Mark Hughes Executive Chef Northlands Edmonton, AB
Born in North Vancouver, Mark grew up in the Agassiz, Harrison Hot Springs area of B.C. where he did his formal training as an apprentice at the Harrison Hot Springs Resort Hotel. His technical training was completed at BCIT in Burnaby B.C. in 1984.
In 1985, he became Chef De Partie at The Four Seasons Hotel in Edmonton where he worked with Executive Chef Ernst Dorfler until the hotel sold in 1988 to the Hilton International chain. At that time, Chef Markus Jenni became the hotel’s Executive Chef with whom Mark worked for a year. They then became competitors at the first Culinary Masters in Prince Edward Island where Mark won gold in the team competition and two silver medals in the personal chef competition.
Chef Ernst Dorfler recruited Mark to a position at The Pan Pacific Hotel in Vancouver where he worked in both Café Pacifica and the Five Sails Dining Room.
Two years later, Mark and his family returned to Edmonton where he rejoined the Hilton International hotel as Executive Sous Chef. Since then, he has held positions at Edmonton Petroleum club, the Shaw Conference Centre and Rexall Place.
Now in his thirteenth year with Northlands, Mark has been both Executive Sous chef and Executive Chef, a position he has held since returning to the Expo Centre in 2008. He is very proud to have been a part of the growth of the Northlands commercial kitchen from a small 3,000 square feet to it present state-of-the-art 17,000 square foot facility.
Mark has had the pleasure of cooking for Royalty (Queen Elizabeth II and the Sultan and Princess of Brunei) as well as numerous celebrities and sports stars from both local and International teams.
Chris McMaster Executive Sous Chef – Hospitality & Client Services Northlands Edmonton, AB
Chef Chris McMaster has over 20 years of cooking experience working in several restaurants and hotels around Edmonton.
He was a member of Culinary Team NAIT and won back to back gold medals in Skills Canada Alberta.
After an apprenticeship at the Hotel Macdonald, Chris spent a year working abroad in Australia where he developed a passion for cooking with fresh sea food.
As the Executive Sous Chef at Northlands EXPO Centre, Chef Chris works closely with Executive Chef Mark Hughes and maintains a particular focus on sourcing foods and provisions from local farms whenever possible.