Chef Bobby Milheron from West Restaurant
The Great Canadian Kitchen Party, the lead up to the Canadian Culinary Championships, is underway in cities across Canada and Vancouver’s competition takes place Friday, October 4, 2019 at Rogers Arena. We’ve asked the chefs a few questions to get to know them a bit better and here’s the results from Chef Bobby Milheron from West Restaurant.
Tell us a little bit about your restaurant and/or style of cooking.
West is known for their contemporary regional cuisine and seamless service utilizing seasonal ingredients to deliver superbly dishes offering modern interpretations of classics. One of the highlights of the dining room is a temperature-controlled wall of wine, and under it, the long cherry wood bar where martinis and cocktails are composed of fresh herbs, juices and creative infusions.
Where do you eat in your city?
My new favourite is Unchai on Burrard. It’s a tiny place run by a husband and wife team that offers the best Thai food in the city.
What did you eat for dinner last night?
Missed service and dinner last night as I was attending Passions 2019 on behalf of West.
What city would you most like to eat in right now, and why?
Portland is my current go-to dining town as I enjoy the relaxed atmosphere and casual restaurant settings that focus on regionally sourced products.
What ingredient do you most like to cook with and why? What is your least favourite and why?
I enjoy working with sunchokes as there’s so much earthy flavour in this versatile vegetable. My least favourite vegetable are zucchinis as they can be unforgiving and easily overcooked.
What is your most used piece of kitchen equipment besides your knives?
I always use a spoon for basting, tasting, and plating while in the kitchen. I have a wide collection of spoons of every size and use them for almost everything.
What’s do you often cook at home?
At home, I often use my charcoal grills and throw on a Hanger steak with some nice seasonal produce.
What cookbook/s do you most often refer to?
The French Laundry cookbook is and always will be my reference.
What chef would you like to collaborate with?
I’m not sure that a collaboration will ever happen but cooking with Dan Barber would be a dream.
What are you preparing for The Great Canadian Kitchen Party (hints are fine)?
I’m an East Coaster so lobster has to be in the plan.
What is your beverage pairing?
We’ve chosen to pair with a Van Westen Vineyards Riesling.
Who is coming with you to assist?
My team will consist of a party of close friends and longtime colleagues.
Bio Bobby Milheron Executive Chef
Bobby Milheron first discovered his passion for the culinary arts on the East Coast, where he graduated from The Culinary Institute of Canada, in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island — which would lead to joining established kitchen brigades at restaurants in New England and Nova Scotia. Bobby then headed west and joined the team under Executive Chef Quang Dang at Vancouver’s Diva at the Met in 2008.
After stops on the line at Nu Restaurant and La Brasserie, he was reunited with Chef Dang as Sous Chef at West Restaurant in 2012, where he spent two more years honing his craft before joining the opening team at Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar as Senior Sous Chef. During this time, Bobby went on to assist Executive Chef Alex Chen’s climb to the top of the podium at the 10th annual Gold Medal Plates regional culinary competition in Victoria in 2015.
A highly driven and creative talent, Bobby is an ardent supporter of local and peak-of-season ingredients and cultivates lasting relationships with farmers, ranchers, foragers and fishermen in his own backyard. He loves to provide his guests with fare that is both informed and defined by the bounty of fresh ingredients available to chefs working in the Pacific Northwest.
