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Born in Montreal, a city that beautifully blends Europe and North America, Stéphane always had a Gypsy heart that made him want to travel. At sixteen years of age, he jumped on a bus to make the trip that so many young Easterners do. Go West and head for Banff. That trip changed his life and traced a path of things to come.
It was the beginning of a long love affair with Banff and the Calgary - Vancouver corridor.
For the next ten years, Stéphane learned his craft on both sides of the country and both sides of the business, working as a dishwasher, server, cook, maître d', restaurant manager, etc. However, the passion of cooking was taking over quickly. While shuttling between Banff and Montreal during the mid-eighties, he met Philippe Laloux, a renowned chef-artist of the Montreal restaurant scene who became his mentor and galvanized his passion for cooking. Laloux's style of aesthethic simplicity and purity of flavours struck a chord with the young apprentice which he would repeat throughout his career. In March 93, he embarked on another defining journey when he moved to Tokyo with his wife Masayo and spent six amazing years, working as a cook and as a freelance actor/voice talent. There, he absorbed every little bit of the food culture and further defined his cooking philosophy.The simple yet sophisticated style and flavours of Japan, as well as other Asian influences were the perfect continuity to what had begun years before.
Banff called back by the end of the Millennium with a three-year stint as director of food & beverage of the Rimrock Resort Hotel. While this was a great experience, Stéphane was itching to get back in the kitchen. In 2003, within ten months, he and business partner Kate Lane opened Typhoon and Café Soleil. Both restaurants were instant hits with the Banff crowd. Café Soleil gained even faster notoriety when Stéphane won the 3rd Fetzer Appetizer Challenge held in Calgary a few months after its opening and was selected as one of the top ten best new restaurant in Canada by WHERE Magazine. For Stéphane, It was a milestone in a long journey of culinary discovery. He knew that many more exciting things laid ahead.
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