Chef Roger Ma, Executive Chef Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar
Canada’s Great Kitchen Party is the lead up to the Canadian Culinary Championships, and is underway in cities across Canada. 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 Roger Ma, of Boulevard Kitchen and Oyster Bar.
Tell us a little bit about your restaurant and/or style of cooking.
My restaurant is seafood focused with a definite West Coast vibe. I try and use as many local products as possible but there is a definite global influence in my cooking. My style is classical with a modern approach.
Where do you eat in your city?
I like to eat in Richmond, where there are a ton of great Asian restaurants. I crave simple things like a good bowl of wonton noodle from Max noodle house.
What did you eat for dinner last night?
I cooked some Chinese food last night at home — stewed tomato and egg with preserved chili and radish, stir fried yu-choy with oyster sauce and garlic, some bbq meats from HK bbq master with rice.
What city would you most like to eat in right now, and why?
I would want to eat in Tokyo. There is so much great food there, and it’s home to the world’s best sushi.
What ingredient do you most like to cook with and why? What is your least favourite and why?
I really enjoy cooking seafood — fish, especially. Fish is so delicate and each species cooks differently. ou can also apply a lot of different cooking techniques to the fish for different results. I really do not enjoy persimmons — something about the texture throws me off.
What is your most used piece of kitchen equipment besides your knives?
I would say a cake tester. I keep one on me at all times, mainly for checking the doneness of proteins and vegetables by either touch or temperature. A cake tester never lies.
What do you often cook at home?
I love grilling. I have been really into spatchcocking chicken lately. I marinate mine for a few days in a lemongrass marinade. It’s great in the summer served with warm vermicelli noodles with nuoc cham and fresh herbs, lettuce and pickles.
What cookbook/s do you most often refer to?
I often refer back to La Repertoire de la Cuisine by Louis Saulnier. It’s basically reference for classic French preparations for professionals. When I want to look up a cool, old-school sauce or a name of a dish that’s my go-to book.
What chef would you like to collaborate with?
Yoshihiro Murata of Kikunoi restaurant in Kyoto. I ate at his restaurant eight years ago and his food still resonates with me. He is self-taught in classical Japanese kaiseki cuisine but also lived in France and is in love with French cuisine. He blends the two cultures together in a very unexpected way.
What are you preparing for The Great Canadian Kitchen Party (hints are fine)?
I will be showcasing the bounty of our BC coastal terroir, so expect pristine seafood and sea plants in my dish…
What is your beverage pairing?
I will be pairing my dish with Culmina Winery’s 2018 ‘Unicus’ Grüner Veltliner.
Who is coming with you to assist?
Executive General Manager and Wine Director JP Potters, Sous Chef Jasper Cruickshank and Junior Sous Chef Daniel Kim.
Bio Roger Ma | Executive Chef Boulevard
Roger Ma began his career in the industry by helping to launch Fifty Two 80 Bistro & Bar at the Four Seasons Resort Whistler in 2004. From there, Roger became an integral part of the kitchen engine that drove a number of restaurants in esteemed chef Daniel Boulud’s empire.
In 2006, Roger rose in the ranks at Boulud’s flagship restaurant, Daniel in New York, from chef de partie to banquet sous chef to sous chef. After six years, Roger took the role of corporate sous chef in Boulud’s Dinex Group and moved on to help open Café Boulud and dBar at the Four Seasons Toronto as well as Maison Boulud at the Ritz Carlton in Montreal. In 2014, he returned to his hometown of Vancouver to help open Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar.
Roger is no stranger to accolades, having claimed the top prize at the 2015 Vancouver Aquarium Ocean Wise™ Chowder Chowdown from a field of 14 chefs. In 2016, Roger also earned a podium finish at the Bocuse d’Or national finals and won the Vancouver Curry Cup.
Most recently, he helped lead the Boulevard back-of-house team to repeat gold-medal wins in the Best Seafood category at the 2018 and ’19 editions of the prestigious annual Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards and in early 2019 saw the restaurant earn the No. 31 spot on the prestigious annual ranking of Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants. In June of 2019 he reunited with his former colleague Melissa Rodriguez, Chef/Owner of New York City’s Michelin-starred Del Posto, for a sold-out, collaborative ‘Michelin on the Road’ Dinner at Boulevard.
