MEET THE CHEF: Neil Taylor of Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, British Columbia
Follow 5 Reasons to Visit® on Google News for the latest travel articles + guides
5 Reasons to Visit® sat down with Executive Chef Neil Taylor of Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, British Columbia.
Executive Chef Neil Taylor of Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, BC
Where did you grow up, and where have you traveled to that has helped inspire and shape your cooking philosophy?
I was born in London, England, growing up in Berkshire in the South of England. At the age of 17, I moved to London to start my career as a chef. I spent 10 years in London and then traveled to Sydney, Australia. I spent two years there before moving to Vancouver, Canada, where I spent 10 years as a chef. In 2018 I moved to the Okanagan to open Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery. My style takes lots of influence from Italy, Spain and the Mediterranean along with a little bit of England. The largest influence comes from the amazing ingredients that surround me in the Okanagan. Simple, bold flavors and natural cooking methods (our wood-fired grill being a huge part of how I build dishes and menus).
Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, BC
Tell our readers an interesting fact or two about yourself.
I worked for two years at a very influential restaurant in London called “The River Café.” This café is where Jamie Oliver made his name and is a massive part of how and why I cook the way I do. The restaurant has paid a large amount of attention to product and sourcing (before a time when most restaurants cared about this side of food). The food was about quality ingredients and putting it on the plate in a very natural way with no fuss or pretentiousness. It was a real eye opener to what food (for me at least) should be about. In 2009 I won the EnRoute “Best New Restaurant in Canada” award at Cibo Trattoria as Executive Chef. I then went on to open two restaurants of my own, Espana Restaurant, a 40-seat Spanish style tapas bar and a modern British Gastropub called the Fat Badger—all of which still influence the way I cook today.
Tell us about your absolute favorite food and why readers should try it if they haven’t already.
One of my favorite ingredients I’ve come across in the past 5-6 years, that has completely blown me away is fresh iberico grilling pork. It’s the same pigs that are used to make the famous and some would say best jamón/prosciutto in the world “Jamón Iberico,” but instead of it being cured and dried, it’s cut from the same pigs and grilled quite rare. It’s a taste that’s like nothing else I’ve ever had, rich intermuscular fat that almost pops when you eat it and rich dark red meat that’s deep with flavor. Expensive but worth treating yourself to!
Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, BC
What are three ingredients that you simply couldn’t live without?
I’m answering this question on the basis that salt and pepper are already available as I couldn’t live without those two for a start! I’m also going to cheat slightly and go for food groups so I can sneak more variety in to my list! Citrus (lemons specifically, but I love all the different types of citrus from the really sweet to sour to bitter), alliums (onions, garlic, leeks etc) are indispensable in my opinion and create such a deep base to most recipes and finally dairy. I love everything about it and the multitude of variations it can end up as, milk, cream, butter, cheese etc. It’s incredibly versatile and can be used for sweet and savory preparations so is an essential in my list.
We love the art behind plating. What do you love about designing the perfect dish?
Honestly, the plating part of a dish is the last part I consider when creating a dish. My first thought is about the main ingredient and what will go well with it, focusing on two to three other flavors that work well that will enhance the dish as a whole. Often that means ingredients that are in season at the same time so you can let the seasons tell you which way to go with a dish, I’m a big believer in the saying “what goes together, goes together.” Plating a dish from there for me means keeping the dish looking simple, clean and tidy. No inedible garnishes, nothing there for aesthetics only or garnishes that add nothing to the dish. Less is more in my eyes in both cooking and plating terms.
Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, BC
Tell us about one of the most creative dishes you’ve created?
We recently did a winemakers dinner where we marinated venison with pine needles and juniper which is sometimes done in the mountainous regions of Northern Italy, kind of like the terrain we have here in the Okanagan so I thought it would translate well to a similar preparation here at Home Block. We have lots of deer on property at CedarCreek Estate Winery (I have to add that we didn’t use any of this dear though!) and we have pine all around us so it made sense to me and it ended up working really well.
Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, BC
What is one of your greatest accomplishments and/or recent awards you've earned?
I would have to say the 2009 EnRoute “Best New Restaurant In Canada” award I won while at Cibo Trattoria is my greatest accomplishment. More recently Home Block was voted “Top 100 Restaurants in Canada” and voted 2022 “Travel and Hospitality Restaurant of the Year.” Most importantly CedarCreek Estate Winery as whole was voted WineAlign “Winery of the Year” at the 2022 National Wine Awards, a massive achievement for CedarCreek Estate Winery.
What are some of the latest trends you’re seeing in top restaurants across the globe?
I think we’re already seeing lots of vegetable forward menus with less focus on proteins and I think that’s only going to increase in the future. In terms of cuisines I would like to see more Middle Eastern food It’s a part of the world that’s rich in history and culture and has some amazing recipes and flavors which I personally would like to see more of.
What’s your favorite cocktail or beverage of choice?
My favourite cocktail is a Negroni, but I really enjoy the wines we make at CedarCreek Estate Winery—the Pinot Noirs and the Rieslings in particular.
Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna, BC
