About

People keep asking me when I became so interested in food – when I became a true “foodie”. To be honest, it’s very difficult to pinpoint an exact moment when I realized that I have become a food enthusiast. For as long as I can remember I’ve taken extreme gratification from preparing food, eating food, and being around food. For me, a trip to the grocery store is like going to Disney World, the newest in kitchen appliances tops my Christmas list each year, and travelling thousands of kilometres just to try an exciting new restaurant is not unheard of.

THE BEGINNING

I guess that for me it all started when I was very young – around 10 years old. I would prepare the most random stuff and took a great deal of pride in cooking. My signature dish was an interesting mixture of diced ham and onions cooked with butter and VINEGAR of all things. Horrible, I’m sure, but I loved the process of cooking and the resulting product just the same.

Working my way through university, I had the opportunity (or maybe privilege) of working in one of the finest restaurants in the city – Boccaccio’s. The place featured a traditional Italian menu that was prepared with love and expertise by talented chefs. I think that place changed my perspective on food and on what it meant to eat a great meal.

EVOLUTION

The rest of it just seemed to evolve and it’s really been over the past 5 years that my interest in and enjoyment of food and entertaining has peaked. Terms like amuse bouches, sous vide, Michelin-starred, and molecular gastronomy now have important meaning in my life and I now take pride in being able to prepare a nine-course tasting menu from scratch – a far cry from the ham a vinegar dishes of my youth!

So a blog seemed like the next logical step in my foodie progression. My idea with Foodie Foray is to share some things I’ve learned and some of my adventures with others who are as passionate about food as I am.

Here’s to having a full belly and a smile on your face! 🙂