Bar Gobo Appoints Jared Bihun as Chef de Cuisine
MICHELIN Recommended wine bar releases late spring harvest menu as new chef takes the reins.
Bar Gobo, a MICHELIN Recommended wine bar in Vancouver’s historic Strathcona district, is thrilled to welcome Jared Bihun as new chef de cuisine. Jared brings a wealth of experience to the role, including work at acclaimed global restaurants and Okanagan wineries, as well as founding a successful culinary events business.
Jared laid the foundation for his culinary career in high school, where he honed his skills in a culinary training program. He completed the Culinary Management Program at Loyalist College in Ontario, then headed for New York and his first job – an apprenticeship under Dan Barber at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, a high-end farm-to-table eatery. During his first year of work, the restaurant earned a spot on the prestigious Top 50 Restaurants San Pellegrino list.
Next, Jared travelled to Australia, where he worked at Ester Restaurant, which retained 2 Hats in the Australian Good Food Guide during his tenure. Upon his return to Canada, he founded a culinary events business in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories that served locally foraged cuisine in showstopping settings such as ice castles and birch camps. Following the pandemic, he pursued his love of wine by training as a sommelier. For two seasons, he worked at wineries in the Okanagan Valley, BC, including Phantom Creek Winery and Monte Creek Winery.
Now, as chef de cuisine at Bar Gobo, Jared stokes his dual passions for food and wine by crafting memorable culinary experiences. Jared’s innovation takes centre stage at the intimate eatery, which serves seasonally inspired menus that are updated every six weeks. Jared is excited to develop close relationships with small-scale farms throughout the Pacific Northwest, whose fresh ingredients he masterfully transforms into tantalizing spreads. He also collaborates with Bar Gobo’s Sommelier and General Manager Peter Van de Reep, who oversees a regularly evolving wine program with varietals sourced from organic and biodynamic farms around the world.
“It’s a dream to join Bar Gobo, a concept that has always encouraged artistic expression,” said Jared. “I can fully experiment with seasonal ingredients, and there’s no fear of becoming stagnant since the menu evolves so regularly. Also, it’s an honour to work alongside Peter, whose knowledge of local and global wines is second to none. With the new menu, diners can look forward to compelling flavour combinations and memorable wine pairings worthy of a MICHELIN Recommended restaurant.”
“We’re thrilled to welcome Jared to the Bar Gobo family – he is such a talented individual, and I’m confident he will thrive here,” said Andrea Carlson, co-owner of Bar Gobo. “We conceived Bar Gobo as a place to uplift and elevate rising talent, and Jared is a perfect example. He has already achieved so much, and I can’t wait to see where he goes from here.”
Jared’s new menu, launching soon, combines flavours of the late spring harvest with a fresh excitement for summer. Complex and bursting with personality, the menu is equally suited to overcast days or warm, sunny afternoons.
Bar Gobo is part of the Burdock & Co Family of Restaurants, which includes MICHELIN Starred Burdock & Co and Harvest Community Foods. For more information, or to reserve a table, visit www.bargobo.com.
About Bar Gobo
Bar Gobo is an intimate yet animated wine bar situated in Vancouver’s historic Strathcona neighbourhood. Conceived by Andrea Carlson and her partner Kevin Bismanis, who envisioned a space that would uplift and showcase rising talent, the eatery harmonizes the creative brilliance of Chef Jared Bihun and General Manager & Sommelier Peter Van de Reep. What started as a restaurant science experiment in the midst of a global pandemic has evolved into a MICHELIN Recommended concept driven by personal expression and artistic innovation. www.bargobo.com
