Elaborate cocktails with ‘red carpets’ and surprising ingredients still taking over Toronto

It’s safe to say that food culture in Toronto (and most of the world) has undergone an incredible renaissance over the past two decades, and while everyone knows the city’s culinary scene is awe-inspiring, those who imbibe should never forget that incredible things are happening in the drink sphere. 

But while many high-end and on-trend bars and restaurants have elevated their drink menus to celebrate the ongoing Toronto International Film Festival (the Four Seasons is offering its Final Cut XO Sazerac for $1,000, along with chauffeured transportation in a Rolls-Royce, for example), beverage experts say experimentation happens year-round

“I always saw TIFF as a center stage for Toronto to show what the local products are and how we can bring the international celebrities and the international products and, you know, infuse them with local specialties and create something new,” Ajay Sehgal, director of food and beverage at the Revery Toronto Downtown, a hotel that’s part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, tells YourCityWithIN. 

“I’ve got products from Japan, I’ve got products from Europe, but I’m also using icewine from Niagara to create these products. It’s an infusion of local and international at the same time.” 

The Revery is one property going all-in on a special food and beverage experience for TIFF and recently welcomed locals and tourists to sample some of the finer spirits in life at a Macallan Whisky Journey in its on-site Deauville Club restaurant. The event, held in the restaurant’s private back room around an elegant rectangular dining table set against a faux fireplace, offered guests a three-course French-inspired dinner and a tasting of three Macallan whiskies. 

Macallan whisky tasting at Deauville Club Restaurant in the Revery

While the whisky was the centrepiece, the event also featured several cocktails–and detailed introductions–by Toronto mixologist and guest bartender Cayden Kim, currently known for slinging drinks at After Seven and M2 Club. 

Kim also served as head mixologist at BarChef and the Michelin-starred Don Alfonso 1890. 

At the event, he shared his Ginza Fashioned with Toki whiskey, shiso, Choya umeshu, and yuzu, and a Peachtom with Roku gin, RinQuinQiun, icewine, cherry tomato, and yuzu cordial. 

Outside of the Deauville Club’s special TIFF celebration, Sehgal, who has also worked with Oliver & Bonacini, says that the Revery has a number of complex but satisfying cocktails, including a Hoji Negroni.

“It’s a gin-based cocktail, but a Negroni with a twist. We’re also doing a really intuitive tasting menu and most of the cocktails are related back to the menu, where each and every drink is paired with a specific dish. It takes you on the journey of all the flavours which we’re here to offer,” he says. 

Other food and beverage directors have the daunting but rewarding task of keeping their cocktail menu fresh year-round, but also extra creative and indulgent during one of Toronto’s most star-studded festivals. 

Cocktail at the Deauville Club

Nobu, the newly opened residence and hotel in Toronto’s downtown core, upped the ante with its Red Carpet, a festival-inspired cocktail available until Sept. 19. The showpiece features Roku gin infused with hojicha tea and blended with Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao, cherry, and lime, then milk-clarified for a smooth finish. 

The drink is served over a king cube and garnished with berry fruit leather that resembles a miniature red carpet. As for taste, it’s as tart as you can imagine, lingering on the tongue long after the first sip. It’s deep red and rich, a fitting accompaniment to the sleek black bar it’s served in. 

“The cocktail is a collaboration between bartender Yuliia Esualenko and bar captain Andrii Duma, both of whom have been part of Nobu Toronto since pre-opening,” Stephan Jauslin, senior director of food & beverage at Nobu Toronto, told YourCityWithIN in an email. 

“Nearly three weeks of testing, refinement, and preparation went into developing the drink, with each element carefully considered to create a balanced, layered profile.” 

Jauslin says that several iterations were needed to find the right combination of berries and achieve the “rich, star-studded red” he and his team envisioned.

Red Carpet cocktail at Nobu Toronto

The cocktail has simple origins: the beloved Cosmopolitan, a fixture of the 90s bar scene. Infused with cherry instead of cranberry, Jauslin says it reflects the brand’s reputation: elevated and crafted with attention to detail. 

Beyond the cocktail, the Nobu Bar & Lounge will also host live DJs Thursday through Saturday nights during the festival, starting at 6 p.m.

“It’s an ideal spot to start the evening or meet friends for a drink after a screening,” Jauslin says. 

“You never quite know who you might bump into. With the city’s biggest names in town, it’s become a natural place to see and be seen.” 

For Revery’s Sehgal, preparations for the festival happen months before the red carpets roll out. 

“The concept started back in April. I was just thinking, ‘How do I infuse shiso leaves with the cocktails? How do I bring the restaurant’s bar program to the next level?’”

Sehgal says his collaboration with Kim allowed him to explore envelope-pushing techniques such as infusing cocktails with unlikely ingredients such as cherry tomatoes. 

“It was a two-month-long process and we started thinking about the cocktails and which ingredients to use, which techniques to use, and how it will all fit the hotel and the Deauville.” 

Whisky and short-rib at Deauville Club

Seghal also says that when planning out a cocktail menu, he tries to envision what will speak most to the guest. 

“I can create a very complex cocktail, but it has to speak to the general public,” he says, adding that he’s always asking for feedback and staying on top of other trends unfolding in the hospitality world. 

“I’m always very interested in what other hotels or what other restaurants are doing around the globe, and in how to bring those techniques back to my restaurant,” he says, adding that he also considers how well his staff can adapt to making them. 

“I also look at this as a learning opportunity for my bartenders, because if they ever go out and leave this restaurant, I want them to be proud of working in this restaurant and this industry.” 

As for what’s happening in the cocktail world more generally, Nobu’s Jauslin says diners are, interestingly enough, favouring simplicity. 

That said, they are also craving something unique. 

“Cocktail trends have come full circle. Guests are gravitating toward drinks that are straightforward, delicious, and easy to enjoy, rather than cocktails that feel overly complicated. At the same time, there is still a real appetite for something new. We’re seeing guests respond to familiar classics with a thoughtful twist, whether that comes through an unexpected ingredient, a different technique, or a new flavour combination,” he says. 

He says the Red Carpet cocktail is an example of a cocktail that’s daring, but steeped in the basics. 

“We take familiar drinks and give them a distinctly Nobu point of view. You can see that in some of our top-selling cocktails. Our lychee martini pairs lychee with elderflower, while the Nobu Old Fashioned uses Kuromitsu, a Japanese black sugar syrup, in place of traditional sugar for added depth. The Market Margarita takes a classic in another direction with spicy pineapple and cilantro.”

Sehgal agrees that while taste is paramount, there’s such a thing as flavour overload.

“ I don’t want to create something so complicated that my guests will be like, ‘Oh, I’m drinking this, but I’m getting 10 to 20 different flavours.’ I don’t like to over-engineer or overcomplicate things. I like to keep them simple and use the ingredients which actually speak to the guests,” he says. 

He also says that while he’ll never shy away from international spirits and liquors, using homegrown products, such as Niagara Region icewines, lets him tell a story not just about the drink, but about the environment and country that made it possible. 

“Having something sourced from a local vineyard and then explaining the story behind it, how the farmers are waking up at 4 a.m. to pick those frozen grapes right from there. It all comes together. I do take a lot of inspiration from other bars and restaurants around the city and also internationally. But then again, keeping to your roots, keeping having something approachable for my guests, it makes the [experience] easier to understand.”

TIFF cocktails will remain available today and into the weekend.