Small Group Montreal Cooking Class by Michelin-Trained Chef

Meet Robert

Robert has been cooking professionally for over 30+ years. For almost three decades, food has been the center of his life. He has worked as a food editor, restaurant designer, hotel operator, and chef. He launched his first restaurant pop-up as a high school junior and began traveling the world in search of flavor by 19. As a food writer, he was nominated as World’s Best Food Journalist and won numerous global accolades as a correspondent for Travel+Leisure, Gourmet, and Slow Food. As an Oxford-trained scholar, he has lectured at food conferences on four continents. As a culinary consultant, he has worked with generational talents like Michelin 3-star chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Sydney’s top toque Neil Perry, and Top Chef winner Harold Dieterle. As a culinary and operations director, he has developed 50+ restaurants and luxury hotels in the US, UK, and Asia, including some of the world’s top brands (W Bangkok and Seoul, Fullerton Bay Singapore, Corinthia UK). He believes that food has a unique ability to connect people, transcend culture, and create lasting memories. He is so excited to share his passion and hopes his cooking can bring a few dollops (or more) of joy into your life!

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal (1 - 15 guests) During this small-group dining experience, Robert blends European and American techniques with global influences, using the finest local produce, seafood, and farm-fresh ingredients. Passionate about showcasing Montreal’s diverse food culture, he invites you to explore the city’s rich culinary landscape through his carefully crafted menu. Hosted in his home kitchen - a historic 1800s building in the heart of Montreal’s Old Port—this experience offers a luxurious and immersive 4-course tasting journey. Each dish is inspired by Montreal’s multicultural food scene, featuring bold flavors from Asian, Jewish, Caribbean, Portuguese, and Québécois traditions, woven into a delicious narrative of food, culture, and community. Enhance your meal with an optional alcohol pairing, featuring four tasting glasses of artisanal wine and cider, or opt for a curated rare and vintage tea tasting for a unique non-alcoholic experience.

Cooking experience (1 - 15 guests) Join Robert, a Michelin-star-trained chef and award-winning food writer (Travel+Leisure, Slow Food), for a small-group cooking class in Montreal. This hands-on experience goes beyond traditional recipes, teaching you to cook like a professional. Chef Robert will guide you through the same training he offers to professional cooks, focusing on essential culinary skills like knife techniques, plating, building sauces, and developing key culinary habits. Over the course of three hours, you'll work just like a chef in a top restaurant, gaining practical skills that will elevate your cooking to the next level. At the end of the class, you'll sit for a formal 3-course lunch. Each dish will be inspired and influenced by a culinary community in Montreal - for example, Caribbean, North Asian, Syrian and Quebecois. If you opt for the alcohol add-on, you'll enjoy 4 tasting glasses of artisanal wine and cider. Non-drinkers can savor a curated rare and vintage tea tasting experience.

Market visit (1 - 15 guests) Meet your host outside 'Poissonnerie Shamrock Fish Ltee' for your small-group guided tour of the Jean-Talon Market, one of the largest farmer's markets in North America. You will tour the market from a working chef's perspective focusing on the historic food communities of Montreal (Italy, North Africa, Middle East) through tastings of boldly flavored street food. Wind through the market stopping to explore the history and trade behind local and (for rare items) global sources of vegetables, tea, meat, and fish used by Quebec's top chefs. Then visit a tea store that supplies Michelin 3-star restaurants, buy cheese directly from artisan makers, and nibble on handmade Tunisian sweets. Your market tour will last for 1.5-2 hours.

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