Halifax restaurateur to compete on Top Chef Canada

A Halifax chef will hit the small screen Monday in the next season of Top Chef Canada.

The eighth season — featuring 12 culinary artists from across Canada — will see someone take home a grand prize that includes $100,000.

Among those competing is 36-year-old Stephanie Ogilvie. She is the chef de cuisine of popular Chives Canadian Bistro, and also runs Hopscotch Dinner Club with her boyfriend Brock.

She won a regional Gold Meal Plate competition in 2017, and her relationship with Top Chef Canada alum Renée Lavallée had helped her do this.

“She's wonderful. She owns The Canteen in Dartmouth, and she brought this to my attention,” said Ogilvie. “I figured I'd absolutely give this a shot. I didn't want to regret saying 'no.'”

The two chefs have maintained a friendly relationship in the relatively small Halifax.

“Based on the events and competitions in town, we've competed and had a friendly relationship. I respect her and what she does,” said the chef.

“I aspire to make my food my own, and do my own thing. But Renée is definitely a mentor figure to me.”

As COVID-19 keeps patrons out of dining rooms, and provincially-mandated bylaws have restricted restaurants, sadly Chives and Hopscotch are not running right now.

“We had to close our dining room, and we aren't currently doing take-out and delivery. We may revisit it in the future, depending on what happens and how long this goes,” she said.

Ogilvie is loving the response that the city has had, and the way people are helping each other.

“Someone posted on Instagram, and said they were going to pick up a parcel of local goodies and produce. We are so lucky people support local and are always helping each other out,” she said.

“I think we have a vast group of creative small business owners. This city has done really well in how they've approached this. With people staying inside, I'm glad people are focused on being safe.”

This season sees Eden Grinshpan return as host as well as head judge Mark McEwan. Resident judges will be restaurateur Janet Zuccarini, food critic Chris Nuttall-Smith, and social media influencer Mijune Pak.

As the season gets ready to start, Ogilvie says she'd go back and do the whole thing over again.

“It was such a great experience. It was intense, but amazing. It was daunting, but I loved it,” she said.

“I got there and realized how many chefs are out there, have their own style, and are ambitious. This was an incredible experience.”

She has loved the experiences she had with everyone else on the show and formed bonds.

“We are all friends and have continued chatting and talking. We are always growing and learning, and watching other chefs teaches you there are so many ways to cook one dish,” she said.

“It's really nice to see how other chefs and minds deal with the same menu and put their own stamp on things.”

Sadly, there won't be any huge gatherings in Halifax on April 13 as the show premieres, and Ogilvie is still trying to figure out how to get her friends and family to watch.

“The plans have changed on a viewing party, but I still want people to engage and connect with the show. I have no doubt there will be a captive audience,” she said.

“Brock and I are just at home cooking way too much food. We're just waiting, staying optimistic and trying to enjoy ourselves.”

The way that Brock and her family and friends let her know they were happy about this development in her life was encouraging.

“Everyone was such a huge support before and after. We're just working on figuring out what to do for the premiere,” she said.

Chef Ogilvie had a wonderful overall experience, and really enjoyed being on the show.

“When I was on the show, it was definitely a different level of stress. You never had time to think about things. You'd go in, cook, cross your fingers and hope you did well,” she said.

“I hope I get asked back to be involved again sometime in the future. It was an incredible experience.”