GTA Cooks Off At The Food District

The Food District is an urban marketplace located in the heart of Mississauga at Square One Shopping Mall. Celebrating it’s one year anniversary this coming April, The Food District has transformed the traditional landscape of mall food courts by inviting a varied collection of vendors from across the spectrum (we’re talking cotton candy to olive oil) to partake in this eclectic modern bazaar. In addition to its amazing vendors, The Food District boasts a highly accessible teaching kitchen designed to invite the public for immersive group classes taught by highly skilled instructors from the food and drink industry. Recently, The Food District hosted 40 Greater Toronto Area Yelp Elites for two classes inside their District Kitchen. 

Class one was taught by Chef Alex who instructed the Elites on proper kitchen etiquette and how to handle sharp knives that would be used for the class. The class started with the Elites making their own Basil Smash cocktails with fresh basil leaves, simple syrup and gin. Chef Alex shared her knowledge of how to properly handle the ingredients to ensure the most flavourful outcomes in the cocktails. Afterward she instructed the Elites on how to cook sticky rice and properly cut fish and vegetables to create various types of traditional sushi rolls. The Elites were left to create their own works of culinary art and take away sushi making skills to try at home. Before leaving, the Elites were given decadent bubble teas from Tao Tea Leaf and a sweet treat from The Macaron Boutique. 

Class two was led by Chef Julian who instructed the Elites on how to make various kinds of pasta from scratch using flour and dough. Elites were taught how to roll, stretch and knead pasta dough and put to work behind the pasta stretching machine and make a giant pot of sauce on the stove where they created family-style dinner plates. Lastly, Elites were given the option to pair their dinner with a delicious VQA Ontario Cabernet or a VQA Ontario Riesling from The Wine Shop next door chosen by Chef Julian for the night. Elites were treated to complimentary after dinner coffee from Hale Coffee and a sweet treat from The Macaron Boutique. 

Brampton Yelper Jonathan W. wrote, “Chef Julian did a terrific job of both ensuring that everyone was involved, as well as explaining the key to each step and how it affected the cooking process and final outcome. Duties were split up between various parts of the meal, but everyone got to roll, press and prepare their own pasta… It was also cool that many of the meal’s components were sourced right from The Food District.” 

Check out the amazing reviews and photos here. To register for an upcoming class at The Food District, click here. 

Special thanks to our sponsors: 

The Macaron Boutique, The Wine Shop, Tao Tea Leaf, Blooming Cotton Candy and Hale Coffee