Newmarket’s Maids' Cottage is once against getting recognition for having one of the top butter tarts in the province.
The famed Main Street restaurant was once again recognized at the Ontario’s Best Butter Tart Festival June 8. The restaurant earned the top prize in the wild style category with a newly created black forest mocha butter tart.
“It was great,” co-owner Debbie Hill said about the win. “All the staff’s very passionate about what they do. That really helps when you’re doing baking.”
The restaurant is regularly a top finisher at the festival and has gained provincewide notoriety for the quality of its butter tarts. Although it did not take home any awards from the festival in 2023, it was recognized for the top traditional and top wild-style butter tart in 2022 and has been a regular top finisher in the event in years prior.
Hill said the creation came about from staff, using coffee from local area supplier Elpida Café & Roastery. The creation is meant to mimic black forest cake.
“They just do different things down there and come up with different ideas. They just kind of put their heads together and think of different flavours that would be really nice,” Hill said about her team’s efforts.
Maids' Cottage also got some unexpected recognition online. Travel writer Katherine Palumbo named it the second-best butter tart in Ontario in April on Instagram to her more than 250,000 followers, based on polling among her fans.
Hill said she has never been a big social media person, but it is great to get the added recognition.
Consistency and teamwork are a big part of their butter tart success, Hill said. She added appreciation for all the restaurant’s fans.
“We love them all out there, and we couldn’t do it without all of our fabulous customers,” Hill said.
