OLA Says "¡Hola Toronto!"
by Mary Luz Mejia

Front Row (left to right): Steve Gonzalez, Carlos Fuenmayor and Liz Rumebe
Back Row (left to right): Jose Hadad, Luis Valenzuela and Mario Cassini.
Not Present: Marina Queirolo who was in Argentina at the time.

The menus were printed, the wines were chilling, the plates arrived, the Day of the Dead altar was beautifully set, and the tables were too. In the kitchen, a flurry of activity ensued as seven chefs walked purposefully and chopped diligently. In a few hours, months of organizing, collaborating, inviting and cajoling were coming together for an event that was the first of its kind in the GTA- one we chose to call OLA: Of Latin America (7 Chefs, 1 Kitchen, 1 Hot Night).

I’ve celebrated the cultures of the world here in Toronto as a food writer and food TV producer- from Asia to Australia, Italy to France, but I’d never been to a food and wine event where the spotlight shone brightly on the "mysterious" foods of Latin America. I say "mysterious" because if you ask any self-proclaimed food lover to name a Chilean or Colombian dish, unless they’ve been there or have friends from there, chances are you’re drawing blanks. Thanks to years of exposure, we know our rigatoni from our cannelloni, our pho from our Pad Thai- but it wasn’t always this way. Those cuisines took some time to get into the collective taste bud consciousness, and that’s exactly what we hoped to accomplish with the likes of OLA.

My friend and Latin food historian and expert Maricel Presilla helped nudge me along in this direction. Last winter, she looked me in the eye and said, "Maria what’s stopping YOU from doing something to promote Latin food in Toronto?! This city knows a lot about Asian food, Italian food, Caribbean food, but next to nothing about our culinary heritage. Who better than you, Mary Luz?" I stood there and pondered the challenge. At first I dismissed it and then I thought: "No, wait! What if she’s right? What if I CAN do this? It’s a bit like producing TV- making sure all of the moving parts keep moving in the right direction. Maybe I could…"

That "maybe" turned into a "yes" once my husband Mario and I talked about what this could be and what it wouldn’t. No clichés, no "hot Latina mama" stereotypes- just really good food made by really talented Latin cooks without any queso. By the time we asked some of the GTA’s most talented Latin chefs to join us- there was no looking back. Come Hell or high water, we were putting on this fiesta. Now we just hoped that people would respond to it the way they had to Chef Pilar’s visit from Oaxaca, Mexico!

First on board were Veronica Laudes of Torito and her chef Luis Valenzuela, as well as Mario Cassini of Caju - our host venue for the event. Then of course, Sabrosito’s Carlos Fuenmayor and Steve Gonzalez of Latin 5 Spice Catering joined the team, both of them telling us, "You’re making one of our dreams come true!" Last summer I met Elizabeth Rumebe of Alpine Bakery (now renamed "Amaranto Creations") - one bite of this Master Pastry Chef’s Tres Leches Cake and I knew she had to be in. While working on Christine Cushing's show "Fearless in the Kitchen," I luckily met Marina Queirolo and as a long-time fan of her Sûrkl Empanadas, we convinced her to come on board. Our sommelier Drew Innes (from George Brown College) helped on the wine side of things, and then there was Frida's Jose Hadad who came over to our house for a cara-a-cara meeting. If you know Pepe (aka Jose), you know that he’s a from-the-heart, no B.S. kind of generous spirit. We thought he was coming by to ask us a few questions about the event. We laugh as we look back on that fateful night- because while we thought we were checking Pepe out, he was interviewing us! He denies it to this day, but in the end, he said "Si!" to our request and he rounded off our seven.

Menus were planned, Mario and I got some food sponsors on board to defray costs (the only thing we covered from ticket sales were food and menu printing costs - everything else was on a volunteer or donated basis), and we decided as a group that Youth Link’s Skill Zone would be the monetary recipient of our efforts. All of the chefs donated their time, energy, and culinary prowess into making this the event that it was. A few weeks into telling Toronto about OLA, and we sold out! We couldn’t believe it! In a way, that back fired on us a bit because a lot of media couldn’t write about an event that people couldn’t attend - understandably so. The journo’s that did get behind us, however, were both surprised and delighted by what they tasted. There’s nothing like giving a food writer a new flavour or dish to savour- it’s like giving an artist a new colour to paint with. Heady stuff!

The night of the event, Elizabeth and her family set up a stunning Day of the Dead altar with Veronica’s Virgen de Guadalupe statue from Mexico City. With la Virgensita in the house we knew we were in for a good night. Guests started arriving and we all snapped into action. Coats - check! Caiprinhas with artisanal, organic Cachaça from Brazil - check! Mario Cassini’s bolinhos, pao de quiejo and moqueca shrimp shooters were passed and we were off! My husband and I welcomed guests and then brought out each chef to explain to guests what they’d be sampling- and in some cases, how they might better enjoy their dish (squeeze the lime juice into the Colombian Sancocho broth and take a bite of your bananito with your soup-yes, go on, try it! It’s really good!). One guest wrote me the day after to say, "It was wonderful to get a chance to connect with the chefs – it puts a face to my food so to speak. It was foodie without being pretentious."

Drew and his team poured the wine for each course with the Vina Montes Sauvignon Blanc 2008 and the Kaiken Malbec 2008 being big hits that evening. And the dessert "Fresita" sparkling wine, made with hand-picked Patagonian wild strawberries, was another hit, especially paired with Liz’s Tres Leches cake. The result? A Latin-esque Strawberry Shortcake, according to Drew and guests.

For me, one of the night’s highlights came when a Canadian gentleman and his wife stopped me to say that they attend a lot of food events, but that this one somehow had more heart, more joy, and more sincerity than most. Then the old chap kissed my hand! Lola Csullog, who holds a Masters in Spanish Gastronomy and owns Toronto’s Pimenton food shop, commented that this was the first event in which she felt "proud" to call herself a Latina, adding, "it was an elegant, beautifully orchestrated evening. You should all be proud." And as a team, I can say we are. We showed Toronto that Latin food is infinitely more than any stereotype out there and we gave back to the community in which we all share. Panamanian Chef Rossy Earle summed it up best when she wrote me to say, "It was great to find out about other Latino chefs and bring them out in the open for the rest of us to enjoy. Thank you so much for encouraging our culture and exposing it to the rest of the city! Take notice Toronto!" Mission accomplished - hasta la proxima!

Mary Luz Mejia is a food writer, food TV producer and now, principal, in her new venture Sizzling Communications (www.sizzlingcommunications.com) with her husband, Mario Stojanac. Just wait to see what else they bring Toronto!