County chef appears on Chopped Canada
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A local chef is hoping to avoid the knife when he appears on a popular cooking show next month.
Chef Neil Dowson, of Bloomfield’s Agrarian cheese market and speakeasy, will show off his culinary
skills representing Prince Edward County on Food Network Canada’s Chopped Canada.
The episode of Chopped Canada, set to air May 1 on Food Network Canada, features head-to-head cooking challenges where four chefs battle the clock and each other for a chance to win $10,000. The chefs are required to turn a selection of mystery ingredients into a desirable three-course meal in a limited amount of time.
Dowson, who has worked at Agrarian for just over five months, took time away from his career and family to battle in the competition.
“One day it came up on my Twitter feed that they were looking for chefs and my wife sort of bent my arm and said 'You should do it,'” said Dowson.
Having professional training and years of experience around the world, like Dowson, doesn’t fully prepare a chef for the Chopped challenge.
“It was all pretty nerve wracking. It’s taking you out of any comfort zone you have in your job; you know chefs have to be very well organized,” said Dowson.” There’s, like, twelve cameras in your face, like, one hundred lights, it’s hot as hell and here’s three things that you’ve never put together in your life, do something with them.”
Dowson, from Coventry, England, studied at a local culinary school before he was first hired by The Savoy Hotel in London, England.
“I studied at a local culinary school a bit like Loyalist for three years, and then I was offered a job at The Savoy in London,” said Dowson. “So, I left home at 19 and went to work at Savoy.”
At the time, Savoy offered a comprehensive training program for chefs, which Dowson attended.
“I ended up staying there for six years, working through all parts of the hotel, which at the time was one of the most famous hotels in the world.”
After travelling Europe and training in various culinary regions, Dowson and his family moved to Prince Edward County.
“We’d never been, we just took a chance and we love it,” said Dowson.
Dowson is now chef at the Agrarian on Main Street in Bloomfield, which is going through some changes as well.
“It was a café, but we’re putting in a kitchen downstairs in about two weeks time turning it into more of a bistro,” Dowson said.
The new bistro style will feature seating for 50 and a full kitchen.
For more information regarding Chopped Canada visit; www.choppedcanada.ca
For information regarding Agrarian visit www.agrarianpec.ca