Growing up, my mother always made sure we had freshly baked bread at home. Bread was the centre of every meal. In my culture we are told to never waste food, and always make sure that no crumb was left behind at the end of any meal.

I was born in Ukraine and moved to Canada in 2022. After moving, I deeply missed the food I grew up with—the flavours, the rituals, and the feeling of home that came with them. Baking became my way of staying connected to that culture and sharing it with Vancouver.

Only recently did I learn that baking runs in my family. My grandfather was also a baker during the Second World War. That discovery pushed me to look deeper into my roots.

Ötmek is my way of honouring my Crimean Tatar and Ukrainian heritage—through bread, baklava, and slow, intentional baking.

Rustem