Destination: Downtown Smiths Falls

Destination: Downtown Smiths Falls - theHumm June 2021

By John Pigeau

When things slowly begin opening up again in Smiths Falls, folks in the area will have a whole lot to be excited about — and it’s safe to say that Amy Rensby, owner of C’est Tout Bakery, might be a little more excited than most.

She has good reason to be.

In June, C’est Tout Bakery — the little bakery that could — is set to become the first commercial tenant to open its doors at the newly restored and renovated Rideau Hotel on Beckwith Street. Understandably, Amy is pretty thrilled about that.

“This was one of those once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for me,” she says. “I mean, how often do you get to open a food establishment in a gorgeous historic and completely restored building in rural Ontario? The process of imagining a new space has been so welcome during the pandemic; it’s really given me and our team something to look forward to. Our current space has been an absolute gift in establishing the bakery and the move into this beautiful new space really feels like a natural evolution in our journey.”

Over the last few months, Amy has been busy drawing up floor plans for the new space and ordering new equipment, furniture and fixtures, hiring new staff, and having a new patio installed. All in all, it’s been a lot of work, she says, but she’s happy with the way things are taking shape.

“We wanted to create a space that is more contemporary but that also respects the history of the building,” Amy explains. “At the same time, we wanted to create a space that is less casual but also not formal where small plates and bistro-style menu additions wouldn’t feel out of place. My objective in this industry has always been to fill a niche that I felt was missing, and I think we did that with the early iterations of the bakery and our menu items. Now and in the Rideau Hotel feels like the perfect time and way to reinvent C’est Tout in a way that honours and preserves our beginnings and at the same time expand into something a little bit more.”

What is Amy most excited about? “That is a really tough question,” she says. “I don’t think there is anything that doesn’t excite me about this new space! As a starting point we have more of it — an additional 400 square feet indoors and a patio of approximately 600 square feet. It creates the opportunity to offer complementary products and services and to reintroduce and expand our indoor seating capacity. The patio is a major bonus that will allow for seating for 12 in what will be a really quaint courtyard-like atmosphere.”

She is confident, too, that her staff will be ready for an uptick in business and all the other changes, including a new menu. “Our team is first-rate,” she says. “They all — past and present — make this possible.”

For a few reasons, Amy is expecting — and ready for — a busy summer.

“The response and interest in our move has skyrocketed,” she says, “and so while the pandemic has certainly been a challenge to navigate, I think the desire people have to get out and explore and get back into dining establishments will be a significant driver to a very busy summer for us — which makes me really grateful to have an exceptionally solid team in place.”

So, what can customers expect from C’est Tout’s new menu? An interesting tweak or two … or three, Amy says, but the key remains making nearly everything from scratch using locally sourced ingredients.

“We’ve always worked with seasonality in mind and so that will extend to the new small plate and bistro menu items. We make just about everything from scratch, so that obviously continues as a cornerstone of our operation. Where we are spending a lot of time is on cultivating new relationships with local growers and producers. We have longstanding relationships with local suppliers including Burt’s Greenhouses, Fluid Solar Roasted Coffee, Mighty Valley Coffee, Valley Custom Cutting and Miller’s Bay Farm, and we’re excited to be working with some new local suppliers including Leacock Farms, Lilac Lane Farm and a couple of others I’m holding on to tightly until we open.”

If you take a look online at some of the restorations to the Rideau Hotel, you’ll see large arched windows, plenty of natural light, courtyard-like patio spaces and intricately restored brickwork, so the place looks as regal and inviting as it must have back in 1901. Amy is both mindful and grateful that C’est Tout Bakery will be the first business opening its doors in the iconic building. But she isn’t intimidated by that. Rather, she sees it as an exciting challenge and a wonderful opportunity.

PICNIC in Smiths Falls!

There is more to be excited about this summer, of course. Businesses will gradually reopen, and we’ll all be allowed to get out a little more, and see a few more people — soon. And summer, at long last, is the season of suntans and lake swimming, ice cream and barbeques, patio drinks and picnics.

That in mind, at the end of May, the Town relaunched its award-winning PICNIC Smiths Falls initiative, one they’re hopeful will be as popular as it was last summer.

“It was a huge success last year and we are pleased and excited to do it again,” says Becky Allen, Coordinator of Economic Development and Tourism for Smiths Falls. The PICNIC program “gives residents a way to support local restaurants, while encouraging visits from our neighbouring communities.” In 2020, PICNIC Smiths Falls received the Lieutenant Governor’s award for Marketing Excellence from the Economic Developers Council of Ontario.

The program offers folks a unique takeout picnic experience — a delicious meal for two from one of twelve participating restaurants served up in a neatly-branded, upscale box. Each meal includes two main dishes, two side dishes, two drinks, and two desserts, as well as a Smiths Falls’ Visitor Guide, a Heritage Walking Tour guide, and free gifts from the Town of Smiths Falls and its partners. You can take your meal pretty much wherever you like — there’s a whole lot of green space in the area — although diners are invited to take their meals to a local park where it’s easy to physically distance from others and enjoy the fresh air, green grass and natural beauty along the Rideau Canal.

This year’s participating restaurants include C’est Tout Bakery, The Pickled Pig, Two Guys for Lunch, The Vault Eatery & Pub, Boomtown Fusion Eatery, Bowie’s, Rocky River at the Falls, Perfect Thyming, Matty O’Shea’s, Harvest Social, Pizza Pizza, and Rob Roy’s Pub & Restaurant. Reading down the menu of meals is practically a mouth-watering experience, and there is truly something for everyone’s tastes. You can find the full list of participating restaurants and the meals they’re offering by visiting smithsfalls.ca .

But there’s more exciting news, this time from the fine folks at The Pickled Pig, and the news is fairly grand as well — they’re officially reopening their waterfront location at 1 Park Avenue! They expect to be keeping regular hours in their lovely spot by the basin beginning on June 28. There they’ll be welcoming tourists and boaters, and serving up ice cream, hot dogs, loaded nachos, Italian sodas, milkshakes, candy and chips, along with live music on Friday evenings. Keep a keen eye on their Facebook page for more details.

As we all wait and see how and when things will gradually reopen, I think it’s safe to say we’ll soon be able to enjoy good company again, bask in the summer sunshine, and discover some great new spaces, hearty meals, and delicious treats — none of it too far from home. And that certainly seems good reason to get your sunscreen on and rejoice.

Frank Sammut —Fine Wood Working - theHumm June 2021

By Sally Hansen

Art… and Soul

Kokopelli Custom Woodworking is Frank Sammut’s celebration of the natural beauty and wonder encapsulated in the trees that fall on his 87 acres of bush lot near Maberly. His lifelong fondness for working with his hands has culminated in a passion for creating one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture that showcase nature’s beauty. Wood speaks to him. And he creates poetry in response.

Frank’s artistic tables and benches are as much sculptures as the......

Destination: Downtown Smiths Falls - theHumm June 2021