Maurice O'Flynn
Biography

Bon vivant, world traveller and one time unofficial ambassador, Maurice O’Flynn owes much to his love of food, for he has enjoyed a career as eclectic and varied as the many countries he has visited.

“O’Flynn is a promoter, Mr. Hospitality, and an unabashed salesman of Canadian product and scenery. He could sell a used province to any overseas tourist operator”
Brian Williams, CBC Television.

Maurice is among Canada’s most accomplished managers of culinary teams and has led numerous regional and national teams to victory at international competitions.  “O’Flynn is a wily organizer known for meticulous attention to detail. He leaves nothing to chance ,which is probably why he led numerous Canadian teams to victory”
Readers Digest.

He was a founding member and Executive Director of the Alberta Culinary Arts Foundation from 1983 –  1993. At the Foundation he represented Alberta chefs to Industry and to Governments and coordinated promotions to increase the profile of its members. “Maurice has brought chefs out of the obituary columns and onto the front pages”
Hans Bueschkens(†), President World Association of Cooks Societies

He is a  believer in dreams to  the extent that they give promise of a tangible outcome.  O’Flynn brought focus to the teams’ mission.  His national teams were never off the podium. He and his fellow chefs had a stated position... 'Silver is not this teams favorite color'...
“Maurice doesn’t shy away from straight talk. He always speaks his mind which is a rare quality these days”.
Essence Magazine.

Maurice includes several dining experiences among his most cherished memories. The Asia moments were special. Dinners in Plume at the Hong Kong Regent reflected the creative magic of Gray Kunz. Then cross the road to Gaddi’s in the Peninsular Hotel. Impeccable service unfolded under the watchful eyes of the legendary Maître‘d Rolf Heiniger. When staying at the Imperial Hotel Tokyo where else would he have chosen to dine other than at the Fontaine Bleu. Truly a classical experience. Still in Tokyo late one evening, nursing a glass of port at Restaurant Prunier Maurice folded his napkin and wondered if this dining experience could be surpassed. At the Singapore Westin Stamford Plaza Hotel the surprise occurred with the room service. A heaped pile of bundnerfleish cured in the kitchens of Otto Weibel. Magic.

In South Africa Maurice marveled at the skills of Kazuya Satoh a young Japanese Chef at the Sukihama Restaurant in the Johannesburg Southern Sun Hotel. On a visit to Mayo in Ireland he was unlucky when fishing for the salmon in Lough Corrib but was impressed by the splendor of the King George Vth Restaurant in Ashford Castle. Recollections from Germany are pleasant particularly a slow paced dinner with his friend Hubert Scheck at La Vita Restaurant in Cologne which at this time was owned by a colleague Erhard Schafer.

Maurice observes that each of these chefs cook for a captive audience of aspiring epicureans. The chefs create a sublime cuisine to pamper their guest’s palettes. The guests in their turn capture and retain memories of new marriages, of exciting textures and flavors; these to savor and reminisce about with reverence long after the passing of time and distance.

Previously he was Executive Chef for one of North America’s largest and most diversified food processing companies and assistant manager at private clubs in Calgary and in Edmonton.

Maurice is now retired and learning to hone his computer skills to enable him to research and compile this Champchefs Archive.