A local restauranteur has been named the new chair of Restaurants Canada’s Board of Directors.

Jeremy Bonia has spent decades in the restaurant industry and operates popular fine dining spots such as The Merchant Tavern alongside chef Jeremy Charles.

Bonia has been a Restaurants Canada board member for the past eight years and says he’s honoured to be appointed to the lead role.

His vision for the position is to continue helping the restaurant industry recover from the pandemic.

He says the pandemic hurt a lot of establishments and is hoping they can continue to grow the industry that has started to rebound. Bonia says they’re hoping to help businesses get back on their feet and would like to see new places open or reopen, rather than more restaurants closing down.