Vancouver, BC, November 17, 2025 - Gaia House (Gaia), the hospitality group behind Nammos Estiatorio, Selene Aegean Bistro, and AMA, is thrilled to welcome chefs Brent Thornton and David Cassese to its growing culinary family. The pair joins Gaia ahead of an exciting new project. In preparation, the pair will host a special on December 8, 2025, featuring French-inspired dishes.

Thornton and Cassese first cooked together at Vancouver’s acclaimed St. Lawrence Restaurant. Now, years later, they reunite at Gaia House.

“Brent and David represent the next generation of talent we’re proud to represent Gaia House,” says Yianni Kerasiotis, who co-owns Gaia House with his brother, Petro Kerasiotis. “They bring skill, creativity, and a lot of passion to what they do. This traits define what we stand for as a hospitality group.”

Thornton was most recently chef de cuisine at Michelin Guide-recommended ELEM, and previously, Is That French and Good Thief. He grew up in Ottawa, working in several notable kitchens before making the move to Vancouver. “Working with the team at Gaia House is the culmination of a lot of hard work, and getting the opportunity to cook with my best friend again is a blessing,” explains Thornton. “I didn’t grow up in kitchens. I have a business degree, once I found cooking, my life has completely changed.” 

Cassese, who most recently cooked at Michelin-starred Restaurant Sat Bains, has spent almost half his life in professional kitchens, specializing in classical French cuisine while drawing inspiration from his global travels. His culinary journey also includes Joe Beef, Alo, and Richmond Station. “I’m still madly in love with cooking,” Cassese says. “My journey started in Toronto as a 14-year-old kid scrubbing pans and maybe getting lucky enough to cut a sack of potatoes. I love food and I love this craft. I am excited to work with my best friend again, bringing my background of French cuisine and dedication to providing the best I can to the new venture.”

As a preview of the upcoming project, the duo are hosting a special one-night-only December Holiday pop-up ($160 per person) on Monday, December 8, 2025 in the Kavita space, featuring a seven-course French-inspired menu. Guests can expect dishes such as boursin mousse with puff pastry and cured navel beef lardons, tea-smoked sablefish with curry tea broth and daikon kraut, and poached venison with gigante beans and roasted chanterelles. Two seatings are available – 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Tickets are available .

In addition, guests can also find Thornton at the Holiday Club with a special six-course collaboration dinner with chef Jefferson Alvarez on Saturday, December 6, 2025.

“Gaia House was built on the idea of bringing people together,” adds Yianni. “We’re excited for everyone to see both Brent and David shine.”

For more information Gaia House and its hospitality brands, please visit and on Instagram.

Vancouver, BC, November 17, 2025 – Le Crocodile by Rob Feenie is excited to announce Andrew Forsyth as its new wine director. A well-respected Vancouver-based sommelier and recipient of the 2025 CAPS Best Sommelier of British Columbia title, Forsyth brings a refined palate, expertise, and a guest-focused approach to the downtown contemporary French restaurant. He officially joins the team on November 18, 2025.

Most recently, Forsyth led the acclaimed wine program at Michelin Guide-recommended L’Abattoir. During his tenure, he guided the list to achieve a Platinum Wine Program Excellence Award at the 2024 Vancouver International Wine Festival. Forsyth earned his Certified Sommelier credential from the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2019 and holds WSET Level 3 (with Merit).

“Andrew’s track record speaks for itself,” says Chef Rob Feenie. “He is a talented and dedicated sommelier, and his achievements reflect not only his technical mastery but also his passion for hospitality and mentorship. We look forward to having him lead our wine program at Le Crocodile by Rob Feenie.”

Forsyth began his wine journey while working at the Alberni Street Keg Steakhouse and Bar, where he first enrolled in Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) courses. After passing his Certified Sommelier exam with the Court of Master Sommeliers in May 2019, he joined L’Abattoir as a sommelier. That same year, he also represented Canada at the Wines of South Africa Sommelier Cup in Cape Town.

“It’s an honour to join Chef Feenie and the team to build a wine program that complements its contemporary French menu,” says Forsyth. “My goal is to create a list which will not only celebrate the classics, but also champion unique and up-and-coming producers in the wine world.”

Le Crocodile by Rob Feenie is open Tuesday through Friday for lunch service from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and seven days a week for dinner service from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations can be made online at .

