The Ultimate Gourmet Delivery Guide 2020

Hadrien Verrier Patisserie’s croissants

$18

for a dozen When the lockdown-spurred baking frenzy caused a flour shortage, Hadrien Verrier responded with frozen butter croissants ready for the oven—your oven! Just apply an egg wash and bake. They do need to proof overnight, though, so if you want French pastry pronto, tack on some of his heavenly fresh-baked croissants to your order. | Hadrienpatisserie.ca

Matron Fine Beer

$3.25

per can Matron’s Leisure might be a German-style country lager, but it tastes like Prince Edward County. Made with hyper-local ingredients—Barn Owl malt, Pleasant Valley hops and well water from the brewery’s five-hectare property—this crisp, low-ABV beer transports you to P.E.C. without having to hit the 401. | Matronfinebeer.ca

Japanese snacks from Sukoshi Mart

Social distancing was impossible inside Kensington’s wee Japanese convenience store, so owner Linda Dang opted 
to close the doors and open an online shop. Everything— including kawaii socks, Korean cosmetics and Japanese snacks (even the imported Kit Kats and the cod roe–flavoured chips)—is now available for delivery. | Sukoshimart.com

Mr. Good Meat’s Cherry Street BBQ box

$190

This 46-year-old catering outfit has adapted to the new normal, and now sells meal kits from some of the city’s top spots. Everything in their Cherry Street BBQ box (brisket, pork rib ends, pulled pork, sausage—even the beans) spends hours in the smoker. It all arrives vac-packed, and it’s ready in minutes. | Chefscatering.ca

El Nahual’s taco kits

$20-$25

The Annex taqueria known for their house- made everything is now selling DIY taco kits. There are five kinds on offer (chicken mole, Yucatan chicken, zucchini- black bean, carnitas and barbacoa), as well as drinks (horchata, guava lemonade), dips (guac, pico de gallo and tongue searing salsas made from morita and árbol chilies) and decadent Mexican desserts. | Tacokittoronto.com

Kulfi Hut’s kulfi

$15

This velvety frozen delight is made from evaporated milk that’s boiled down with continuous stirring. The long cook time yields icy cups with a caramelized sweetness that pairs delectably with fruity, flowery and chocolatey add-ins. Kulfi Hut offers a mix of Indian and Sri Lankan flavours including pistachio and watalappam (a coconut custard tart) alongside creations like Ferrero Rocher, cotton candy and N.Y. cheesecake. | Instagram.com

Dumpling House’s frozen dumplings

$18

Jerry Li, Julie Zhu and their daughter, Cindy, make seriously delectable dumplings. The wrappers are chewy and smooth, while the filling flavours pop thanks to fresh herbs, veggies, tofu and proteins. Even the frozen dim sum is super fresh— it’s usually made the night before. For the complete experience, throw a bamboo steamer basket into your virtual cart. | Dumplinghouse619.com

Lark DFF’s carbonated drinks

$2.50-4.50

a bottle After learning that less than a tenth of all plastic actually gets recycled, Michelle Donnelly launched her zero-waste, closed-loop drink company that reuses its glass bottles. The mineral-rich, alkaline water, sourced from a Barrie- area spring, comes in four different varieties: Bestill (flat), Bubbas (a San Pellegrino dupe) and two floral-flavoured sips (one tastes like Brio, the other like rose lemonade). | Larkdff.com

A brunch bundle from Mimi and Ry Produce

$155

When the pandemic wilted this florist’s bottom line, owners Andrea Woodruff and Tina Brooks had to pivot. Now they sell bouquets alongside gourmet groceries. Their all-Ontario brunch bundle is a fantastic feast: Muddy Crops hen eggs, Brodflour sourdough, Gunn’s Hill brie, Sheldon Creek cream (best whipped and served with berries), Propeller coffee, yogurt, pancake mix, maple spread, granola and jam. | Mimiandryproduce.com

Wine from the Grape Witches

$210

Nicole Campbell and Krysta Oben—the self- titled Grape Witches—are a natural wine– worshipping coven of two. In the before times, they threw bacchanalian parties and hosted boozy info sessions. Now they’re curating off-the-beaten-path wine boxes. Their Late Summer Steamer Pack was designed for September sipping and comes with a joyful B.C. skin-contact pinot gris, a crispy French white and a chillable red. | Grapewitches.com

Marben’s Make-Your-Own John’s Burger Kit

$30

This literal beefcake has been at the top of Toronto’s best burger lists for the past 13 years. The beef is aged for up to 50 days before it’s ground, and the brisket braises for 24 hours. But all that work’s done for you. All you have to do is grill the patty, slap on the cheddar, toast the brioche buns and slather on some Branston pickle. | Marben.ca

