E71 Jon Rennie

Jon Rennie has spent 20+ years cooking in restaurants in Waterloo Region. As a constant; he has had the pursuit of flavour in mind throughout his life. Always striving to be better; this mentality has taken a drastic switch in focus to mental health (especially in the industry), sustainability beyond food sourcing to his coworkers and their lives, and bettering industry environments wherever he can. Jon has spent the last few years raising money and awareness for mental health supports through @rest_for_restaurants while taking time away to recuperate from a stressful career and to learn whole animal butchery. Turning his focus back to restaurants and tossing aside “the way it’s always been” Jon and his closest friend Wes Klassen have set their sights set on a restaurant as both social enterprise and a “community first, restaurant second” mentality. Links: Jon Rennie @cookjonrenniecook Wes Klassen @purpleteethconsulting Podcast Artwork by Zak Hannah @zak.hannah