PERHAPS it is the undeniable mouth-watering cuisine, or maybe the excellent service its staff could offer, or the explosion of color from the paintings adorning its walls. But one thing is for sure, Canvas Bistro Bar and Gallery has made a mark in the local dining scene of Cebu.
Ever since it had its grand opening in 2009, Chef Steve Shrimski together with his wife Eya, has never failed to give their customers the experience to dine in the land of plenty, Australia.
Australian cuisine has always been appreciated far and wide due to its ingredients and style of cooking that is also popularly used by other countries in the different parts of the world—and this is successfully translated by Canvas. From curried pumpkin soup, to fetuccine, from slow braised beef osso bucco, to green salad with cranberries, roast cashews, quesong puti and macadamia dressing, it is no wonder that people from different walks of life flock to the place every chance they get.
Now, the restaurant has given their devoted followers more reasons to stay hooked to their Aussie delicacies. Last July 16, Canvas launched the Sydney Icon Restaurants concept featuring three of the most recognized dining places in Sydney, Australia. They say that a person’s visit to Australia will never be complete unless you had a taste of these three famous restaurants: Bill & Toni’s, Harry’s Café De Wheels and Bill’s.
Bill & Toni’s made a landmark since 1965 in Sydney as the Italian restaurant anyone can go to when craving for evening hefty meals of schnitzels and casseroles with coffee. Its bestseller, the chicken schnitzel, is brought by Canvas on to the Cebuano table with the value meal, Original Schnitzel with Salad. This includes Garlic and Herb Focaccia Bread, Minestrone Soup Shot Chicken Schnitzel served with Balsamic Garden Salad and a glass of orange juice to go with it.
The resident foodtruck in the harbour of Woolloomooloo, Sydney, Harry’s Café De Wheels, is everyone’s destination when going for a chill night with family and friends. Since the late 1930’s, Harry’s has been making a name for making the best pies in the state, which Cebuanos can now testify to. Canvas put together the Traditional Pie Float which has Aussie Ground Beef and Vegetable Pie Float with Mash Potato, Mushy Peas and Caramelized Onion served on a pool of gravy with a soda of your choice.
“Never go to Sydney and not have breakfast at Bill’s,” is what people from that town will preach. The kind of morning meals that Bill’s serves embraces the very essence of an Australian breakfast with ricotta hotcakes, scrambled eggs, bacon which can also be tasted in Canvas’ Bills Hearty Breakfast All Day. It has Zucchini and Sweetcorn Fritter, Ricotta Hotcake, Scramble Eggs, Saute Spinach and Mushroom, Grilled Tomato, Bacon and Sourdough Bread with coffee and tea to make the set complete.
The promo is until the end of August. Canvas Bistro, Bar and Gallery has definitely set the bar high with this promotion for restaurants serving foreign cuisine aiming to appeal to the Filipino palate. So go and get a seat in the niche of Canvas and be whisked away to Sydney, Australia with every bite you take. (By Mary Mae O. Rias, STC Masscom intern)