TORONTO ― Canadian icon and former Saturday Night Live (SNL) comedian Dan Aykroyd made a musical appearance at Restaurants Canada’s Industry Night Out in Toronto, performing a few special blues numbers with the Downchild Blues Band. This morning the actor was a keynote speaker at the Restaurants Canada Breakfast of Champions event, held at Toronto’s Allstream Centre. Speaking to a crowd of approximately 250 industry execs attending the 70th edition of the annual expo, the film actor and now vodka producer regaled the audience with stories from his legendary career with SNL, as well as his comedic film career featuring his Blues Brothers persona.
These days, Aykroyd has his own business venture producing Crystal Head Vodka, a premium brand in a crystal skull bottle that’s aimed at the 25+ age demographic. “We don’t target the spring break [crowd]; this is a fine product that goes well in a fine steakhouse or a fine restaurant,” boasted Aykroyd. “That’s why I did it. I wanted to do it better.”
The vodka, produced in Canada with waters from Newfoundland’s glaciers, is now available in 50 countries around the world. Last year Crystal Head Vodka received the Gold Medal for Excellent Taste at the Moscow ProdExpo International Tasting Contest. Although Aykroyd has won an Emmy and a host of other awards, he said, “This is the award that makes me most proud. I’m so proud to say it’s a Canadian-made product.” Ontario represents the third-largest market for the product.
The vodka, which features sweet vanilla notes and a kick of heat off the finish, contains no additives including glycerol, citrus oil or sugar. The drink, made from Ontario-grown peaches-and-cream corn, is processed and distilled four times. The liquid is then filtered seven times, including three times through Herkimer diamonds. “There’s a certain myth to the diamonds,” explained Aykroyd. “We’ve found [consumers] like the taste more when it’s poured over the diamonds.”
After educating the crowd about the intricacies of producing the vodka, Aykroyd answered questions from Paul Methot, incoming chair of Restaurants Canada, and Liam Dolan, outgoing chair of the association. Dolan, an Irish-born restaurateur, who runs a business in P.E.I., asked Aykroyd which seafood he would recommend to be paired with the vodka. Simple, said Aykroyd. “Oysters, any smoked fish, as well as gefilte fish or chopped liver.” Not to be outdone, Methot, who serves as VP, Operations at Pizza Pizza, asked what kind of pizza would complement the libation. “Well, vodka goes well in the crust,” said Aykroyd, adding the drink also marries well with chopped onions, chopped peppers and black caviar.
Aykroyd will appear at the show’s Shake and Sling Pavilion during the rest of the day.
