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up! serves up some background on our farmers’ market-loving chefs
Darren Jackman
The Rooms Café
St. John’s, Newfoundland
Darren Jackman hails from Conception Bay South, Newfoundland—about three and a half hours from the capital city. He graduated from the Culinary Institute of Canada at Holland College in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. He spent three years working with the PEI Preserve Company, before owning and operating the Made From Scratch Bakery in Wheatley River, P.E.I. Nowadays, he’s back on his home province as head chef of the Rooms Café, which is part of a cultural facility that also houses the provincial museum, art gallery and archives.
Craig Flinn
Chives Canadian Bistro
Halifax, Nova Scotia
After graduating from the Culinary Institute of Canada in 1997, Craig Flinn jetted off to Europe to expand his potential. Once back on this side of the pond, Craig spent time at the Village Club of Sands Point on Long Island, New York, before returning home to Nova Scotia. In 2001, Craig opened his first restaurant, Chives Canadian Bistro, in Halifax. The menu at Chives is ever-changing with good reason, as Craig and his team focus on using fresh local products. Notable accolades for the bistro include being named one of Canada’s Top 100 restaurants by
Wine Access magazine in 2007.
Carl Röder
Aix Cuisine du Terroir
Montréal, Quebec
Born on Quebec’s North Shore, Carl Röder came from a family of chefs. After deciding to follow the path into the kitchen himself, he completed a cooking diploma at the Polyvalente Jean-du-Nord in Sept-Îles. He started his professional career at the Club Mont-Tremblant, before moving on to Laloux restaurant in Montréal. After three years with the Delta Hotel chain, Röder spent the next decade perfecting his craft (including sauces, his specialty) at establishments such as 40 Westt in Montréal. In the spring of 2006, he became executive chef at Aix Cuisine du Terroir, where he creates cuisine that celebrates the French tradition and regional Quebec products.
John Taylor
Domus
Ottawa, Ontario
John Taylor has come a long way from making pizzas and donairs at the West Edmonton Mall at age 14. Born in Lynn Lake, Manitoba, John has been realizing his dream of cooking in different places ever since escaping the WEM—including in Fredericton, Ottawa and even a year in Barbados. In 1995, John became a part of the Domus team, and two years later he took full ownership of the café. Since then, John has never strayed from his vision of creating regional seasonal cuisine, which the
Ottawa Citizen’s Anne DesBrisay calls “a showcase of local produce.” In 2004, he received the Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association’s Restauranter of the Year award.
Michael Caballo
Niagara Street Café
Toronto, Ontario
Michael Caballo can thank James Barber, CBC's
Urban Peasant, for sparking an interest in him to cook. He did a cooking apprenticeship with the Northern Alberta Institute of Arts (NAIT). Caballo spent some time working in Toronto before deciding to follow his Spanish roots and work as a chef in Madrid, Spain for a year. Once back in Toronto, he worked at Osgoode Hall, where he met his future mentor and friend, Yasser Qahawish (a fellow chef featured this month). At 25 years old, he took over as the executive chef of Niagara Street Café, where he showcases a menu filled with seasonally inspired local ingredients.
Yasser Qahawish
Artisanale Café and Bistro
Guelph, Ontario
Growing up in the Middle East, Yasser Qahawish’s interest in food started at a young age. He began his chef training at George Brown College in Toronto and then apprenticed with JP Challet and Didier LeRoy. He has worked throughout Europe and North America, including Le Bernardin in New York City and Trotter’s in Chicago. Last fall, he bade farewell to an eight-year term as the executive chef at Osgoode Hall in Toronto. He and his wife opened their first restaurant, Artisanale Café and Bistro, in Guelph, Ontario, where the menu focuses on French cuisine made from fresh local ingredients.
Jean Robillard
Bistro One
Thunder Bay, Ontario
Jean Robillard’s love of the outdoors steered him to leave his hometown of Ottawa to study Outdoor Recreation at Lakehead University, in Thunder Bay, where his part-time serving jobs turned into full-time management positions at several restaurants in the city. In 1994, he and his wife Susan decided to open Bistro One—where, according to their motto, foods and wine are a passion. Since then, they’ve held true to their focus of providing a dynamic seasonal menu, as well as an extensive and award-winning cellar to match. Every year since 1997,
Where to Eat in Canada has named the bistro one of the top 200 restaurants in Canada.
Scott Pohorelic
River Café
Calgary, Alberta
After years of hands-on experience working in several kitchens in Calgary, Scott Pohorelic chose to receive formal culinary education at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT). His first experience with the River Café came in 1999, when he became sous chef. Five years later, Scott took over as executive chef. During that time, Scott has remained committed to producing regional Canadian cuisine by sourcing the best products from small local producers and cooking with the seasons. The River Café has been lauded by a wide range of magazines, including
Wine Spectator,
Avenue,
Where Calgary and
FFWD.
Andrea Carlson
Raincity Grill
Vancouver, British Columbia
Carlson made the transition from hobby cook to professional chef when she graduated from Vancouver’s Dubrulle International Culinary Institute. Before she was recruited by Raincity Grill, Andrea worked in the city at the original Star Anise and the Beachside Café. In 1998, she became the executive sous chef at C Restaurant—the other establishment owned by Raincity’s Harry Kambolis. Her following years included, among other things, a two-year adventure in Eastern Europe and opening a bakery on rustic Savoury Island without any electricity. These days, Andrea is back at the award-winning Raincity Grill as executive chef, where she and the team present a menu that evolves with the seasons.
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