Suppose Mike's culinary career is a movie. The opening scene would be Mike as a young apprentice at the acclaimed Eigensinn Farm, feeding pigs the week before he roasted them for their guests. You'd be entertained by scenes of him jockeying for the morning octopus haul with the local women of Lanzarote. Then thrilled by scenes of him flying in and out of water-access-only oyster farms in Desolation Sound, B.C., competing with grizzly bears in Kodiak, Alaska for the best jumping Sockeye salmon. Then after a day spent butchering wild English game in the kitchen of the world-renowned St. John Restaurant in London, he gets attacked by a German Shepherd who cannot resist the lingering aroma on his hands. He'd then create a five-course tasting menu at 47,000 feet in the sky! Finally, you'd be moved by the scene at the end of the film where he reels in a 700lb grouper off the coast of Cuba with the iconic Canadian businessman with whom he had a tenured professional relationship. After an action-packed 25-year culinary career, Mike has decided to simplify and focus on the beauty and modest perfection of the oyster and its aquatic neighbours.

(Grawn-ya, rhymes with Lasagna!)

Partner & Sommelier from Newfoundland and Nova Scotia named after the Irish pirate queen Granuaile. Graidhne has an authentic love for all things raw and from the ocean! Graidhne's literal thirst for knowledge focuses on education and accreditation from various respected wine schools. After a decade of serving in fine dining restaurants such as Canoe and Auberge du Pommier, she found her passion for helping clients reorganize their cellars and sourced cool, exciting wines for their homes and cottages. In a previous life, Graidhne was an actor on the stage and screen. She now uses the dramatic skills she acquired in theatre school to teach hospitality courses at Humber College and in-house wine seminars to her clients.