North York, ON, November 17, 2025 - Second Cup Café announces the opening of its newest location at North York Centre, marking the brand’s 178th café in Canada. To commemorate the occasion, the café invites guests to join the grand opening celebration featuring exclusive offers and a ceremonial ribbon-cutting.

Located at 5150 Yonge Street, Unit F8, Floor 1, this vibrant new café brings Second Cup’s signature beverages, premium food offerings, and warm hospitality to one of North York’s most bustling community hubs. The event will include a 25 percent discount on all items all day.

“Opening a café in the heart of the city is truly exciting for us,” says Otman Haouzi, Brand Leader of Second Cup. “We look forward to welcoming guests, introducing our team, and contributing to the energy of the North York community.”

The new location is owned and operated by franchisees Ruchika and Nishant. This marks the family’s second café, contributing to the growing presence of Second Cup in North York, bringing the total to four. The family has been associated with the brand for such a long time, their daughter, who has grown up around the cafés, has become an enthusiastic and informal ambassador for the brand.

For more information, please visit .

Bête-À-Séguin from Fromagerie de l'Île-aux-Grues – Agrilait SEC was awarded Best Canadian Cheese at the World Cheese Awards. The highly coveted prize was awarded to a soft raw cows' milk cheese. Made with animal rennet and matured for 8-12 weeks, this bloomy rind cheese wowed the judges at Festhalle, BernExpo in Switzerland during an intense day of judging on Thursday 13 November.

In total, Canada was awarded 1 Super Gold, 5 Gold, 7 Silver and 16 Bronze awards.

Organised by the Guild of Fine Food, the World Cheese Awards is globally recognised as the pre-eminent event in the cheese world. This, the 37^th edition, hosted by Switzerland Cheese Marketing, saw 5,244 entrants from 46 countries. Cheeses were judged by a panel of 265 leading cheese experts, including affineurs, graders and producers as well as retailers, journalists, broadcasters, and other experts in the field.

The Es La Leche award is new to the World Cheese Awards 2025 with an aim to celebrate and recognise the part that milk plays in the cheese making process. The care, hard work and science behind milk production as the key ingredient in cheese is overlooked in the trade and virtually unknown by the cheese-loving consumer.  The award this year will recognise a person who has contributed to best-practice and knowledge for makers and the allied skills of animal husbandry in pursuit of excellence in milk production to create exceptional cheese.

Es La Leche, literally translated, is ‘It’s the milk’ but in colloquial Spanish it is an exclamation for ‘It’s amazing’.

Each year the panel is hand selected from some of the most accomplished cheese professionals in the world to ensure there is a balance of age, gender, discipline and areas of expertise.

Judging took place in three rounds, over the course of one day. The first round saw judges work in teams of two or three, identifying any cheeses worthy of a Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Super Gold award.  Then, in the afternoon the Super Gold cheeses were re-assessed by a Super Jury made up of 14 of the most distinguished cheese experts to find the top 14 cheeses from across the globe.  Finally, the top 14 cheeses went head-to-head to determine the World Champion Cheese.

They assess the look, feel, smell and taste of each entry, scoring aspects such as the appearance of the rind and paste, as well as the cheese’s aroma, body, and texture, with the majority of points awarded for flavour and mouthfeel.

To ensure a completely fair competition, the entire judging process is ‘blind’; all packaging and identifying logos and markings are removed, and the judges are given a brief description, but no indication of origin or producer.

All the cheeses were entered through one of 20 consolidated shipping points located around the world to ensure that every competitor was delivered in the best possible condition for judging.

The Guild of Fine Food worked with the Swiss authorities to apply for special licences, allowing the smallest artisan cheesemakers from across the globe to compete with bigger and better-known producers.

John Farrand, managing director of the Guild of Fine Food, organisers of the World Cheese Awards comments: “And there you have it: the host country scoops the biggest prize in cheese again.  Perhaps it is that our judges are immersed in the terroir of the nation, perhaps it is the simple fact that the cheese has less far to travel, but the reality is that this cheese has won through our multi-layered and robust blind-tasting judging process and ended up achieving the highest score, impressing the Super Jury judges from 14 different nations.”

The World Champion Cheese 2025 is Gruyère AOP Vorderfultigen Spezial over 18 months from Bergkäserei Vorderfultigen, a hard cows’ milk cheese from Switzerland.