Eric Pateman is President and Founder of Edible Canada, a leading ambassador of Canadian cuisine and storyteller for hundreds of small companies. A Vancouver native with a lifelong passion for food and wine, Eric has worked in the hospitality industry for over two decades as a chef, hotel consultant, restaurateur and entrepreneur as well as having the opportunity to rate restaurants for the Mobil Travel Guide.
Eric is regularly sought as an expert on Canadian food and wine. He was named as the recipient of the Mayor of Vancouver’s Art Award for Culinary Arts in 2013, one of Business in Vancouver’s Top 40 Under 40 Business People in 2007, and to Western Living Magazine’s list of the Top 40 Foodies Under 40 in Western Canada in 2008. When Eric isn’t eating, travelling or leading his team at Edible Canada, he’s home in the mountain town of Squamish or hanging out in Whistler, his favourite place to relax and unwind.
What does the perfect Sunday look like to you?
[EP]Making pancakes with my 3 daughters and then heading up to Whistler for a day of skiing with our family! Sunday night would be sushi and movies, flaked out on the couch with a glass of bourbon!
Zany (or strange!) travel experience you can share?
Hahahaha – maybe too many to share! Eating mopane worms in Africa and strange critters in the Beijing night market, river boarding down the Zambezi River where I almost drowned, skydiving in Namibia – there have been more than a few!
We’re having a potluck dinner. What do you bring?
Fish Sauce / Brown Sugar Cured and Grilled Flank Steak Salad with greens, peppers, rice noodles, Thai basil, mint, cilantro and lots of crispy fried onions!
Go-to comfort at the end of the day?
A run – getting out in nature and breathing the fresh air (no matter where I am in the world) is a vital part of my day and it is usually how my day starts or end. I travel 3 out of ever 4 weeks on average, so I am constantly exploring new cities or places and running is a great way to get around and see the sights! I do also love great sheets and big rainfall showers, but that comes after the run!
What’s in your carry on?
My laptop (flights are my favourite time for catching up on work and emails), Bose wireless headphones, and a bottle of water and bar.
Best wellness or travel tip?
As someone who is constantly on the go, my running gear is always in my bag, but I love the perk at Fairmont Hotels where as a President’s Club member they have workout wear waiting
for you in your room when you arrive.
What excites you about your company?
I love that I have the most amazing team which allows me to diversify and work on projects that are helping to elevate and define the Canadian culinary scene. Edible Canada is always at the forefront of the industry and I am a typical entrepreneur – always chasing the next shiny object and I can only do that because of the amazing people I have around me!
What do you want your legacy to be?
I live by three things – to be impactful, to be accepting and to be free. I hope that at the end of it all, I have created a measurable impact in the lives of my three girls and the Canadian culinary scene, I hope that I have become less type A and have come to peace with the things I cannot change and have accepted them. And, that I have been afforded the opportunity to be free to explore the world and learn from other people and cultures of the world!
