show here at the Pillar and Post.  We have some awesome “Teasers” on the menu and are excited to embark on a new season of weddings!

What we will be serving and why:

  • Slow Braised Beef with Frazzled Leeks and Pickled Radish -because braised beef rocks
  • Duck Confit with Asian Slaw and Micro Cilantro –Confit/duck fat need I say more
  • Heirloom Beet Taco with Peppered Crème Fraiche and Balsamic Syrup
  • Cellar Beets aka nature’s candy
  • Vanilla Cake Pops -A mini fancy version of a family favorite, my sisters is a Cake Pop Machine
  • Red Velvet Cupcakes –read silky goodness and who doesn’t love a one bite cupcake?
  • Coconut Cupcakes –coconut and pineapple just ward off the winter blues!

 

Staff Spotlight – Where’s Moe?

by Chef DeGrace on Feb 22, 2012 (0) Comments

Moe is a junior member of the Pillar and Post Culinary Team and his keenness to learn, friendly disposition and creativity fuel his natural born talent, I look forward to watching him grow as a Culinarian. He is also the only real human Moe I know (rhyme not intentional), the only other Moe’s I know are the bartender from The Simpson’s and my beloved niece’s favorite Doodle Bop.   It would seem ever episode of Doodle Bop involves them asking the question “Where’s Moe”- I giggle every time I ask this question myself.

 

I Heart Niagara

by Chef DeGrace on Feb 19, 2012 (0) Comments

When I first moved up to the region I had a hard time acclimating to the lack of noise, the constant energy of Toronto creates a hum at night that actually forms a unique sound that shockingly was very hard to live without.  Just recently I spent two nights in Toronto and experienced the opposite; I can no longer sleep with the hum that lulled me to sleep for almost my whole life, lol!  I have to admit that despite the opposition of my family and friends paired with my own uncertainty, I LOVE NIAGARA.  I love the cheesiness of Lundy’s Lane, the marvel of the falls, cross boarder shopping (who new?),       N-O-T-L (ghosts and all) but above all the food.  Local produce, bakeries, cheese makers and wineries: make my heart sing. I still love everything Toronto has to offer and believe it is truly one of the most marvelously energetic cities in the world but I am starting to feel more and more like Niagara is Home.

 

Our Pillar and Post Culinary Team member and I have been busily working on new menus for the upcoming season, there is nothing like the creative spark that is present with an assembly of food loving individuals.  We are definitely incorporating classic, a bit of whimsy and a whole lot of love into our menus.

 

Toronto Expiate

by Chef DeGrace on Feb 14, 2012 (0) Comments

My name is Therese De Grace and I am delighted to be the new Executive Chef at The Pillar and Post.  Let me backtrack a little bit, I am a born and bred Toronto girl with a love for all things food.  I had the pleasure of growing up in a huge Italian family where food has always been the center of every celebration, gathering or day.  My grandmother is and always has been my inspiration, as a child I preferred sweating it out in her crowded kitchen as opposed to playing hide and seek along with the other musings of children.  I have always loved the feeling of creating food that brings people together and watching the happiness, nourishment and love it presents.  Breaking bread is the one thing that crosses cultural, religious and ethnic boundaries, every person no matter how diverse their background can relate to.  My mother told me that I professed wanting to be a Chef at age four and to be honest I always new I would be even though this whimsical world has allowed me to branch off into a bunch of other food based directions.

 

So how did I end up in Niagara? To be quite honest I have always loved it here and have been coming up to the region far before people even new of the amazing offerings of this area.  I still love the hustle and bustle of Toronto but felt it was time to trade in long lines at the grocery checkout for honesty boxes at the local farms. You appreciate the beauty of your food when you see it grow in the fields as opposed to being ripened on a truck from California. Canadians live such busy lives we seldom stop and contemplate the authenticity of the food we eat and how it ends up on our table. The fact that I can see where my produce is grown and meet the farmer who planted it gives me a greater connection to the food I prepare. So I packed up my little family and here we are and we couldn’t be happier.

 

The Pillar and Post has always been the hotel I lodged in while in the region, I feel tickled pink to be part of such a beautiful country property.  I feel fortunate to have my predecessor, Chef Randy Dupuis, just down the street at Queen’s Landing.  He left behind a legacy of kindness, professionalism and creativity that is prevalent in the staff. I have been blessed with a brigade of cooks that not only work hard but their devotion to the team and Vintages is stellar.  I am going to write a bit about different members of our team in all the blogs to follow this one. Executive Chefs often give the impression that they are the catalyst for a whole huge operations success: in actuality it is the combination of a bunch of hard working people that make magic as a whole in kitchens.  I look forward to introducing them!