Four Seasons Hotel Toronto

Four Seasons Tenure

• Since 2005
• First Four Seasons Assignment: Pot Wash, Manager in Training program, Four Seasons Hotel Washington, DC

Employment History

• Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire; Four Seasons Resort Seychelles; Four Seasons Hotel Doha; Four Seasons Hotel Toronto; Four Seasons Hotel Washington, DC

Birthplace

• Romans Sur Isère, France

Education

• Bachelors Degree, Hotel Management, Institut Vatel, Lyon, France

Languages Spoken

• French, English

Maxime Regad learned about good food and good service early in life. Growing up near the river Isère in southeast France, his grandmother owned a café and was always hospitable with guests. “So, that’s where I get my hospitality.” Later, as a member of the French junior tennis team, he travelled frequently, always game to try new foods and understand local culture. “That’s where I get my mind-set of travel and discovery.”

By the time Maxime grew out of the sport, he had a good idea of what he wanted to do with his life. “My mother wanted me to be a dentist like her. But the more I researched, the more I realised hotels were the thing to keep me travelling.”

When he settled upon a hotel management program at a private school, his father informed Maxime that he would have to pay the tuition himself. So he took a job at a beach restaurant in St. Tropez to better understand the business. During one training period his boss, Sebastien Carre, gave him the opportunity to work on the opening team of a hotel in Washington, DC.

Dial forward a year or so. After completing school, Maxime reached out to Carre again, who by then was Hotel Manager of Four Seasons Hotel Washington, DC. “Sebastien said, ‘would you like to work for me again?’ I said, ‘yes!’” Carre, who is now Four Seasons Regional Vice President of Sub-Saharan Africa and Indian Ocean, gave Maxime a shot and a slot at the ground level, washing dishes and pots in the kitchen.

“Looking back, I’m so glad he did,” Maxime remembers. “It taught me a lot about discipline and showed me the core of dining operations. I think more food and beverage managers would benefit from starting out the way I did.”

Now Hotel Manager at Four Seasons Hotel Toronto, Maxime knows precisely his priority: “The most important thing for me is to be very close with my people and my talent. The team needs my support to work together and create the same unique guest experience. And that’s what I give.”

Maxime gives plenty more, of course. At the end of the day he is running a business, and he puts “a lot of discipline and intensity” into ensuring that everyone performs at the highest level. He is frequently out with the floor teams of the Hotel’s signature dining and drinking experiences Café Boulud and d│bar, as well as with the banqueting and room service teams, spending all the time needed and eschewing the office as he can.

“You can’t oversee an operation like this from behind a desk,” he says. “d│bar is packed like a nightclub until 2:00 am on weekends! I have to be part of the dynamic we serve.”

Maxime also has to be creative, shaping dining experiences and events with an eye toward client preferences gleaned from comments and conversations. His aim, he says, is for every guest to leave the Hotel happy and with great memories, and he builds his knowledge with every interaction. It’s important for him to act upon what he learns: “Expectations are very high here. If there is ever an issue and I can genuinely fix it before the guest leaves, I have done my job.”

Meanwhile, Maxime’s experience at dealing with food producers has been shaped by Four Seasons Hotel assignments around the world: From local-ingredient-starved Doha, where he managed the Italian restaurant, to the fertile countryside of Hampshire, England, where he oversaw the entire food and beverage operation.

Though Toronto’s short growing season can be challenging for area farmers and butchers, Maxime is generally pleased with the product they deliver. “My Executive Chef and I are always meeting with suppliers, tasting and considering the origins of ingredients to secure the best and most consistent for our customers.”  

That same personal touch goes for menus. Though Café Boulud and d│bar are corporate owned, Maxime regularly shares his opinions with the chefs and bar managers. “I am French, so I usually have a lot to say about taste and seasonings,” he declares with a laugh. “I like to be involved when the menus change.”

Now on his third go-round with Four Seasons in Toronto (he was Room Service Manager back in 2008 and Director of Food and Beverage in 2019), Maxime doesn’t have much downtime for culture and recreation away from the Hotel – only for the thing he enjoys the most: “I’m the father of two young daughters, and I get immense pleasure out of being with them.”