🕒 3 min read

At The Pass is a weekly series showcasing Toronto’s best chefs. You won’t find any celebrity chefs featured here. Perhaps you already know these fine cooks, but maybe not. They’re not famous - yet. But it’s time these talented, passionate, hard-working chefs got a bit of the spotlight.

Currently

Chef de Cuisine, Kōjin - part of the Momofuku Group.

Formerly

Chef de Cuisine, Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar (Vancouver);  Executive Chef, Royal Dinette Restaurant (Vancouver). 

Favourite dish to make right now

Fire Roasted and Soy Braised Half Chicken with spicy cucumber, ginger scallion, smoked pineapple - currently on Kōjin’s menu.

Last cookbook purchase

Room for Dessert by Will Goldfarb

Have you read it/tried any recipes

Not yet.

One dish or ingredient you’d like to see gone from menus

Yuzu.

And one dish or ingredient that you’re excited about right now and would like to see on more menus

MSG.

Biggest influences

Chefs Shane Osborn, Dominique Crenn, Katy Millard, and David Chang.

If you could eat at any restaurant in the world

Flocons de Sel, France.

Last thing you ate 

Noodles in broth. 

Three must-have ingredients always in your fridge

Butter, Red Boat Fish Sauce, Lemon. 

Guilty pleasure

Ice cream.

Top 3 favourite Toronto restaurants

Cha Kee Restaurant, Fishman Lobster Clubhouse, and Fran’s.

Top 3 favourite Toronto bars

Paris Paris, CC Lounge, and The Emmet Ray.

Go-to drink

Woodford Reserve, neat.

One habit you have in the kitchen that you should lose, but can’t seem to shake

Work/life balance. 

And one habit you have in the kitchen that will inspire young chefs

Organization.

Hidden talent

Equestrian for over 20 years. 

Best career advice you ever received

“Never stop pushing.” – Chef Shane Osborn

Worst career advice you ever received 

“You must prove yourself harder because you are a woman.”

Your advice for a young cook starting out in the business

Go everywhere. Eat everything. Talk to everyone. Live your life beyond the four walls of a kitchen and be a good human, not just a good chef.

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In order to support chefs during this time, the monthly At The Pass series is now WEEKLY. Know someone in Toronto or GTA who should be featured? Submit their name for consideration. And yes, you can nominate yourself. 

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