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culinAiT f proFileFeenie'S SucceSS iS THe reSulT oFdecAdeS oF long, unglAmorouS HourSSpenT leArning And Honing HiS crAFT.Above, rob feenie workswith students in one of thestate-of-the-art kitchensin the hokanson Centrefor Culinary Arts. right,seared scallop.Feenie’s star-studded Rolodexalso catches the students’attention. He’s cooked for Stingand friends on the singer’s yacht.Bill Clinton thinks he’s a goodgolfer. And he hangs out with prohockey players and the likes ofMichael Bublé. But, Feenie makesclear, this is the result of decadesof long, unglamorous hours spentlearning and honing his craft.“Perfection is impossible, butexcellence isn’t. If you aim forperfection, then, at the very least,you’ll achieve excellence. If youonly aim for excellence, then youmight only reach good.” Feenierepeats this several times overhis three days at NAIT. Over andover, he talks about balancing theconfidence needed to competewith the best in the world withthe openness needed to learnand take criticism constructively.Kimberly Farrugia, 19, listensintently to the advice. Thissecond-year Culinary Artsstudent hopes to own a pastryshop one day. “It’s like he’s givingus a heads-up on some of theexperiences and pitfalls we willgo through.”Feenie speaks frankly withthe students about his ownvery public personal “kitchennightmare” when, in 2007, hewas forced to walk away from hisaward-winning restaurants after adispute with his business partnersproved unresolvable.He also talks about the radicalcareer shift he embarked onin 2008 when he becamefood concept architect for theB.C.-based Cactus Club Caférestaurant chain. Feenie setsthe culinary vision for the entirecompany, says Christy Wilson,director of marketing for thecasual fine-dining chain. “Hesets the direction, the tone, thelook, the feel (local, fresh, organicwhen possible). In addition, hewrites all his own recipes, trainsthe regional chefs and mentorsour chefs at all levels.” For him,it’s another trail to blaze: how toreinvent and elevate this segmentof the restaurant landscape.The breadth and depth of hiscareer means Feenie can speakto the different paths the culinarygrads might consider, makinghim an obvious choice. “The longlist of names for NAIT’s first chefin residence became the shortlist, and then chef Feenie’s namefloated to the top quite quickly,”explains Perry Michetti, associatedean of the School of Hospitalityand Culinary Arts.For John Hokanson, who, togetherwith his wife Susan, has been alongtime benefactor of NAIT’sculinary programs and whose$1-million endowment createdthe chef in residence program, thereal success of Feenie’s visit wasto see “how excited the studentswere and what a fine job thesestudents do” at functions such asthe lunch.Indeed, the students rise to theoccasion. All three courses – thedelicate scallop carpaccio, thecrispy pan-seared salmon withgreen pea risotto and red winesauce, and the simply seductivewhite chocolate crème brûlée– get rave reviews from theguests. A bit of culinary magicwas created in the NAIT kitchen,and it may be awhile beforethese students have anotheropportunity to cook with a chefof this stature. After all, Feeniehas made a career out of being atough act to follow.52 techlifemag.ca