The Chef’s Table, hosted at the NAC’s 1 Elgin Restaurant, is set to feature gourmet chefs from across Canada. Guests will be treated to a spread of various cuisines and tastes that showcase local produce in elevated dishes. Kenton Leier is the executive chef at the NAC, and will be teaming up with three different chefs each week throughout the three-week event. In our preview piece about the “farm to table feast,” he talked about his anticipation for the event, and the importance of supporting local farmers and producers.
Chef Leier sat down with Apt613 to talk about his culinary career, his experience at the NAC, and the inspiration behind his cooking.
(The interview has been edited for length and clarity)
Apt613: Can you give us a brief rundown on your culinary history and why you wanted to become a chef?
Leier: My dad was a chef when I was growing up – he worked in hotels for many years, and then he had his own restaurant. When I was young, I was always in and out of his restaurant and growing up around that, so I have a lot of memories of seeing the hustle and bustle, and watching him work. I got through high school and didn’t really know what my career path was going to be, so he suggested I get a job in a kitchen, just for the summer. I ended up working for a chef that used to work for him, doing all the grunt work like peeling lots of bags of onions, carrots and stuff like that. I wasn’t totally thrilled with that, but got to the end of the summer and they offered me an apprenticeship. It was a great chef, and he was into competing, so he introduced me to culinary competitions. I moved to Ottawa in the early 90s and got a job at a restaurant in the market; worked there for a few years and then ended up getting hired at the Château Laurier. That’s where I first met Nelson [Borges], worked in Wilfred, and worked my way up to became sous chef. Meanwhile, I was traveling to Europe for culinary competitions. My first executive chef’s job was at The Delta, and then The Westin, but always had that passion for leading a big brigade. Nelson ended up here at the NAC and in 2017 I came on as Executive Chef and been here ever since.
Apt613: From working your way up to becoming Executive Chef at the NAC today, what would you say is your favourite part of being here and working with the staff?
Leier: We concentrate more on the guest experience and honing on presenting ourselves more as an art form, and that’s where the resident chef program sort of fits in culinary as an art. But we’re free to explore culinary and do a lot of different things that I wouldn’t have been able to do in the hotels. I lead a big team, so it’s an opportunity to also teach. We have a lot of younger chefs that we bring in. I taught at Algonquin College for a while so I’m used to that. Working in this place gives me a chance to mentor and teach the younger chefs, so I find that very rewarding when I see them advance and move up.
Apt613: What would you say inspires your cooking and presentation style?
Leier: I’m a competitive guy, and that really got me interested in culinary because it exposed me to a lot of great chefs. I saw what they were doing and what they were capable of, and it was really presenting food as an art form when you’re competing; because everything’s precise. And I’m a visual person – I really enjoy making plates that are visually appealing as well as tasting good. Culinary competitions drove me visually and sort of influenced my style growing up as a chef.
Apt613: Do you have any specific chefs or restaurants that you idolize or have inspired your way of cooking?
Leier: I used to watch Jacques Pépin – I remember growing up really sort of thinking he was very cool and idolizing him. The other one is my dad. My dad is a very calm person, and that’s what’s served me well in my career, because the kitchen can be very chaotic and very emotional at times. So if you can control your emotions and keep everybody kind of calm, that really goes a long way.
Apt613: Do you have an underrated Ottawa restaurant that you would recommend to any cuisine enjoyers around the city?
Leier: Pelican Grill – it’s fairly well known but it’s sort of like in a little mini mall. It’s been around forever, but they consistently do seafood and fish super well.
Apt613: When it comes to The Chef’s Table this year, what are you looking forward to the most personally, and what are you looking forward to for the guests to experience this year?
Leier: I love those events, because we’re out in front of the guests. People are here for an experience and to see the satisfaction and joy they have from eating… that’s really rewarding. Working with other chefs is rewarding, because I always learn different things – they’ve got different techniques, maybe different ingredients – but also from my staff, because they see different things and they get to work with different chefs. They work at the National Art Center, but they’re getting exposure to really cool restaurants in DC or Edmonton or Winnipeg. It’s great for my staff, and that’s rewarding for me to see them.
The Chef’s Table is returning to Ottawa’s National Arts Centre (NAC) this July, hosted at 1 Elgin Restaurant’s outdoor patio along the Rideau Canal. The multi-weekend event invites guests to sample a variety of cuisines from headlining chefs across the country, alongside music performances.
