Food

Like most chefs, I began cooking at a young age. Cooking was a way I could express myself but it also appealed to me because I knew it could take me to places I had never been before. The first real turning point came when I worked with chef Phillip Searle at Vulcans in Blackheath, New South Wales. Seeing the discipline and dedication it took to work in his kitchen made me see food and cooking in a new light. Cooking was no longer a task, it became a creation.

My first head chef position at Andrew McConnell’s Mrs Jones in Melbourne really pushed me to be creative. The menu changed daily and the constant innovation this required helped define my personal style.