Eatdrink #42 July/August 2013

22 www.eatdrink.ca
№ 42 | July/August 2013
restaurants
Small (& Guilty) Pleasures
at Monforte on Wellington, in Stratford
By BRYAN LAVERY
Photography by NORA CAMPS
Another renaissance of sorts is now
afoot just off the town square, in
the premises formerly occupied
by the Evergreen Terrace on
Wellington Street in Stratford. Monforte on
Wellington is a casual seasonally-inspired
osteria featuring an ever-changing selection
of artisanal cheeses, charcuterie, pastas,
salads, soups, preserves, pickles and other
signature specialties, prepared by Chef Phil
Philips and Monforte’s culinary team.
Chef Philips worked in the kitchen
at Bijou and has trained under Jamie
Kennedy. The kitchen pushes the farm-tofork
boundaries further than anything we
have experienced in Stratford, developing
a synergy between the local terroir and the
diner, inspired no doubt by the resolute
cheesemaker, Ruth Klahsen, whose deeprooted
affection for all things sustainable,
local and artisanal seems to continue to
both fortify and nourish her creative drive
and innovative
entrepreneurism.
Osteria is the
Italian term
for the most
casual and
down-to-earth
of restaurant
classifications.
Montforte Dairy Head
Traditionally an Cheesemaker Ruth Klahsen
osteria provided
embraces architect Aziza
lodging and
Chaouni, the designer of
served simple
Montforte On Wellington
and inexpensive
food and wine. In Italy, I first became
enamored with this style of restaurant
travelling through the regions of Emilia
Romagna, Molise, Umbria and Abruzzi.
The osterias I gravitated towards in Italy
were mainly located in the countryside and
were informal gathering places, often with
certain common traits: short menus, local