This event takes place at Borrel, 1333 Danforth Ave.

COOKBOOK CLUB: This series showcases contributors to The Depanneur Cookbook, whose stories and recipes wove the history of The Dep.

For many years, Justin Go and Alison Broverman ran a popup featuring traditional Dutch fare as bitterballen, boerenkool, and frikandellen. It reunited Dutch expats with the beloved food of their homeland and introduced countless Torontonians to the nosh of the Netherlands – a cuisine surprisingly absent from the city’s wide culinary landscape. In 2018 they bit the ballen and opened Borrel as Toronto’s first and only Dutch themed bar & restaurant.

Requests from customers combined with a desire to reconnect with the food Justin fondly remembered his grandfather cooking on his trips back to the Netherlands: rijsttafel. Justin and Alison tackled this ambitious project for the very first time at The Depanneur back in 2016, and it is now a sold-out monthly feature at their restaurant.

NOTE: This event has two parts: from 5:30-6:30 we are open to the public, anyone can stop by to grab a pint and some delicious bitterballen (included for ticket holders), purchase a copy of The Depanneur Cookbook, have their copy signed, and chat with the author and contributors. Kickstarter supporters are also welcome to use this opportunity to pick up their copy of the book. Then at 6:30, the room will close and ticket holders will be seated for dinner. Optionally, dinner guests can choose to pre-order a copy of the book when they buy their tickets, which entitles them to a $5 discount on the ticket. 

©The Depanneur Cookbook 2024; Photo: Ksenija Hotic

The Dutch-Indonesian rijsttafel (rice table) is an elaborate collection of dishes served as a lavish banquet. It pairs the Dutch ethos of togetherness (gezelligheid) with Indonesian cuisine’s unique and vibrant flavours and spices. This sumptuous, family-style meal features elaborate collection of meat and vegetable dishes that offering a melange of sweet, spicy and savoury flavours to complement a heaping platter of nasi goreng (Indonesian fried rice).
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AMUSE BOUCHE

Bitterballen: These delectable, little, crunchy-on-the-outside, creamy-on-the-inside croquettes of beef or vegetables in a rich béchamel are a classic Dutch snack, and are Justin & Alison’s featured recipe in the cookbook.

APPETIZERS/CONDIMENTS

Krupuk: deep-fried shrimp-flavoured crackers
Kering tempeh: fried tempeh in sweet and spicy glaze
Seroendeng: toasted coconut flakes and peanuts
Sambal badjak: homemade hot sauce
Satay sauce: homemade peanut sauce
Atjar ketimun manis: pickled cucumber

VEGETABLE

Sambal goreng buncis: green beans in a spicy coconut sauce
Gado gado: Indonesian salad of blanched vegetables with peanut sauce
Sajur lodeh: stewed vegetables in a coconut broth
Sambal goreng kentang: fried potatoes with chili sauce
Sambal terong: eggplant with chili sauce

MEAT

Chicken satay: skewered marinated chicken with peanut sauce
Beef rendang: spicy stewed beef in coconut sauce
Babi pangang: grilled pork in sweet and sour sauce
Sambal terasi udang: shrimp in a savoury tomato sauce
Ajam paniki: chicken in a coconut sauce

RICE

Nasi goreng: Indonesian fried rice

*** Peanuts feature prominently in a number of dishes. ***
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Justin Go and Alison Broverman parlayed a long-running popup at The Depanneur into Toronto’s only Dutch “brown café”,  Borrel, that evokes the cozy pubs of Amsterdam. @BorrelTO
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The Depanneur is Where Interesting Food Things Happen. For more than a decade The Dep has been showcasing Toronto’s remarkable culinary diversity through thousands of unique food events as well as the forthcoming Depanneur Cookbook. After more than 10 years at its iconic College Street location, The Dep is now bringing all new Interesting Food Things to exciting venues all across the GTA. @TheDepanneur