Where We Ate: A Field Guide to Canada's Restaurants, Past and Present

by Gabby Peyton, Corey Mintz (Foreword)

“You've heard (and probably asked) this question a million ‘Where did you go for dinner?’” A love letter to 150 Canadian restaurants, and the stories and people behind them—from pre-Confederation to present day, from Victoria to St. John’s—here’s where we ate.

What is Canadian cuisine? While cookbook authors and historians have spent decades trying to answer this question, Canadian food isn’t summed up by one iconic dish, but rather a huge range of meals, flavours, and cultural influences. It’s about the people who make our food, who cook it and serve it to us at lunch counters, in ornate dining rooms and through take-out windows.

In her debut book, restaurant critic and journalist Gabby Peyton has penned a celebration of 150 restaurants that have left a mark on the way Canada eats—whether they’re serving California rolls, foie gras poutine, hand-cut beef tartare or bánh mì—and brings us from one decade to the next, showing how our dining trends evolved from beef consommé at Auberge Saint-Gabriel in 1754 to nori-covered hot dogs at Japadog.

Organized chronologically, from pre-Confederation to the present day, you'll find

A joyous representation of the incredible diversity of restaurants, people, and stories that make up our Canadian dining history, Where We Ate is as much of a timeless classic as the restaurants it features.

Genres: Nonfiction, Food

312 pages, ebook

Published June 6, 2023

Reviews

[Josiah Sinclair · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was fun, both because it made me want to visit restaurants all over Canada and because it reminded me of some of the best places I've ever eaten in Toronto.

[Agnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

What fun! Don’t read this book hungry.

This title reminds me of asking my dad where he’d eaten on all his trips out of the province and wanting him to recount each and every meal he’d consumed. It is a lovely exploration of Canadian Cuisine. I delighted in the photos & old menus. I wish I could still go to some of these restaurants - I have the sudden urge to take up bridge & eat cucumber sandwiches.

[Candice Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this gorgeous book and couldn’t put it down. Such fascinating history!

[Shipshapeeatworthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why is it that when I think of all the places I have lived in or visited across Canada, the first thing that comes to mind are the restaurants? I think it’s what Gabby Peyton tells us in the introduction to her book, Where We Ate: “Restaurants are so much more than the iconic food they invent or best-of lists they make. They are a combination of the people who operate them, the atmosphere they create and the food they serve. Restaurants are nothing without the people who run them and the people who eat there. The families, the friends, the diners – it’s all a community.” (3) And it’s in these micro communities that, when put together, weave the fabric of a place — indelible in our memories. So, it’s no wonder that when I think of the cities I’ve enjoyed, the restaurants stand as a symbol representing much more than food, and, as Peyton further explains, “The story of Canadian restaurants tells a broader story of the country.” (5)

Peyton’s book is organized chronologically by decade (starting with Before Confederation to The 2010s) with a handful of restaurants populating each one. Should readers and restaurant enthusiasts wonder if she mentions all the restaurants? No! I don’t think Peyton needs to because what her book offers are snapshots of the Canadian culinary scene – a true “love letter” to all the places or types of places we’ve all eaten at. Peyton’s account of the restaurants she mentions are informative, interesting, and, often poignant. Her choices aren’t precious either – she’s done such an excellent job of offering readers a useful cross-section of restaurants. Some immediately recognizable – Tim Horton’s or Boston Pizza – to ones that are very specific to a city like King of Donair (in Halifax) or The Naam (in Vancouver). Some of the restaurants are still in operation while others are not. Peyton has also done her best to include a diverse selection of places but notes in her introduction different reasons for any omissions or gaps – “a lack of record keeping by small business owners, biased census takers or racist business practices which would have obstructed minorities from owning businesses or finding employment.” (6)

I appreciate how the book is designed – for each restaurant entry there are a few paragraphs going into the story/history/food behind it. At times there are accompanying photographs or ephemera (menus, illustrations, etc.) and she also shares some corresponding recipes too. When discussing the Canadian Pacific Hotels, she shares the recipe for Signature Raisin Scones from the Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. I baked this recipe for my daughter one rainy weekend here and we enjoyed them with tea and strawberry jam. I am unsurprised that this recipe has been in use at the Empress since 2000 because the scones are deliciously tender and smell a little like shortbread cookies as they bake in the oven.

