Vancouver, BC (May 14, 2026) – Notch8 Restaurant & Bar at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver enters a new chapter with the launch of fully refreshed menus across breakfast, lunch, dinner, and Sunday brunch, including a new à la carte brunch offering. Rooted in classic French technique and shaped by Pacific Northwest ingredients, the update signals an evolution for the hotel’s signature restaurant.

At the heart of a Vancouver landmark, Notch8 brings its 87-year story to life through food and drink. Inspired by Château-style architecture and the golden age of railway travel, the experience blends heritage with a contemporary West Coast sensibility.

Under the direction of Executive Chef, Mike Reid, the culinary program emphasizes precision, seasonality, and regional sourcing, while paying homage to the chefs who helped define the hotel’s legacy, including former Executive Chef, Robert LeCrom.

That balance of past and present is reflected throughout the menu. Highlights include a Seafood Chowder built on crab bisque with prawns, salmon, and mussels, alongside Steelhead and Scallops Grenobloise, showcasing the exceptional quality of Pacific Northwest seafood. French tradition remains central, with timeless dishes such as Duck à l’Orange, Foie Gras & Fig Terrine, and Steak au Poivre, while a contemporary West Coast perspective is expressed through plates like Bison Cru and a reimagined Tuna Niçoise with seared ahi.

Menus across all dayparts balance refinement with approachability, from shareable plates like Mussels Frites and Baked Brie en Cocotte to nostalgic desserts, including a flambéed Baked Alaska and Gâteau Basque.

The bar program complements the offering with era-inspired cocktails – revisiting pre- and post-prohibition classics and celebrating decades of the hotel’s history through modern interpretations.

For a more immersive experience, the “À Toi!” tasting menu offers a curated, multi-course journey led by the kitchen.

“The chateau that inspired this building was always about grand hospitality,” says Executive Chef, Mike Reid. “This menu is our interpretation of that tradition, using the ingredients and flavours that define our region.”

The new menus are now available at Notch8 Restaurant & Bar, located within Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. Reservations are available online.

Vancouver, B.C., May 14, 2026 – Wildlight Kitchen + Bar (Wildlight) is excited to announce the promotion of sous chef Timothy Hui as its new executive chef. He takes on the culinary leadership reins from former executive chef Warren Chow and will continue to further evolve Wildlight’s West Coast-focused culinary program.

Hui steps into the role after having been part of the Wildlight kitchen since its opening, where he helped shape its day-to-day culinary direction and team culture. Previously, Hui worked as a private chef, following five years at Shangri-La Vancouver’s Market by Jean-Georges.

“Chef Tim has been here since the beginning, and anyone who has spent time in this kitchen has seen the kind of leader he is,” says Margot Baloro, general manager of Wildlight Kitchen + Bar. “He is patient and incredibly generous with his knowledge. Long before this promotion, he was already acting as a mentor to many of the younger cooks. We’re very proud of him and can’t wait to see him flourish.”

Hui’s culinary journey started at a young age, when his father worked as a chef in the hotel industry in Nassau, Bahamas. Every Sunday, they would have large potlucks with people from around the world, who would bring food from their countries.

After immigrating with his family to Vancouver, he too began working in kitchens, the age of 15, then went on to graduate from the Vancouver Community College Professional Culinary Program in 2011. His career has included roles at Baccano Osteria and Bistro Pastis under chef Spencer Watts, whom he credits as a pivotal mentor in shaping his approach to cooking. Hui also credits chefs Ken Nakano, James Choi, and Alex Kim for helping develop his leadership style during his time at Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver.

“I look forward to leading the kitchen team at Wildlight and thank Warren for his mentorship over the years,” says Hui. “I’ve been fortunate to grow-up experiencing the hospitality industry through the lens of my father and family. Through food, I learned to be apart of something bigger, to chip in, to converse, to laugh and to fail. Creating and exploring what food has to offer, pulls you in a constant life lesson of gastronomy.”

“I love this industry because of the human connection – the ability to connect to people who share the love for food is beauty in itself, reading people, anticipating needs and creating experiences that guests will remember. This is what I hope to instill in my team at Wildlight.”

