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There was a time when people attending the Blyth Festival despaired for a good place to eat. Now it may be that people go to Blyth for the food – and take in a little theatre on the side.
With the opening of two new upscale food businesses this summer, Blyth suddenly becomes a foodie haven.
The always reliable Blyth Inn has been joined right next door by Part II Bistro, and next door to that again, The Queens Bakery. The three offer a variety of food options for those looking for more than typical family-style restaurants. All three are handily located right across the street from Blyth Memorial Hall, home of the Festival plus music concerts and theatre events throughout the year.
The oldest of the food outlets is the Blyth Inn. Jason Rutledge, the Inn’s owner and head chef was working at the Benmiller Inn nine years ago when the Blyth Inn came up for sale and he decided to take the leap and buy it because he saw an opportunity there.
“I remember my dad telling me stories about coming here when he was a kid,” Rutledge said. “So that’s at least over 60 years ago.”
When he took over he changed the entire menu in an attempt to bring high end food to Blyth.
“I think the only thing we kept were the wings,” Rutledge said, “and we changed those.”
Rutledge said he wanted to create a mixture of traditional pub food with the high end creations he was working with at the Benmiller Inn and customers have responded to the balance he seems to have found.
When he first took over the restaurant, he began bringing in exotic food like shark and swordfish, but in recent years, Rutledge says he’s focused more on hamburgers, a local favourite, but with a creative twist.
“Our burgers are homemade and we’re the only restaurant in the area that does that,” Rutledge said.
He points to exotic hamburger dishes, such as the Kiwi Burger, as a product of travelling. Rutledge’s business partner travelled to New Zealand, tried the hamburgers and urged Rutledge to fit it into the Blyth Inn’s menu; since he has, the burger, which features a fried egg and pickled beets to name just a few ingredients, has taken off.
“It’s nice seeing the customers come in willing to try new things,” he said.
He says he hopes that customers leave the Blyth Inn having felt very welcome, enjoyed themselves and he hopes they’ll come back for a similar experience again.
Being from nearby Auburn originally, Rutledge says a return to the area was a natural step for him to take nine years ago, but looking back, even growing up nearby hadn’t prepared him for the complexity of the community around him.
“It’s remarkable what this community has going for it,” Rutledge said. “There is so much more than the [Blyth Festival] here. It’s amazing.”
Part II Bistro is run by Peter and Sarah Gusso. They set up the new venue when they needed to expand their bed and breakfast The Station House, and catering business.
They were fortunate to find the location right across from the theatre.
The restaurant seats about 40 people and strongly identifies with the Festival with the walls decorated with Festival posters from decades past and costume designers’ sketches from past Festival productions.
Peter wants Part II Bistro to become a place where people know they can come to relax, have a bite to eat, have a glass of wine.
You would be hard-pressed to find a menu item without a local connection, he says, calling the restaurant a real community project. Daily specials are posted on chalk boards hanging in the front window.
Gusso has been putting his mark on the Huron County food scene, winning the Taste of Huron’s Chef Challenge on Labour Day weekend. In the competition, chefs are assigned a protein item (in his case, pork) then given $20 and 15 minutes each to shop at the Goderich Farmers’ Market for the rest of their dish’s ingredients. They then had 70 minutes to prepare their dish and present it to the judges.
After a mad summer of renovating
The Queens Bakery on Queen Street in Blyth opened its doors in September.
The espresso bar, a joint effort between Les and Jackie Cook and Rick and Anne Elliott, is now open daily serving espresso, coffee and their flagship drink; The Queen Bee, a flavoured machiatto, as well as baked goods. The shop sells espresso, cappuccino and drip coffee as well as a bakery menu that is set to be continuously expanding.
“We sell, food-wise, pretty much anything and everything that goes well with coffee,” Anne Elliott said. “We have muffins, mini loaves of bread, pies, tea biscuits, monkey bread, biscotti, cookies, tarts... pretty much anything you’d be looking for.”
All the baking is done on-site by Anne and Jackie, while Anne and Les are fully certified baristas, having attended the Canadian Academy of Baristas. The shop works with homemade food, not pre-mixed ingredients.
“It’s what we’re all about; getting back to basics,” Anne said, adding that attitude is really what they hope will guide the shop. “The experience of this is all about coming in, sitting down and enjoying what you’re eating and drinking. So many places have drive-throughs and you rush through. We want people to come in and enjoy what they’re having and relax.”
The shop also features cheese from Blyth Farm Cheese and loose-leaf teas in a variety of flavours. Their espresso and coffee brews are also made locally by Coastal Coffee Company, a supplier from St. Joseph’s.
“We want to focus on local businesses and ingredients because it’s important to support each other in the community,” she said, adding that they were just returning the favour. “We had a lot of support while we were building and renovating. People were excited to see what was going on and their excitement kept us interested in the project.”
The store features merchandise as well including retail coffee and (when it’s available, tea), Queens Bakery shirts and aprons and French coffee presses.
The shop will serve as a place for local entertainers to show what they can do, according to Anne. She said that, through coffee houses and intimate concerts, people will be able to see what local talent can offer.
BLYTH BECOMES A FOODIE'S HAVEN
There was a time when people attending the Blyth Festival despaired for a good place to eat. Now it may be that people go to Blyth for the food – and take in a little theatre on the side.
With the opening of two new upscale food businesses IN 2012, Blyth suddenly becomes a foodie'S haven.
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