District Executive Chef at Oliver & Bonacini
Chef John Horne is the District Executive Chef at Oliver & Bonacini – and a great friend and supporter of Porridge for Parkinson’s.
In his role at O&B, John oversees the culinary direction of the company’s portfolio, concentrating on the flagship restaurants: Canoe, Biff’s Bistro, and Auberge du Pommier.
This father of two is a country boy at heart and gets inspired by wild game and local edibles. Case in point, his famous wild rabbit cannelloni at Canoe—with rabbit from northern Quebec that is braised on a low heat for hours, shredded and folded into a mousse, then mixed with foraged Ontario chanterelles and morels. This magic mixture becomes the filling for the cannelloni.
When we spoke to John, he had just finished working on a duck terrine and was excited to be going back to the French classics, looking at the cuisine as an art form—highly technical and performed with masterful skill. Bon Appetit!
Follow John Horne on Instagram @chefhorne
PorridgeTO POP QUIZ
Chef John Horne
Favourite smell — Vanilla, lavender, and black pepper
Smooth or crunchy — Crunchy
Three things on a desert island — Cast iron pan, chef knife, and salt and vinegar. I can make anything happen with salt and vinegar.
Favourite spice — Ras EI Hanout — an earthy mix of eight spices
Sweet or savoury — Savoury
Favourite ingredient — Butter
Favourite kitchen tool — Chef’s knife
Favourite Chef — Swedish chef, Magnus Nilsson, and American chef, James Pollin
Favourite cookbook — Wildness by Jeremy Charles
Favourite cooking show — Wild Game Cooking
Chef Horne at our Porridge for Parkinson’s brunch in 2019 and (top) the wild rabbit cannelloni at Canoe. Images by Summers Photography; Toronto Life.