![]() |
Chef Elaina Ravo in the library at Liaison Kitchener |
The library at Liaison Kitchener feeds the mind and fuels
the imagination; a sanctuary from the hustle of the kitchen and the intensity
of the classroom.
Racks of neatly stacked magazines – Fine Cooking, Saveur, Cook’s Illustrated
- flank a cast of characters, standing side by side like soldiers at role call:
Brits Gordon Ramsay, Heston Blumenthal and Jamie Oliver are next to the
new-world influence of the Barefood Contessa, Emeril Lagasse, and our own
Ontario local-food champion Lynn Ogryzlo.
The bold, primary colours of the Culinaria Series defy
political boundaries: Germany and France rub shoulders with Greece, while Spain
and Italy get acquainted. Across the room, the complex layering of spices from
Lebanon, Morocco, Jerusalem and Turkey share the shelves with fast and fiery
Vietnamese. There are cookbooks in Arabic too, for a truly authentic reflection
of the flavours of the Middle East.
From the textbooks Professional Cooking for Canadian
Chefs and Garde Manger, to the lay cook’s Culinary Landmarks:
A Bibliography of Canadian Cookbooks – 1825 to 1949, these tomes reflect the provenance and care of
foods we turn to for comfort and celebration.
Classroom
theory, knife skills, food safety and classic technique will make professionals
out of Liaison’s students. It is this library, though, with its combined
passion of generations of chefs from around the world, that will help them
forge a culinary identity for themselves and for this country.
![]() |
All photos by Terry Asma, 2020studios.com |