Fire Masters Season 3: Meet the Competitors

Hometown: Toronto, ON
Occupation: Chef, Reverie at the Park

Originally from New Delhi, Aakash moved to Toronto to study Culinary Management at George Brown College. Having cooked over fire for most of his life, Aakash is very confident in his ability to tame the flame and loves incorporating Indian spices into his meals.

Hometown: Saskatoon, SK
Occupation: Sous Chef, The Saskatoon Club

Dana is a self-described hippy who once sold all her belongings, bought a van and ate her way west to California. She has competed in many BBQ competitions, once even defeating her head chef in a Top Chef Saskatchewan challenge.

Hometown: Wesley Chapel, Fla
Occupation: Truck driver, Chef and Caterer

McAlex is a truck driver by day, and a professional chef and caterer by night! He prides himself on his Haitian American flare and ability to create unique flavour profiles. McAlex hopes to one day create a program in Haiti that teaches young kids how to cook.

Hometown: Toronto, ON
Occupation: Chef, Silva Spoon Kitchen

Born with only one hand, Rodrigo has been cooking professionally for 15 years and is well-versed in many global cuisines. His passion for cooking over a live fire was inspired by his travels to El Savador. Rodrigo loves smoking meat and fish and barbecuing absolutely everything.

Hometown: Calgary, AB
Occupation: Executive Chef, Alberta Oil Sands

Born in India, Sukhant has cooked around the world, and this experience has made him a global chef dedicated to beautiful plating and bold flavours. He loves cooking in the traditional Tandoor style, over a charcoal fire in a clay oven. His proudest culinary achievement was helping feed displaced families and emergency personnel during the Fort McMurray wildfires.

Hometown: Renton, WA
Occupation: Plumber, BBQ Competitor

William is a full-time plumber and plumbing instructor who spends his free time competing in BBQ competitions, the latter of which he’s done for more than 15 years. William is incredibly passionate about food and loves making dishes with unexpected and complex flavour combinations.

Hometown: Three Bridges, NJ
Occupation: Chef/Owner, FED by Andrew

Andrew is a self-proclaimed nomadic chef who grew up watching his grandparents cook on a tiny mountain farm. He loves to cook on the fly and tame the flame with local, seasonal ingredients and his Latin American flair. The former international DJ is now known for his wood-fired Asados and pop-up dinners on farms, vineyards and breweries.

Hometown: Richmond Hill, ON
Occupation: Chef/Owner, Kansas King Chicken N’ Ribs

Matthew began his culinary career in the dish pit, quickly working his way up the line at various restaurants in Toronto and Miami. A self-described saucier who aspires to be a celebrity chef, Matthew draws inspiration from Arabic-Mediterranean, classical French, Italian and Southern BBQ.

Hometown: Portland, OR
Occupation: BBQ Chef

Jacqueline began her culinary journey online as a recipe developer and quickly moved into the influencer world as a BBQ chef. Only 31, she loves to elevate traditional American BBQ by incorporating many international flavours. A mother of three, Jacqueline takes pride in representing women as a female grill/pitmaster in a male-dominated industry.

Hometown: Toronto, ON
Occupation: Chef/Owner, Preserve Indulgence Boutique Catering and Event Design

Growing up, Cindy spent a lot of time at her family’s Chinese restaurant, and it was here that she fell in love with cooking. With 15 years of professional experience, including a stint in Hong Kong where she honed her craft, Cindy considers herself to be a true artist and wants to represent all women who are made to feel they have no place at the grill.

Hometown: Toronto, ON
Occupation: Private Chef, Mad Food Love

Erin developed her connection to food during her childhood when she spent many years tending a garden with her grandfather. Today, Erin describes her culinary style as farm-to-fork and strives to make “healthy food” delicious and beautiful.

Hometown: Hamilton, ON
Occupation: Chef/Director of Culinary Operations, Equal Part Hospitality

John is a classically trained chef who loves Italian and French techniques with an international spin. He has worked in both small and large kitchens across Ontario, but considers working with live fire outside to be his comfort zone. John believes in traditional cooking methods and avoids gels, xanthum and sous vide.

Hometown: Calgary, AB
Occupation: Chef/Owner, Jane Bond

Jenny believes that cooking with fire is in her DNA, specifically low and slow smoking, which has been her focus for the last seven years. Jenny loves infusing international flavours into Southern cooking techniques, and being of Jamaican descent, she is fond of spice and zest in her food.

Hometown: Waddell, AZ
Occupation: Test Technician, Food Truck Owner, BBQ Competitor

Kyle is an airplane engine inspector whose true passion is BBQ. He and his dad started a BBQ competition team called Your Behind BBQ, which has since grown into a food truck and catering company. Kyle is a seasoned competitor on the grill and considers his culinary style to be southwest flavours with a twist.

Hometown: Markham, ON
Occupation: Sous Chef, Fishbone by the Lake

Born and raised in the Caribbean, Tahir learned to work with open fire using an old-school BBQ technique in a metal barrel turned sideways and cut in half, with coals and a grill added. He began his culinary career as a dishwasher 13 years ago before working his way up to become head chef at several acclaimed restaurants.

