A Celebration of Local Flavours and Friendly Competition

We've been stoking the flames of creativity with chefs in Cornwall and SD&G for a handful of delicious years now. From unique burgers, to tacos, to poutine, and beyond, we love to support a bit of fun and friendly competition. But above all else we love to see you, the foodies, from near and far, supporting our local businesses and enjoying yourselves.

Having recently wrapped our Wing Love event last fall, we’ve cleaned our plates, polished our cutlery, and are ready for more.

But first, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on what we have been up to for a while now and how it is making a difference. This may sound like a humble brag but really, we have a vision within our culinary community, and we are so thrilled that some of you share in it. 

So let’s go waaay back, to the beginning, but not for too long. 

A variety of things first inspired us to form The Taste Buds and our ‘Love’ events, which launched in 2020. As the same team that brought you Taste magazine, which explored in-depth and personal stories, and invited you on Taste Tours, we’ve always had a thing for, well, you guessed it: food. But not only that, our events are about the people behind those swinging kitchen doors, who work all day and night, and strive to create an appetizing experience for their clientele.

Chef Chris Barque recently helped us judge Poutine Love. Many locals may know him from previously owning Bar Q in Cornwall. Chris said that the industry hasn’t been quite the same since COVID, and that’s no big secret. A lot of the new generation of chefs have moved on and went into a totally different trade. So with The Taste Buds, they’re really giving a breath of fresh air and enlightening to what the industry is all about.”

“It’s excellent for local business and it’s a good showcase,” he continued. “The industry is so difficult to be in right now, so when you have this little bright light, you feel like someone actually cares about the hard work we put in. The Taste Buds, to keep this going post-pandemic, is really a good thing. I want to see this blossom and keep going.”

Participating for years in our tasty events, Chef Luc McCabe, agreed that the industry is tough to slice into. 

“I think The Taste Buds are connecting that bridge for chefs. We don’t always get along with each other because we’re trying to compete, in a sense, in our world,” he said. “So I think this gives us a good opportunity to connect with each other and see that we’re all in it, doing the same thing. And there’s so many talented and creative people out there. You see that from all of the event dishes that are thought up. Everyone’s got a different way of thinking about it, but in the end, it all comes out as really awesome food for people to try.”

Acting as a judge before, Luc was excited to see passion from other locals in the industry and see the competition giving everyone their due recognition. 

“It’s a really neat way to get chefs to collaborate, especially in a small little city here where we do have a lot of talented chefs. In our industry we’re very busy, and we have our blinders on. We’re so focused on just what we do. It’s nice to be able to open your eyes a bit and see what everyone else is doing when you’re going out and collaborating with them.”

Owner of Sheep’s Head Bistro, Rizwan Mustafa, agrees that The Taste Buds are carving out a market to engage with the community in a bigger platform together. 

“As the years have went on and The Taste Buds have evolved, I have found when participating that so many people come in just for the event,” he said, having met a variety of new customers from participating. 

Enjoying the judging experience, Rizwan was happy to put his refined palette to the test, valuing creativity, look, aroma, texture, layering, and most importantly, the flavour. 

We are beyond proud of the impact we’ve had on supporting and showcasing the talent within our local culinary scene. But this is just the beginning! With more exciting events on the horizon, we can’t wait to continue bringing people together over the love of food and good company. Here’s to many more years of flavour-filled fun, collaboration, and local love.

Thank you to everyone who’s been part of this journey—whether you’re a chef, restaurant, or food enthusiast. Let’s keep the passion alive and continue to make Cornwall and SD&G a delicious place to be!

Stay tuned for what’s next, and as always—let’s keep supporting our local food scene!

STAY TUNED!