North

Rich Francis wins third place in Canada’s Top Chef

Rich Francis, the first aboriginal chef to compete on the Food Network’s Top Chef Canada, came in third place last night.

'Anytime you present something new to people... there is gonna be some criticism,' Francis says

It was a bittersweet finale for Rich Francis, originally of Fort McPherson, N.W.T.

The first aboriginal chef to compete on the Food Network’s Top Chef Canada came in third place last night.

Francis dominated the cooking challenges leading up to the finish.

But at the last minute Francis changed his menu, and the judges were put off by his scallops in a vanilla cream sauce, undercooked quail, and muskox... for dessert.

Francis says he has no regrets.

“Anytime you present something new to people or the public, there is gonna be some criticism," he told the CBC. "But this is my food and this is the food that we’ve known for so long. Maybe they’re just not used to it just yet.”

Francis says since the taping of the show back in August, he's taken what he learned while shooting the finale and perfected the dishes.

He runs a pop up restaurant in Ontario called District Red by Rich Francis.