Taste of Place

In episode 66 of The Business of Food Travel podcast, we speak with Chef Darren MacLean. Chef Darren is one of Canada’s most acclaimed and outspoken chefs, restaurateurs and environmental advocates. Seeking to showcase Canada’s culinary scene to international audiences, MacLean was Canada’s sole contender and a finalist on Netflix’s global cooking competition ‘The Final Table.’ He is also the first Canadian chef ever invited to collaborate with Princess Cruises. MacLean is passionate about sustainability and the food-building community. While he regularly participates in events as an educator, speaker and culinary judge in Canada and abroad, he is happiest when in the kitchen. MacLean’s Japanese izakaya-style restaurant Shokunin, in his home city of Calgary, Alberta, has been voted one of Canada's top 50 restaurants for three years in a row. Canada's ethnic mosaic inspires Chef Darren. His appreciation for diversity leads him to travel extensively, further developing his unique perspective on food and the culinary experience. MacLean has spent considerable time in Japan studying the cuisine of the country that inspires him most. Believing in the power of food to bridge cultures, he welcomes global chefs to his country and kitchen, and he himself travels often -- from Tokyo to Mexico City -- to collaborate with others.