Eatdrink #77 May/June 2019

20 | May/June 2019
eatdrink.ca |@eatdrinkmag
Restaurants
Mighty F.I.N.E. for Fifteen Years
F.I.N.E. a Restaurant, in Grand Bend
By JANE ANTONIAK | Photos by BRUCE FYFE
Aging like a fine wine, or maybe more like the
energizer bunny, Chef Erryn Shephard, shows
no sign of slowing down or of losing her love
of French cuisine. Her brilliant touches on
everything from the breadbasket to the cheesecake, not
to mention custom décor including her own art collection,
make Grand Bend’s F.I.N.E. a Restaurant a beloved
Southwestern Ontario destination.
Shephard speaks of roux in loving tones. Butter and
flour are her muses. She bakes and makes soups with such
passion that, at 58, when other chefs might think about
standing down after years on their feet, she is consumed
with what new culinary business she may yet start.
“I love it. I cannot imagine doing anything else. I’m
not tired of any of it yet,” she says when you can manage
to get her to sit down in a chair for a few minutes for
an interview. Her 14-year partner in the kitchen, Chef
Ben Sandwith, takes her chair for further questions as
Shephard dashes off to the kitchen to bring yet more
samples or to
personally pack
left-overs for
guests to take
home.
“There’s
not a thing
she won’t do
for someone,”
says Sandwith.
He outlines
the various
charitable acts
by Shephard
including
cooking for
schools,
churches, and
fundraisers
for everything
from the local
foodbank to
Seated on the F.I.N.E. patio are chef/owner Erryn Shephard (left),
chef Ben Sandwith, and Front-of-house manager Susan Tebrugge