Kevin Cooper - Head Chef
Kevin joins ROAR as Head Chef, with over twenty years of culinary experience. Most recently, he opened the award-winning, 400-seat Edge Restaurant at the Rise Resort in Vernon. He’s a graduate of the Okanagan Culinary College and has cooked and led in kitchens across France, Italy, Las Vegas, Calgary, the Okanagan, and Victoria. He has a robust and acclaimed culinary career, but his proudest accomplishment remains raising his son.
Chef Kevin believes in creating a culinary experience that is memorable and accessible, and he sees ROAR as a true community hub. He wants you to feel at home, whether you’re swinging by for snacks, celebrating a huge milestone celebration or just stopping in on your way to town for a quick breakfast.
Carl Hamilton - Restaurant Manager
Carl Hamilton, Restaurant Manager at ROAR Tofino made his home in the food and beverage industry because of the wonderful chaos that defines it. He loves the spontaneity, the on-the-fly, real-world problem solving, and the people. Misfits are drawn to bars and restaurants and Carl loves the sense of family and intimacy this environment creates.
Originally from Australia, Carl got his start behind the bar in Toronto on a working holiday, and fell in love with the craft. He spent several years learning as much as he could in the bars of Toronto, before moving to Melbourne and heading up the bar program at the Adelphi Hotel.
On a vacation to Vietnam, Carl and his wife decided to seize the day—and the bounty of fresh tropical fruits—by opening a 50-seat tiki bar in Hanoi. The Tay Ho Tiki Company was a huge success, and it taught him a lot about how western restaurant culture falls short. In Vietnam, family trumps every other type of responsibility. Carl was inspired by the flexibility this value created in his workplace, and determined to bring this culture with him when he left Vietnam. A reckoning is happening in the food and beverage industry and Carl sees himself as a vanguard of revitalizing how people treat each other and themselves within the restaurant scene.
He joined ROAR as Bar Manager and developed a beautiful beverage menu that incorporates locally-sourced and foraged ingredients that help our guests find a sense of place on Vancouver Island. In 2024, he continued his ROAR journey by becoming our Restaurant Manager, but he considers himself a tour guide, creating experiences within the restaurant that connect folks to the unique eco-system of Vancouver Island’s incredible west coast.
Matt Brear - Resort Manager
Matt Brear, Resort Manager at Hotel Zed Tofino and ROAR, is a relentless optimist. With over 20 years of management experience in hotels, restaurants, pubs, and resorts across the world, Matt is still head-over-heels in love with the hospitality business and he’s got the show-stopping smile to prove it.
After conquering luxury hotels and the food and beverage industry in BC, Matt took his talents abroad with the Oak Bay Marine Group, settling in the Cape Santa Maria Beach Resort & Villas in the Bahamas for almost seven years. Here, he oversaw 70 staff members, 40 luxury rooms (including a renovation!) and 120 seats of food and beverage. Before landing in the Bahamas, Matt’s career with the Oak Bay Marine Group took him to the Canadian Princess Fishing Lodge and Marine Activities in Ucluelet and the Marina Restaurant in Victoria. He’s really a Vancouver Island guy at heart.
Matt is the youngest of eight kids and the very proud uncle to seventeen amazing humans! He is excited to be back on Vancouver Island, especially in Tofino where he can jog Chesterman’s Beach. During the rainiest season (which he insists he loves!), he does daydream of conch chowder in the Bahamas, but his home and his heart is with his team of rebels at Hotel Zed and ROAR.
