Miroki is away, so André is joined by guest host Guillaume Frénéhard — his business partner at 80x Wine Company, local foodie and snobby Frenchman. Guillaume recently made an annual pilgrimage to the CNE, and armed with blogTO’s rundown of the wildest new foods, made it his mission to eat his way through the Ex. From a foot-long butter chicken taquito to lobster on a stick has CNE food finally moved past “gross for the sake of gross” and back toward being genuinely creative — and delicious?
Then, from carnival food to decidedly finer dining. André and Guillaume recently celebrated their birthdays at Barberian’s, the Toronto steakhouse institution that has been serving the city since 1959. With 80x’s Ruff Pinot Noir currently being poured by the glass, they headed in expecting great steak and ended up blown away by the service, the cavernous wine cellar and one of Toronto’s most formidable wine lists. A request for Côte de Nuits Burgundy also led André back to an old favourite: Domaine Pavelot’s Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Aux Guettes — a wine that somehow keeps finding its way back into his glass.
Has Guillaume managed to convince André that the CNE is worth another visit?
You can follow Miroki on Instagram @9ouncesplease
You can follow André on Instagram @andrewinereview
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