By Julie Reitsma

An impressive slice of Toronto chefdom, the most charming of the foodaphile set, and requisite champagne-toting Real Housewives of the Kingsway recently munched and mingled their way through the launch of this spring’s Festival of Chefs. Once again the good folks at the Cheese Boutique are opening their doors and larders every May weekend for you to sample some of Toronto’s top chefs’ wares at a mere $5 a plate. As always, the chefs will be multi-tasking, answering any old (preferably food-related) question that pops into your head while you watch them whip up the grub.

And if getting your eat on isn’t good enough cause to spend an afternoon at the Boutique, this year the Festival has partnered with the Toronto Zoo, who brought Alice (the semi-retired camel) along to kick off the May-long festivities. This droopy-tongued two-humped wonder couldn’t put us off this year’s launch party treats – blue cheese crumble was a sweet texture trip, creamy pasta with shaved black truffles melted in our mouths, a rainbow of olives (red!), salami a gajillion ways and, of course, in all its stinky, creamy, sharp and tangy glory (undoubtedly our epicurean Achilles heel) la fromage! Sure, you could do the Zoo Run, but at the end of that will you have met a chef and have a tum full of nibbly delights? Possibly, but this just seems much more civilized.

May 1 – Anthony Walsh of Canoe.

May 2 – Anne Yarymowich of FRANK.

May 8 – Jason Bangerter of Auberge du Pommier.

May 9 – Alida Solomon of Tutti Matti.

May 15 – Mike Steh of reds bistro.

May 16 – Anthony Rose of the Drake Hotel.

May 22 – Chris McDonald of Cava.

May 23 – John Higgins of the George Brown Chef School.

May 29 – Keith Froggett of Scaramouche.

May 30 – Jonathan Gushue of Langdon Hall.

The Cheese Boutique

45 Ripley Avenue

416-762-6292

www.cheeseboutique.com/festival_chefs_2010