Sudbury caterer creates recipe for success.

• Author: Ross, Ian
• Position: News

Kirk Moskalyk considers himself the MacGyver of caterers.

Like the TV action hero with the knack of creating technical gadgets out of paper clips and chocolate bars that save the day, the owner of La Cascade Catering loves the challenge of ad-libbing on the fly.

"I'm pretty good at shooting from the hip," says the quick-thinking 35-year-old entrepreneur whose five-year-old home-based business garnered a Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce award this past spring as one of the city's most favoured caterers.

When the Aug. 14, 2003 province-wide blackout hit, Moskalyk was preparing for a 150-guest weekend wedding in nearby Capreol.

No power, no problem. He quickly made arrangements to bring in barbecues and was preparing a back-up menu when the power flickered back on the next day.

"I don't really get too nervous. There's no need to get excited. I try to stay as cool as possible."

His catering adventures have taken him into fly-in camps and areas where he has had to back refrigerated trucks up into remote cottages with no power. He has even taken on a vegan wedding, offering a menu of food choices with no products derived from animals (no fish, eggs or dairy).

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"I very rarely say no. The more of a challenge, the more exciting. It doesn't scare me one bit."

He developed his culinary prowess as a child, a product of Ukrainian and Italian grandmothers.

When his political science studies at Ottawa's Carleton University proved uninspiring, he transferred across town to Algonquin College and enrolled in the chef's program.

"It was the best thing I ever did."

Returning home to Sudbury, he worked at various local restaurants before becoming a sales rep for a large Toronto-based restaurant supply company.

The catering business developed after a friend of his sister's invited him to cook at...