On his culinary style, Hui explains, “I try to stay true to the flavours and foods I grew up with while exploring new approaches through classical techniques.”

Hui is currently working on presenting new dishes this summer, with a full menu launch in September.

For more information about Wildlight, please visit wildlightrestaurant.ca.

May 14, 2026 - Today, on National Biscuit Day,Church’s Texas Chicken® and Texas Chicken™ is making the holiday theirs. With biscuits that hit harder than the competition, Canadians can bring a little swagger back into their lives by picking up a FREE golden buttery Church’s Texas Chicken biscuit with purchase at all locations across the country. 

“On National Biscuit Day, Church’s Texas Chicken isn’t just celebrating, we’re owning the day,” said Robert Manuel, General Manager, Canada, at Church’s Texas Chicken. “With nearly 100 locations across Canada, we can offer Canadians a break from expensive grocery bills and high gas prices by giving away our signature sweet and savoury honey-butter biscuits at all of our locations in the country on Thursday, May 14, 2026.”

Ready to grab life by the biscuits? Church’s Texas Chicken is daring its biggest fans to show where they stand. Fans are encouraged to snap a photo enjoying their honey-butter favourites in front of a Popeyes, KFC, or Mary Brown’s location, bringing a little friendly competition into the conversation. The first 30 qualifying entries on Reddit will be rewarded with a $50 DoorDash code for their next Church’s Texas Chicken meal.

In Toronto, Church’s Texas Chicken ambassadors will be offering “biscuit breaks” at key landmarks to mark National Biscuit Day where consumers can get coupons to redeem free biscuits.

For more information, visit: https://churchstexaschicken.com/

Milan, 14 May 2026 – Open kitchens, hybrid concepts and rapidly evolving consumption patterns: out-of-home dining is undergoing a profound transformation. Against this backdrop, the Italian Giornata della Ristorazione(Restaurant Industry Day) on Saturday 16 May offers a timely opportunity to reflect on the future of the sector. The initiative is a collective, inclusive, solidarity-driven and ethical event that celebrates conviviality and the culture of hospitality.

A culture to which Host, the world-leading exhibition dedicated to the hospitality organized by Fiera Milano, contributes by anticipating innovation not only through its biennial trade fair, but also through the regular insights produced by the HostMilano Observatory, which throughout the run-up to the event tracks market performance and the most promising emerging trends, turning them into business opportunities.

With more than 2,200 exhibitors and over 183,000 trade visitors from around the world, the 2025 edition confirmed HostMilano as a leading global platform for hospitality, out-of-home dining and food retail. The event also recorded strong growth in international attendance, including +27% from the United States, +29% from Brazil, +21% from the United Arab Emirates and +20% from Australia.

Looking ahead to the 2027 edition, more than 1,000 exhibitors have already confirmed their participation, with international exhibitors accounting for 50% of the total. These figures underline the strong industry’s confidence in the event and its continued ability to attract leading global players.

Building on its role as a leading global hub for the sector, Host continues its internationalization journey through a series of structural partnerships that are shaping a true worldwide network for professional hospitality. Following the success of the first edition of Host Arabia, developed in collaboration with local partner Semark, and with the second edition already scheduled to take place in Riyadh from 7 to 9 December 2026, the partnership with NAFEM – the North American Association of Food Equipment Manufacturers – will bring the Host format to the 

United States in 2027, creating a new bridge between Europe and North America and further strengthening the connection between the world’s leading hospitality and out-of-home markets.

Host therefore confirms its position as a strategic, dynamic and flexible platform where business, innovation and networking come together to anticipate emerging trends and shape the future of the industry.

It is on this solid foundation that the strategy for the 45th edition of HostMilano is being developed, with Foodservice once again set to be among the key protagonists, in a sector that continues to reinvent itself by combining innovation, creativity and evolving market challenges.

A growing sector worth almost €80 billion

According to data compiled by ExportPlanning exclusively for the HostMilano Observatory, in 2025 global production in the professional foodservice equipment sector – including kitchens, ovens, cooktops, cooking appliances and related equipment – reached €77.7 billion, marking an increase of around 35% compared to the pre-pandemic period and a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of +5.2%.

