Chef’s Table: From hotdogs to signature pork belly

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This article was published 27/07/2017 (3354 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s not often a chef can say that hotdogs were his gateway to the culinary world. But for Cornerstone Bar & Restaurant’s Norm Pastorin, the lowly tubesteak was the unlikely inspiration that led him to the kitchen.

After the Winnipeg-born Pastorin, 43, graduated from the University of Manitoba with an honours degree in commerce, he went to work for an advertising company in Manila, Philippines.

One of the company’s projects involved working with culinary students in a food lab to promote a hotdog.

“I had developed an interest in food and food culture, and I found myself speaking more with the students than focusing on the project,” he recalls. He returned to Winnipeg and registered for Red River College’s Culinary Arts program.

“It was a huge risk. Everyone in my family, my colleagues, they thought I was crazy; it didn’t make any sense to anyone,” he says of his career shift. “I was 27, so it was a late start… But I was there to learn and I was new, totally green. I started with a clean slate, so I was able to absorb a lot.”

His first job as a head chef was at the now-defunct Fazzo on Corydon Avenue. The restaurant may not have been a success, but there he met Miles Gould, who was working as front-of-house manager. The two forged a strong personal and professional relationship; when Gould had an opportunity to open the Grove, a gastropub in the former Tubby’s location at the corner of Grosvenor Avenue and Stafford Street, he invited Pastorin to come aboard.

Pastorin calls the Grove “my first baby” — his wife, Kristel Pastorin, is now the head chef, while the menu features pizzas named for his children, Scarlette, 11, and Xavier, almost 9 (Gould’s family members also have pies in their honour). However, he now focuses most of his attention on Cornerstone Bar & Restaurant, his second project with Gould (which replaced another longtime neighbourhood haunt, Papa George’s) in Osborne Village.

Jill Wilson: Where did you train?

Norm Pastorin: I graduated from Red River in 2002. Then I trained under chef Takashi Murakami at St. Charles Golf and Country Club, where I was junior sous chef. I was there for about five years… the sous chef part, you usually work harder than the chef. You basically run the gauntlet and that’s where you get your chops to become a chef.

Jill: What’s your proudest moment as a chef?

Norm: When Fazzo failed, I really took it to heart. I felt like it was all my fault. I had a newborn, my second child, and a mortgage. I just took a job with decent pay but not what I was moving toward. That was probably the lowest point. But then a few months later, when I opened the Grove to almost immediate success, that was the best. I landed on my feet. Accolades, good reviews for both restaurants, I did well in Gold Medal Plates competitions… Now my family’s proud, super-proud.

Jill Wilson: What would you consider is your signature dish?

Norm: I think probably pork belly. Here it started out with French flavours, then it evolved to Japanese flavours. Now I’m introducing Filipino flavours, all with the same pork belly… For seven years, I’ve been trying to sneak Filipino flavours into popular dishes… Currently on our menu I have a version of the Filipino adobo — I added a little bit of brown sugar and Sriracha, ‘cause that’s a thing too. It’s caught on; it’s one of our bestsellers.

Jill: Is anything lacking from the local food scene?

Norm Pastorin: Because people are riding food trends, something like a French brasserie is missing. I know Melissa Makarenko (at Resto Gare), that’s her goal there, but it’s still haunted by the fine-dining stigma, the white tablecloth. I think a brasserie or true bistro is lacking — they’re more boisterous, the food is hearty and genuine, less pretentious.

Jill: What do you always have in your fridge or pantry at home?

Norm: We always have tons of eggs. But the one thing I really like is having various salts in the house, so we have Maldon salt, Hawaiian salt, different forms of kosher salt. I’m a salt fiend.

Jill: What trend has overstayed its welcome?

Norm: Avocado toast. If that ever popped up on my Instagram, I’d throw my phone across the room.

Jill Wilson: What food is your guilty pleasure?

Norm: Probably a tie between chips and fries. I’m pretty predicable and plain; I like Miss Vickie’s sea salt.

Jill: Do you have a favourite cocktail or drink?

Norm Pastorin: I’m learning a lot more about craft beer. The beer scene in Winnipeg is gorgeous. I love seeing that community get together. Right now, I’m all about Little Brown Jug (1919 Belgian Ale). I think their MO is perfect: do one thing and do it right.

Jill: Is there an ingredient or dish you’d like to make more popular?

Norm: One thing I’ve been really developing for the North American palate is a Filipino sour soup. I make it from scratch — most home cooks use a package — and it has tamarind, fish sauce. That’s another proud moment; when I impress my mentor. I brought that one to him earlier this year and he was like, “Wow, what is this?”

jill.wilson@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @dedaumier