From Germany to Revelstoke: Chef Mitja’s Journey to Bison Lodge
What does it take to become a private chef in one of Revelstoke’s most exclusive luxury lodges? For Chef Mitja Ziegler, the journey started at just 15 years old in Germany, when he began his culinary apprenticeship. By the time he was 18, he was already a fully trained chef, working in hotels and fine dining restaurants in Munich.
Cooking started young for Chef Mitja as his parents ran an organic bistro, where his father was a baker specializing in seedy sourdough breads, and his mother was the cook. Growing up in that environment, it was only natural for him to step into the kitchen, and he continues to bake fresh sourdough at Bison Lodge, drawing inspiration from his father’s German-style breads.
International Fine Dining & Luxury Experiences
Mitja’s passion for food and adventure led him beyond Germany. After a stint at a fine dining seafood restaurant in the Caribbean, he made his way to Vancouver, landing a position at Chambar, one of the city’s most renowned Belgian-French restaurants. Chambar became a stepping stone in his career, introducing him to Vancouver’s fine dining scene and industry connections. After four years, he moved on to CinCin, a high-end Italian restaurant where he perfected the art of wood-fired grilling and Italian fine dining. One of Mitja’s après-ski specialties at Bison Lodge is pizza from our food-fired oven.
Cooking for the Worlds Elite: Yachts & Formula 1 Circuits
After a decade in Vancouver, Mitja’s career took another exciting turn when he was recruited to work as a private chef on luxury yachts, cooking for high-profile clients, including Bill Gates and his family. He spent four years alternating between private yachts and heli-ski lodges, curating personalized menus for elite guests while traveling the world.
One of his most exciting roles? Working as a chef for the Red Bull F1 Team, where he cooked for drivers, media, and team members during races around the globe. From Japan to São Paulo, he fine-tuned his ability to create high-performance meals under fast-paced conditions while experiencing some of the world’s most dynamic food cultures.
Finding Home in the Mountains
After years of fine dining, world travel, and high-end kitchens, Mitja found himself in the BC mountains. His experience working in heli-skiing lodges and Durand Glacier Lodge near Revelstoke eventually led him to Bison Lodge, where he now brings his global expertise and passion for personalized dining to our guests.
The Bison Lodge Culinary Experience
Now, at Bison Lodge, Mitja brings his global culinary expertise to every meal he creates. His cooking is inspired by his surroundings, the guests he’s serving, and the high-quality local ingredients he sources.
Some of his favorite dishes to prepare include:
- Handmade tagliatelle with wild mushroom sauce
- Bavarian schnitzel with potato salad
- His grandmother’s German dumpling soup
- Homemade Sourdough Breads
- Tomahawk Steak Cooked in Woodfire Forno Oven with Chimichurr
What sets Bison Lodge apart from other places is the intimate, interactive dining experience. Unlike a typical restaurant kitchen, the open-concept kitchen at Bison Lodge allows him to interact with guests and tailor menus to their preferences. Many visitors return year after year, building relationships that go beyond food. He presents each course himself, sharing insights about the ingredients and inspiration behind the dish, creating a truly unique dining experience.
His approach is simple: draw inspiration from the mountains, the local ingredients, and the people he’s cooking for. Whether it’s sourcing fresh burrata from the Okanagan, hand-selecting organic produce from local farms, or surprising guests with a dish they casually mentioned enjoying, he crafts every meal with intention and creativity.
Where can you find Chef Mitja when he’s not in the kitchen? Spending time with his wife and their newborn daughter. Or sneaking away to Revelstoke Mountain for a few snowboard laps – conveniently located directly across the street from Bison Lodge.
