orn and raised in Toronto's Little Italy, Dominic Amaral's upbringing was the closest thing to living on a farm in an urban setting. That's not an insult to his family; in fact, we thank his parents for this. For without it, he might not have developed affection for watching his mom twist the necks of chickens, and skin rabbits. But more importantly, he may not have developed the same desire to work hands-on with food.

Working his way up from being a bus boy, Amaral's first restaurant job was at Bar Italia -even before attending George Brown, he had achieved Executive Chef status. Eventually moving on, he worked at the now defunct Sarkis, then took some time off to travel, and returned to Toronto to begin an eight year relationship working with the renowned Susur Lee, at Susur.

Amaral was there from Susur's inception. After gaining inspiration in his homeland of Portugal, he was put in touch with Lee, began as Garde Manger. Quickly rising to Sous-Chef, Amaral spent 7 years as Lee's right hand man. Though that is quite a lengthy amount of time to hold the penultimate position in a restaurant, it is clear he was doing it for the love of the food, and Lee. His admiration for the Chef is a two-way street. Amaral believes he was being molded for his new position as Executive Chef at Madeline's through their travels together, (including Spain, Taiwan, Hawaii, New York, and Boston), and teachings about the business and Lee's unique version of cooking. It is also apparent that Lee, who has people knocking down the doors to work in his kitchens, wouldn't have trusted the position to just anyone.