Michael Dixon Smith is an American-born Canadian chef and cookbook writer. He has hosted ''
The Inn Chef'', ''
Chef at Home'', and judged on ''
Chopped: Canada'' on the
Canadian Food Network. Smith is Prince Edward Island's Food Ambassador, a nutritional activist, and an advocate for sustainable home cooking and
farm-to-table
Farm-to-table (or farm-to-fork, and in some cases farm-to-school) is a social movement which promotes serving local food at restaurants and school cafeterias, preferably through direct acquisition from the producer (which might be a winery, brewer ...
cuisine.
Career
At age seventeen, Smith started cooking in kitchens while attending art school. Within five years he was the
Head Chef
A chef de cuisine (, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that leads and manages the kitchen and chefs of a restaurant or hotel. A chef patron (feminine form ''chef patronne'') (French for ''boss chef'') or executive chef ...
at a large, upscale bistro. He then enrolled at
The Culinary Institute of America
The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) is a private culinary school with its primary campus in Hyde Park, New York, and branch campuses in St. Helena and Napa, California; San Antonio, Texas; and Singapore. The college, which was the firs ...
, where he graduated second in his class. After graduation, Smith worked in
Michelin
Michelin (; ; full name: ) is a French multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. It is the second largest tyre manufacturer in the world behind Bridgestone and la ...
three-star restaurants in Europe, as well as kitchens in South Africa, the Caribbean, and New York City.
Smith relocated to Prince Edward Island with the desire to cook sustainably by building a garden and developing partnerships with local farmers and fishermen. Smith started as a chef at The Inn at Bay Fortune in 1991. His first television show,
The Inn Chef (1998), was filmed on location at the Inn, and across
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
and Prince Edward Island.
Smith lead the team that cooked for athletes in
Whistler,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
during the
2010 Vancouver Olympics.
With his wife and business partner Chastity, Smith purchased The Inn at Bay Fortune in 2015. FireWorks, the on site restaurant, practices sustainable cuisine by growing its own vegetables in the surrounding gardens and sourcing local seafood.
In 2019, Smith was appointed to the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the ...
as a member "for his contributions as a chef, entrepreneur and champion of local foods, as well as for his efforts to develop regional tourism." In the same year, the Smiths opened a sister property, The Inn at Fortune Bridge.
Personal life
In 2009, Smith created a five-year scholarship for students in the Family and Nutritional Sciences Program at the
University of Prince Edward Island
The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) is a public university in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the only university in the province. Founded in 1969, the enabling legislation is the ''University Act, R.S.P.E.I 2000.''
...
. On August 17, 2013, Smith married Chastity Smith, a singer-songwriter, on Prince Edward Island, where they live with their three children Gabe, Ariella, and Camille. Smith is a collector of vintage maps.
Filmography
Bibliography
Cookbooks
*''Open Kitchen: A Chef's Day at The Inn at Bay Fortune'' (1998)
*''The Inn Chef: Creative Ingredients, Sensational Flavors'' (1999)
*''Chef Michael Smith's Kitchen: 100 of My Favourite Easy Recipes'' (2011)
*''The Best of Chef at Home: Essential Recipes for Today's Kitchen'' (2011)
*''Chef at Home'' (2011)
*''Fast Flavours: 110 Simple Speedy Recipes'' (2012)
*''Back To Basics: 100 Simple Classic Recipes With a Twist'' (2013)
*''Family Meals: 100 Easy Everyday Recipes'' (2014)
*''Make Ahead Meals: Over 100 Easy Time-Saving Recipes'' (2015)
*''Real Food, Real Good: Eat Well With Over 100 of My Simple, Wholesome Recipes'' (2016)
*''Farm, Fire & Feast: Recipes from The Inn at Bay Fortune'' (2021)
References
External links
*
*
Food Network Canada biography(archived copy taken March 28, 2014 fro
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Michael
1966 births
Living people
21st-century Canadian male writers
American emigrants to Canada
American expatriates in Canada
American male chefs
Canadian cookbook writers
Canadian restaurateurs
Canadian male chefs
Canadian television chefs
Chefs from New York (state)
Chefs from New York City
Culinary Institute of America alumni
Food Network chefs
Members of the Order of Canada
Rochester Institute of Technology alumni
Writers from New York City
Writers from Prince Edward Island