A seat was open at the Okanagan Table.
And one of the region’s most prominent chefs has sat down.
The soon-to-open Kelowna restaurant The Okanagan Table has just announced Geoffrey Couper will be working alongside Rod Butters and Audrey Surrao, the duo behind RauDZ Creative Concepts (RCC), as its new culinary education director.
In this role, the aptly nicknamed Cheffrey will be co-ordinating all of the educational demonstrations for the home cook, customized sessions for professionals to further advance their skills as well as developing a curriculum for the in-house culinary teams of the RCC restaurants.
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Couper has lived in Kelowna for the past 15 years and has provided culinary inspiration for many great wine producers in the valley including Mission Hill Family Estate Winery, CedarCreek Estate Winery, Blue Mountain Winery and Andrew Peller Ltd.
He has also worked with Hilton International, Relais & Chateaux and Canadian Mountain Holidays, all leaders in the hospitality field.
“The Okanagan Table is the perfect venue to show the delicious path from farm to fork and all the fun that can be had in between,” Couper said.
The former chairman and president of the Okanagan Chefs Association has represented B.C. in various international competitions including an international title at Chaine des Rotisseurs (International Association of Gastronomy) Commis Rotisseurs in Germany.
Couper was inducted into the Canadian Culinary Honor Society in 2016 joining RCC co-workers Butters and executive director of operations, Bernard Casavant.
For the past decade, Couper has been shaping the chefs of tomorrow as the apprentice instructor in the Culinary Arts Department at Okanagan College winning the Okanagan College Teaching Excellence Award in 2012.
A perpetual learner, Couper has studied abroad learning various techniques, including a Master Salumi course in Italy and a stint at the famed Bread Lab at Washington State University for Advanced Bread Baking with master baker Jeffrey Hamelman.
The Okanagan table is RCC’s latest project, giving guests almost endless opportunities to enjoy food and its preparation through long table dinners, receptions, cooking & cocktail demonstrations and special event catering.
RCC also operates three other Okanagan hotspots, RauDZ Regional Table and Sunny’s Modern Diner in Kelowna along with Terrafina at Hester Creek by RauDZ in Oliver.
@michaelrdrguez
michael.rodriguez@kelownacapnews.com
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