Stewart Glynes chef/owner of The Bench Market
Stewart Glynes is head chef/owner of The Bench Market in Penticton. Raised in Surrey, he worked his way up the restaurant ladder before moving to Penticton seven years ago as an employee at The Bench Market. Almost four years ago, he and his wife Heather bought the business. Away from work he enjoys golf, curling and spending time with Heather and their three children.
He spoke with Herald editor James Miller about his business and his days as a competitive curler.
HERALD: Where did you develop your love of cooking from?
GLYNES: My mother is an amazing cook. She hosted dinner parties all the time and cooked for days to prepare. Loved to make cookies as a kid from scratch — and memories of cooking bacon at a really young age.
HERALD: What was your first job in the industry and how much did it pay?
GLYNES: Delivery driver at Pizza Hut, which turned into an early morning doughmaking shift before school at 16-years-old. $4.25 hour. HERALD: Why Penticton? GLYNES: Beautiful location, great climate, perfect size city, great place to raise a family, huge food culture with the farmers and wineries.
HERALD: What do you enjoy about cooking?
GLYNES: The fast pace, the heat, sharp knives, cool equipment, fire, music, social scene, instantly rewarding, the camaraderie. HERALD: Do you cook at home? GLYNES: Yes. Mostly dinner and Sunday brunch, Heather makes great breakfasts and lunch through the week. The kids can be tricky to feed, but they do eat a lot of different foods
HERALD: Who was your favourite chef either real or fictitious?
GLYNES: Jack Tripper from Three’s Company. He rarely worked and lived with two beautiful women.
HERALD: What’s the toughest part of your job?
GLYNES: Staying ahead on trends, continuing to learn on the job and finding a work/life balance
HERALD: What do you credit your success with The Bench Market to?
GLYNES: Thank you for saying that we are successful. Using local quality ingredients, making items fresh from scratch. We work hard every day to make sure we are listening to and taking care of our customers. And we have an amazing staff: people who bring fresh ideas and great energy.
HERALD: I understand the building has a unique history.
GLYNES: It’s a big part of the feel of The Bench Market. It was built in the mid-1940s and was a confectionery for a while. It was then a neighbourhood convenience store for more than six decades and has been The Bench Market for 12 years now. The building’s architect built many flat-roofed buildings and homes in Penticton.
HERALD: Switching gears, what’s your favourite activity to do with your kids?
GLYNES: Riding bikes is something we can all do and they love it,
HERALD: As a junior curler you played in three national championships (two Canadians and one Canada Winter Games). How tough was it when you eventually decided to give up the curling dream and focus on being a chef?
GLYNES: Giving up anything is difficult. On my last elite team, after we got knocked out of qualifying for the 2002 Olympic Games, we all understood that curling wasn’t going to be our career unless we either invested more time and money into it to make it to the ultra elite level or to just play it for fun and start focusing on our careers. For me, my bank account and prospects told me I needed to focus on the latter so it was an easier decision.
HERALD: Who was the greatest player you ever curled against?
GLYNES: Kevin Martin, skip, 2010 Olympic gold medallist.
HERALD: What’s your take on Brad Gushue?
GLYNES: He’s been curling for years at a very high level and winning, 2006 Olympic gold medallist, 2017 Brier and World champion. He’s worked very hard at the sport and promoting it, he deserves the victories and accolades that come with it.
HERALD: I have to end with a cliche question because you’re a chef. Which three people, living or dead, would you most like to invite to dinner?
GLYNES: Bruce Lee, Robin Williams, Farrah Fawcett. It would be an interesting evening.