News from Scout supporter Crave on Main

Vancouver, BC | His talent in the kitchen and ability to manage a large staff and multiple kitchens has been proven time and again. When Executive Chef Wayne Martin made a leap of faith and swapped his Four Seasons Vancouver Hotel Executive Chef toque for a lot more hats as the Owner/Operator/Executive Chef of Crave Main Street he had a vision.

To get back in the kitchen and develop a menu of “renewed classics” in a vibrant neighbourhood and build a loyal following in an area he wanted to call home. He also wanted to take more time to enjoy life, slow down his hectic pace and refocus his priorities. In 2006, he quickly turned the 34 seat-eatery into a Main Street must-do and inspired guest line ups to nab a seat at the coveted, fair weather, back-garden terrace.

Chef Martin’s Cobb Salad, Ahi-Tempura Rolls and Popcorn Shrimp gained cult status and remain on the menu to please his many regular customers. Chef Martin is one of the reasons that South Main became, and remains, one of Vancouver’s most exciting dining strips.

An unexpected opportunity led Martin to form a business partnership with private investors and into the hills of West Vancouver. The capable chef quickly found himself once again immersed in fine dining at the newly opened Fraiche Restaurant in fall 2007 where he soon captured one of the coveted positions in enRoute Magazine’s “Top Ten New Restaurants in Canada” in 2008 as well as many accolades from local food critics. The new partnership also created CRAVE Beachside, Ambleside’s answer to the Main Street staple.

After much soul-searching and two years of blazing a daily path between Main Street, Ambleside and the British Properties to oversee three different kitchens, three sets of staff and a multitude of clientele, Martin has made a difficult decision.

“I’m heading back to Crave Main Street exclusively for the time being,” says Martin. “I left the Four Seasons for a reason – for a change, for a new way of doing things – and as much as I enjoyed running the West Vancouver restaurants I knew ultimately I wasn’t being true to myself and my goals.” And so, effective March 1, lucky Main Street patrons now have Chef Martin all to themselves.

Crave’s ongoing philosophy of offering comfort food at its best continues to showcase fresh, seasonal, regional and organic farmer’s market ingredients. Look for an invigorated menu at Crave Main Street to match the mood of its Executive Chef.

About Crave on Main

After 15 years honing his craft in the esteemed kitchens of Four Seasons Hotels around the world, executive chef Wayne Martin was eager to scale back and make a return to the kitchen…in his very own restaurant. Because what he had discovered —as a line cook in Four Seasons resorts in Minaki and Toronto, Ontario; and working his way up through the ranks in Nevis in the Caribbean, Austin and Atlanta; and as executive chef in Vancouver — is that he loves to cook, to create, “to touch the food.” Not that he would ever trade in those 15 years. They gave him all the tools and experience he would need as chef and owner of Crave on Main, opened in 2004; Fraiche restaurant, opened early in 2008; and Crave Beachside, opened in the summer of 2008. “I have no formal training,” says the native of Barrie, Ontario. Instead, he opened himself up to learning his trade, and credits two fellow Four Seasons chefs with being key in his development: Doug Anderson in Washington D.C. and Martin Frost in Santa Barbara. Ruy Paes Braga, former General Manager of the Four Seasons Vancouver, also influenced his outlook on running a business. “I’m still learning every day, and that’s vital. You have to be able to adapt to ever-changing cultures, environments, chefs, employees and kitchens. And you have to be able to listen to others; I’m not right all the time and I know that.” As for the food, Martin believes in keeping it simple and letting the fresh fl avours speak for themselves. He is no fan of the recent trend towards molecular gastronomy — in which the principles of science are applied to food to produce often surprising results, such as flavoured “foams,” “powders” and “pearls.” He does, however, like how the eating public is taking an increasing interest in what it’s eating and where it comes from. What’s next? Who knows.

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