Araxi owner named businessperson of the year

December 18, 2009

Known for his humble demeanour and quiet way of collecting honours and success, perhaps it’s not surprising that local restaurant owner Jack Evrensel left this week’s Chamber of Commerce luncheon before he could accept the award for Businessperson of the Year.

The proprietor of famous Whistler eatery Araxi, as well as three Vancouver establishments, Evrensel was chosen for his business excellence and enhancing the resort on an international level, said Shauna Hardy Mishaw, who received the award last year.

“In a word, Top Table is top notch,” she said of Evrensel’s Top Table restaurant group.

According to Drew Meredith, who was sitting next to Evrensel at Tuesday’s (Dec. 15) luncheon at Nita Lake Lodge, Evrensel left early because he wasn’t feeling well. Meredith accepted the award on his behalf.

“Jack exemplifies one of the many people Whistler has trained and set out in the world who have done very well,” Meredith said.

Mayor Ken Melamed was on hand to reward Evrensel with tickets to the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver as a “one-time” gift from the municipality for the 2009 Businessperson of the Year recipient.


Melamed said it was surprising that Evrensel had not received the award before. Evrensel is one of the quiet people who helped make Whistler a special place, Melamed said.

Araxi, which is named after Evrensel’s wife, opened in 1981 after Evrensel fell in love with Whistler while visiting from Montreal. Though Whistler Village as it is today only existed as a conceptual drawing at the time, Evrensel could see its promise, Hardy Mishaw said.

Evrensel studied mechanical engineering at Concordia University, but decided to get into the restaurant business and Araxi was his first venture. His restaurants have since attracted international acclaim, with Araxi having been named best Whistler restaurant by Vancouver Magazine an unprecedented nine years running.

The eatery attracted international attention earlier this year when it was featured in the Hell’s Kitchen reality TV series.

Hardy Mishaw said the Chamber’s Businessperson of the Year committee also selected Evrensel for his dedication to developing and training his staff. According to the new Araxi cookbook, some staff members who helped open the restaurant in 1981 still work there.

“Jack prides himself on taking care of his staff,” Hardy Mishaw said.

The sold-out Chamber luncheon also included John Furlong, CEO of the 2010 Games organizing committee (VANOC), as its featured speaker. Sharing several stories from the Olympic Torch Relay, which is currently in Ontario, Furlong’s address served as a pep talk for Whistler on the final stretch to Games-time.

He said the torch relay has been uplifting and has captivated and united the entire country. The Games are helping to build a stronger Canada, which was part of the vision, he added.

“It’s very special,” Furlong said. “I promise you when the Olympic flame comes to Whistler (on Feb. 5), no matter how hard you try to resist it, it won’t let you.”

Furlong acknowledged challenges along the Games planning process, not the least of which being financial constraints because of the world economy. Still, he repeated VANOC’s pledge to deliver the Games with a balanced budget.

With two months to go, there is still much work to do, he said. If people in Whistler want to know how they can help, Furlong said they can offer a bed or even a couch for an Olympic volunteer and take transit and limit vehicle use during the Games.

Most importantly, people should engage visitors, make them feel they’re in the best place on Earth and give them a sense of why we’re proud to be Canadian, he added.

“We need the public to come to the bench now and embrace this in every way they can,” he said. “Go out there and own a piece of this spirit.”

The results of the recent Chamber board elections were also announced at Tuesday’s meeting, with Peter Alder, Bob Barnett, Scott Carrell, Shauna Hardy Mishaw, Pat Kelley, Danielle Kristmanson, Kendra Mazzei and Kennedy Raine newly elected out of 14 nominees.