Chef Laura Panarese gets candid about her journey, love and passion for food and life.

Are you looking for inspiration to start your journey as a chef? Are you interested in what a successful chef ’s life is like? Would you like to know what attributes, choices and values govern the kitchen? All these questions can be answered by just one name: Chef Laura Panarese.

She is the Executive Chef of DI LA Dining at Speducci Mercatto in North York, and four years ago she became the Chef Ambassador at Pastificio Felicetti Canada. Chef Laura’s journey is one to celebrate and to learn how important it is to set one’s heart and soul on work that will produce the best results and, in her case, make customers relish every bite on their plate.

Panarese was six years old when she first saw her grandmother cooking pasta. Everyone in her family, including her parents, were good cooks, and this is where her love of the craft started.

Panarese started working as a company manager but still loved to cook, which led her to prepare a meal for everyone at lunchtime. Finally, deciding that she had to heed her inner calling and do what she loved best, she went to Milan to learn the nitty-gritty of cooking and learn all that she could about food. In 2018, she was invited to be a guest at an event in Canada and the rest is history.

For the past four years, she has been the chef up front at DI LA Dining. She reminisces how her little kitchen room became her second home. This is also where she paints at night.

It wouldn’t be wrong to say that her kitchen has become a representation of herself. She adds, “All my emotions are on my plates. Every plate has something from my life.”

For instance, one of her dishes is octopus. She feels the creature resembles her in terms of having a sensitive personality. Another one is risotto, which she says represents her country and family.

In her kitchen, all customers are welcomed as part of the family. She loves to have her customers come to the kitchen. She strongly believes that “eating here is not just dining; it’s a whole experience full of emotion.”

“Eating Here Is Not Just Dining; It’s A Whole Experience Full Of Emotion.”

Paranese wants her customers to have a feeling of being at home. She recalls the experience of hosting a family one evening and warmly recounts how seeing them celebrate and have an amazing evening together filled her heart with joy. It always makes her day when customers leave smiling after having had a good time with their loved ones.

Speaking about the most important attributes that drive her, she says, “Everything I do in my kitchen is about love and passion.” Without these two traits, it is hard to grow in a profession like hers.

She adds that one can’t do everything for money — cooking is a tough job demanding many hours of service, and it’s easy to lose heart in the process, so it’s only a deep underlying passion for the work that gets you through those difficult times.

She believes that one has to be a good cook to be a good chef. Similarly, only a good chef can become an executive chef. She also stresses the significance of maintaining good relations with other chefs in the kitchen. It is only when you treat other people well that you can work in collaboration and give customers a valuable experience.

It is her dedication and immense love for her profession that have helped her achieve tremendous heights in her career. As an avid lover of pasta herself, she was delighted to be named the ambassador for Pastificio Felicetti Canada, having used the brand both in Italy and now in Canada.

When she is not working, she loves spending time with her dog, who she brought to Canada from Italy five years ago and considers her “baby,” she says.

However, when asked about the greatest gift she has ever received, she said, “It’s my daughter. She’s my everything, and every single thing I do is for her.”

When asked about her dolce vita, she added, “We have only one life, and we should enjoy it.” Her dolce vita is her passion for cooking and love for her family.

INTERVIEW BY MARC CASTALDO

speducci.com
www.diladining.com
@cheflaurapanarese