Jerek Bowman: Chef Tournant, Fairmont Royal York

Jerek Bowman is Toronto-born but has spent a good deal of time in Waterloo Region. He returns here to visit family regularly. Most important, he is a graduate of Conestoga College’s culinary program. At the Fairmont Royal York, Bowman is first cook tournant, a jack-of-all-trades who works various kitchen stations at the restaurants and banquet facilities at the landmark hotel in downtown Toronto. He loves the job and the venue.

“The Royal York is my dream job. It’s iconic, arguably the most famous hotel in the country and probably the biggest kitchen. It’s fun to show up for work and be told to start preparing because the Queen of England will be with us in a few months.”

*     *     *

Best thing you’ve ever eaten?
JB: Queretaro, Mexico. Found myself in a random “Average Joe” restaurant where they bury their steaks to age underground for weeks.  The tenderloin, which was cooked on a wood fire grill, came out rare, and smeared with the restaurant’s own churned butter which is much different than the homogenized stuff we have here.  There is a heavy “blue cheesy” aroma in their butter that you need to have an appreciation of to enjoy.  I will never forget the hyper-tenderness, complexity, and briny-salty taste of that beef.  It was a neat evening to see how different cooks in other areas of the world utilize the same basic ingredients only to use radically different methods which suit their environment to come up with a far different (and in this case), better product.

Other career you could have pursued?
JB: Economics.  It was one or the other. However at the end of the day, I pursued my gut feeling (I was hungry).

Favourite beverage?
JB: Sparkling Water.  San Pellegrino is the best of the best.  If we are talking booze, I prefer full bodied reds with heavy oak.

Beverage that once just about killed you?
JB: Not so much the quality, but far more the quantity of warm sake consumed at my bachelor party. The last real thing I remember before subscribing back to reality the next morning was the empty bottles of sake per person ratio.  It was easily 2:1.

Chef you’d most like to meet?
JB: Not a huge number I care to meet, but there is a ton of chefs I would love to work with.  Introvertive personalities can be a let down on first impressions; however, get them into a kitchen and that’s when they shine.  Mario Batali because I love Babbo and Del Posto, Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin is the best with fish, Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern, and CIA Pasty Instructor Francisco Migoya.

Best footwear (for the kitchen or otherwise)?
JB: I use full heel covered steel toe, laceless SIKA’s in the kitchen.  Clogs do not offer the knee support I require and I have found them to be a godsend to my podiatrist when I have worn them in the past.

Favourite ethnic food in Waterloo Region?
JB: Ben Thanh Viet Thai Restaurant on Northfield.  Fresh, simple, big portions, cheap, consistent service. Every time I eat there I get that same sort of excited feeling you get when you find $20 laying on the street.  It’s awesome, too good to be true, and I am ahead in life for having found it.

What scares you in a kitchen?
JB: Servers walking on the line and using one of my knives…

Greatest failed recipe?
JB: “Parnassienne De Mousse Au Chocolat” – first year apprenticeship. Some words of advice to follow.  If it’s pastry, follow the measurements.  If it calls for melted chocolate, do not use Hershey Kisses.  If you are folding whipped egg whites into melted chocolate, please remove the chocolate from the bain marie first.  If you are using PVC piping to mould your chocolate dessert into a tower to show off to your mom, please use acetate so that you can actually remove the piping from the desert.

Something that gives you great pleasure?
JB: Travelling and fun in the sun, a good beach, clear water, and decent food around me.  I think I just described 7 Mile Beach in Grand Cayman.

A favourite teacher you’ve had?
JB: Chef Philip Saraiva of Conestoga College.  He has a true passion about food and sticks to some pretty tough standards.  It’s nearly impossible to get high marks in his class because his philosophy is that if he gave high marks, then you don’t really need to work on yourself.  Having said that, he alone really prepared me for the stresses of the kitchen and I was excited to have been one of the 35% or so who actually graduated from Chef Training 2002.

Do you ride a bike?
JB: I do.  I bike everywhere.

A moment in your life you’d like to have back?
JB: I’d like to go back to my wedding day.  I was so nervous that day knowing I had to do a thank you speech that I didn’t eat any of the food we had arranged with the banquet hall.  I hear that it was good, so I would want to go back to actually check it out.

Where were you born?
JB: Jane and Finch BABY!

Favourite band?
JB: Currently, Queens of the Stone Age.

Who would you like to cook for?
JB: Stephen Hawking, Stephen Lewis, or Norman Borlaug.  Sure Norman is dead (small detail), but these are all guys who have profoundly contributed to the betterment of mankind. I love cooking for admirable people.

The thing you wish for Waterloo Region?
JB: I wish Phil’s would bring back $1.50 beers.

Go-to late-night snack?
JB: Campus Pizza.

Best thing about being a chef?
JB: The choice of language in the kitchen.  I love other cooks.  You think sailors are bad?  If you do not bring a colourful repertoire of creative nouns and verbs into a faux masculine kitchen, you will likely not blend in well.  It’s all in good fun, but not so great if you work in an open concept kitchen.

Most dumbest purchase you’ve ever made?
JB: I spent $60 once to see a live performance of the cast of “Jackass.”  They came on stage drunk and lasted 45 minutes with nothing planned … and I was making $7.50 an hour at the time as an apprentice.  In hindsight, I really should have seen that coming.

Favourite city?
JB: Quebec City: the best place for definitive food culture in Canada.  It reminds me of a clean smaller Paris. Plus it’s only a 9 hour drive away.

TV Chef’s who annoy you?
JB: Rachael Ray, and only because I once saw her tell the audience that it was completely fine to walk into a restaurant and insist you can order a half portion of something.  This clearly did not come from a true working chef.

Would you describe yourself as sweet or savory?
JB: I prefer to be sweet.  I suspect I will live longer that way.