Culinary teacher, celebrity chef, and successful restauranteur, Murray Zehr sold his eight restaurants in order to open his dream culinary school, The 1909 Culinary Academy in Oxford County.
Only three weeks after opening, they had to shut down due to COVID-19. The chef school was set to start in May, with Tuesdays being open to the public for cooking classes. In the evening, the 1909 would transform into a restaurant focussing on locally produced ingredients, offering a seasonal menu.
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The old schoolhouse Zehr purchased to realize this dream has needed a lot of work to become a fully-featured chef school, kitchen, and restaurant. With Zehr pouring his life savings into this dream, and the 1909 closing abruptly, he’s had to find new revenue streams. The 1909 Culinary Academy Community Supported Agriculture program (CSA) allows individuals or families to subscribe to a share of fresh produce grown on the farm. Also, Zehr is now offering takeout from the 1909, with a different menu theme every weekend, as well as pantry items and preserves.
“There has to be a paradigm shift, and there has to be outside of the box thinking because we don’t know how long this is going to last, and we don’t know what’s going to happen with the next wave.”
– Murray Zehr
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It may not be the first year Zehr hoped for, but we can’t wait to visit the 1909 to see the dream that’s been years in the making.
