IT’S REALLY hard to make a bad dish if you’re using the finest ingredients,” says James Leadbeater, head chef at The Marque Hotel in Sydney. The Canadian-born chef knows all about great produce, having worked at a number of leading properties in Canada where there was an abundance of caribou, elk, chanterelle mushrooms and other fresh ingredients.

Leadbeater has high hopes for The Script restaurant at The Marque, which he joined in April after its re-branding and extensive refurbishment. The hotel, formerly the Country Comfort Sydney Central, has had a total makeover, giving it a fresh contemporary look with a menu to match.

“I want to take the standard (of the restaurant) up a bit but I’m taking baby steps right now. I’m still working on a lot of things.”

Until more people start walking through the door, Leadbeater is unable to source ingredients from the boutique producers he’d really like to be working with. In the meantime, he has taken great strides in freshening up the menu and adding specialities like his signature dish of salmon roasted on cedar planks, inspired by his Canadian heritage.

“There are a lot of similarities between Canadian and Australian cuisine. A lot of the restaurants I worked at in Canada were more influenced by French cuisine, whereas here there’s more Asian influence. But I’ve played around with Asian cuisine a little bit and I really love it.”

Before coming to The Marque, Leadbeater spent two years as head chef of the buffet at Sydney Tower. He came to Australia in August 2004, following his girlfriend (now his wife) here after meeting her in Banff. He looks back fondly on his career in Canada: “I was working with really good chefs who had a lot of passion for what they were doing, and that really inspires you.”

At 16, Leadbeater began working as a kitchen hand in a small Spanish/Mexican bistro in Terrace, British Columbia. “It was great seeing people with such a passion for fresh food. Everything was fresh—the vegetables, homemade pasta and their beautiful Sangria that they made daily. They (the family who ran the business) really put me on to food.”

During his 18 months there, he worked his way up from washing pots to preparation, including helping to make fresh pasta. He was also inspired to undertake an apprenticeship in cookery. “My passion had started and I was ready for the next step,” he says.

After his apprenticeship, Leadbeater scoured the western part of Canada for a “nice chef/lifestyle balance”, taking up a job at Emerald Lake Lodge. Working at this wilderness retreat gave him the opportunity to play with an extensive array of local game meats, such as caribou, bison, elk, wild boar and pheasant.

It was at the Wickaninnish Inn, a Relais & Chateaux property on Vancouver Island, that he discovered just how dedicated chefs could be. “It was one of the high points of my career,” Leadbeater says of the 18 months he spent there.

“The Pointe Restaurant offered 240 degree views of the rugged west coast. (It) was a superb restaurant and kitchen to work in to hone and challenge my skill level as the food was creative and all the staff had passion.

“We’d have native Americans supplying us daily with fresh chanterelle and oyster mushrooms from the surrounding forest as well as fresh molluscs picked straight out of the Pacific Ocean. All guests were given an amuse bouche and we all got to create one. The chef got you to use your head a lot.”

After a stint in Banff, at the Maple Leaf Grille and Spirits, he found himself saying goodbye to the chilly Canadian Rockies and hello to sunny Australia. He was excited by the style of food he found here and the readily available seasonal produce.

“I was a little disappointed to find that the really good seafood gets shipped to Japan, and it took me a little while to understand the different fish,” says Leadbeater about the new environment that he was confronted with. “But the produce in general is really good. When people ask what your specialty is or what kind of food do you enjoy cooking, my response would be fresh ingredients, as that is the key to beautiful food.”

This was one of the first changes he made at The Marque, tossing out all the ready-made sauces and other products, and making them himself. “I don’t buy anything in at all. Everything is fresh or made from scratch.”

The Script—formerly The Broadwalk Brasserie—used to offer a full buffet breakfast. Now it offers a continental buffet breakfast, with hot breakfast dishes cooked to order.

Leadbeater was given a blank canvas at The Script, literally. The kitchens came without chefs and he had to work fast to create a menu befitting the smart new surrounds.

While the wine list is still a work in progress, the menu was overhauled to include more contemporary fare ranging from salt and Sichuan pepper crusted squid to slow-roasted duck with chilli orange caramel and lamb with coconut mint chutney.

As well as the 75-room restaurant, Leadbeater caters for four conference rooms hosting special-occasion dinners where he can branch out with dishes such as pork belly with Granny Smith apple brunoise and Noble One jelly.

Most of his clientele are in-house guests, but Leadbeater would like to see more corporate clients. “I’m really excited by this place. I think it has a lot of potential. I know I can do the food but we really need to focus on getting people in here. We just want to get this place pumping.”