Hometown: Dallas, TX
Occupation: Pitmaster, Smokey Joe’s BBQ

Kris has been cooking over an open fire all his life, honing his craft on an old-school brick pit. His specialty is southern comfort food, which he says is so good, it will put you to sleep. Kris is a strong believer in keeping his cooking consistent and authentic, making sure the smokey flavour, tenderness and appearance are always first-rate.

Hometown: Las Vegas, NV
Occupation: Chef/Founder, Masazul

Growing up, Mariana learned to cook alongside her mother, grandmother and aunties. She is incredibly passionate about preserving the ancient techniques and recipes that tie her to her Mexican heritage – a passion that inspired her to open her own heirloom corn tortilla company.

Hometown: Montreal, QB
Occupation: Executive Chef/Partner, Jellyfish Crudo + Charbon

At 18, Mathieu left Montreal to pursue his passion for food and work as a chef for Club Med. He spent several years cooking all over the Caribbean and when not working, would often accompany local chefs to their homes to learn their ancient cooking techniques. It was these visits that sparked his love for fire.

Hometown: Vaughan, ON
Occupation: Private Chef

After giving up his day job in marketing, Ryan pursued his dream of being a chef by working in kitchens across the country. He ultimately forged his own path as a private chef, which allows him to combine his love of cooking and entertaining. Only 25, Ryan takes inspiration from his grandparents’ and parents’ cooking and applies it to the dishes he creates.

Hometown: Henderson, NV
Occupation: Chef

Steven has been working in kitchens since he was 13. After many years as a head chef in fine dining, Steven switched to the world of BBQ and hasn’t looked back. He is all about spicy flavours, and being Nevada’s BBQ Bad Boy – a nickname he received from Guy Fieri at a BBQ competition in 2008 – he knows how to grill, too!

Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Occupation: Chef/Owner, Cheat Day

Xzherieh is a chef with a plan and if there’s something she wants, she’ll get it. Xzherieh’s cooking style is a mix of intuition, culture clash and improv that comes from the heart and helps her craft her own take on classic recipes. Despite being a young chef, she has grown accustomed to the long hours, hot temperatures and patience needed to work in a kitchen.

Hometown: Calgary, AB
Occupation: Head Cook, SmellaQue Competitive BBQ team

Janice discovered her love for BBQ during a trip to Texas. She came home and immediately ordered a professional pitmaker vault, then enrolled in classes to expand her BBQ knowledge. As someone passionate about food and science, Janice considers cooking with flames a perfect combination. While Texas BBQ is the main influence in her cooking, she combines other regional techniques to create her own culinary style.

Hometown: Edmonton, AB
Occupation: Chef/Pitmaster

Peter learned to cook from family and industry professionals, honing his style and skill on the grill. While his specialty is North Carolina-style BBQ, Peter loves showcasing his knowledge of culinary styles from around the world. He also ensures that everything he makes not only tastes good but looks good as well.

Hometown: Atlanta, GA
Occupation: Chef

Becoming a chef was inevitable for Terry – love for food runs in his family! He grew up watching his father and grandfather grill a feast each weekend and it wasn’t long before he was participating, too. After attending culinary school, Terry was able to turn cooking into a full-time career. He now has a fire pit and rotisserie in his backyard and believes the best thing about cooking is the sensory experience it brings.

Hometown: Louisville, KY
Occupation: Chef/Owner, Cooking with Jan LLC

Janeisha learned everything she knows about cooking from her grandmother, including the bold, southern-style flavours she’s known for today. In addition to cooking for celebrities and other high-profile clients, Janeisha uses her skills to give back to her community, most recently providing free meals to protesters demanding justice for Breona Taylor.

Hometown: Atlanta, GA
Occupation: Private Chef, Caterer, Food Truck Owner

After a short career in the music industry, Ryan reinvented himself as a chef and built several successful businesses. He now cooks for many celebrities and has found his niche catering for recording studios. Ryan specializes in seafood and grilling and is known for his bold flavours.

Hometown: Hamilton, ON
Occupation: Executive Chef

Trevor is a seasoned chef with more than 20 years of experience. He is a BBQ pro who loves heat and meat, and whose specialty is Texas-style with hints of Latin American flavours. After losing his restaurant during the pandemic, Trevor is eager to get his business back up and running again.

Hometown: Hamilton, ON
Occupation: Chef/Owner, Pamana

Gabriell has been cooking professionally for 15 years and describes his culinary style as a blend of his Filipino heritage and French training. He hopes to turn his family-run Filipino pop-up into a permanent restaurant one day.

Hometown: Vancouver, BC
Occupation: Executive Chef

Joshua began his culinary career as a dishwasher and with little formal training, quickly moved up the line to executive chef. Having cooked professionally for more than 10 years – including a stint as Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s private chef – Joshua is well-versed in ingredients from across the globe and prides himself on his weird, wacky and creative style.

Hometown: Monterey, CA
Occupation: Chef

Growing up in a family with Mexican, French and Spanish roots, Samantha learned to love food and flavour at a young age. Since beginning her culinary career at 16, Samantha has worked at a variety of restaurants, including Indian, Moroccan and Peruvian, and this helped develop her global cuisine style.