Chef Rodrigo Newton (a.k.a Chef Pat Newton) has seen a rapid ascent to culinary fame thanks to perseverance, hard work, and a vigilant pursuit of his passion for food and fitness.
Chef Rodrigo’s focus as of late has been on a holistic approach to healthy living and wellness, building a lifestyle channel that encompasses all aspects of health. Having spent years as a personal trainer, Chef Rodrigo has been in the unique position to draw a clear connection between food and fitness.
But while Chef’s Rodrigo’s vision is clear today, his path has been anything but straight. Adopted from Mexico as a baby, Chef Rodrigo grew up in Toronto. He discovered his love for cooking at a young age, when his parents gifted him a play kitchen for one of his birthdays. A self-proclaimed enthusiastic eater, he always had a curiosity in the kitchen and a desire to create any dish he craved. “The kitchen was a safe space to experiment and create,” he explains.
When he turned 15, Chef Rodrigo got his first gig in the food industry as a fry cook at McDonald’s. “I’m grateful for my humble beginnings, but the real goal was to use the experience as a stepping stone to get into a formal kitchen,” he says.
From McDonald’s to Muskoka, he went on to work at the Rocky Crest Resort, before going on to earn a degree in food and beverage management from George Brown College. He honed his skills under some of Toronto’s most accomplished chefs and restauranteurs, including Jason Bangerter (Auberge du Pommier), Mark McEwan (One) and Charles Khabouth (La Society).
After a decade of working in the fast-paced culinary industry, Chef Rodrigo decided to press pause, and pursued his second passion: fitness. His stint as a full-time personal trainer turned out to be the best decision Chef Rodrigo could have made, as when he decided to return to cooking, it was a with a renewed sense of purpose and focus.
In the lead up to cannabis legalization, Chef Rodrigo and a friend founded Munchy Brothers – a company specializing in cannabis-infused base ingredients such as sugar, salt and simple syrup. To showcase the uniqueness and simplicity of the products, he hosted cannabis-infused dinners.
His efforts got national news coverage as well as mentions and articles across many media channels and platforms such as Toronto Life, Foodism and CTV News to name a few.
Having experimented with cannabis-infused cooking for over the years, Chef Newton was able to quickly build a reputation for his culinary cannabis skills, featured on the Food Network, Toronto Life, Foodism and CTV News. Three years ago, in 2021, Chef Rordrigo made an exit from edibles manufacturing when Munchy Brothers was acquired by heritage Cannabis Corp., but the deal paved the way for him to build his own brand.
Today, he’s working as a private chef and content creator with a mission to help people find health, purpose and personal success. A food lover, cannabis specialist and serial entrepreneur who has dedicated his life to cooking, traveling and spiritual development, Chef Rodrigo’s mission is to help others. And he won’t be slowing down anytime soon.
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