Chris Nuttall-Smith
The Walrus
Toronto, ON, Canada
Contact Chris
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Past articles by Chris:
The Future of Food
At the 2015 Expo in Milan, Ikea unveiled a prototype for its kitchen of the future. The future, for all its promise, looked grimly similar to the now. The space featured fall-apart saucepans and flimsy plastic utensils that dangled from a pegboard, and its colour scheme fell somewhere on the continuum between “Ashtray” and “Deathly Pallor.” There were, however, some properly futuristic touches.… → Read More
Obituary: Restaurateur and oysterman John Bil believed in good, simple food
Mr. Bil, who died at 49, made an impact on the seafood trade in North America that’s likely to reverberate for years to come → Read More
The Restaurant that Cost Quebec Millions · t
The province's best-known chefs built their careers on local traditions. So why is the government subsidizing a big shot from France? → Read More
What Canadians understand about ketchup chips that Americans don’t
I’ve tried to remember when ketchup chips first came into my life, but it’s a little like trying to remember the first time I wet the bed. I grew up in the 1980s in Canada, a country that takes its wack-job salty snack foods seriously. Few of these are more revered than ketchup chips. For a while in → Read More
Sixteen Torontonians to watch in 2016
From international stages to political arenas, these Torontonians are promising to transform themselves and our city in the year ahead → Read More
Four beautiful kitchen gifts for the person with a stocked pantry
Four beautiful kitchen gifts, for the person on your shopping list whose pantry is already stocked → Read More
Chef’s upbringing runs throughout the menu at Toronto’s Rickshaw Bar
Ismaili beef curry, built from an entire day’s labour, has been in Pakistani-born Noureen Feerasta’s family for four generations → Read More
True North: This ambitious cookbook is a defining moment for Canadian cuisine
For his new cookbook, Montreal chef Derek Dammann travelled from coast to coast, eating cod innards in Newfoundland and chive blossoms in B.C. The result is True North, an ambitious yet approachable showcase for contemporary Canadian food → Read More
Music up, lights down: A good playlist is crucial to the dining experience
When I’m asked for restaurant recommendations, my first question in response has become, ‘What kind of music do you like?’ → Read More
Toronto restaurant Alo goes all in on high-end dining – and wins
High above Queen and Spadina, the cooking is virtuosic, the wine pairings are superb and the service is expertly choreographed → Read More
Meet the father-son farmer duo revolutionizing Ontario's shrimp business
Paul and Brad Cocchio, pioneers of First Ontario Shrimp, now spin out the most sublimely fresh and delicate-tasting jumbo shrimp ever served in this province → Read More
Raca Café and Bar: A talented Toronto chef who deserves better
The Toronto restaurant is tiny, the service slow and the menu dated – but the chef can cook → Read More
The Stella Artois Sensorium: Where does dinner end, and an experience begins?
The Stella Artois Sensorium is a bold attempt to change how we view eating out – if only the meal lived up to the presentation → Read More
Review: A.J. Somerset’s Arms explores the rise of gun culture in North America
The rise of gun culture in North America → Read More
Mamakas: By far the best Greek restaurant in Toronto
For Greek cooking to catch up with the times in the city, it would have to be properly Greek: great ingredients, prepared with skill. None of this hyphenated Canadian compromise.One year into its life, Mamakas, a modern taverna on Ossington Avenue, has begun to fulfill that promise → Read More
Città and A3 Napoli: One is pedestrian; the other does superb street food
While Città is good, if unspectacular, A3 Napoli – on the back of a deep-fryer – is poised to change the pizza game in town → Read More
Kasa Moto: Yorkville’s Japanese hot spot buries decent food under disastrous design
Yet, the greatest tragedy of Kasa Moto is that when you remove the design of the place from the picture, it’s a good (if entirely derivative) restaurant with a good kitchen and beautiful plates, and polished (or, at very minimum, charming) service. Eating here should be infinitely better than it is. → Read More
Cava: Novelty hasn’t worn at convivial Toronto midtown tapas spot
Neighbourhood classic Cava has maintained excellence through an ownership change while adding a downtown street-food satellite → Read More
R&D: The MasterChef-helmed restaurant is far from a winner in real life
Go for the dim sum, but don’t stay for the rest – you’re better off with any of the other spots in Chinatown → Read More
The good stuff (and where to get it)
Chris Nuttall-Smith ate his way through, around and near downtown Toronto searching for extraordinary international restaurants. These are some of his favourites. → Read More