COOKING THE BOOKS - From Inside the Food Industry

This week Robbie spoke to Raymond Capaldi, Raymond traveled the world cooking at some iconic restaurants and hotels before settling in Australia where he won 3 hats in the age good food guide. Raymond stepped away from the kitchen to start wonder pies 8 years ago. This is an honest conversation about starting a business the ups and downs, how kitchen culture has changed and how embracing new cultures opens your eyes.

This week Robbie spoke to Denis Kelly, former MMA fighter-now-trainer and promoter. They chat about all things combat sports, including weight-cutting and how nutrition has changed the sport.

This week Robbie speaks to Alex McIntosh, 2023 Bocuse d'Or Candidate and Head Chef at Sou'Wester Brewery. Alex goes in depth about the world's biggest cooking competition. He shines a light on how underfunded we are in Australia for the arts compared to other countries, and if we want to be taken seriously on this stage we need more funding from the government.

This week Robbie spoke to Michael Dalton, owner of Fine Foods. Michael has been distributing and importing specialised fine foods from around the world for years. In this conversation we find out what it takes to build a distribution business from the ground up, and the difficulties and challenges of importing perishable foods from around the world.

This week, Robbie spoke to Tobie Puttock - chef/owner of 'Made by Tobie', former River Cafe Chef and Jamie Oliver's right-hand man at Fifteen Restaurant for many years. Tobie became a chef to facilitate his true love of snowboarding, until he realised that he was better at cooking than boarding. At that point he went all-in and hasn't looked back. Tobie has turned his hand to all aspects of the industry. From books to banquets, fine dining, podcasting and heaps of TV, giving him a very unique perspective of the full industry.

This week, Robbie spoke to Charlie from Atlas Dining and Atlas Weekly. Charlie started his cooking career at the age of fourteen and by the time he was in his early twenties he had his own restaurant and held 1 hat. Now just-turned thirty, he is well on his way to building a very successful weekly delivery meal kit. Charlie believes the secret to his confidence is all his experience.

This week Robbie spoke to Sandra from Six Eyed Scorpion about chilli oil, starting a food business from the ground up, and how covid affected her career. Sandra moved from Singapore at 16 to pursue her dreams in Australia. From business and marketing to cooking, now Sandra is on her journey as a small business owner.

Sharon Brindley is a Yamatji/Noongar woman living on Bunurong/Boon Wurrung country (the Mornington Peninsula), where she is also the proud owner of Cooee Cafe, the only Indigenous cafe in the region and @jalajalatreats who specialise in native flavoured chocolates. Hugh Allen is the Executive Chef @vuedemonde and is a big advocate of the true flavours of Australia. He has been helping Sharon with her new venture.

This week we spoke to Elika and Gary from Jamsheed winery in Preston, Melbourne. These are two highly respected hospo professionals who have so much knowledge and are so incredibly humble. Jamsheed is a must-visit; it's a real cool spot for a drink and the food is fantastic.

This week we spoke to Rae Bonny who is a Integrated Wellbeing Specialist/Counsellor about mental health in the work place.

Banjo is an expert in the art of beverage, he has heaps of knowledge which he shares openly.

This week on the podcast Robbie spoke to Adam D’Sylva; Chef-Owner of Coda and Tonka in Melbourne. Adam also has many other business ventures including a crockery range and cutlery range, he is a brand ambassador for Luv-a-Duck, Racing Victoria and Lavazza among several other brands. @adamdsylvachef www.codarestaurant.com.au www.tonkarestaurant.com.au

This week Robbie spoke to Glenn Flood; a chef-turned-coach. Glenn started his career as a chef which led him to Jamie Oliver’s restaurant, Fifteen. Which then in turn led him into the world of food media. Glenn spent a few seasons on Masterchef, organising the challenges as well has many other aspects behind the scenes. Through his business as a coach, he now helps chefs become better communicators and better versions of themselves. @glenn_flood www.glennflood.com

This week Robbie spoke to Julian from Butter and Thievery, Sydney. Robbie and Julian worked together at Rockpool Bar and Grill Sydney about 10 years ago. Since then Julian has travelled around the world and worked at some fantastic restaurants, also winning young chef of the year. Now he is building a culture restaurant; serving fried chicken, champagne and selling kicks (trainers). @julianvcincotta @buttersydney @buttershop @thethievery www.buttersydney.com.au www.thethievery.com.au

This week Robbie spoke to Danny Parker, Head Chef at Jesmond Dene House in Newcastle, England. Prior to joining the hotel, Danny was Head Chef at Kenny Atkinson's 1 starred-michelin restaurant, House of Tides. Danny is now on his own path building a menu that he loves to cook. Danny is a competitor at heart; he has competed in Great British Menu, Masterchef The Professionals, The Roux Scholarship as well as North East Chef of the Year. He is never afraid to put himself out there. www.jesmonddenehouse.co.uk

This week Robbie spoke to Aaron Starlin, head chef of Bistro Guillaume here in Melbourne. Aaron has just won back the Chef's Hat for Bistro Guillaume in the 2020 Good Food Guide with his modern approach to the French bistro classics as well as a little hint of his English roots. Aaron talks about his long career with Guillaume, how his role in the kitchen has changed over the years as well as opening up about his anxiety.

This week Robbie spoke to an old friend, Nick Grieves from The Patricia Restaurant in Newcastle, England. Robbie met Nick about 20 years ago when Nick was working part-time a restaurant. Nick then went on to study for the building industry, but after the GFC hit and that industry struggled, Nick turned back to the hospitality industry. He fell in love with it but felt he didn't have enough experience and so headed off to London where he worked for Simon Rogan for a short time, and also at The River Cafe. Now he is back home in the North East of England, running his own bistro where he is cooking the food he loves and offering the wine he enjoys drinking. @thepatriciancl www.the-patricia.com

This week Robbie spoke to an old friend, Billy White. Billy has been cooking all around Europe for 15 odd years, cooking in some fantastic restaurants like the world famous St Johns and Matbaren by Mathias Dahlgren. About 8 years ago, Billy started running and he got hooked; now he is running up to 10 times a week and competing several times a year, sometimes up to 100km in one run. Being the ambitious chef that he is, he started writing for a running blog that led on to a book deal where 'Eat, Run, Enjoy' was created. Billy has mixed his two passions - running and cooking - and it is exactly that.... a cookbook for chefs and people who are interested in good wellbeing. If you're interested in a book, get in touch directly with Billy and he will personalise it for you or follow this link https://gawellforlag.com/product/eatrunenjoy @billywhite43 @rosendalstradgard https://billywhite-chef.com/

This week Robbie spoke to James from Woodcutters Kitchen. James has had a very mixed career; he started off as a musician, then his parents advised him to start an accountancy course before heading off to the police to work in the drug squad, then leaving that to working the corporate banking world. After 20 years and with an interest in fermenting bubbling, he decided to start a bakery. After a short time he released that wasn't going to work out, James pivoted and turned the space into a restaurant, the heart of which is the two beautiful wood-burning ovens. www.woodcutterskitchen.com.au https://www.instagram.com/woodcutterskitchen/

This week Robbie sat down with Peter Gunn from Ides Restaurant. Robbie and Pete met about 8 years ago when they both ran pop-up restaurants here in Melbourne. Since then, Pete impressively managed to turn his pop-up into a fixed location and his idea for Ides has gone from strength to strength. Pete has a very modern approach to running his restaurant with a underline of classic cooking running though it. In this podcast you will hear Pete's story and thoughts about many aspects of the industry. www.idesmelbourne.com.au @idesmelbourne @petergunn501