Age: 38 (Gil) and 32 (Jeff)
Job title: President, Co-founder and Co-owner, The Bro’Kin Yolk (Gil); Chef, Co-founder and Co-owner, The Bro’Kin Yolk (Jeff)
Why Gil Carlos and Jeff Carlos are 2021 Top 40 Under 40s: Brothers Gil and Jeff Carlos own and operate local breakfast-restaurant chain The Bro’Kin Yolk, and have expanded it outside Calgary.
Brothers Gil and Jeff Carlos are behind The Bro’Kin Yolk breakfast restaurants. They opened their first Bro’Kin Yolk in Calgary in 2015 and have since added two more Calgary locations and one in Edmonton. A takeout-only branch called Bro’s to Go is also in the works.
The culture of The Bro’Kin Yolk is centered around family and mentorship, something Gil says he and his brother didn’t have much of after their father left when Gil was 13. “[My father] was probably the most influential person in my life,” Gil says. “I learned so much about what not to do, what kind of father not to be.”
His approach to running The Bro’Kin Yolk reflects his aspiration to support the people in his life and be there for them. “I help people reach their goals,” Gil says of his employees, “whether it be school, in their personal relationships, with themselves, or with confidence — if you tell me what your goal is, I will make it my mission to get there.”
For Jeff, the concept of family and mentorship means creating a culture for The Bro’Kin Yolk’s kitchen staff to thrive. “I give cooks a chance to stay in the industry,” Jeff says, adding that many people he’s met throughout the years have left the industry due to low pay, long hours and what can be a trying work environment. “There’s a lot of addiction, and that’s the main thing I’m trying to change — how we treat our employees and how they treat each other. We want a safe environment where people can grow and get rewarded for their hard work.”
Community means a lot to the Carlos brothers, and they feel a sense of community here in the city where they launched their breakfast-restaurant mini-empire. “This city honestly helped raise my brother and I,” says Gil. “The Calgary community is so close-knit and we really appreciated that.”
Thank Yous
“I would like to thank my wife, my mom, my in-laws, my brother, my team and my children.” – Gil Carlos
“I would like to thank God, my mom, my wife Ariane, my kids, and everyone who has supported us from the beginning.” – Jeff Carlos
Top 40 Under 40 2021
Victoria Hodgkinson-Brechenmacher
