‘La Collab’ Dinner Series Takes Cuisine to New Heights in Toronto & Quebec City
Globetrotting SHARP readers seeking to celebrate both the Champagne bud-break and maple syrup season in culturally appropriate style need look no further than “La Collab,” an innovative two-night dinner series taking place on Tuesday, April 16 at Restaurant Lucie in downtown Toronto, and a week later on April 23 at Le Clan in the historic heart of Old Quebec City.
Sponsored by San Pellegrino, both dinners will welcome guests at 5:30pm with a glass of Perrier-Jouët Champagne. From then on, however, the combined skills of the restaurants’ two head chefs will be front and centre. Described by organizers as “a playful and modern mix of French and Québécois-inspired cuisine,” each six-course tasting menu will include three dishes from Restaurant Lucie’s Arnaud Bloquel, and three from Le Clan’s Stéphane Modat, all of which will be paired with wines curated by each restaurant’s team of sommeliers.
Born in the Aquitaine city of Agen and raised in the Caribbean, Bloquel honed his skills at world-class restaurants including the Hôtel du Palais in Biarritz and the two-Michelin-star La Chèvre d’Or on the French Riviera. After opening l’Orchidea in Guadeloupe in 2018, he was awarded the title of “Best Master Restaurateur” in France, with l’Orchidea being named “Best in the Caribbean” by the Gault et Millau guide. While the details of Bloquel’s contributions to Le Collab are being kept secret, Restaurant Lucie’s delicate Atlantic sole with mussels, Buddha’s hand citrus, parsnip cream and Nantua sauce seems to suit the dinner series’ Franco-Quebecois theme.
Modat, meanwhile, trained in a trio of Michelin-starred restaurants in France before heading up the culinary program at Quebec City’s iconic Fairmont Chateau Frontenac hotel. His own restaurant, Le Clan, opened in 2021 steps from the Chateau, with a plate of tender venison from Quebec’s Saguenay region, accompanied by yellow peas, cilantro, mint, and kefta, potentially offering some insight into his mysterious Collab courses.
“I’m super excited and happy to share the kitchen with some of my friends from Toronto,” Modat says. “This is another great opportunity for us to share all of our beautiful ingredients and products from Quebec. We will work together, have fun, and make sure everyone is having a good time.”
You can reserve a spot for La Collab on April 16 at Restaurant Lucie or on April 23 at Le Clan.
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