| Address: | 226 Nepean Street | | Ottawa, Ontario | | K2P 0B8 | | Telephone: | (613) 238-7063 | | Fax: | (613) 231-7474 | | General Email: |
| | Follow me on Twitter | | Facebook Page | | Stephen Beckta, Owner | |   | Stephen Beckta is proprietor of Beckta, and its sister restaurant, Play food & wine, a new and critically acclaimed small plates restaurant in the Byward Market. After graduating with honours from Algonquin College’s Sommelier program, Stephen departed Ottawa to hone his skills in New York City for four years with the top players in the restaurant industry. Stephen started at Café Boulud working for the celebrated chef, Daniel Boulud, followed by two years with renowned restaurateur Danny Meyer at Eleven Madison Park before returning to his native city. Stephen has been named Top Independent Restaurateur in Ontario by the Ontario Hostelry Institute (2007), nominated for the Bill Joe Restaurateur of the Year Award three times by the Ontario Restaurant Association (2005-2007), nominated for the Ontario Premier’s Awards in Business twice (2006, 2010), named one of Ottawa’s Top 40 under 40 by the Ottawa Business Journal (2008) and Algonquin College’s Alumni of the year (2010).
| | | Michael Moffatt, Executive Chef | |  | Michael Moffatt is the Executive Chef of both Beckta, and its critically acclaimed sister restaurant Play food & wine. Michael’s cuisine has been described as “consistently inventive and delicious”. He spent many years working in renowned kitchens including The River Café, one of New York’s most iconic restaurants as well as the CAA 5 Diamond Award winning kitchen at the Rimrock Resort in Banff, AB. Michael is a proud Algonquin College Culinary Arts Graduate and now chairs the Advisory Board for the Culinary program. Michael began his tenure at Beckta as Sous-Chef in 2003, before taking over the reins as Chef in 2006.
| | | Haz El-Gabalawy, Head Server | |  | Haz El-Gabalawy has worked in some of Ottawa’s premier dining establishments. With 30 plus years of experience, he's a true icon of service and hospitality, and has established a loyal following among Ottawa diners. In 2003, Haz was a founding member of the Beckta dining & wine team and has, since the beginning, greatly contributed to the training and development of our award winning Front of House staff. He was recognized for his many fine reviews and accolades by receiving the 2007 Ottawa Citizen Service Person of the Year Award.
| | | Natali Harea, Sous Chef | | | Natali Harea ’s fervour for food began in her teens when she was more interested in reading cookbooks and experimenting with family dinners than she was in her high school studies. After returning from a summer trip to the south of France, Natali quickly enrolled in Algonquin College’s Culinary Management program. It was there where her culinary spirit was truly awakened, and she graduated with Honours and made the Dean’s list. She went on to work at the Black Cat Bistro and became Sous Chef under the tenure of Trish Donaldson. She has also served as Kitchen Manager at the Urban Element and as Sous Chef to René Rodriguez at Navarra before joining Beckta in 2011. She became our Sous Chef later that year.
| | | Bill Mannering, Head Server | |  | Bill Mannering started his service career at the Benmiller Inn & Spa, just outside of his hometown of Goderich Ontario. Over 10 years, his passion for hospitality grew, and he built a solid foundation of service skills. In 2003, Bill was part of the opening team of Beckta dining & wine. It was as a server here at Beckta, where he truly came to understand the nature of compassionate and knowledgeable service. Bill became one of our Head Waiters in 2008 and has since graduated from Algonquin’s College’s Sommelier Program.
| | | Dirk McCabe, Chef de Cuisine | |  | Dirk McCabe grew up in a small ranching town in northwestern Colorado and was raised to have a deep appreciation for food. From a very young age, he knew he wanted to be a chef, and this love of all things culinary drove him to amass 16 years of experience in fine new world fare, contemporary Japanese cuisine, wild game and smoked meats. While attending Le Cordon Bleu, Dirk joined the Beckta dining & wine team in 2005. Not long after graduating with Le Grand Diplome, he became our Sous Chef in 2006 and then our Chef de Cuisine in 2009. Dirk’s love of gardening has made him a huge promoter of farm-to-table awareness. His home vegetable garden project has been a tremendous success and allowed many of our guests to grow their own seasonal produce.
| | | Pieter Van den Weghe, General Manager & Wine Director | |  | Pieter Van den Weghe served and managed at Ottawa’s Courtyard Restaurant for 13 years. Along the way, he fell in love with two things. The first was the rewarding experience of looking after people. The second was all things wine. Both of these passions led him to become a graduate of Algonquin’s College’s Sommelier Program and earn a Level 3 Advanced Certificate in Wines and Spirits from the WSET. First joining Beckta dining & wine as Service Manager in 2006, Pieter became our Sommelier in 2008. Since then, he’s crafted a diverse wine list which promotes delicious Canadian and international wines from great producers who make wine with a sense of place. In 2011, Pieter was promoted to General Manager. Outside of Beckta, Pieter continues to spread the word about wine through his teaching at Algonquin College and his articles in Diplomat magazine.
| | | Steve Whittaker, Service Manager & Maitre d'Fromage | |  | Steve Whittaker served and managed for the Oliver Bonacini Group of restaurants in Toronto for 3 years. During his tenure with them, his proudest accomplishment was the resurrection of the cheese program at Biffs Bistro & Wine Bar. Thanks to the guidance of Maitre d'Fromage Kathy Guidi and Steve’s efforts, the cheese program moved to the forefront of the Toronto dining scene. In 2008, Steve came to Ottawa and joined the Beckta dining & wine team as one of our Service Managers. He constantly shares his commitment to service excellence with fellow staff and guests. Thanks to Steve and his love of fine artisanal cheeses from Canada and around the world, the cheese course remains one of the most popular and delicious aspects of dining at Beckta.
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