Evergreen Brickworks Moroccan Sweets Cooking Workshop. December 10th & 17th

Newcomer Kitchen’s “Willing to Work” Entrepreneurship Training Program launches its first product!

As part of our federally funded entrepreneurship training program our Product to Market Team “Dreamer’s Kitchen” has developed a Make Your Own Kit a delicious middle eastern treat called Qatayef. Qatayef are small ricotta stuffed crepes that can be served at room temperature as both a brunch or dessert item. This kit includes the crepe mix, a jar of pomegranate and cherry jelly, pistachio and rose petal topping and an orange blossom and lemon syrup (ricotta cheese not provided). The kit contains enough ingredients to serve 4-6 people. It costs $20.00 (+HST) and is available through on-line farmers markets Dufferin Grove, Leslieville and High Park farmer’s markets as a pop up until the end of August. All of the proceeds of the sales go directly to the trainees. For more information email info@newcomerkitchen.ca. Here is a step by step guide to using your kit.

Toronto Suddenly Has a New Craving: Syrian Food — The New York Times

 

Toronto Suddenly Has a New Craving: Syrian Food — The New York Times

By David Sax — JAN. 12, 2018

“Ms. Alakbani smiled at her little namesake and broke out in song (“always love songs, sexy songs”), clapping a syncopated beat, as others thwacked maamoul dough onto baking sheets from a mold. Soon the kitchen was a riot of singing, dancing and smells, as a potluck lunch of fresh hummus and baba ghanouj, vegetarian kibbe and spiced meat pies called shamborak filled the table for lunch.”

…No Syrian food businesses has felt the spotlight more acutely than Newcomer Kitchen, a nonprofit group of women who come together each Wednesday to cook a traditional Syrian meal in a small cafe and food business incubator called the Depanneur.

Newcomer Kitchen began in March 2016 as a way of giving newly arrived Syrian refugees who were temporarily living in airport hotels a chance to cook a meal. But it has grown into a collective of 60 cooks, who rotate in groups of eight to make 50 three-course takeout dinners each week, for $20 apiece.

The group has been the subject of dozens of news stories around the world, and a documentary film is in the works. A year ago, Mr. Trudeau visited with the press in tow, and his smiling face is proudly displayed around the kitchen.

READ MORE »

How Syrian refugees are helping shape Canadian cuisine — CBC Radio Day 6

How Syrian refugees are helping shape Canadian cuisine

David Sax & Brent Bambury — Friday January 12, 2018

” That commitment to keep tradition and these flavours alive is what makes these places so much more important than just somewhere to get a good meal.”
– David Sax

Until recently, Syrian food was hard to come by in Toronto.

But that’s starting to change, thanks to the recent influx of more than 40,000 Syrian refugees to Canada — including around 11,000 in Toronto, where Syrian cuisine is beginning to take root.

The new ventures range from shiny new cafés to stalls at farmer’s markets to a collective of Syrian women sharing traditional recipes from home with the wider public.

This month, the New York Times is dedicating its Food section to Canadian cuisine — and one of their contributors is Day 6 food columnist David Sax, who wrote a feature on how Syrian newcomers are helping shape how we define “Canadian” cuisine.

READ MORE »

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW »

Redeeming Depanneur Gift Certificates or Discount Coupons

Looking to buy Gift Certificates for The Depanneur? Click Here

Using Your Gift Certificate or Discount Coupon

You (or the Gift Certificate recipient, if you requested it be emailed directly to them) will receive an email with a coupon that looks like this:

Simply click on it, and the Gift Certificate should automatically be applied to your shopping cart when you head to the checkout.

Whoever placed the order will also receive an order confirmation with a link to a downloadable/printable Gift Certificate

The printable Gift Certificate looks like this; it’s not required, it’s just in case you want a physical certificate to give as a gift. You’ll need to write in the coupon code you received

You can also download one here if you need it.

Alternatively, you can apply the code by copying & pasting (or typing) it into the Coupon Code field of the shopping cart screen

Crowdfunding saves kitchen run by Syrian refugees — Toronto Star

Crowdfunding saves kitchen run by Syrian refugees

By Nicholas Keung — Immigration Reporter — Sat., Dec. 23, 2017

“It is so nice to see the flood of goodwill, generosity and support.”

Support and donations are pouring in to help a fledgling social enterprise for Syrian refugee women that was at risk of shuttering because of a lack of funding. The Newcomer Kitchen was in jeopardy of closing in January after it failed to secure funding from governments and charitable foundations to take the operation to the next level and make it sustainable. Staffed by Syrian refugee women and begun as a social program, the kitchen, housed weekly at the Depanneur restaurant on College St., offers catering and ready-to-go meals to the public with revenue split among the participants after deductions for ingredients and supplies.

