Growing fresh herbs: Surprising kitchen gardens of Canadian city chefs

A growing number of Canadian chefs are taking eco-consciousness one step further by growing ingredients in their very own on-site gardens. While this has been a long-standing tradition in many of Canada’s rural restaurants and country inns, it’s now happening more and more in some unexpected, citified places.

Toronto taking herbs to new heights
Downtown Toronto’s landmark hotel, the Fairmont Royal York, doesn’t exactly conjure up images of green acres.  And yet, all the herbs used in their restaurants - rosemary, lavender, thyme, chives, basil, to name but a few - are grown on-site. Jean-Charles Dupoire, Chef de Cuisine at Royal York’s EPIC (seen in image above), says, “Every chef’s dream is to have his own herb garden and so we have created an oasis on the rooftop.” Perched atop 18 stories, this herb garden has superb access to plentiful waterfall and the sun’s rays—and even provides the hotel with numerous fruits and vegetables.  Executive Chef, David Garcelon, reminds city dwellers that herbs are the perfect way to start one’s own kitchen garden. “They need a lot of sun and water,” he admits, “but they’re easy to grow in pots and are great for apartment balconies.”


Rosemary, raspberries, and romaine at Calgary's Rouge
Rouge, just five minutes from bustling downtown Calgary, is another urban, organic-dining mecca. Chef Paul Rogalski agrees that a kitchen garden is a must. “We strongly believe in harvesting food as close to the moment of service  as possible, which in many cases means you’ll have to wait a couple of minutes longer for your menu item as we pick the herbs, lettuce, raspberries, tomatoes... In my opinion, there’s nothing better tasting than something that’s still warm from the sun!” While the garden at Rouge (seen in image at left) has dozens of varieties of herbs and edible flowers, Rogalski advises the novice gardener to start out slow. Choose easy-to-maintain plants “so that it doesn’t become a chore.” He recommends romaine, mint, dill, chives, and other tasty herbs that are “hearty enough in case you forget to water one day.”

Herbal oasis in urban Saskatoon
For the past 13 years, besides creating delicious food, Chef Remi Cousyn (seen in image at left) of Calories  has been tending (with the help of his mother-in-law, Judith Hutton) a bountiful plot of land nestled next to his Saskatoon bistro. Tarragon, sage, basil, cilantro, arugula, and calendula are a few of his preferred herbs; although, born in Provence, he especially loves thyme and rosemary. Menu favorites at Calories often feature home-grown produce: from a unique dressing made with nasturtium leaves, to a savoury potato-and-swiss-chard gratin. For the herb garden newbie Cousyn recommends perennials: “It’s a bit of a lazy pleasure to get plants the following year with very little effort!”
 
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