Inventive new cocktail bar celebrating Canadian ingredients coming to Toronto

Toronto's got cocktail bars that pay homage to all manner of various cuisines and cultures, but what about Canada's own?

Granted, for someone who grew up in Toronto, one of the most multicultural cities in the world, hearing the words "Canadian ingredients" doesn't really stoke much immediate recognition. Maple, sure, but what else really is there?

A lot, it turns out, and the team behind Acornhouse, a new bar that's gearing up to open in Dovercourt Village this fall, is on a mission to fill that knowledge gap with cocktails and bites crafted using ingredients indigenous to Canada.

Founded by James Park, Jacob Homoki and Kana Hayashi, a group of three friends with an impressive joint resume of hospitality experience in Toronto — including Mother Cocktail Bar, where all three have worked — and abroad, the bar promises to be unlike anything the city has seen before.

It'll be unlike anything the city has seen before if for no other reason than, unless I'm mistaken, it'll be the first cocktail bar in Toronto inspired by squirrels. I'm not joking.

"Acornhouse is inspired by the relationship between squirrels and acorns. Squirrels naturally seek out and gather acorns, acting as stewards of the ecosystem and contributing to future growth," James Park tells blogTO.

Just like squirrels, he explains, the team at Acornhouse seeks out seasonal Canadian ingredients, bundling them together and alchemizing them into tasty little gems for we hungry city squirrels.

Park tells blogTO that the idea came to him, Homoki and Hayashi after years of foraging, visiting farms across the provinces and experimenting with local ingredients. 

"We believe the best cocktails begin with a sense of place," he explains, and "Canada has an incredible diversity of ingredients, producers and landscapes."

So, on the menu, you can expect a full suite of cocktails and dishes (the latter of which are created by Executive Chef Homoki) that tell the story of Canada's diverse landscapes through the things that grow on them: be they served fresh, preserved or fermented.

At the end of the day, Park explains, the goal is to reconnect patrons, like myself, who have grown unfamiliar, with the bounty that grows right here on home soil.

The bar will be located at the coveted intersection of Davenport and Ossington, and is slated to open in late fall, as Park explains, "We're putting a great deal of care into every detail."