Computers aren’t for everybody – some people prefer working with tools, or with knives and fire. People like Andrea Alridge.
“I cannot sit in front of a computer all day,” said Alridge, who studied computer science and graphic design for a few months after high school before deciding to pivot into cooking full time.
Now, keyboards and code are likely the furthest thing from her mind. Alridge is the executive chef at Janevca, a gorgeous and intricate new restaurant located in the soon-to-be-fully open Rosemead House in Esquimalt.
Leading the kitchen is the latest in a long line of culinary achievements for Alridge. She's worked in renowned Vancouver restaurants past and present, including Raincity Grill and CinCin. In 2021, she competed on Top Chef Canada. While she’s come a long way from her early days at a Vancouver Cactus Club, her earliest memories of food remain among her biggest influences.
“I think a lot of my upbringing with my grandmothers on both sides is what really pushed me into following my love for cooking,” said Alridge, who spent a great deal of time bonding over food with her family in Jamaica and the Philippines.
In Jamaica, Sunday meals were the biggest event — but in a country without supermarkets, preparing those meals was a bit more involved.
“You kind of lived off the land and got to know the farmers and everything like that,” she said. “We would go to a farm, pick out a goat or find chickens, bring them home, and she would teach us how to butcher them.”
Alridge learned a passion for ingredients from her Filipino grandparents, who often cared for her and her siblings after school.
“They were rigid, very strict, and it was very much, if you do not do your part, you do not get to eat,” said Alridge, laughing.
After Raincity Grill, she moved on to CinCin, a northern Italian restaurant in Vancouver. It marked her next step into fine dining and ignited a love for cooking with fire – now a major focus of her work. When she arrived, she admits some people doubted it was the right scene for her.
“It was such a pristine restaurant and so highly rated, and there was little old me who kind of looked like a punk skid kid with neon green hair and tattoos,” she said.
“Everyone in the kitchen kind of looked at me and they’re like, ‘Wow, you’re really out of place here — but let’s see what you’ve got.’”
Clearly, she exceeded their expectations. It was at CinCin where she caught the attention of Top Chef Canada.
“I thought it was a joke,” she said. But it wasn’t – and after plenty of discussion with her chef, family and friends, she went for it.
Participating in a weeks-long, nationally televised cooking competition was never something Alridge envisioned, and at first, she struggled to find her footing.
“One thing they do on the show is take everything away from you. There are no computers, no Apple watches, no phones – none of that. It’s just you, what you’ve got in your brain, and your own two hands,” said Alridge.
“You get mic’d up, you do your makeup, and then you just keep thinking: What are they going to do today? What’s the challenge going to be?”
Once she adjusted to the barrage of cameras and questions, she thrived – propelling herself to the final four, far beyond her initial expectation of being the second person eliminated.
“I realized this is just food at the end of the day. And as long as you’re having fun with it, that’s when you thrive. That’s what really helped me more than anything.”
She didn’t win Top Chef, but left the stage with a newfound confidence that still guides her today.
“It really forces you to use everything you know about yourself and everything you’ve learned in your career – and just put it all out there. It’s a true representation of you as a chef,” said Alridge.
Some time after the show, she was contacted about the opportunity at Janevca after a friend recommended her to owner Lenny Moy. After many coffee meetings and lots of consideration, the Vancouver native decided to make the leap to Island life.
It was a chance to build something from the ground up.
“I really wanted it to be something warm and welcoming – and fire-focused, of course,” said Alridge, who brings that vision to life with the help of a $75,000, 800-pound wood-fired grill that drives their steak program, wood-fired smoking and other creations.
“The whole ethos of [Janevca] is family at the heart of every meal. What we love – and what we try to preach here – is sharing food and breaking bread at the table.”
What does that mean? Family-style shared plates, much like those she enjoyed with her grandparents – a contrast to a dining scene more accustomed to individual portions.
“That’s something we’re trying to break the rules of here, within a fine dining aesthetic,” said Alridge.
“That’s how I’ve always eaten. I love it because it creates a stronger bond when you’re with your family or your friends. It forces you to get a little uncomfortable – you don’t always have to have the chicken or the steak.”
At Janevca, the scallop crudo is one such dish that Alridge hopes guests explore.
“[People] drink it down, they get extra bread, they sop it up – and I’m sure a lot of people still don’t really know what it is, but they know it’s delicious.”
With Janevca still in its first year since opening last October, Alridge has big plans for the space, like winning more awards – they’ve already won YAM Magazine’s Best New Restaurant award. Her ambitions are even loftier.
“What I really want is to change people’s viewpoint on dining,” said Alridge. “I want them to realize that not everything has to be so pristine and stuffy all the time. You can get messy with your food — and enjoy it.”
