The Mountain Life Podcast

Chef Picek

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Chris Picek is the head chef at Tapas, a Spanish restaurant in Canmore. Chris talks about how he gave up on the culinary scene for a short time but then rekindled his love for cooking when joining James and Wendy at Tapas, a leading restaurant in the Bow Valley. His view on the restaurant industry and food is both refreshing and real.

  • 0:19 – Introduction of Chris Picek, a who is passionate simply by feeding people with a good food being Head Chef & Executive for ‘Tapas’ in Canmore.
  • 1:15 – Jason asks Chris about his history and background. Chris was born in Northern Canada but decided to leave home base and travel Europe when finally came back to Calgary to settle up.
  • 5:12 – Jason and Chris talk further on the job, commuting aspects, lifestyle decisions and distanced relationship. Chris admits that living in a different city than his partner is a sacrifice, believing that sometimes you have to take a long way around to get to where you are going.
  • 9:04 – Jason asks about Chris’ reasons behind coming to Canmore. Chris shares his story on following the desire to find the right fit and the opportunity at ‘Tapas’.
  • 10:38 – Jason inquiries about the restaurant, asking Chris about major factors that pulled Chris to make the change. Chris appreciated the honesty and natural-sense of the owners and the restaurant itself.
  • 15:17 – Chris gives us more details on the food business in Canmore, philosophy and challenges in being in cooking in the region. Chef Picek appreciates the total freedom on the menu and the food. The key is using the best ingredients and sourcing great materials from known places.
  • 19:25 – Break to talk about our sponsor, the E=MC2 CoWork space in Canmore. Check us out with a free space for your first day, attend a Wednesday LunchBox lecture, or visit us for wind down Fridays.
  • 22:05 – Jason and Chris talk on why a good food place has a positive impact on building community touching on the local ingredients import economy.
  • 26:08 – Jason asks Chris on the business cooking areas he is looking to explore and further testing plans on the menu.
  • 28:27 – Jason puts a question to Chris about his break on the career path and coming back. Chris comments that he realized it’s more than just a job, it’s a vocation and this was calling him more than anything else.
  • 31:09 – Chris talks through his time off work and ways of spending it, most often with dogs in the parks!
  • 33:16 – Jason asks Chris about what is this big thing about cooking for him. It is training, mentorship and leadership while treating people as they should be treated.

In this Episode

  • Culinary arts
  • Cooking
  • Chefs
  • Restaurant industry
  • Testing food
  • Growing / Buying local
  • Training and mentorship

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