Greg
Smith, CFM
Senior Director of Food and Beverage
Greg Smith, CFM
Senior Director of Food and Beverage
With over four decades of experience in the hospitality industry, Greg Smith leads our award-winning food and beverage team. He feels privileged for the opportunity to continue his passion for delivering extraordinary food services to guests in our new and iconic Halifax Convention Centre.
Greg attributes his success to his diverse team of culinary professionals, and it’s no secret that they take great pride in the food we serve. Through Greg’s leadership, his team continues to review and refine our service offerings to ensure we remain up-to-date on the latest trends and continue to deliver a strong customer experience.
With each client that walks through our doors, Greg takes the time to learn about their event needs so that he and his team can work together to deliver a truly unforgettable culinary experience. He wants everyone near and far to be as excited about eating in Nova Scotia’s new Halifax Convention Centre as we are!
Donald Berkman, CFM
Food and Beverage Manager
Our Food and Beverage Manager Donnie Berkman was on his way to becoming an accountant before his culinary calling led him to join our team. He was drawn to the unique and diverse nature of the business, with every event bringing new and exciting opportunities to collaborate with event planners to develop a menu that meets their needs.
Since stepping into the hospitality industry, Donnie has held many roles, including stewarding, front-desk agent, sales, marketing and catering. He credits his team’s culinary success to their collaborative approach of working toward a common goal – that every event is exceptional. As a certified food and beverage manager for TIANS, Donnie strives to provide each guest with a memorable experience during their time in Nova Scotia.
Local flavours inspire our culinary creations, and this is something that Donnie and his team pride themselves on. You can find a lot of this Nova Scotia influence in our new Halifax Convention Centre menu! Dig in here.
Christophe Luzeux, CCC
Executive Chef
Our Executive Chef, Christophe Luzeux – or Chef, as he’s known as around here – is a world-renowned, award-winning culinary artist, having received many regional, national and international accolades for his work.
Originally from France, Chef touched down in Halifax nearly three decades ago; the personable, lively city that now continually makes him proud to call home. As a veteran member of the Halifax Convention Centre team, Chef often says that his culinary team responds to today’s client needs with the same passion and professionalism they did over 25 years ago. For Chef, his team is a key part of his daily inspiration.
When he’s not preparing delicious cuisine, Chef enjoys home renovation projects and searching for antiques. His ideal day in Nova Scotia includes taking in the scenery on the South Shore, exploring Lunenburg and Mahone Bay. Or, venturing to the Annapolis Valley to experience the finest that wine country has to offer.
Pierre Gaudet, CCC, CFM
Executive Sous Chef
Executing events among national and international audiences is an art, and our Executive Sous Chef Pierre Gaudet loves working with his talented culinary team to help create lasting food experiences for our guests.
What makes our Halifax Convention Centre menu the ‘Monet’ of the event industry food and beverage experience? Our culinary team prepares nearly all of our selections from scratch, in-house, providing our guests with flexibility in menu dietary requirements. Keeping with the theme of arts, Pierre credits his culinary inspiration to our regional culture, music and ingredients which help to influence his creative process.
Pierre enjoys the feeling of the living history that surrounds Halifax, including our Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, as well as our bustling harbour and all its proud military heritage. Of course, it’s no surprise that he especially enjoys the many diverse local restaurants serving up creations bursting with unique Nova Scotia sourced products!
Kris Gaudet
Sous Chef
In an industry known for having colleagues move around from a lot of different establishments, our Sous Chef Kris Gaudet is proud to be a part of a team that has been together for many years and that has over three centuries worth of combined experience. There’s a unique “family” feel to the kitchen that’s conducive to success.
His diverse team’s skill sets are further complemented by our state-of-the-art kitchen which includes the latest culinary equipment and technology to help ensure quality and consistency for every event we host. For Kris, these strengths are key when cooking for such dynamic numbers. He just loves that in any given day, his team is capable of doing a function for up to 3,000 guests, sometimes during two separate simultaneous events!
Born and raised in a small Acadian French community three hours outside of Halifax, Kris won’t hesitate to promote our province as much as he can, including our local flavours (some of which are showcased in our culinary creations). He strongly suggests that visitors embrace their adventurous side and explore Halifax’s dynamic food and beverage scene – so many cuisines and so many talented chefs. Kris looks forward to helping you fill your appetite when you bring your next event to our new Centre!