Year: Class of 1996

Occupation: Executive Chef,
The Canadian Ambassador in Washington DC.
Home Town: Washington, DC, USA

What has been your major accomplishment since graduating from Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa?
I am currently the Executive Chef to The Canadian Ambassador in Washington DC. I started working at Laurier sur Montcalm while I was studying at the Cordon Bleu.

Describe your career path from graduation till now.
I then moved to work for one summer at the Keltic Lodge in Cape Breton. After that I moved to Toronto, where I worked at Pangaea with martin Kouprie, Zoom Caffe with Guy Rubino and the Briars Resort with Executive Chef Trevor Ledlie. At the Briars, I worked along side Chef Ledlie to train on the administrative side of running a kitchen to get me ready for my first Executive Chef position at the to-be opened Chateau Logue in Maniwaki, Gatineau. We were also instrumental in the design of the kitchen for this new resort.

Describe your career path from graduation till now.

In January of 2000, I moved to Maniwaki to begin the hiring and training of staff for the Chateau Logue. The opening was a huge success, with a fine dining restaurant, 2 banquet rooms, and all the menus that a Hotel/Resort have to offer(from early-bird golf breakfasts to lunch, buffets, brunch, banquets, etc….). After 20 months in Maniwaki, I applied for the position at the Canadian Embassy in Washington DC. After 5 rigorous interviews I was offered the job and started in September of 2001. My first day of work was the day before 9/11, September 10, 2001.

What I Learned from Le Cordon Bleu?
The training of basic knife skills and starting with the basic cooking techniques created a solid foundation to excel at whatever challenge was given to me in the workplace.

What has been the highlights of your career?
The highlight of my career was cooking for jazz great Oscar Peterson, and getting to sit down with him to discuss Montreal and Jazz music.

Another highlight was cooking for 1400 people for “Canada on the Capitol” as part of a trade initiative program to showcase Canada’s role in Aerospace, Energy, Tourism, etc and the tight relationship that The United States has with Canada. I had the chance to showcase Canadian cuisine at this event.

I’ve also had the chance to Cook for the Vice President and the whole White House Chiefs of Staff, Mark Messier, Micheal J. Fox, Arnold Schwarzenegger, to name a few.