Owners, Jill Thomas & Stanley Mulder
Jill and Stan live on Salt Spring with their two teenage kids and previously owned the Tree House Cafe in Ganges before opening the Rock Salt Restaurant and Cafe in 2003.
Jill is the creator and editor of a collaborative blog called Island Chef.ca. She is on the Board of Directors of the Victoria branch of the BC Restaurant Association and on the Culinary Tourism Society of BC. After graduating from BCIT Stan worked for a large refrigeration company in Vancouver before starting his own company on Salt Spring. He was a volunteer fire fighter on Salt Spring Island for ten years.
Joe Trejo – Kitchen Manager
Ever wondered where those awesome Mexican specials come from? Our chef & kitchen manager Joe pleases our palates every week with the experience he gained while going through chef school in his home town of Mexico City. Joe moved to Salt Spring when an opportunity arose for him to join the Rock Salt team. Joe is our man of perpetual happiness who sings in the kitchen and is always a pleasure to be around. His good nature, positive attitude and experience have landed him the position of kitchen manager where he continues to excel!
Shannon Kendal, General Manager & Social Media Coordinator
Shannon migrated to the coast from the interior of B.C. in 1996 to study recreation management. She fell in love with the ocean and decided to permanently trade in her horse for a kayak. She’s called Salt Spring Island home ever since but has taken numerous sabbaticals from island life to travel the world and live in Mexico, Sweden and Jamaica.
Shannon’s incredible diversity of career choices reflects her numerous passions and adventurous personality. Among other things, she’s worked as the director of children’s activities on a cruise ship, as a kayak guide, a riding instructor, a roofer and a jewelery buyer. Through it all she’s worked on and off with Rock Salt owners Jill and Stan -starting as a breakfast cook when they owned the Tree House Cafe in 1999.
Shannon started at Rock Salt shortly after it opened in 2003 and has since worked her way up the ladder through every job in the restaurant. She loves the social life in Fulford Village, sailing, surfing, paddling and being a mom to her beautiful son Imani. Shannon is very proud to call Salt Spring home.
Kathleen Mouat – Floor Manager
Meet Kathleen! She has to be one of our happiest team members at The Rock Salt. We love having her here & are super excited that she has decided to give us more of her time during the summer months when she is not busy shuttling the island youth around.
If you are visiting the island be sure to pick her brain about local hangouts as she was born & raised on Salt Spring. Kathleen has a zest for life that she is able to share if you are the lucky one’s who get to sit in her section.
We are confident that you are in great hands. We are very pleased to welcome Kathleen to our management team.
Jesse Blanchette – Assistant Kitchen Manager
The newest addition to our Rock Salt team is Jesse! Many of you might know him as he was born and raised on Salt Spring. Jesse is passionate about food and all things restaurant. He is one of those guys who can fill any role; server, bar tender or in the kitchen. His love for cooking since he was a boy helped him to realize his dreams of owning a restaurant on Salt Spring. Since his lease expired at the golf course he decided to take up a different opportunity and join Rock Salt. When he is not working he loves to cook at home, bake & play guitar.
Hana Mulder – Front Manager
We finally captured one of the family in our management team! Hana recently graduated from GISS and has been raised amongst the restaurant business, so when the oppotunity arose she was the perfect person to fill the shoes of Front Manager. Hana is sweet, hard working & sincere. One thing you can count on is being taken care of with the utmost kindness.