From email poetry to transforming the cellar to rescue a washed-out proposal, it's all in a day's work for the team at RPM.
Long before guests climb the stairs to Restaurant Pearl Morissette's (RPM) second‑floor dining room, they've already met Robin Mednick. Often by phone or email, the restaurant's curator of guest experience is the first point of contact for most diners, responsible for confirming celebrations, proposals, dietary needs – "RPM accommodates nearly every dietary restriction, which is extraordinary," shares Mednick – and any details that shape the evening ahead.
"I think of myself as the front of the front of house," says Mednick, the restaurant's only remote team member. Mednick joined in RPM's first year to manage the flood of reservations, but her role quickly evolved into guest communications, supporting with bespoke experiences such as arranging flowers from the RPM garden for a celebration, or speaking with someone whose visit didn't go as hoped to understand what happened.
"Those first couple of weeks turned into seven of the finest years of my life," she says. "Listening to people and caring for them feels like it's a part of who I am. It's something that gives me joy."
Hospitality that's as memorable as the food
As the only restaurant in the province to hold two Michelin stars and a Michelin Green star, RPM also secured its place on the first North America's 50 Best Restaurants list in 2025 at No.3. Diners may travel to this quiet corner of Jordan Station for Daniel Hadida and Eric Robertson's holistic garden-to-table, French-leaning cuisine, but it's the front-of-house team who shape the experience into something truly memorable.
RPM's kitchen uses exclusively Canadian ingredients (Image: Alex Creglia)
"I look to Robin, Amy Stott and Akshaye Sridhar to take the lead in crafting an experience that leaves guests delighted and with a clear sense of who we are," says Hadida.
For Mednick, hospitality is a 24/7 frame of mind."Being prompt when someone reaches out sets the tone. It's the beginning of a relationship. By the time guests arrive, after multiple conversations, we already know each other," she adds.
RPM's philosophy of deeply personal hospitality is perhaps best captured in a recent exchange Mednick recalls with a guest. Having failed to secure a reservation, the guest wrote a heartfelt poem describing their long-held wish to celebrate a first wedding anniversary at the restaurant. Moved by the creativity and sincerity of the gesture, Mednick responded in kind – with a poem of her own that confirmed the booking and honoured the milestone. The guest reacted with joy, sharing that the thoughtful exchange had "made their year".
The 24/7 frame of mind
Mednick's response is an example of the restaurant's ethos at work. It's the same warmth and generosity that shapes the team's approach to hospitality. Hadida describes the philosophy as being "radically empathetic... honest... and impactful from the perspective of the diner." It's an approach that hasn't gone unnoticed, as the restaurant has received the Art of Hospitality Award 2026, a distinction voted on by the 300 members of the North America's 50 Best Restaurants Academy.
"It's a mindset that we all operate on," says Stott, RPM's general manager. "We encourage the entire team to really engage with the guest experience. It's rarely about grand acts – more often it's the thoughtful, smaller ones that make things just that extra bit special for a guest. If someone [tells us] it's the best butter they've had, we'd pack some for them to take home. Or we send them home with a loaf of the sourdough because they loved it so much."
Stott says the team is fully aligned on what hospitality means at RPM. "The bottom line is how you make people feel. We're here to be good human beings and make wonderful experiences – not just through service, but in how we carry ourselves."
Guest experience is top of mind for chef-owners Eric Robertson (left) and Daniel Hadida (right) (Image: Alex Creglia)
Hadida sees that culture reflected back to him. "I've heard people say they like working here because everyone is nice and real, which I find really interesting. For us, it's less about training and more about hiring [the right people], then giving them the space to execute the day-to-day."
As the liaison between the kitchen and dining room, assistant general manager Sridhar injects that "perspective of being joyful, energetic and honest" in how he trains and guides staff. Sometimes that means unlearning stiffness or formality. New team members learn the choreography of working the dining room, reading it and adjusting the pace and tone to match a table's energy. They learn the value of admitting mistakes without feeling deflated, the confidence to question what doesn't feel right and the curiosity to be genuinely interested in guests, the ingredients and in the work itself.
