Presentations
We are pleased to announce our line-up of Presentations for Sunday, September 8th
Andrew Tutt
Owner and Executive Chef at Tuttco Eatery in St. Marys Ontario
Andrew is a native Stratford and has been in the food service industry for over thirty years. Starting at the young age of thirteen has provided him with well over half a lifetime of experience in a variety of kitchen settings.
The Stratford Chef School boasts being one of the top chef schools in the country and is unique in the idea that only the finest ingredients are given to the students. The premise of starting with the best leads to the idea that you will finish with the best. After the Stratford Chef school program, Andrew spent time working with Chris and Mary Woolf at Wildwood Inn. He then moved on to some of the top restaurants in Toronto including work with the Oliver Bonaccini Corporation, under Chef Anthony Walsh. Andrew went on to work in many reputable restaurants in Stratford, Calgary and Canmore. Confident in his abilities as a classically trained French chef, Andrew's inspiration comes from the diversity of many ethnic cuisines, his passion for excellence, sustainability, and local food.
We are proud to have Andrew return as one of our world-class Chef presenters, always a hit with Stratford's garlic lovers. (Check back for the schedule which will follow shortly.)
Andrew Mavor
Teacher of Culinary Arts at Stratford District Secondary School (The Avocado)
Originally from Stratford, Andrew Mavor's culinary style is one that playfully presents the best ingredients without pretension. Informed by a life spent travelling, his food is best thought of as what you'd love to cook at home if you had the time (plus a pretty big pantry and an encyclopedic knowledge of strange ingredients).
His resumé is long and bizarre, including 10 years in the music industry, running a guerrilla sushi stand at a music festival in the desert, making hot sauce for a chicken wing chain in Las Vegas and cooking 30 pig heads in a football field.
In Victoria, B.C., Mavor opened two restaurants. He turned an oddly experimental BBQ joint in a tiny powerhouse - his first restaurant, named Hanks *A Restaurant. Known for its aggressively rustic charm and tongue-in-cheek tone, the restaurant built a strong cult following on Vancouver island. A heavy emphasis on locally sourced whole animals, creative preparations and unapologetically strong flavours gave the food at Hanks a particular charm, cementing it as a destination restaurant.
His second restaurant, Nowhere *A Restaurant, opened in early 2019. A slightly more refined version of the style of Hanks and with more of an emphasis on plants and seafood, Nowhere found its stride immediately and was subsequently nominated for Best New Restaurant in En Route magazine in 2019. It placed 5th in the country.
Andrew was nominated for "Foodie of the Year" by Western Living for 2020. He re-settled in Stratford in late 2019 to pursue a career teaching Culinary Arts and is currently sharing his knowledge with the students of Stratford District Secondary School at the School's Avocado Café.
We're delighted to have Andrew back again this year. He's a huge hit with our Stratford garlic lovers! (Check back for the schedule which will follow shortly.)
Eli Silverthorne
A distinction level graduate from, and now core instructor with, the Stratford Chefs School, Eli Silverthorne is a wine afficionado and strong advocate for local and Canadian cuisine; that is to say he is regional preferred but not restrictive: "If it tastes great, enjoy it". Having staged at various restaurants across the country, from Araxi in Whistler to Scaramouche in Toronto and Maison Publique in Montreal, Eli has returned to his Southwestern Ontario roots settling into bountiful Perth County.
When asked what drew him to cooking he explains "It certainly wasn't the hours or the pay! Cooking, especially at an elite level, pushes you to utilize yourself in a very demanding, comprehensive, and time-sensitive way. As a professional, it draws people that otherwise may be outsiders, who may feel as if they have something to prove. Personally, I wanted a profession that would require me applying myself to the fullest. I always seek a challenge and cooking certainly provides that. Especially when teaching, I'm forced to use my body and mind in an optimized way. I'm constantly using all five senses: watching, smelling, listening, tasting, and touching; all while I'm anticipating, reacting, calling on experience, working with intuition, communicating and being completely in the moment."
A champion of traditional cooking methods, Eli enjoys slow food cooking techniques (cures, braise, smoking, fermentation, sous vide). Chef Eli is a promoter of accurate and comprehensive understandings regarding the what and the why of food science, as well as the historical background and cultural influences that produce particular recipes or cooking methods.
Eli teaches full-time, year-round with the Stratford Chef School: with apprentice students during regular Chef School programming and also designing and leading the schools OPEN KITCHEN program; a now year-round engagement where the school offers public cooking classes and instruction on a class by class sign up basis.
Eli is a born instructor and we're so thrilled to have him each and every year as one of our presenters. There is so much to be learned from Eli in so many areas of food presentation. (Check back for the schedule which will follow shortly.)
Rick Francis, Guitarist
Rick is a long-time Stratford resident who began his musical career at the age of five on classical violin and the ukelele. Rick is a Guitarist, Bassist, Audio Engineer, Music Programmer, Music Producer, Photographer, Cat Lover and Hat Lover. Rick returns to the Stratford Garlic Festival after many years of participation. He performs his smooth jazz, folk and soft rock at weddings, corporate events, private parties, restaurants and house concerts.
Rick has performed in many fine establishments such as Tuttco Eatery, Snapping Turtle Coffee Roastery, Revival House, Maelstrom Winery, and Hughson Hall. He not only performs each year for us at the Kiwanis Garlic Festival, but he is also our Audio Engineer. Our sincerest thanks to Rick for his ongoing support of our Kiwanis ventures and projects.