Conversations
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Steven Rogers at Midnight Starling
Passionate about French classical cuisine and cooking according to the seasons, Steven Rogers is inspired by his own abundant garden and by whatever other local, seasonal produce is available. Having cooked in kitchens in Paris, he is very happily part of the Kyneton scene and loves Sunday night dinner around the table with his family.…
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Morgan Hipworth at Bistro Morgan
Morgan Hipworth is not your average 16 year old. As well as being in Year 11 and working towards VCE, Morgan runs his own doughnut shop and pretty much has the monopoly on Instagramable doughnuts. Hi Morgan. Have you always been into baking and cooking? I started cooking when I was seven and that came…
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Matt Wilkinson at Pope Joan
Matt Wilkinson hails from South Yorkshire in the North of England. He has a way with seasonal vegetables and salads, and in fact with life that will leave you speechless. Matt loves life and everything in it, embracing cooking, his family and his business with an ardour far exceeding moderation. It is a joy to talk to people like…
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Ashly Hicks at Garden State Hotel
Ashly Hicks is king of all he surveys in his role of head chef at the very fancy multi-level restaurant and bar, Hotel, in Flinders Lane. With a strong work ethic and a driving passion for food, Ash has propelled himself to great heights over a career that started when he was 14 and saw…
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Paul Davies at Jethro Canteen
Former head chef and co-owner of The Merchant's Guild, and now at Paul Davies was born in my home town of Christchurch, but lived in Auckland and then overseas. He exudes a passion for cooking and, while I usually abhor the word 'exciting' when used to describe a menu, Vietnamese roasted cricket salad sitting nonchalantly alongside smoked…
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Sam Kearney at Mjr Tom
Sam Kearney and co-owner Nick Tiktikakis share a passion for dishes made with fresh ingredients and have a European approach to ensuring they secure the best produce they can. They go to the market every day and, although they have their favourite suppliers, they won’t settle for anything less than the best, which sometimes means shaking their heads…
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Harry Lilai at Town Hall Hotel
Harry Lilai has been cooking for 27 years and is the co-owner of the in Fitzroy. One of the members on the Taste of Harmony chef ambassador team, Harry loves hospitality; saying hello, greeting people, giving good food. He describes that as the “inner touch”. How would you describe your food? My cooking has evolved over the…
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Paul Raynor at The Baths Middle Brighton
Paul Raynor was part of the so-called Brit-pack who came over to Melbourne in the nineties and took the restaurant scene by storm. There was no going back, for Paul or for Melbourne food. When you can call great chefs such as Albert Roux, Michel Roux Jnr., Paul Wilson, Andrew Turner and Rory Kennedy, not only…
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Harry Tahana at Casa Ciuccio
Originally from Auckland, Harry Tahana loves cooking French food and isn't allowed a big barbecue at home. Perfect really, given Casa Ciuccio (now called ) embraces Mediterranean cuisine and a lot of the menu centres around the massive charcoal barbecue out the back. What made you become a chef? What made me become a chef?…
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Charlie Carrington at Atlas Dining
Charlie Carrington always knew he wanted to be a chef. After leaving school at 15 and doing his apprenticeship at Stokehouse, he has worked alongside an inspiring range of chefs at restaurants including Firedoor and Marque in Sydney, Vue De Monde in Melbourne and various restaurants in London, Antwerp, San Francisco, Mexico City, Sao Paulo,…