Through her carefully crafted narrative, Gabby Peyton (restaurant critic and food writer) has constructed a touching historiography of the restaurant landscape in Canada. While we can never fully know a restaurant experience if we’ve never been there, as Corey Mintz says in the forward to Where We Ate, Peyton’s book shows “…us how each era of dining, along with the influences of culinary and immigration trends, flowed into the next.” (1) From here, readers are given the opportunity to vicariously enjoy these places who fed and nourished so many.

Please note: a version of this review was posted to www.shipshapeeatworthy.com

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Appetite by Random House for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my review.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a ✨glowing✨recommendation for Where We Ate. If you love food, reading about food and the restaurant industry, and how Canadian Businesses got their start, you HAVE to read this. “Where We Ate will bring you along on a road trip through some of Canada’s most interesting places to eat.”

Other than being a beautiful, well written book, it is an extensive review of restaurants in Canada from before confederation until COVID-19, and includes some recipes from the restaurants as well. It was sad to read about all the great restaurants that closed due to hardships, but it was also SO fun and I found myself screenshooting interesting or known restaurants to show to family or for future reference to visit! I can’t wait to try some of these food establishments when travelling across Canada (the ones that are still open anyway). I loved reading about some of the restaurants I grew up with including Ches’ Fish and Chips, Boston Pizza, and Swiss Chalet. Finally, I also loved the inclusion of many cultures and communities, including Indigenous-owned food establishments. If I ever get to Manitoba, Feast Cafe Bistro will be first on my list!

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for a gifted copy of the book. All opinions are my own.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone who has lived in Canada will recognize the iconic restaurants described in this book, including Tim Horton's and Schwartz's Deli. Listed by decade, this restaurant encyclopedia covers the most famous dining establishments like the Empress Hotel Tea Room, to smaller establishments like Max & Moritz Spicy Island Food House at the ferry terminal on Galiano Island. Although its recipes from the iconic restaurants are quite elaborate, the book would make a useful guide for driving across the vast country of Canada, or providing a tourist guide for a specific city visit.

[Maddisen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this! I know nothing about Canada's restaurant scene or how it came to be, so this was informative and delightful all the way through!
I loved that most of the recipes come from the restaurants, and the highlighting of the people behind food; where they came from, how their restaurant came to be, etc.
It was fun learning about where poutine got its name, the number of Chinese establishments we've had/have, how the California Roll got its name from braver people 😆!

Listening to some Maoli or Japanese city pop really puts the vibes on when reading this, too!

Finished 8:57pm

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truly fascinating look at the history and evolution of Canadian cuisine through the restaurants that served it, from pre-confederation to the end of the 2010s, including recipes served at some of those places. The stories were interesting, and I enjoyed seeing the evolution of what people ate across the country. Tragic seeing how many of these historic restaurants were victims of the pandemic. My one lament is that the book didn't include more recipes; they felt a little too scarce!

[EssentiallyMeagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable book about the history of restaurants in Canada from before Confederation to the present day. I enjoyed learning how immigration has brought so many different flavours and tastes to the mouths and stomachs of Canadians from coast to coast. It also made me very hungry and I can’t wait to visit some of restaurants mentioned in the book.

[Diana Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really fun book to read, bringing back memories of places we had eaten in the past, some of which are no longer around and enticing us to go find other new places. Unfortunately some of the places did not survive covid, which is unfortunate, but it's still a really great read for anyone interested in Canadian food history, restaurants, eating out, traveling in Canada, etc. enjoy!

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It created a deep nostalgia in me for certain restaurants (all long gone) that mattered in my life. It was also a delight to know a few of these establishments in person. I enjoyed following the culinary growth of Canada through the decades. So much fun to read!

[Cheryl Buer Cartwright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting, the evolution of restaurants in Canada starting before confederation to present.

[Poppy Marlowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book but where are the Montreal Smoked Meat institutions? St Viateur Bagels? Places that have been there for decades???????????????????????????

[Jbondandrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the hardcover version of this book. A very interesting collection of restaurants in Canada. I almost wish a bit more information was given and more pictures.

[Costa Voutsinas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice look back at the history of Canada through the memories of good food. Sad that many of the 2010+ places have closed.

[Nada Loughead · Rating 5 out of 5]

See my review at https://canadiancookbooks.ca/where-we...