READ MORE »

Syrian ‘Newcomer Kitchen’ saved thanks to crowdfunding | CTV News

Syrian ‘Newcomer Kitchen’ saved thanks to crowdfunding – CTV News

Rahaf Alakbani and Cara Benjamin-Pace on how a Syrian “Newcomer Kitchen” was saved from being shut down thanks to a crowdfunding campaign.

WATCH THE INTERVIEW »

Toronto kitchen staffed by Syrian refugee women at risk of closing — Toronto Star

 

Toronto kitchen staffed by Syrian refugee women at risk of closing

By NICHOLAS KEUNG — Immigration Reporter — Mon., Dec. 18, 2017

“There is so much potential to grow. Catering and cooking and workshop requests pour in. However, without core funding to support the administrative and management and logistical support, the program can’t survive,”

Mariam Alaurm gingerly slices the cucumbers on a mandoline for a salad as other Syrian women cut eggplants and roll meatballs for the ready-to-go meals their young enterprise is selling.

Between stirring sauces in pans and mixing the Sfouf — a light semolina cake with anise, vanilla, coconut, black sesame seeds and pistachio — they catch up with one another about their new lives, English classes, kids in school and news from back home.

For almost two years, the Newcomer Kitchen, housed in the Depanneur, a culinary incubator on College St., has been the weekly gathering place for Syrian newcomer women, where they share stories and experiences, as well as joy and tears — all while using their cooking skills to make food for catering and meals for the public.

READ MORE »

Holiday Hours & 2018 Schedule Changes

First Up: HOLIDAY HOURS

The Dep will be CLOSED from December 17 – January 18
BRUNCH will be OPEN every SAT & SUN throughout the holidays,
except for Sunday, Dec 24.
Stay tuned for an exciting New Year’s Day Brunch announcement!

Up Next: 2018 Schedule

Some changes to our scheduled activities

It’ll take a while before the whole website is updated with the new information – I’ll be working on that over the break.

SUNDAYS  |  Workshops 6:30–9pm
MONDAYS  |  Workshops 6:30–9pm

Our Workshops have become very popular, selling out quite often; as a result, we have been offering additional classes on subsequent dates. We’ve put some of these on Sunday nights, and that has proven to be a convenient time for many people. To make it as easy as possible for our instructors, it’s best if we can run classes on back-to-back dates, so I’m going to start scheduling workshop for Sunday nights, and if there is overflow, we can carry over the classes on to Monday nights as well.

We’re also going to be increasing the prices of our Workshops from $50 to $60. I’ve done a bit of research and many of our workshops we offer are less than half the price of equivalent classes in other locations around the city! Ironically, I believe The Dep also pays our instructors more than anywhere else: 60% of the ticket price! But like everyone else, we need to keep up with rising food costs, rent, etc. The increase will be split between instructors and The Dep, so that they will all take home a bit more from each class, and still be a great value for participants.

Note: I will send out a special discount coupon to anyone purchasing a Gift Certificate in December 2017 for $10 off any workshop in 2018 so that their Certificates can still be redeemed for a full workshop ticket.

1st TUESDAYs  |  Table Talks 6–9pm

Our popular speaker series with dinners by Dep founder Len Senater will continue on the 1st Tuesday of each month.

WEDNESDAYS  |  Newcomer Kitchen 6–7pm

Newcomer Kitchen will resume — hopefully, pending successful fundraising in December — in late Jan, but will be now be on Wednesdays instead of Thursdays.

THURSDAYS  |  Drop-In Dinners 6-9pm

The Dep’s popular Drop-In Dinner series will move to Thursday nights. Come check out a different guest chef each week.

FRIDAYS  |  Private Events  6-11pm

Many people host their own private parties at The Dep, so we’re dedicating Friday nights specifically for this.

SATURDAYS  |  Supper Club  7:30-10:30pm

Our fabulous family-style dinner parties will continue on Saturday nights

SATURDAY & SUNDAYS  |  Brunch — 10am–2:30pm

We’re stoked to have Mazeh, a great new Middle Eastern-inspired brunch, on the go every Sat & Sun.

 

Newcomer Kitchen at Terroir Symposium 

Monday was an exciting milestone for Newcomer Kitchen, as we offered samples of traditional Syrian dishes to more than 600 attendees of the Terroir Hospitality Symposium at the AGO, one of the most prestigious food conferences in North America. It was an incredible reminder of just how far we have come in barely over a year — from no kitchens at all, to serving food alongside many of the best chefs in Canada. Thank you to everyone at Terroir for the invitation, and to all of our supporters who made this possible.