"It's not that there's a quiz," Hadida says. "But you must be interested. You must see yourself as a hospitality professional building your own lexicon of ingredients and understanding of food." To support that, the team is equipped with everything they need to speak meaningfully about the regional purveyors and the ingredients on the menu – including those from the property's regenerative farm, peach orchard and expansive gardens visible through the dining room's picture windows – if guests want deeper insight about the provenance of a dish.
Teamwide effort
"Every part of what we do at Pearl Morissette is a team effort," says Stott of the collective approach that's powered by more than 30 people across the kitchen, floor and support teams.
Mednick, for instance, is the quiet architect behind countless seamless moments. Beyond the near-impossible task of rescheduling fully booked reservations, she keeps meticulous notebooks – eight and counting – filled with guest preferences and personal requests and last-minute add-ons, from boxes of pastries to essentials from RPM Bakehouse. Her preparation, paired with the research of maître d' Thomas Hartlen-Melo, ensures guests feel recognised when they walk in months later.
Some guests may start with a garden tour led by Deirdre Fraser, the property's plant wizard, before joining chef de farm Shane Harper – a former pastry-chef-turned-farmer – for a walk through RPM's outdoor pantry. With more than 300 edible plants and flowers, the garden has become a warm-weather highlight, offering a glimpse into the ingredients that reappear throughout the meal. Those who miss the tour might still receive a tableside introduction to whatever the kitchen is excited about that day, from pawpaws to cherry tomatoes.
The refined, light-filled space welcomes the outdoors into the dining room
Another hallmark of RPM's service is that everyone runs food. "Whether you're front or back-of-house, everyone takes turns presenting dishes," says Sridhar. What started as a practical necessity is now a defining feature, giving guests the chance to meet the people behind their meal – in the 38-seat dining room or at the chef's table. "When the person who made the dish presents it, they can speak to it on a level that no one else can," says Hadida. "I've yet to find someone who wasn't charmed by it in some capacity. I think it helps break the formality that can come with high-end dining."
Hospitality that feels like nowhere else
Hospitality extends beyond the dining room. Sridhar notes that every gesture matters: a friendly goodnight, walking guests to their car under an umbrella, or offering a lift to a nearby address. There are custom celebration cards signed by the entire staff, keepsake menus updated throughout the evening, thoughtful recommendations from staff who've helped secure reservations, and even a care package of food and wine delivered to guests stranded by a snowstorm. "It's about spreading warm feelings and letting guests know we're thinking of them," says Hadida.
Curious diners may also be invited into the kitchen or down to the cellar, where the Pearl Morissette winery team work, and catch a glimpse of the small archive of Burgundy-trained vigneron François Morissette's award-winning, minimal-intervention wines. These behind-the-scenes moments often become the evening's highlight, and watching guests' reactions is what Stott finds most rewarding.
Sridhar agrees: "Every night is memorable because we love what we do." He recalls pandemic dinners in a tent on the farm among Galloway cows, and a summer proposal salvaged from a rainstorm by transforming the cellar into a cosy space for an unforgettable evening.
The strictly seasonal menu celebrates the best of local produce (Image: Alex Creglia)
As a newer addition to the team, Stott says the sense of community is what moves her most. She references two regulars who cross the border from Buffalo every month to sit at the same table. "They bring such warmth to the dining room," she says. This month, the team gifted them seeds from the garden to plant at home. "It's truly a community. These guests become our friends and an extension of the restaurant."
"It's all those small things that make guests feel honoured over and over," shares Mednick. "Those memorable moments are what bring back our regulars. It's been a labour of love for me. Hospitality is rarely acknowledged, so it's incredibly meaningful that our front-of-house team is recognised in this way. You sometimes feel like a sidebar. To have an award that celebrates the team on the floor, the chefs and their ethos about service, and for me, it's an honour. Truly."
Now take a closer look inside Restaurant Pearl Morissette:
Restaurant Pearl Morissette is the winner of the Art of Hospitality Award, as part of North America's 50 Best Restaurants 2026. The full 1-50 list will be revealed on Thursday 28 May live from New Orleans.