With an average annual growth rate of +10.3%, the most dynamic category is that of small electromechanical appliances, highlighting the increasing automation of operational processes. In absolute terms, the two largest product categories are pots and pans (€26.9 billion, CAGR +3.8%) and electric kitchens, cooktops and ovens (€23 billion, CAGR +5.2%), which together account for two thirds of global production.

As for global trade, in 2025 it reached €55.8 billion (+0.3% compared to 2024), outlining a solid market set to accelerate further. Forecasts from ExportPlanning indicate a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of +4.3% over the 2027–2029 period, moving closer to €65 billion over the forecast horizon. The United States is the world’s leading market, at €8.4 billion (a 15.6% share), followed by Germany (€4.8 billion), the Netherlands and Poland (both at €2.5 billion), and France (€2.4 billion). Looking ahead, the strongest contributions to demand growth are expected from Europe, with Germany leading the way at +€906 million (CAGR +4.5%), followed by Poland (+€642 million, CAGR +6%) and the Netherlands (+€551 million, CAGR +5%).

Focus on the Italian Table Aborad: 90,000 “ambassadors” of Made in Italy worldwide

Growth driven not only by innovation, but also by demand. The results of the first systematic mapping of Italian restaurants abroad, conducted by Sociometrica for FIPE with the report The Italian Table Abroad, identified 1,486 Italian restaurants across ten European cities (from Paris to Berlin, and from London to Amsterdam), analysing more than 115,000 menu items. With an average score of 8.95/10, consistent across all cities and price segments, customer satisfaction is notably high, alongside an average main dish price of €30.30: an affordable premium positioning that combines accessibility with a strong perception of quality, also supported by as much as 85.9% of menu items being unique—a figure with no comparison in the wider European gastronomic landscape.

The most successful formats are also the most authentic: the pizzeria is the most widespread, with 345 venues and the highest Value Index, meaning that customers in Italian pizzerias across Europe pay below-average prices while receiving above-average quality. The Margherita is the most frequently listed dish (657 occurrences), while among pasta dishes Carbonara stands out (449), Tiramisù is the most widely shared dessert (541), and the Aperol Spritz is the most exported social ritual of Italian culture, present in all ten cities (383 occurrences). On a global scale, there are nearly 90,000 Italian restaurants operating as true cultural “embassies”, projecting the country’s identity, lifestyle and artisanal expertise worldwide.

The kitchen takes centre stage: trends reshaping the sector towards Host 2027

Against the backdrop of both Italian and international developments, the HostMilano Observatory has identified a series of structural trends that are redefining spaces, menus and service models.

Starting with physical spaces: the professional kitchen is no longer a hidden area, but increasingly the visible heart of the venue. In the most recent projects, the dining room is designed around an open kitchen, with layouts that combine transparency, theatricality and functionality. The boundary between production and consumption is becoming increasingly blurred, and the visibility of the process is becoming an integral part of the guest experience.

Layouts are also becoming more flexible and reconfigurable. Today, venues are designed as modular systems capable of shifting configuration between lunch, aperitivo, dinner, private events and delivery pick-up, with indoor and outdoor 

areas treated as a single adaptive system: more than an aesthetic choice, this reflects a structural response to the multiplication of consumption occasions.

Consumption itself is increasingly fragmented into frequent micro-occasions. The day is no longer organized solely around lunch and dinner. Advanced snacks, small portions, sharing plates and weekday brunches are reshaping menus and service time bands, extending trading opportunities and requiring more versatile equipment and faster production cycles, often bringing together different functions such as foodservice, bakery, café and food retail.

In terms of flavours, fermentation, umami notes and a return to live-fire cooking are emerging as a shared language in contemporary mid-to-upscale dining. Miso, fermented dairy products, charcoal-grilled preparations and ingredients that deliver aromatic complexity are finding a growing audience, from fine dining to accessible premium formats.

The 45th edition of Host will take place at Fiera Milano from 22 to 26 October 2027.