By Maisha Hasan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
From January 27 to February 9, the 17th annual Taste of Burlington event will be taking place to showcase some carefully curated prix fixe menus by the city’s very own chefs. The program encourages residents to engage with Burlington’s dynamic food scene and try new flavours and cuisines, and experience diverse cooking techniques. With over thirty participating restaurants, this event strives to boost tourism as well as recognize Burlington as a hub of excellent food.
Taste of Burlington takes place each year to foster a sense of community between residents and restaurants, ensuring something for everyone regardless of dietary preferences or restrictions.
One of the restaurants joining this program is Loondocks, a casual fine dining experience that specializes in sourcing the freshest high-quality ingredients. It is one of the highest top-rated restaurants in Burlington, being recognized as the 2024 Canadian Gourmet Restaurant of the Year by the Travel and Hospitality Awards.
Loondocks was founded and operated by Chef Kevin and his wife (and maitre d’) Brittany in 2012. The name hails from their collective upbringing and love of Muskoka, naming the restaurant after the bird native to its region. Along with the name, they poured the rest of Muskoka into their work from the cuisine to the interior design.
Below, Chef Kevin of Loondocks responded to a couple of questions about his work and process, alongside other insights into his life and opinions.
What was the most challenging dish to come up with on your menu?
Our flourless chocolate cake is a tough one. We want a light, moist cake with great flavour, which is hard to do without flour. Developing the recipe took a lot of testing, and it takes patience and finesse to get it right every time we bake a fresh one, which is almost every day.
How do you stay inspired to develop new recipes?
For me, inspiration comes from many places, including food markets, cookbooks, cooking shows, restaurant visits, chats with colleagues and team members (both past and current), and of course, daily chats with my wife, who is a real foodie.
Your restaurant emphasizes the value of raw and natural ingredients. What is the process for sourcing them?
Over the years, we have developed many contacts in the industry, and we are fortunate to work closely with some excellent purveyors. They understand what Loondocks is all about, and work closely with me to source the highest quality ingredients for our menu. It’s sad to say, but cheap, pre-packaged products dominate this industry, so it’s important for me to have contacts and suppliers who understand our priorities and our standards.
What was the harshest critique someone gave you? In what way did that critique influence your growth or approach as a chef?
In our first year of Loondocks up in Muskoka, 13 years ago, we had some excellent cuisine, but the menu was not very approachable and the portion sizes were too small. We received some fair criticism from guests leaving hungry, and saying we were too pretentious. From this, we further developed our style of dining, which we call “casual fine dining,” which is more approachable and delivers good value to our guests, without compromising our standards for quality and our obsession for truly excellent Canadian ingredients.
Loondocks is owned and operated alongside your wife. How do your roles complement each other in the business? What have you learned together?
We have grown and learned so much through this journey in business and in life. We both have our separate departments suited to our strengths but always work together to grow and improve Loondocks as a whole. We constantly rely on each other for advice, and positive and negative feedback to make sure we are always at our best. Of course, a restaurant cannot succeed without both excellent food and incredible service, so, we are very lucky to have each other. Brittany has such a high standard for warm service and true, fine-dining hospitality. She is very hands-on with her team, which allows her to constantly raise the bar for Loondocks. She has an excellent personality for this job and has become true friends with so many of our guests over the years. Without her, Loondocks would never be successful. It’s a tough business, but it’s made easier because we have learned to work together so well over the years, to manage the stress, and to balance each other out when needed.
Best fast food chain in your opinion?
Freshii.
After making all these wonderful dishes at Loondocks, what do you make for yourself when you get home from a long day?
I really enjoy fresh fish, with just a salad or vegetables. It’s fairly quick and easy to prepare, which is nice after a long day.
What does being recognized as the Canadian Gourmet Restaurant of the Year mean to you and your team?
It is a truly wonderful accolade and a testament to the hard work of our great team. Every day we work with an uncompromising commitment to our standards, to be consistently excellent with every single plate, with every single service. in addition to the feedback from our wonderful guests, this kind of accolade really justifies all that hard work.
If you could only choose one dish to best encapsulate Loondocks and its ethos, what would it be?
Our signature dish, which is an Alberta Angus Filet Mignon, paired with an aged cheddar potato gratin (PEI potatoes), and a brandy mushroom cream sauce. It’s a good sample of what Loondocks is all about: fresh, high-quality Canadian ingredients, prepared with refined, southern European techniques.
For more information on Loondocks’ Taste of Burlington offerings, click here or here for the full Taste of Burlington restaurant lineup. There is no need to sign up or register as prix fixe menus are available at each location alongside the regular menus. Loondocks is located at 5111 New Street, in the Appleby Village plaza.
