This text is part of the special book Plaisirs
After “Martin en restauration”, an adventure that lasted nearly 20 years, the iconic chef and co-owner of Montée de lait and then Pastaga, two restaurants that have marked the Montreal gastronomic scene, embarked on a professional adventure a priori surprising: the grocery store! What’s more, Martin Juneau is not a simple ambassador, but the new executive chef of meal solutions for the Metro brand. How does he experience this radical change and does he see his role? We met him exclusively, at the very moment when a first range of ready-to-cook dishes bearing his name arrived on the counters.
Martin, you surely surprise many by announcing your new role for Metro. What motivated your choice?
I would say it is the sum of several factors. I won’t hide from you that the pandemic has been trying for many restaurants. We finally got through it, but it was increasingly clear, for my partner Louis-Philippe Breton as for me, that we would not be renewing our Pastaga lease at the end of 2022. Because it was hard, but also because I wanted to be more present for my family, which was impossible with the working hours in catering. In the summer of 2022, a first small mandate for Metro arrived at the best possible time. I started developing ugly vegetable purees for Metro, then over the months, my role expanded… until I became an executive chef! I am very proud of this position and delighted to finally be able to talk about it.
Are the work and values of a chef like Martin Juneau reflected in the same way in the grocery store as in the restaurant business?
It’s not quite the same creative playing field, as there are constraints unique to the grocery sector, such as access to products, production of large volumes, recipes that must join more styles of consumers, or respect for nutritional values. But I’m lucky to have carte blanche within the limits of this territory, with people around me who are motivated, curious and even more feverish than I am. It’s super stimulating!
As for my values, they are intact. I’ve always cooked what I liked to eat, and that’s what I still do with my colleagues at Metro. The range of ready-to-cook meals launched this week is based on fresh products, without preservatives, local and organic as much as possible. It is also processed in Quebec and offers excellent value for money. So, in the end, the vision that I had as a chef of a restaurant and the one that I have now as the executive chef of Metro are not very different.
Tell us a bit about the “Martin Juneau for Metro” line of dishes.
It includes eight fairly hearty dishes that can be eaten alone as a main dish, or with several people as a side dish. There are classics, such as a pesto chicken supreme served with fusilli and kale, ricotta ravioli in a mushroom Alfredo sauce, or a spicy salmon and goat cheese lasagna. But several other dishes come out of the traditional offer that we know in grocery stores, such as squash risotto with bacon and parmesan, Korean barbecue pork tenderloin served with sticky rice and bok choy with sesame, and shrimps in coconut milk on Shanghai noodles and crunchy vegetables. With the added bonus of being able to keep them for two weeks in the fridge thanks to the sealed tray format that contains them.
Will your mandate stop at the co-creation of these ready-to-cook dishes?
No not at all. We are in the process of creating eight more recipes for the line, but I am also involved in several areas of meal solutions at Metro. In particular, I am working on updating the dishes cooked on site, so expect surprises in terms of salads, sandwiches and lunch box formulas over the coming months. I will also make capsules for Metro. In short, I develop my new role a little every day, I transpose the idea of the best possible product that is dear to me into the grocery store, and I feel like I’m part of something pioneering. It’s really rewarding.
This special content was produced by the Special Publications team of the Duty, relating to marketing. The drafting of Duty did not take part.