Hell's Kitchen Comes to Whistler

Canada

Hell's Kitchen Comes to Whistler

Thu., Jul. 9, 2009 6:29 AM PDT by Rebecca Bollwitt

Patrick Ecclesine/FOX

The winner of season six of the popular reality cooking series, Hell's Kitchen, will be awarded the Head Chef position at Araxi in Whistler, British Columbia.

Hosted by Chef Gordon Ramsay, who is known for his well-seasoned temper, this is the first time a Hell's Kitchen winner will be set-up in an existing restaurant, and one in Canada to boot!

"I think in the end the choice came up because of the Olympics," said Araxi's Executive Chef James Walt. "I think they wanted to put something through with an Olympic theme so when they came to the Sea to Sky Corridor they thought okay, Araxi is the place."

Located in scenic Whistler, BC the show should shine a welcoming spotlight on the region, which is not only co-host to the 2010 Winter Games, but is also becoming a thriving culinary hot spot.

"Obviously it's a ski town but we have a really good food scene here as well," noted Walt. "We have a hundred restaurants and—Araxi in particular—we draw 70% of our produce from the Pemberton Valley, which is just behind us."

Walt also noted that Chef Ramsay was "blown away" with the diversity of fresh, local ingredients in the area. "He didn't expect we'd have this kind of product. The oceans are not far away, then we have the Fraser Valley, the Okanagan, and he did not expect what we had in our wines from BC."

There are sixteen contestants this season, all hailing from various corners of North America. Araxi's new Head Chef could be from Phoenix, Las Vegas, Wisconsin, or Virgnia, but that doesn't worry the Araxi team one bit.

"I think they'll have a great opportunity to try different product and learn what regional cooking is all about," said Walt who will offer guidance, staying on as the Executive Chef at Araxi.

This season's Hell's Kitchen kicks off Tuesday July 21st with a two-hour premiere.