Mexican Collective Store’s groceries

Mexican expat and nurse Erika Araujo went to culinary school when she moved to Toronto and established Ixiim, her catering company. After Covid hit, she switched gears and opened an online store selling cheeses (Oaxaca, panela), chilies (guajillo, pasilla, árbol, poblano), produce (jicama, nopal) and meals (tamales, sope, tlacoyo kits). | Mexican-collective-store.square.site

The Smoke Bloke’s scotch cold-smoked salmon

$32

a pound Mike Taylor starts by curing his salmon sides in a blend of sugar, salt and aged Islay Mist scotch for up to 30 hours. They’re then rinsed and left to dry. The next day, the salmon goes into a smoker where it spends four hours with a blend of hickory, cherry and alder wood. Afteran eight-hour stint in the fridge, the peaty piscine delight is ready to be sliced and shipped. | Thesmokebloke.ca

Bagels and smoked meat from I Miss Montreal Food

When concert producer Amir Epstein’s industry was put on hold, he got thinking. His Québécoise wife vetoed his drone-dog- walking biz idea, but she was the inspiration for his next one: satisfying cravings for St-Viateur and Schwartz’s. He drives a 16- foot refrigerated truck to La Belle Province weekly, carting back bagels, smoked meat and more. | Imissmontrealfood.com

Wagyu steaks from Farmshare

$3.50

an ounce This farm-to-table delivery service sources much of its meat from Ontario producers (beef from the Blue Mountains, chicken from Halton, Lambton County pork). But the Wagyu comes from Idaho’s Snake River Farms. Chefs go gaga for gorgeous fat- marbled cuts of the Wagyu-Angus cross. Steakhouses charge a fortune for the super-tender stuff, but Farmshare sells it for a (comparable) song. | Farmshareto.ca

Eataly’s pizza al padellino kit

$38.90

The Italian food mecca is serving up all sorts of meal kits, including a make-your-own pizza option. Of course, it’s no regular pepperoni pie, but a kit for Torino-style pizza al padellino—which is basically Italian deep dish. We like the Funghi best, topped with house-made mozz, roasted mushrooms and smoked scamorza. | Eataly.ca

P.E.I. Patio Party Kits from McEwan’s

$360-$400

Even though P.E.I.’s month-long annual food fest was kiboshed by the pandemic, the province is keeping the East Coast kitchen party vibe alive with these over-the-top kits. The surf option is loaded with lobsters, mussels and oysters, shipped in straight from the Atlantic. The Turf box is Mark McEwan’s take on meat ’n’ potatoes: giant rib-eyes, humongous striploins and truffle butter served with potatoes two ways (salad and stuffed). | Mcewancatering.com

Tora’s temaki kit

$55

Tora, known for its aburi (a.k.a. blow-torched sushi), is now offering an online sushi-making class. Unfortunately for pyromaniacs, there’s no fire involved. Customers can follow along with chef Toaki Kyo as he teaches them how to assemble the perfect hand roll: spread the seasoned sushi rice on a crisp nori sheet, then mix and match from a prepared selection of bluefin tuna, salmon, shrimp, avocado, pickled daikon and cucumber. | Aburitora.com

Cocktails from Project Gigglewater

Missing fancy tipples? This west-end cocktail bar has you covered. Bottled elixirs will appeal to the zero-effort set, while the kits will take some work. Fan favourite Hype and Skype comes with tequila, pineapple syrup, lime, peppermint tea, cardamom bitters and XL ice cubes. If none of the kits tickle your taste buds, bartender Alfred Siu will whip up a custom creation. | Projectgigglewater.com

Booyah’s DIY ice cream sandwich kit

$35

Putting on that quarantine 15 has never been easier now that you can order ice cream sandwiches straight to your home. Booyah’s Quarantine Survival Kit comes with a selection of that day’s freshly baked cookies and three pints of ice cream. Choose from 20 flavours, including Nutella, mint chip and—heck yeah—toasted marshmallow. | Booyah-inc.com

Mumgry from Toronto Market Co.

