What’s being served for Toronto Life’s one-night-only dinner at La Banane
On Tuesday, November 7, Toronto Life is bringing together Brandon Olsen and his team from La Banane for a special dinner with local-global winemaking phenom Norman Hardie. Olsen’s classic French cuisine is pretty much tailor-made to pair with Hardie’s wines. The winemaker, who worked and studied in Burgundy before opening his winery in Prince Edward County, is obsessive about creating elegant food-friendly wines. For this one-off dinner, Olsen will be presenting a few of his classic recipes, as well as some surprises—which we have to keep secret. Here are just some of the evening’s dishes, with a few words from Hardie about each.
Four Norman Hardie wines will be poured, including the Cuvée Discotheque (far left) available exclusively at La Banane, where it will be paired with a variety of canapés to start the meal.
Dish: Tuna, brown butter, dill Wine: Norman Hardie Chardonnay 2015 La Banane’s most popular dish is a tuna crudo bathed in a sauce of brown butter and dill. “This dish is all about purity and harmony,” says Hardie. “The wine sings with the brown butter.”
Dish: Shellfish soup en croute Wine: Norman Hardie Calcaire 2016 With a rich seafood base and morsels of succulent seafood capped with a flaky pastry crust, this shellfish dish is the perfect pairing for Hardie’s super minerally Calcaire. “There’s so much beauty in this classic match,” says Hardie.
Dish: Duck, prunes, endive, Armagnac Wine: Norman Hardie Pinot Noir 2016 This dish is served no-frills style with charred endive and a drunken prune. “Boom! This is what it is, just like in France!" says Hardie.
Dish: Ziggy Stardust Disco Egg Drink: A secret, cognac-based beverage Every table of two or more guests will receive La Banane’s famous treat-filled Disco Egg for sharing (and for smashing).
Olsen and Hardie, hard at work.
Bonus: Tickets for this dinner include all food and drink, taxes and gratuities.
$250. Tuesday, November 7. La Banane, 227 Ossington Ave., eventbrite.ca.
