Marat Dreyshner was once a student at Vancouver Talmud Torah. When students return to school in September, he’ll be the guy serving them lunch.
Dreyshner, whose culinary creations are familiar to many in Vancouver’s Jewish community, is working with Aramark, a global food services provider that has been contracted by VTT to deliver lunch menus to the school’s more than 500 students.
“It was like this position was made for me,” he told the Independent.
What seems like a full-circle adventure for Dreyshner is part of an ambitious new venture by VTT and Aramark, which will lean on Dreyshner’s support and expertise. Talmud Torah is Aramark’s first foray into kosher food services in Vancouver and, after the school food system is running smoothly, Aramark and Dreyshner aim to build a kosher catering service as a social enterprise supporting the school.
Dreyshner’s career has taken him through restaurants, hotels, institutional kitchens and catering operations. He worked at the Boathouse at English Bay and at the Prow restaurant in the Pan Pacific Hotel. He later spent a year backpacking through Europe, looking for culinary experiences and ideas before returning to Vancouver and establishing Fired Up Catering. In 2005, he and his wife Ella opened Reflections Gastronomy, a waterfront restaurant in Steveston. They operated it for about two years.
Dreyshner, who was born in Moldova, which was then part of the Soviet Union, describes the restaurant as one of the hardest and most expensive things they ever undertook, but also as an education more valuable than any formal degree. After closing it, the family moved north, where Dreyshner became executive chef at the Westmark Hotel in Whitehorse, Yukon, which was owned by Holland America and served travelers moving through the Yukon and Alaska tourism circuit. He then spent eight-and-a-half years at Real Canadian Superstore, where he developed and expanded the kosher department at one location.
More recently, Dreyshner has been catering private events, as well as serving the Richmond Kehila Society’s seniors’ meal program on Mondays, and catering for the Jewish Seniors Alliance and other community organizations. His work has been primarily kosher, using kitchens at Beth Tikvah Congregation or Chabad of Richmond when formal supervision was required.
He has also served as treasurer of Friends of JNF Canada’s local board and has worked with Jewish institutions across Metro Vancouver.
Community familiarity is a major part of what makes Dreyshner attractive for the Talmud Torah role.
“We are thrilled to have partnered with Aramark to be able to bring our community together to break bread on a daily basis while enjoying an array of kosher, healthy offerings,” said Emily Greenberg, VTT’s head of school and chief executive officer. “Aramark’s size and scale have enabled us to do this for our students and families at a reasonable cost and Chef Marat will be a great source of support and expertise to ensure that our lunches are kosher, reflective of our Jewish traditions and bring together our students in a beautiful way.”
Along with a new service provider, returning students will see other changes this year. Instead of an optional meal program serving only those families who sign up in advance, food will now be built into tuition and offered to the entire school community. About 550 students, from junior kindergarten through Grade 7, as well as roughly 120 teachers and staff, will have access to a daily kosher lunch.
Some renovations have taken place at the school’s Cristall Family Dining Hall, including a new serving area with hot and cold sections. Rather than approaching a single kitchen window, students will have access to a buffet-style setup with a hot entrée, a starch, vegetables, salads and a special station for those with allergies. Dreyshner got feedback from school staff about what kids like, and Aramark’s nutritionist has reviewed the offerings.
The priority is feeding the students well, said Greenberg. The menu will follow a four-week cycle, with three dairy days and two meat days each week. The balance helps maintain a healthy menu at a reasonable cost. Aramark’s extensive supply lines will assist with meeting this challenge, Greenberg said.
Planned meal items include schnitzel, pasta Bolognese, teriyaki salmon, matzah ball soup, quesadillas, macaroni and cheese, and gnocchi. Vegetables will include carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, corn, green beans, etc. Fresh fruit will be available, but dessert will not be part of the regular lunch choices. Feedback from students, parents and teachers will shape the offerings after the program begins.
As head chef at the school, Dreyshner will be supported by a team of skilled and experienced staff. Early hires include a veteran cook with about 30 years of experience, as well as a supervisor he was preparing to bring on when he spoke with the paper.
Once the meal program is firmly established, the longer-term plan is to develop a broader kosher catering enterprise that will help keep the cost of universal lunch affordable. The first step will be internal events, such as staff meetings and school functions. Once staffing and operations are stable, the kitchen could begin catering bar and bat mitzvahs, weddings and community events.
Aramark already has the capacity to draw staff from its operations at schools, workplaces and facilities around the region. The company’s network could provide additional personnel for large occasions.
Dreyshner would bring community relationships, kosher knowledge and an established client base.
Vancouver has relatively few kosher catering options and Dreyshner sees room for another serious operator.
His own reputation has been built over decades. Many of the parents at Talmud Torah know him from childhood or from community events. Some attended school with him. Others have watched his children grow up. That continuity gives the new role an unusually personal dimension. It feels less like an abrupt career change than a homecoming.
“I’m super-excited,” he said.