$11

After an endorsement from Queen Bey herself, Lilian Umurungi-Jung’s artisanal nut butter exploded in popularity. It was almost impossible for Torontonians to get their hands on a jar of this low-sugar chocolate peanut butter spread—until Toronto Market Co. began importing the Beyoncé-blessed B.C.-based products. | Torontomarket.co

Frozen pizzas from General Assembly

$40

for four frozen pizzas General Assembly’s new frozen line puts Dr. Oetker to shame. The sourdough pies are pulled out of an Acunto Napoli oven three-quarters of the way through cooking (just as the crust blisters), cooled, vac-packed and frozen. After a short stint in your own oven, they’re crispy-chewy perfection. Sign up for their new free-delivery frozen pizza subscription service, so every night can be pizza night. | Gapizza.com

Bottles of cider from Revel Cider

Tariq Ahmed’s single- origin ciders run the gamut of apple varietal flavours. A bottle of Golden Russet has an unctuous, earthy nuttiness to it, and a brew made from northern spys serves up notes of rose and marjoram. Ahmed eschews stainless steel while fermenting; this allows the microflora to breathe and breed, yielding funky, rich ciders—which, up until Covid, have been relatively hard to get. | Revelcider.ca

Oyster Boy’s lobster boil

$90

After 30-plus years of shucking bivalves at his Queen West kitchen, Adam Colquhoun is no longer just an oyster boy— he’s a mollusc man, and his lobster boil for two is a steal. It comes with a two-pound Nova Scotia lobster poached in an Old Bay–and-corn broth, kale caesar salad, corn on the cob, devilled eggs, fries, cheddar biscuits and a decadent, seasonal dessert. | Oysterboy.ca

Shangri-La’s afternoon tea

$95

This tea service to go will add pomp to any at-home afternoon. The luxurious spread comes with a reusable three-tier cake stand to best display the artful nibbles, which include savoury and sweet bites like lemony ricotta tarts topped with minted peas, cucumber bavarois and just-baked scones. All that’s missing is the gilded bone-china Wedgwood tea set... but that might push it past the current price tag. | Shangri-la.com

Monforte Dairy’s cheese grab bag

$60

Text 519-301-0198 and cheesemaker Ruth Klahsen will tell you what’s in the 1.25-kilo cheese grab bag. The selection changes regularly, but you can expect about six cheeses: half hard, half soft. Located in Stratford, Monforte uses four types of milk (cow, goat, sheep and water buffalo) sourced from nearby farms to make their cheeses, most of which are variants on French-style fromages (Selles-sur-Chers, tommes, camemberts and mimolettes). They also produce fantastic cheddar and gouda contenders. | Monforteonline.ca

Milk and cookies from Circles and Squares

$17

for a two-litre jug of milk and six cookies This delivery union just makes sense: cookie wholesaler Circles and Squares is now delivering milk alongside their sweet treats. They’re only carrying dairy from Sheldon Creek, a small, family-run farm. Using a robotic milking machine, the cows line up and milk themselves at will. When not being milked by HAL 9000 (otherwise known as the Lely robotic milking system), this happy herd of 70 Holsteins graze on alfalfa and corn, while roaming 250 hectares of Ontario countryside. | Circlesandsquaresbakery.com

An Il Covo Pasta Kit from Gather, Grow & Co.

$40

For their all’amatriciana meal kit, Il Covo has swapped out traditional bucatini for rigatoni. If anything, these freshly extruded tubes make an even better vehicle for scooping up the tomato-and-guanciale sauce. The kit is available through Gather, Grow & Co., which carries dozens of products from Toronto producers. For a full Italian feast, add on an order of Mattachioni sourdough and a meat course from Chantecler Boucherie. | Growgatherandco.com

Leña Empanadas from O&B Grocery

$18

for six Most of what’s on Leña’s menu is house made, except for the empanadas. Susan Arevalo, the wife of O&B corporate executive chef Anthony Walsh, is behind those moist-yet-flakey pies. Gaucho Pie Co., Arevalo’s five-year-old company, does mostly contemporary empanadas (there’s even one that’s a riff on Hawaiian pizza), but we can’t stop craving those classic egg-and-olive studded beef pockets. | Oliverbonacini.com

A whole roast suckling pig from Rui’s BBQ

$160

For Lisbon-born Rui Gomes, roast suckling pig is about more than just roasted pork: “It’s tradition, family, culture.” His leitão à bairrada starts with a 20-pound piglet that’s brined for 24 hours in garlic and salt. Before the porker is popped into the wood-burning oven, it’s slicked with lard, which—after three hours of cooking—yields a crispy, crackling skin and tender, juicy meat. | Roastedpiglet.com

Sombrero’s ceviche kit

$16

Fill your virtual cart with Mexican pop, Dominican coffee, oven-ready yuca fries, alfajores or a meal kits like this tart-and-fresh ceviche. This family-run business has strong Latinx ties. Their all–newcomer staff hail from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and Puerto Rico, while their products are either imported from Latin America or made by Latinx-owned GTA businesses. | Sombrerolatinfoods.ca