During a recent business trip to Toronto I took an afternoon off and used the trolley to explore Queen Street. I had an early dinner at Table 17 (782 Queen St.), which offered a charming venue
with seasonal and primarily locally sourced ingredients. Inexpensive but good Portuguese wine completed a delicious meal. I also stumbled upon Mary Macleod’s Shortbread (639 Queen St.) and was offered a sample. That was all it took: I bought several tins to bring home as gifts. Everyone raved about the shortbread cookies—they’re quite simply the best. —Pat Bergeson Chicago, IL, July/August 2010 Departures Magazine

When he was attending Toronto’s Festival of Festivals two years ago, epicure James Beard tasted Mrs. Macleod’s shortbread at the New Yorker Café and proclaimed it the best in the world. At the risk of offending all our mothers, a recent taste test shows it may well be. At her new store Mary, who emigrated from Scotland in 1955, sells her scrumptious shortbread in 15 varieties-including those flavored with sesame and poppy seeds, ginger, various nuts and so on. And the whole baking process is accomplished right in the store-front for all to see. TORONTO CALENDAR MAGAZINE, March, 1981.

Mary Macleod’s Shortbread is the only store in the world selling only shortbread. “I worked a lifetime perfecting the recipe,” says Mary, who comes from Scotland but based her shortbread on a recipe from her French grandmother. The Toronto Sun, Dec 21, 1983.

BEST OF NORTH TORONTO, 1996: Voted BEST COOKIES, over seven different varieties. POST NEWSPAPER July 1996.

Who doesn’t have a sweet tooth during the holidays? Shortbread and butterscotch fingers and cookies from Mary Macleod’s Shortbread are the perfect way to satisfy that wonderful temptation. Mary Macleod has been baking her own shortbread for over 18 years. She uses only pure materials which, she says, can be fed to a newborn. The butterscotch fingers are very similar to shortbread but just a bit lighter. They taste great and make phenomenal stocking stuffers, desserts or convenient party platter. For the holidays Macleod has cookies in specially printed Victorian tins. Inside three flavours of cookies can be found: Chocolate crunch, butterscotch crunch and double chocolate crunch. THE NEW TOWN CRIER, Christmas 1997.

Pretty packaging like this can turn a present of cookies…into a special treat. Toronto Star, December 10, 1997.

Mary Macleod’s Shortbread took Toronto by storm last year and no-one could get enough. Beautifully packaged, delightful gifts and a must at teatime. Holt’s Holiday Gourmet, Holt Renfrew.
Cookies are sold at Holt Renfrew Cafe, Toronto all year, and seasonally across Canada at Christmas in a variety of packaging

Continually written up in Toronto Life’s The Food and Wine Guide (Bakery section). November 1998 –. The famous, shortbread-made at the back of the room-is as pure as ever; lemon coconut and coin sized cookies topped with chocolate melting in the mouth.