Profile

Awn Kitchen Café and Workshop | Established 2015

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Our Story

I completed the Ballymaloe Cookery School 12-week certificate course in 2015. After returning to Canada, I started teaching cooking classes out of my home kitchen under the name the Ruby Apron. Over the next 5 years I built the business up to the point of being too big for my home kitchen and decided to expand – but didn’t want to “put all of my eggs in one basket” so to speak – so the idea to expand in two ways was born. In 2021 (amidst the Covid-19 pandemic!) I opened a brick-and-mortar space that is a workshop (cooking school) and café under the new name Awn Kitchen.

I remember this point after the Ballymaloe bubble burst and I was back in Edmonton – thinking how special the bubble was – the connection and relationships – both personal and with ingredients, and I wondered how it could ever feel the same at home. I started calling farmers I wanted to work with, asking to come out to their farms and fell in love with this connection – to the knowledge and learning that is shared. I wanted to bring that into my business – to share it with people who maybe don’t have the time (or desire) to do so – to help share and show the value in a slower, simpler life with a connection to good, simple, seasonal food.

As I look back over the past 7+ years, I am proud of what I’ve built and see an opportunity to share the successes, failure’s, struggles and joys of starting and running a unique multifaceted business with a Ballymaloe education to other Ballymaloe students who hope to start their own business.

What we do…

Our entire focus is around two things – community and education.

Building community through connection in two ways – with our immediate community that is our Awn customer base as well as building community within our wonderful and vast network of farmers and producers throughout the province and into our neighbouring provinces. Living in Alberta, an agricultural centre of the country, we have access to some of the best Canadian ingredients. We work closely with our farmers and producers – through purchasing at farmers markets, meeting with them, hosting classes, sharing their stories and more. Education is a key to what we do as well through the classes, marketing, as a team, and in our café sharing the stories of the farmers we work with.

Café

We are a small café that serves breakfast, lunch a selection of daily baking and great drinks. Our menu is simple, seasonal, and showcases the beautiful ingredients we have access to. I believe that less is more and sharing good food together is so important in many ways.

Workshop

The workshop hosts cooking classes with a range of skills from pastry to bread to different cuisines, and everything in between. These classes are small an intimate, casual, and educational. We host classes most evenings and occasionally during the day.

Awn at Home

Awn at Home is part of our retail range where we sell prepared food twice a week for pickup at the café – these meals are pre ordered.

Retail

We have a retail shelf filled with ingredients and kitchen kit relevant to our classes as well as some of our Awn at Home items that are shelf stable.

What we hope to add…

Awn at Home – We hope to expand our Awn at Home offerings to include a small fridge and freezer section for meals that aren’t pre ordered and can be more of a grab and go thing for our customers. Bread, pastry…

Retail – We also hope to use the Awn at Home Fridge and freezer space to be able to sell dairy, and other things.

Bread Program – We hope to start a small bread program selling sourdough and other breads to our customers in our café.

Our Values

We believe that food is more than what’s on your table – it can tell a story, it can connect people in various ways. We believe that food starts long before it ever appears in our fridge or pantry.

We believe in bringing people together to enjoy good food.

We believe in reducing our waste as a business – and this runs into the many components of Awn.

What We are Looking For?

We are looking for a Ballymaloe trained chef to join our team for a 6 – 24 month commitment. We are looking for someone who can work independently as well as on a team, who has a positive attitude and a strong work ethic. We hope to find someone who is willing to grow within our business, help us expand our offerings as well as someone who is keen to learn from our experiences. The role we are looking to fill would be a full-time position both cooking and baking, there is an opportunity to work on developing new recipes menus and more.

Why Come to Canada?

Over the last 7 years I have built a brand and name in the Edmonton food community, starting off small, making mistakes, and learning along the way. I now own a multifaceted business that to the right person offers a tremendous amount of opportunity for growth and learning. From the ins and outs of running both a cooking school and café, to building relationships with local producers, to the business side of things from scheduling to marketing to planning to pricing and everything in between.

Only 4 hours from the beautiful Rocky Mountains we are also only an hour from some of the most beautiful agricultural land in the country. We believe Edmonton is a wonderful city with lots to offer throughout the year, with four distinct seasons – you can experience weather as cold as -40C to as warm as +35C in the summer!

Legal

Must be between 18 and 35 and can apply under the International Experience Program, must meet all requirements of the application. After completion of a 6 month stint with Awn Kitchen, we will reimburse you for half of your flight, after a completion of a 12 month stint with Awn Kitchen we will reimburse you for your full flight.

Accommodation | Awn Kitchen will work with you to find close and suitable accommodation. Accommodation is not included in this job posting.