The Daughter joins the Bayview family

by JANIS FERTUCK

Leaside recently welcomed a unique addition to the family. The Daughter, a natural wine bar and bottle shop, opened on Nov. 23, 2022 at the corner of Belsize and Bayview, with owner and head chef Marissa Goldstein at the helm.

After finishing her law degree and working in real estate, Marissa decided to follow her true passion for hospitality and cooking by taking a specialized farm-to-table program at the International Culinary Center in New York where she learned about French culinary techniques and organic farming, and worked at restaurants in Greenwich Village and upstate New York.

Back home, Marissa was looking to open a “smaller, sustainable food business with natural wine as the focus.” In the early days of the pandemic, when the government allowed restaurants to sell liquor at retail prices, the wine bar and bottle shop concept was born. The name “The

Daughter” is an ode to Marissa’s “mother, grandmother, sisters and all the great women out there.”

The choice of Leaside came from Marissa’s love for the neighbourhood after playing baseball nearby in her youth and enjoying the many local restaurants. She also praises Leaside’s lively “village” atmosphere and community support for local businesses providing quality goods and services.

Renovations to the Bayview space took about a year with Marissa herself acting as the general contractor for the project, spending every day on site working with the architect Andria Y. Y. Fong of Y. Y. Architecture Studios. Andria used Marissa’s ideas and blended elements of Japanese and Scandinavian minimalist design with natural materials to showcase the products.

The centrepiece of The Daughter is its rotating by-the-glass selection of natural wines. These wines are made using organically grown grapes fermented with little or no intervention and additives. Marissa explains that she and general manager and beverage curator Lauren Wilkins work together “to curate an elegant and dynamic selection of classic varietals and young, funky wines.” Their stock varies month to month and includes 60 to 100 wines from around the world.

Marissa, Lauren and their serving staff suggest suitable wines to their customers after asking about their usual preferences, mood and the occasion. Local craft beer, cider and cocktails are also available. The food menu consists of “elevated bar