Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Quick Bites

Crank up the tunes
1333quick_bites
Jay Lynn, executive chef, Cinnamon Bear & Grill

Quick Bites with

Jay Lynn, Executive Chef, Cinnamon Bear & Grill

Interview and photo by Maureen Provencal

PQ: What’s your food/wine philosophy?

JL: Funky.

PQ: What’s the most important principle in cooking?

JL: Keep it fresh and simple.

PQ: One food you can’t live without?

JL: Fish.

PQ: One ingredient you can’t live without?

JL: Fresh herbs.

PQ: What food/drink should people be more open to trying?

JL: Getting out of their comfort zone; trying something new.

PQ: One food you avoided as a child and now you love?

JL: Artichokes.

PQ: Weirdest thing you’ve eaten?

JL: Jelly Fish, they are like eating rubbing bands.

PQ: Exact moment you decided to become a chef?

JL: I was probably 17, working as a waiter in an Austrian restaurant. I was always interested in what was going on in the kitchen.

PQ: Most memorable meal you have ever served?

JL: A Robert Mondavi wine dinner.

PQ: Most interesting environment you’ve ever worked in?

JL: At the conference centre working a four-course plated dinner for 1,200 people.

PQ: What’s your solution for a last minute meal?

JL: I would get some good cheeses, artisan bread, cold cuts, a bottle of red wine and crank up the tunes.

PQ: How would you describe what it is to be a chef?

JL: To get out of the kitchen and talk with guests and hear that they enjoyed what we created; to hear that instant gratification.

PQ: Where would you go to eat, if you could go anywhere in the world?

JL: I would go to the Maldives.

PQ: How far have you traveled for a great meal?

JL: Not far, there are so many great restaurants in Vancouver and Whistler.

PQ: Where would you go for your last meal in Whistler?

JL: I don’t plan on going anywhere, but if I was it would be the Bear Foot Bistro for anything Melissa wants to cook.

PQ: Who has been the most influential person on your cooking/career?

JL: Julia Child.

PQ: What would you advise to anyone wanting to come into this industry?

JL: Probably that there are better ways to make a living, unless they are really excited about it.