TV | Chefs stay up to date

It’s 2009. Chuck Hughes is about to record Chuck’s Day Off, his first TV project, when a stylist apostrophes him backstage: “You’ll have to find yourself a long-sleeved sweater to cover your tattoos. You won’t go on TV the same! »

Marc-Andre Lemieux
The Press

Then aged 33, the chef and co-owner of Le Garde Manger welcomes this request with dismay. Fortunately, the situation is resolved a few minutes later, when the producer of the show intervenes to allow Chuck to proceed with the shooting in a t-shirt, tattoos well exposed.

“At the time, some people still had this slightly French idea of ​​a chef, with the white toque, the apron, etc. But I said: “If you went to look in the kitchen, you would see that there are a lot more people like me”, says Chuck Hughes in an interview.

This anecdote shows how much the public image of chefs has changed in recent decades in Quebec. An evolution partly attributable to the colossal air time granted to them.

Their media omnipresence continues this spring. A single glance at the TV guide is enough to realize this.

For two weeks, the Vrai platform has been relaying Welcome to Chucka series filmed at Chuck Hughes’ family cottage in the Eastern Townships, in which he cooks dishes using local products.

Since Monday, TVA has been broadcasting the first season of Heads of wood, a competition led by Mathieu Baron and judged by Martin Picard which brings together – in the forest – 10 chefs from Quebec. The second season will be offered exclusively on True starting April 12.

On May 10, Quebecor’s video-on-demand service will offer the new Pop-Up Restaurant with Hakim Chajar, the winner of Chiefs in 2014.

Speaking of Chiefsthe reality show piloted by Élyse Marquis will resume airing on ICI Télé on April 18 with Colombe St-Pierre replacing Daniel Vézina.

In English Canada, Food Network has been presenting for a few days Wall of Bakersan amateur pastry competition with a panel of 12 Canadian chefs, including Ricardo Larrivee and Patrice Demers.

One can also mention Help requested with Louis-François Marcotte (ICI Tou.tv Extra), A chef at the cabin (Tele-Quebec), Five chefs in my kitchen with Marina Orsini (ICI Télé), Potluck Station with Stefano Faita (Zest), The foodies pregame with Martin Juneau (Zeste) and Three times a day & you with Marilou (VAT).

A dazzling progression

At the forefront of the phenomenon since its debut on the Josée di Stasio show on Télé-Québec in 2003, Patrice Demers speaks of a meteoric rise.

“When I started, we only saw Daniel Vézina and Normand Laprise, recalls the pastry chef in an interview Zoom. In the street, they were the only two chiefs that Monsieur and Madame Everybody could name. Now it’s completely different. »

Today co-owner of Patrice Pâtissier, a counter, training workshop and restaurant in the Little Burgundy district of Montreal, the entrepreneur applauds the proliferation of cooking shows, because they contribute to “democratizing gastronomy”.

This subject is close to his heart, since in the mid-1990s, when he was in high school, it was while watching television that Patrice Demers discovered his vocation. Culinary programs being rarer in Quebec, he turned to Julia Child and Jacques Torres, present on various American channels.

“In Quebec, it’s really Daniel Vézina’s show on Radio-Canada [Attention c’est chaud, de 1996 à 1999] who impressed me. It was a click for me. It opened something. It showed me that we could practice this profession at home. »

Aspire first to be a TV chef

The media rise of chefs has transformed the Quebec culinary industry, says Chuck Hughes. The more the years pass, the more the animator of Chuck and the First Peoples’ Kitchena bilingual series that showcases different Indigenous cultures on APTN, is feeling the pull of the spotlight with new recruits.

“Before, the chiefs were guys who stayed behind. Today, it’s not really that anymore. The new generations sometimes aspire to be chefs on TV before being good chefs. I find it sad. Because me, when I started doing a bit of television, I was 29-30 years old. I already had 15 years of restaurant experience. Carrots, I had cut some. Slaps, I had eaten it. »

Ricardo identifies two categories of TV chefs: those who want to pass on their knowledge, and those who want to entertain more. By appearing in the credits of competitions like Wall of Bakersthe latter have contributed to the rise of the culinary genre, believes the host of Ricardo at Radio-Canada and Ricardo and Friends on Food Network.

“It allows you to reach a larger audience, because [comme téléspectateur], even if you don’t like to cook, you may want to listen to it for entertainment. »

The career of chefs who benefit from a television showcase is obviously positively affected. Ricardo, who has run his daily at Radio-Canada since 2002, knows something about it.

Patrice Demers can divide his professional career in two: before Josée di Stasio, when he worked at the restaurant Les Chèvres, and after Josée di Stasio.

“In the media, that’s what started it all for me. They started to invite me to other shows, I was offered book projects… From a more personal point of view, it allowed me to discover that I liked the teaching side. Both my parents are teachers. It must be running through my veins. »

“When you own a business, TV provides visibility that is not negligible,” adds the pastry chef.

Same story on the side of Chuck Hughes.

“TV has allowed me to add a string to my bow, summarizes the head of the Garde Manger. Today, I do more TV than I cook. It gave me other opportunities. It’s still crazy when I think about it. At first, my goal was to open a small restaurant with 40 seats. »

Series Welcome to Chuck is offered on True. Food Network Presents Wall of Bakers Mondays at 10 p.m.