Chefs from across Canada will meet in Kelowna on February 5 and 6 to compete in the Gold Medal Plates in the Canadian Culinary Championships. We’ve interviewed the chefs to find out a little more about them and the dish they will make. Chef Guillaume Cantin from Montreal’s Les 400 Coups shared the following.

Tell us a little bit about your restaurant and/or style of cooking.

Les 400 coups is a restaurant focusing on local products and creative mix of flavours.

Where do you eat in your city?

In Montreal, it’s really rare that I’m going out.  I like to go to Hotel Herman, Taverne Square Dominion and le P’tit Alep.

What would be your ideal food day? 

My ideal food day will be a day passed in the kitchen with my mother and a big dinner with my family.

What trend do you wish would die?

I will like every trend to die. Be yourself.

What trend/s do you wish would be next?

So, I’m not looking for the next trend. 

What ingredient do you always have on hand?

I always have “love” on hand as an ingredient.

What equipment do you wish you had in your kitchen?

I would like to have a machine that stops the time, because sometimes 24 hours goes far too fast.

What cookbook would you suggest for a gift for your foodie friends this year?

For a gift, I’m suggesting the huge encyclopedia from culinary historian Michel Lambert called “L’encyclopédie de la cuisine familiale du Québec”.

Any hints on what dish you will be preparing for Gold Medal Plates?

For Kelowna, I’m preparing a dish that included a special cut of meat that I developed with Gaspor – suckling pig.

What wine/beer/libation are you pairing with this year?

A really good beer from Brasseurs du Monde (St-Hyacinthe, Qc) called “À table”.

Who is coming with you?

I have the luck to have Alain Thibault,  the sommelier for Brasseurs du Monde with me.

 Why do you cook? Fame? Love? Pleasure?

I cooked to please people. I like to go to work to always push on myself to go further and to evolve.

Why do you work 14-16 hour days, get paid peanuts, get cuts, bruises and burns but do it all over again everyday?

I don’t mind to do big days, because I love what I do.