Countdown to Christmas Part 2 – Food-lovers gift guide

1. Books about chefs & restaurants

Go behind-the-scenes of bustling bistros and Michelin-starred restaurants with these titles:

- The Art of the Restaurateur by acclaimed 'Financial Times' restaurant critic (and former restaurateur) Nicholas Lander

- Sweetbitter: A Novel by Stephanie Danler, is about working in one of the most exclusive restaurants in New York.

- Knives & ink: Chefs and the Stories Behind Their Tattoos, edited by Isaac Fitzgerald and Wendy MacNaughton

2. Cookbooks based on TV series

TV show cookbooks are often schlocky to outsiders, but to the people obsessed with the shows, they are a wicked gift.

Here are a few popular choices:

- A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel, Sariann Lehrer, and George R. R. Martin

- Orange Is the New Black Presents: The Cookbook by Jenji Kohan, Tara Herrmann. Hartley Voss, and Alex Regnerymore

- Feeding Hannibal: A Connoisseur's Cookbook by Janice Poon (Cool fact: Janice Poon, a world-renowned food stylist and writer, lives and works in Toronto)

3. Shop your favourite restaurants

Shop Italian ingredients at La Bottega di Terroni including handcrafted panettone, canned tomatoes and peperoncini picante.

Gusto 54 Shop (of Gusto 101 and Trattoria Nervosa restaurants, to name just a few) offers sumptuous items such as a canvas lunch bag, tea towels and a complete tabletop collection featuring glazed ceramics, fringed placemats and striking trivets.

Give the gift of Toronto beer this holiday from Bellwoods Brewery. Wait, it gets better - in addition to 500ml bottles of their latest releases, BB carries posters, tees, and glassware.

 4. Knives + knife sharpening

If you know an inspiring chef or just someone obsessed with "Top Chef" or Blood, Bones and Butter, a knife or knife sharpening is the ideal present.

There are a number of shops in the city to visit, including Tosho, Knife, and Hacher & Krain.

5. Artisan chocolates + sweets

While a box of chocolates or sweets isn’t the most original gift, it becomes extraordinary from places like these:

- Chocolates X Brandon Olsen
- Delight
- Nugateau
- Roselle Desserts
- Stubbe