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Enjoy quality food with friends
By Jason Dickson
As head chef at The Old Station,
Gwen Holmes brings an eclectic mix of
fine dining experience and local charm
to the popular Bracebridge restaurant.
This will be her third summer at The
Old Station, and owner Mike Warr is
pleased with the quality of food she
produces.
“It was a good change bringing
Holmes aboard,” says Warr. “Gwen has
a lot of people that follow her from
place to place.”
Over the past two years, Holmes and
Warr have worked hard to establish
The Old Station as one of the best family
restaurants in town.
“There wasn’t a great middle-of-theroad
restaurant in Bracebridge,”
Holmes says. “Mike and I have really
tried to etch out a place for that.”
They decided on a menu that promotes
casual fine dining, with an
emphasis on consistency, flavour and
fresh ingredients.
“I think it is really important for a
town to have that kind of place where
you can get great food but still wear
your blue jeans,” says Holmes.
Holmes creates most of the menu
items fresh on site, including burgers
and soups, as well as the sauces and
ever-popular chicken wings. Improving
the quality of the ingredients, she
explains, enhances the homemade
experience her guests are looking for.
“This is a from-scratch restaurant,”
she says. “We take your order seriously
whether it’s a chicken wing or a 16-oz
steak.”
She says customers have come to love
Photograph: Paul Bennett
A group of friends raise their glass to good times while dining at The Old Station Restaurant in Bracebridge.
the quality and variety of food offered
at The Old Station. Whether you have
a craving for a classic Caesar salad,
fresh fish or fine pasta, you’ll find it at
The Old Station.
“Maybe you simply want to eat a
One of chef’s specialities is a dish of steamed PEI mussels in Muskoka Pilsner Light over wilted greens.
Photograph:Paul Bennett
great prime rib,” says Holmes. “There’s
something for everyone.”
On Friday evenings, The Old Station’s
loyal customers gather to wrap up
the work week at their favourite eatery.
“We’ve got a great bunch of regulars,”
says Holmes. “If I can get out
from the kitchen for a second I’ll come
and do a little twirl.”
Friday is also the night where
Holmes gets to try out some unique,
impromptu recipes.
“Friday is Fresh Cut Night,” Holmes
says. “We’ve served P.E.I. mussels as
well as fresh Ontario pickerel.”
Holmes was born in Bracebridge and
is a graduate of the original food tech
program at Bracebridge and Muskoka
Lakes Secondary School.
Shortly thereafter she apprenticed at
the Riverside Inn under Thomas Hay.
She later worked at Expo ‘86, as well as
the Pan Pacific Hotel in Vancouver, a
four-star dining establishment.
After returning home and working at
Patterson-Kaye Lodge for a decade, she
joined the team at The Old Station.
“We pay very close attention to food
trends,” Holmes explains. “Each
spring, Mike and I sit down and reconsider
the menu, deciding what to keep
and what to drop.”
As a member of Savour Muskoka,
Holmes sources as many local ingredients
as she can. During the summer
you can sometimes see her down at the
Bracebridge Farmers’ Market buying
produce.
“The food here is prepared with
love,” she says. “Everyone here is working
in concert to satisfy our guests.”
This certainly explains why so many
count The Old Station as one of their
favourite local restaurants.
www.whatsupmuskoka.com May 2010 17