For Chef Samantha Chevrier, food has always been more than something placed on a plate. It is family, memory, culture, discipline, and connection. Raised around large gatherings on Batchewana First Nation, Chevrier's earliest memories of food are rooted in togetherness: her grandmother Wanda hosting backyard fish fries, family reunions, and generous Christmas dinners where the kitchen became the heart of the home. Later, on Nipissing First Nation, she spent summers helping her Nan at a chip stand, peeling potatoes and absorbing the steady rhythm of a working kitchen.

Chef Samantha Chevrier in the doorway of her kitchen — A working kitchen has been Chevrier's classroom since childhood.

At first, Chevrier never imagined cooking as a career. That changed in Grade 11, when a high school cooking teacher recognized her natural eye and encouraged her to take the craft seriously. Though she remembers being frustrated when recipes did not turn out perfectly — especially pie crusts — that teacher saw potential before Chevrier saw it in herself. A visit to the college kitchens became a turning point. She was captivated by the scale, the pace, the energy, and even the sparkling calm that followed a chaotic service. From there, cooking became an obsession.

Her path was shaped further by mentor Jeremy Korten, who guided her for six years and helped her understand not only the skills required to succeed, but also the discipline, respect, and realities of the industry. Chevrier began in small café-style restaurants and eventually worked her way into leadership roles in large establishments, helping serve 200 to 300 guests a night.

Stepping into leadership as a young Indigenous woman has become one of her proudest accomplishments. In an industry still often dominated by men, Chevrier takes pride in earning respect, standing firmly in her voice, and helping create space for the next generation of women and Indigenous chefs.

Chef Samantha Chevrier foraging wild ingredients — Foraging wild ingredients: the foundation of her work with preservation and traditional Indigenous plants.

Today, her work is deeply focused on fermentation, preservation, wild ingredients, and traditional Indigenous plants. Inspired by teachings from her Nan about medicines and the land, Chevrier is exploring how overlooked ingredients can be transformed into something refined, innovative, and culturally grounded. Working alongside Zach Keeshig at Naagan has helped strengthen her confidence and sharpen her storytelling through food.

For Chevrier, cooking is a way to honour the land and the people who came before her. Through wild game, fish, plants, fermentation, and modern technique, she hopes to keep teachings alive, challenge perceptions of Indigenous ingredients, and remind diners that food is one of the most powerful ways communities share who they are.