Masterchef Canada judge Alvin Leung and winner Eric Chong are opening a restaurant on Spadina

Back in April, when Masterchef Canada contestant Eric Chong hoisted that shimmering Lucite trophy above his head, we wonder if he sensed that his culinary future would be tied to the blue-haired eccentric standing next to him. According to the Star, Chong has partnered up with Masterchef Canada judge and Hong Kong–based chef Alvin Leung to open a modern Chinese restaurant somewhere on Spadina Avenue, “close to Toronto’s Chinatown.” (We wonder whether it might be the huge space at 241 Spadina, just south of Grange Avenue, that was left empty when Strada 241 closed its doors back in July.) The Leung-Chong collaboration will be called R&D, which, Leung told the Star, is short for “Rebel and Demon.” (For those who don’t know, Leung goes by the nickname “Demon Chef” and characterizes his particular brand of Asian cooking as “X-Treme Chinese.” When you run a three-Michelin-starred restaurant, which Leung does, you’re allowed to self-mythologize a little.) R&D is scheduled to open in early 2015.