One delightful, unexpected benefit of our three-night culinary retreat at the Eastman Spa was meeting the other participants and the knowledge gleaned from them.
A mechanical engineer, a life coach, a software programmer, all had differing knowledge basis and differing points of view, and certainly not just on the subject of cooking!
But, along with seeking different ways of improving our lives, we all had one common goal – improving health through diet.
The location of the culinary retreat, known as the Cuisine Tonique is the Eastman Spa in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, a place well suited for relaxation and openness to new ideas.
Spa founder Jocelyna Dubuc has fashioned a wellness centre designed to help people discover new and stimulating paths in their lives. As she said, ‘we believe in the ‘art of living’, not merely as relating to food’.
During any given week, workshops on nutrition, fascia therapy, creative writing, tapping, the 5 Tibetans, and Decoding Feelings take place interspersed with visits to the spa’s indoor/outdoor pools with a self-guided circuit of infra-red spas, dry spas, hammam and cool Kneipp bathing pools. Brave souls can take dips in the east-facing pond with break-taking views of Mount Orford.
Yoga, Pilates and Aqua Form classes take place weekly and various treatments are also offered.
ABOVE: The interior of the Oasis Pavilion, where the cooking classes take place. (Photo: SpiritBird)
The culinary retreat lasts three days, and is held in a modern, and spacious kitchen, in the new Oasis pavilion where rooms are also located.
Participants can also lodge in one of the nine pavilions scattered over the huge 333-hectare property. (That’s over 3 hectares for each of the maximum 95 guests).
The workshop, explaining the secrets of the restaurant’s Tonique Cuisine is so popular that getting a spot can be difficult, at least in French. Only since January, 2025 is it offered in English. The maximum number of aspiring chefs is twelve.
You can read the remainder of the article on our sister site, Travel Trek & Tour.
HEADER IMAGE: Cuisine Tonique’s anti-inflammatory, healthy, gourmet tuna. (Photo: Courtesy Spa Eastman)
