Monsieur Steve

As he continued to explore the realm of educational YouTube content, Steve noticed a gap in foreign language resources, specifically for younger students on the platform, and began to transition to a sharper focus on French-related content. “That’s where I came in ”, Steve said, referring to his mission to incorporate his fun and energetic learning style that he brings to the classroom into his videos. “If the kids aren’t having fun and they aren’t being engaged, they’re not really reaching their full capacity and they’re not learning the way that they should be,” Steve added, referring to the necessity of instilling curiosity and desire to learn as well as the association of learning with fun as opposed to drudgery.

While the Monsieur Steve YouTube channel and the uptake in online learning resources were born out of the pandemic, this increased accessibility to French education will serve as a long-lasting impact on the education system, regardless of COVID-19 online learning protocols. By infusing popular activities and pop culture references into content, Steve is making french education more relatable to students, alleviating some of the dryness that is often associated with french education. “For example, in one of my videos about learning around the house vocabulary, I took something that was quite popular last year, Among Us, and I took my idea of around the house vocabulary and mixed it with an Among Us theme where I went around the house looking for the imposter,” Steve explained. In addition, he has integrated elements of mental and physical well-being into his channel, posting virtual field trips featuring nature throughout Ontario and movement break videos. “I want to be the well-rounded go-to channel for French teachers or parents,” Steve said, hoping to encourage healthy habits in conjunction with education.

As his videos began to gain traction and he utilized view counts as a measure of efficacy, Steve remained level-headed and continued to seek motivation from a sense of community and duty to students around the world. “I wanted to truly make a difference and help out. Knowing that the videos were starting to get used signaled that they were serving their purpose,” he said. Since the launching point of his channel, Steve has received numerous messages everyday from people all across Canada, and even from different areas of the world such as Australia and the United States. “My mind was blown when she told me that 8th grade kids in Texas dig my videos. I was like you can’t be serious, who ever thought that a video of me here in Toronto would have reach enough to teach a classroom in the states,” he remarked.

To visit the Monsieur Steve Youtube Channel, please click here.

The post Toronto-based French teacher Monsieur Steve makes online learning fun appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

What is your business called and what does it do?

Nadège is a French Patisserie and Café with modern panache – we specialize in macarons.

What made you want to do this work?

I grew up watching my family passionately work in the pastry and restaurant business, inspiring me to become a fourth-generation pastry chef.

What problem does this solve?

My belief is that food brings people together – dessert especially! No matter where you’re from, food always plays a key role in some of life’s biggest moments. For instance, we all gather around a couple cutting their wedding cake or a child celebrating their birthday. Dessert lets us communicate and share without having to say anything.

Who are your clientele/demographics?

Our clientele is diverse. Each day we see Torontonians and tourists of all different backgrounds and ages come into our stores. Anyone who can appreciate a really good sweet and has a sophisticated palette is our customer.

How does your business make money? How does it work?

Nadège works by offering Toronto an authentic French Patisserie experience in the city that isn’t dependent on viral food trends that could be massive today and obsolete by tomorrow. My work is all about longevity and creating beautiful, modern desserts that are as delightful to look at as they are to eat.

Where in Toronto can we find your pastries?

We have four shops across the GTA located at Queen Street West, The PATH, Rosedale and within Yorkdale Mall. Since we also offer catering, our selection can also be spotted at various events and hotels across the city.

What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? 

The best question they could ask when comparing services is regarding quality. Making pastry is an art – it takes great skill to make something that not only tastes delicious but is also appealing to the eye. If a customer asks a pastry chef about what quality means to them, a chef who truly cares about their craft will be passionate about the subject which likely means the bakery or patisserie will serve quality items.

What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?

I love that I get to make people happy through my creativity! The hardest part is long hours.

Pay it forward: What is another Toronto business that you love?

Cheese Boutique – they’ve been run by the same family for generations.

For more information on Nadège Patisserie, please visit their website.

The post Homegrown Business: Chef Nadège Nourian of Nadège Patisserie appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

But let’s start first with the whole concept of Afternoon Tea. I know some places call it High Tea but is there a difference? I had consulted Butter Avenue’s staff while treating myself to an early Mother’s Day with my youngest kid in tow. He’s a little foodie and well, just say the word “sweets” and you’ll see the biggest smile on his face. We did a little research and discovered that Afternoon Tea is a British tradition that is served in between lunch and dinner when the latter was often served later at night. It was never intended to replace a meal. It was very fashionable in the early 19th century and a custom that continued for the wealthy.

Then lifestyles changed as the industrialization of Britain occurred. More people had to work and tea time was pushed until after work hours aka High Tea and the food offerings became more than tea and sweets. Savoury items were meant to give workers more of a meal rather than an afternoon delight and served with stronger tea for a late afternoon energy drink.

Today, it seems that we can get a blend of both and many places accommodate the timing preferences of diners. Hotels and cafés who offer the service seem to want to give the best experience possible. It’s not meant to be rushed and it is something special.

I was curious when I saw Butter Avenue post something about introducing Afternoon Tea. I’m already familiar with their macarons but had learned that they recently hired French pastry chef, Lucas Craig, to join Head Chef Tina Su. Typical Butter Avenue fashion, they prefer their goods to speak for themselves only because they have no inflated egos here. The chefs are passionate about their creations. Their treats are the stars.

So, why did they decide to offer Afternoon Tea and what are they doing differently? They told me that they wanted to offer a more contemporary tea service to elevate the food and tea experience. While they’ve always sourced ingredients from local producers and suppliers and do not use preservatives, they are now also working with a premium tea supplier in Japan. They’ve made several trips to Japan and recently secured one trusted source for their tea for drink and to use in some of the sweets.

The tiered sweets trays are designed locally within the style and feel of Butter Avenue’s personality – Japanese minimalist, quality and with Scandinavian design.

But onto the food…

First, we were offered a selection of premium teas. There are five on the list but if you prefer to choose from their popular daily tea menu, that is fine too. If you like to try something a little smoky in flavour then you will definitely want to try the Houjicha, an interesting green tea from Uji, Japan that acquired it’s mild flavour from roasting in a porcelain pot over a charcoal flame.

While I adore sweets, I usually also prefer something savoury and it was nice to start off at this Afternoon Tea with a warm house-made quiche. The day I went, there were two options. I had the mushroom quiche with a light and buttery pastry with the perfect crunch and the filling had a nice balance of flavours.

The sweets came prepared on two tiers of plating and serve two. Incredibly pretty in delicate pinks and creams that reflects the Spring season. Here there were 10 different types of treats ranging from their upscale version of petit fours and the mini cheesecakes. Real stand outs include their canele made with 66% dark chocolate and strawberry ganache, the Verrine is a heavenly lime cream with milk chocolate chantilly and milk crumble.  The cassis honey cake made with honey mouse, cassis gelee, Breton short crust I could happily be smothered in. Each item is so very interesting with outstanding flavours.

We couldn’t finish everything and honestly, I was relieved!  More importantly I also had dessert taken care of for that night too!

Afternoon Tea at Butter Avenue is now available by reservation at their uptown location at Yonge /Lawrence.

Visit their website for more info.

The post Afternoon Tea Experience with Butter Avenue appeared first on Toronto Guardian.