Our Team
Fine Dining at its Best, on Georgian Bay
RON CHERRY / EXECUTIVE CHEF
Growing up in his family’s Muskoka resort kitchen, Ron Cherry had found his calling by age 13. Following a stint at Huntsville’s century old Deerhurst Inn, he ran the kitchen at Toronto’s Café Lagaffe before moving on to Michael Stadtlander’s groundbreaking gourmet-organic restaurant, Eigensinn Farm. Appointed Executive Chef at Vancouver’s internationally acclaimed Sooke Harbour House (1986 to 1992), Cherry became renowned for his superb seafood menus. Expertise he further improved in the South Pacific when he and his future wife opened an oceanfront restaurant specializing in grilled fish. Building the place by hand from reclaimed tropical forest logs, thatch and coconut wood, Cherry polished the woodworking skills that see the dining room graced with his hand-hewn harvest table, bar and stools. Returning to Canada with his wife and children, Cherry’s former mentor Michael Stadtlander recommended him for the Lodge, where he has continued to indulge his passion for fresh local ingredients and seasonal cuisine since 2008, coming full circle from a boy working in his family’s Muskoka hotel kitchen. Please see the online Menu for a current seasonal overview. To view a selection of Cherry’s handcrafted wood furnishings and accessories, visit muskokarusticfurniture.com.
PHILIP HEILBORN / HEAD CHEF
Having earned his Masters in Hospitality’s at Zurich’s noted Belvoirpark, Heilborn trained as a Sous Chef and Stagier in the Michelin-Starred Swiss restaurants, Il Casale and Zehners Stube. On his return to Canada, he took the Executive Sous Chef post at Donalda Golf and Country Club outside Toronto, turning out fine-dining and casual fare for large-scale corporate functions, sporting events and weddings. During his ensuing tenure as Chef de Cuisine at the popular downtown eatery, Earth, he nurtured an appreciation for cooking locally and seasonally with eco-conscience ingredients. A natural gift for elegantly rustic cuisine that he refined with an apprenticeship focused on progressive fine dining and nature-set dining experiences under trailblazing chef, Michael Stadtlander at Eigensinn Farm. Bringing vast knowledge, great taste, and a hip, youthful spirit to Catering by Glenn Burney Lodge, Heilborn oversees menus for catered events, large and small. Please see Catering & Special Events for details.
LOIS BARRON RALPH / SOMMELIER, GENERAL MANAGER & CO-OWNER
Mastering the subtleties of restaurant service, private dining, and catered events, Lois Barron-Ralph polished her fine dining skills in some of Toronto’s top restaurants, including George, The Spoke Club, Nyood and Kultura. Her appreciation for exceptional food and wine additionally honed by studying at the International Sommelier Guild in Toronto and training under some of the industry’s most sought after personal chefs. Overseeing the lodge and as its restaurant, Barron-Ralph also curates the wine program; introducing an evolving list of privately imported selections to the dining room as well as off-site, catered affairs. Intimately involved with the close-knit community she now calls home, Barron Ralph frequently hosts fundraisers at the lodge, including the annual West Parry Sound Hospital Foundation Gala. She is also a member of the Parry Sound Chamber of Commerce, the Georgian Bay Women’s Network, Savour Muskoka, and sits of the Board of Directors for Explorer’s Edge, the regional tourism association. In 2011, the Parry Sound Chamber of Commerce nominated Barron-Ralph for ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ while honouring Glenn Burney Lodge with its ‘Business of the Year’ award.
FLORRIE BOWEN / FRONT DESK & FLOOR CAPTAIN
With three years at such trendy Toronto dining rooms as Globe and Earth, Florrie Bowen brings high end expertise to her table service at the Lodge. Not to mention, a background in dance, a B.Sc. in Kinesiology, and a passion for yoga, which she practices daily, encouraging guests to join her. An avid vegan baker currently refining her wine knowledge, Bowen also runs the Front Desk on weekends.
JONATHAN ISKIW
Receiving his chef training at Niagara College, Iskiw spent two years working under one of Canada’s top chefs, Mark McEwen, both at One, the flagship fine dining room at Toronto’s five star Hazelton Hotel, as well as in the catering wing of McKewan’s venerated North 44. Following international hotel and restaurant stints, New Zealand to Alberta, Iskiw returned to Toronto to open Earth Restaurant, a popular address in the city’s Bloor West Village that specialized in sustainable, local cuisine. As Glenn Burney Lodge’s Sous Chef, he works with local suppliers to bring the bounty of the North to the the catering and special events he oversees with Head Chef Philip Heilborn.