Michael Smith: Chef abroad comes to Falls
Michael Smith isn’t so sure about the term ‘ celebrity chef,’ even though he fits the description to a tee.
Author? TV host? Restaurant owner? Culinary all- star? Yes to all of them. But when he’s back home in Prince Edward Island after touring the country, he’s a regular guy who just happens to whip up a fabulous creme brûlée.
“I’ve lived here for 25 years, I’m part of my community the same way you’re part of yours,” says the Food Network Canada staple.
The New York- born chef moved to Prince Edward Island in 1992 and promptly turned local seaside inn The Inn at Bay Fortune into one of the country’s top restaurants. Using only ingredients and meat from the property’s organic garden and farm, Smith’s strictly local approach draws food buffs from around the world.
It’s a motto he takes with him on the road. He wraps up a nine- city jaunt across Canada Wednesday with a special Tastes in Niagara event at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse in Niagara Falls, hosted by Fallsview Events. It will be a fivecourse meal created with his recipes, using many ingredients Smith is bringing from Prince Edward Island.
Smith is no stranger to Niagara, calling it one of “Canada’s premier culinary destinations.”
It’s a sentiment shared by many top chefs across the country, he says.
“There’s a pretty unique confluence of factors there, between the wine and the culinary school, lots of tourists, a great agricultural region … that’s the kind of place a guy like me likes to visit.
“It comes back to the production of the food. It’s an agricultural region. I’m not disingenuous about it, I’m well aware there’s massive tourism infrastructure there — all kinds of silly stuff — but there’s all kinds of ‘ real’ there, too, and all kinds of momentum.”
In addition to authoring 10 cookbooks, Smith has starred in the culinary shows The Inn Chef, Chef at Large, Chef at Home, Chef Abroad, Chef Michael’s Kitchen and Chopped: Canada.
He has seen plenty of cooking fads and trends the past 25 years, but utilizing local ingredients isn’t one of them.
“Local is not a trend, it is just the way it is,” he says. “I mean, we were doing this 25 years ago across the country, lots of us, cooking with what’s around us long before anyone started calling it local. Now, we’ve moved well past that. It’s trickled its way down to every facet of food.
“Frankly, it’s us catching up to the rest of the world. This has always been what cuisine is about. Everywhere you go in the world, any country, any cuisine you name, is always about just going out in the backyard and having the confidence to cook with what you have.”
Despite hosting his share of TV shows, Smith hopes the abundance of food- related media isn’t intimidating Canadians from tackling their own dishes. He always tries to teach realistic meals that won’t scare off the novice.
“Frankly, there’s a lot of contradictory information out there,” he says. “It’s hard to know which way is up, and I see it as a double- edged sword.
“All this food media, on one hand, has convinced Canadians that we’re striving for perfection and that we should put food up on a pedestal. Those are all things that turn off average home cooks.
“We should celebrate food, but don’t put it on the pedestal. Let’s just keep it simple and straight forward, and let’s not lose track of perhaps the most powerful thing of all, which is finding the time to sit down at your table with your family.”