Durham College The Durham College Centre for Food, in Whitby,

Photography: Tom Arban, Rémi Carreiro

Architecture and Interior Design: Gow Hastings Architects
Project Size: 34,000 square feet
Project Location: Whitby, Ontario, Canada
Client: Durham College
Centre for Food Ontario, is one of Canada’s first culinary education
facility to bring the concept of ‘Field to Fork’ to life
Program
—uniting culinary arts, hospitality and horticulture
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2
Interactive Hot Lab
Potwashing Room
8 Food Distribution
9 Simulated Hotel Lab
15 Restaurant Kitchen
16 Private Dining /
programs in one location on a large suburban
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4
5
Interactive Bake Lab
Atrium
Living Wall
10 Security
11 Loading Dock
12 Teaching Restaurant
Boardroom
17 Large Quantities
Kitchen
campus—to narrate a story about the process of
6
7
Wine Tasting Lab
Retail
13 Restaurant Bar
14 Harvest Table
18 Student Study
19 Flexible Classrooms making a meal from crop to table.
Durham College
Durham College Centre for Food
Centre for Food Second Floor Plan
Ground Floor Plan

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11  15
17
19
19

1 2 3 4 9 16
10
13

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7
14 12
5 18

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Axo Section LEGEND Ground Floor Plan Second Floor Plan
1 Interactive Hot Lab
2 Potwashing Room
3 Interactive Bake Lab
4 Atrium LEGEND
5 Living Wall
6 Wine Tasting Lab 12 Teaching Restaurant
7 Retail 13 Restaurant Bar
8 Food Distribution 14 Harvest Table
9 Simulated Hotel Lab 15 Restaurant Kitchen project
10 Security 16 Private Dining / Boardroom north
project
11 Loading Dock 17 Large Quantities Kitchen
north
18 Student Study
Public Entry 19 Flexible Classrooms

Food Entry Food Entry

Student Entry

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Physically and figuratively merging with the

cultivated landscape, the Centre for Food
(CFF) is a showcase of the School’s focus on
local food, regionalism, sustainability, and
wellness. With the rise of the Food Services
and Food Studies disciplines at colleges and
universities across North America and Europe,
the CFF plays a leading role in providing
students with hands-on learning experience on
the full cycle of production: farming, preparing,
serving and celebrating food. The state-of-the-
art facility features food distribution rooms,
a demonstration lecture theatre, a 70-seat
teaching restaurant, a mock hotel suite, and an
array of hospitality, culinary and wine tasting
labs that open up to a two-storey atrium with a
lush, green living wall.

Field to Fork

culinary design specialist GOW HASTINGS ARCHITECTS www.gowhastings.com

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Seating along length of main circulation corridor for informal gathering
Teaching restaurant and service bar
Southeast view of upper level teaching restaurant
Northwest view from the adjacent agricultural fields
South elevation with coloured glazing
Opening the food journey
The CFF’s design makes the journey from ‘Field to Fork’
visible, giving transparency to all the processes along the way,
from crop growing to the final plated meal in the restaurant.
Students and visitors can journey through the inner workings
of the School and view all aspects of the facility including areas
traditionally seen as back of house. A soaring atrium framed by
floor-to-ceiling interior windows provide glimpses into the labs,
encouraging exploration and interactivity.
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Social learning
The building’s design encourages informal learning, providing
opportunities for social interaction inside and outside of the
classroom. Corridors are designed as inviting spaces, with
large span glazing and dedicated seating running along the
Sustainable sustenance
main circulation path, where students can dine, study, and
The CFF was designed with sustainability as a primary
socialize between classes.
conceptual driver to align with the ‘Field to Fork’ concept,
which advocates for the production of local food for local
H consumers—and to foster in students and visitors alike an
understanding of the relationship between food and the
Culinary and wine labs open onto central atrium that doubles as an event space

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environment. To support this vision, the building harmonizes
Student space with views to the fields, kitchens and into the central atrium

the natural and the built environment through sustainable

design moves such as: a small building footprint; photovoltaic
A lush, green, two-storey herb garden living wall in the central atrium

panels for energy harvesting; natural light and LED lighting

on occupancy sensors to reduce energy consumption; a
high-performance building façade with fritted low E glass and
coloured glazing on the south elevation to reduce solar heat
gain; green roof for building insulation; and recycled materials,
Large quantities kitchen with flexible workstations

paints, and finishes. Bistro ‘67 achieved Green Restaurant

certification for its environmental responsibility. Locally
Culinary demonstration and lecture theatre

sourced food, including herbs from the living wall, honey from
the rooftop apiary, and vegetables planted by the horticulture
program, are used by the culinary and hospitality programs.
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Teaching inside and

outside of the kitchen
The CFF provides students with hands-on experiences in real-
life kitchen and restaurant settings that help to strengthen the
link between academia and industry. The interactive teaching
labs are fully equipped with the latest technology offering a
platform that allows culinary students to both observe and
practice in real time.
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Gow Hastings Architects is an architecture and interior design studio, specializing in higher education.
Founded in 2002 by partners Valerie Gow and Philip Hastings, our Toronto-based studio has completed
over 250 projects for colleges and universities, with a unique design skill set and focused expertise in
culinary and hospitality design for post-secondary institutions.