Heidi mixes her two passions: Food and actionable change, while running with Bloc Montreal in this years 2022 Quebec elections.

Westmount’s Heidi Small, known as Beyond The Plate, is running for a seat in the National Assembly to fight to abolish Bills 96 and 21. She will also support and give a voice to small business and restaurant owners who lost that voice at the beginning of the pandemic.

From the very beginning Heidi has always held a passion for film making. As a film graduate from McGill University, Heidi set out to house actors that would arrive in Montreal to film, not knowing where to stay, or where to eat. “I basically created my career. I found a problem and I figured out how to fix it. And I did this for ten years.” She mentions with much nostalgia that her first ever mandate with the production company, Muse Entertainment, was finding housing for Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.

It’s no surprise that we still see Heidi today working hand in hand with one of her favourite publications, the Gazette, or more recently sponsored by Wadju Think for her chef series, Beyond The Plate, that airs monthly on CTV Montreal. Heidi is always and absolutely full of life and surprises. One of late, that makes sense to Heidi and reinforces her values is joining Balarama Holness and his party, Bloc Montreal.

After spearheading the creation of A Brilliant Night gala for the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital in the wake of her father’s passing, Heidi knew that she was never one to sit in a corner and cry. “I do what I want [once I understand my vision] and I don’t listen to the noise. I just block it out.”

Heidi recalls reading the Gazette one morning, her daily ritual, and coming across an article about Bill 96. She says that she felt a pit in her stomach and knew this was her moment to do something about it.

“This is something that I cannot have happen to the city that I love. It is an absolute Injustice.”

– Heidi Small

Heidi takes all of her experience and relationships from the food industry with her in this next chapter, as she sets out to support and give a voice to restauranteurs and small businesses in her ridding, Westmount-St-Louis.

When Balarama asked Heidi to join the party, it was a moment where Heidi says that she had to stand up: “How could I not make a difference. How could I not take this opportunity to show my kids and myself how to stand up.” Heidi says that it isn’t about winning but the journey and the process of justice itself.

Heidi will focus on three main pillars of legislature for “small businesses, restaurants, and Montreal tourism”, she says with excitement.

A consequential setback of the pandemic that Heidi plans to address is the current labour shortage and how it is affecting small businesses and restaurants alike. “It has never been more expensive to live than now,” she remarks.

Balarama says that “it’s clear that Heidi has the pulse of Montrealers,” and it was a no-brainer to ask Heidi to run with the party. “Her charisma and deep connection to the small business and chef community,” within her ridding where Heidi has lived for over 23 years, demonstrates just some of the set of talents she possesses when it comes to being a leader for the people in her community.

Voting day is today, October 3rd, 2022. If you are eligible to vote, check Elections Quebec to see where you can go vote today.