Danielle Hebert
Special to the Review
Matt Milland has been head chef at the Big Eddy Pub for just over a year now.
Milland is originally from Melbourne, Australia and moved to Revelstoke in 2012. He first came for the snowboarding, which is a huge passion of his, but after he experienced a summer in Revy, he was hooked and has pretty much been here ever since.
After having some luck with several working visas, Milland is excited to have been granted Permanent Resident status in Canada.
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Milland trained in culinary arts and did an apprenticeship in Australia before moving to Canada. He said he chose cooking as a profession because it was something he knew he could do all over the world.
His love for both travel and Revelstoke make him a perfect fit for chef at the Big Eddy Pub because as Milland put it, “the pub really caters to locals and to travellers from all over the world”.
With a comfortable and homey atmosphere it’s not hard to see why the pub is a favourite.
“Being away from downtown, in many ways, makes it a best kept secret kind of place but it is always busy and we regularly sell out every item on the menu” said Milland.
Milland said that he loves being the chef at the pub for many reasons, but he really likes that the menu is not limited by needing to fit into any particular type of food, instead they are free to create a great menu just based off of what their guests want.
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“It doesn’t have to be Italian food, or pizza, or anything in particular. We do classic pub food, but there are no boundaries. Just trying out lots of different stuff to see what people like the most.”
That being said, the pub is known for delicious in-house smoked meats and very popular burgers. Milland mentioned that burger night on Thursdays is a favourite for many regulars of the pub, and includes a locally-sourced burger and side for ten dollars.
Milland also said that he would be love to offer more locally sourced items on the menu but has had a hard time finding the kind of supply that is needed to maintain the consistent demands of the busy kitchen. But he said that is definitely a part of his vision for the restaurant and hopes to find some good connections with local producers.
He said that he would love to see some local farmers that catered specifically to supplying restaurants, which he believes would be a very successful business in this area.
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Milland has been part of several changes in the pub over the past year, including some menu additions and a major kitchen renovation. He and the rest of the staff and owners are also in the process of updating the menu and are expecting to launch a it leading up to the busy winter season.
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