Chef Shaun Spooner will fork it out at the BC Seafood Festival, 2018

Chef Shaun Spooner, The Prime Chophouse – Courtenay, BC, was born in Edmonton, Alberta where he literally grew up in the hospitality industry – his mom was involved in Hotel Management. Later, when his mom was transferred to Victoria, B.C., Shaun saw his future as a chef.

“I knew from the first moment I saw the Head Chef at my mother’s hotel that I wanted to be a cook, not just any cook.”

“I found my bliss.”

During high school, Shaun started on the road to learning about and perfecting his culinary expertise. He started out with several part-time jobs in the restaurant industry and learned most of his skills at a place called, ‘City Lights’.

At City Lights, he worked under Chef Chan, whose Asian and WestCoast influence still inspires many of his dishes today.

After several years of experience in a variety of restaurants, he soon turned his interest and attention to further training. Intrigued by the structure and flair of Earls, Shaun joined their team where he learned many more aspects of the restaurants industry including front and back of house.

At Earl’s, Shaun was involved in training and development, as well as design, and was soon assisting the opening of four of Earl’s Restaurants; each one an individual success. Shaun and Paul Simpson’s (Med Grill) relationship was forged at Earls where they both worked. Shortly after they created and built the Med Grill and created the concept that led to a second Med Grill location in Victoria, B.C.

“Starting at the Royal Oak location in Victoria, I worked my way up to Executive Chef and played an instrumental role in the development and opening of the Med Grill on Yates Street.”

Along with Corporate Chef, Michael Pelletier, they have developed a menu and a sense of team work at The Prime Chophouse and Wine Bar, Courtenay, BC. that is unbeatable.

“My culinary abilities are the result of years of hard work, increasing my knowledge and training in places such as Germany, Napa Valley, and most recently, Australia,” said Chef Shaun Spooner.

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