e's worked at Canoe, Biff's, 27 on Fourth, Susur, Splendido, and has been executive chef at reds bistro for the last two years; not to mention he wants to take over the Toronto food scene, and change the world, and did I mention this guy is only thirty? Dressed in a neon green Billabong T-shirt and shorts, with gelled hair, I'm reminded of all this in his restaurant, one weekday morning. Chef Mike Steh's star has been on a fast ascend over the last decade, strategically gathering industry know-how from some of the city's heaviest hitters. This driven young thing attributes his success to two things: consistency and ambition.

Humble beginnings inspire Steh's local, seasonal, and slow-cooking menu at reds. Raised on a farm in Oshawa, his immigrant parents lived off the land: curing their own meats, growing their own vegetables. Though graced with significant computer talents and a scholarship to a prestigious American university, Steh said screw it, and bummed around Australia for a year. When he returned, he started working at East Side Mario's; a job few would find inspiring. That is, if they didn’t have the drive of this guy. With an offer to be kitchen manager, he decided it was time he took this more seriously, or picked another profession. Foodies everywhere are thrilled he decided to enroll at George Brown culinary school.

Steh counts Gordon Mackie, a constant in his professional career, as a source of guidance and inspiration who taught him about goal setting and focus. They worked together at Biff's and Canoe, Mackie is now the executive chef of Sircorp, the company that owns Far Niente, Petit Four, and reds. Steh credits both him, and the organization for letting him explore his creativity. In his twenties, Steh didn’t mind moving around, “now I'm looking for stability in life, which this company offers." Likewise, Mackie has put a lot of faith in the chef; when he was hired at reds, Mackie was too busy to closely monitor the changes that Steh made, providing him significant freedom with both the space and the kitchen. Reds transitioned to a proper wine bar, comprised of Mike Berlanguet as general manager from Auberge de Pommier, and sommelier Taylor Thompson from Jamie Kennedy Kitchens, and introduced his philosophy of local and seasonal with full force.