Global chef swap includes two Victorian chefs

As part of an annual international chef swap called The Grand Gelinaz! Shuffle, two Victoria chefs, Dan Hunter of Brae and Ben Shewry of Attica, were invited to be part of an elite group of 40 Chefs from around the world to swap homes and restaurants for a one night only dining experience.

In the days leading up to the big global cook off on November 10 2017, these 40 chefs – chosen by Andrea Petrini, ex-chair of the academy of judges for prestigious World’s 50 Best Restaurant Awards – travelled across the world to immerse themselves in the culture and cuisine of a contemporary. The chefs stayed in one another’s homes, and worked with their chosen restaurant staff to come up with a one night only menu that combined the individual chef’s food and cooking philosophy, with the culture and ingredients found in their new environment.

Chef Ben Shewry was matched with The Restaurant at Meadowood in the sprawling Napa Valley region of North America, whilst Chef Dan Hunter was flung further south to Brazil’s D.O.M – which left their two restaurants available for a takeover by two other preeminent chefs.

Chef Adeline Grattard of Paris’s Yum Cha restaurant was chosen to cook at Attica, and Chef Blaine Wetzel, of a restaurant called Willows Inn located on Lumni Island off the coast of Washington State USA travelled out to Brae.

The international chefs were first time visitors to Australia and quickly immersed themselves in their new surroundings. A chef known for Chinese cuisine tasked with cooking with ingredients from Ben Shewry’s kitchen garden of native produce was probably the most unlikely combination. The match up resulted in exciting dishes such as Kangaroo in Black Bean with Eggplant, and Fried Wattle with XO sauce.

Over at Brae, two hours west of Melbourne, Chef Blaine Wetzel was also excited about a region so packed with produce and a whole new season of ingredients in a different hemisphere. His creatively titled dish I Never get to use Citrus, as well as f**king Wallaby Shank had his diners in the palm of his hand.

For Visit Victoria, the experiment is testament to the continued rise of the culinary reputation of restaurants and talent nurtured in Melbourne and Victoria and the perfect prelude to April 2017 when the city is set to host the world’s leading chefs for The World’s 50 Best Restaurant Awards.

‘We are proud of the talent that Melbourne and Victoria inspire; a hub of creativity for so many young chefs. Our congratulations and thanks go to both Ben Shewry and Dan Hunter for their passion and commitment to their craft. Being part of the Grand Gelinaz! Shuffle is a real coup for them and for Victoria’s culinary reputation globally.’ Peter Bingeman, Chief Executive, Visit Victoria.

There were two other Australian chefs involved in the Grand Gelinaz! Shuffle – Jock Zonfrillo from Orana in South Australia, and Paul Carmichael from Momofuku Seiobo – bring the total to four out of the 40 taking part worldwide.

For Tourism Australia, it’s a continuation of the global Restaurant Australia activity launched in 2014 that has already delivered results in terms of how the country is perceived internationally on a culinary scale.

“Having four Australian chefs and their restaurants feature in a global event like the Grand Gelinaz! Shuffle provided Australia with another excellent opportunity to showcase our culinary credentials to the world in another chapter of our Restaurant Australia story. The beauty of this format is that four of our top chefs had the wonderful opportunity to showcase their unique talents overseas, whilst we got to host four equally influential international chefs. I have little doubt that the experience they had exploring Australia’s world class food and wine scene and crafting a bespoke Australian menu has turned them into lifelong advocates.” John O’Sullivan, Managing Director, Tourism Australia.