Legendary chef Peter Doyle has confirmed he will be retiring from est.’s kitchen in June and moving on to lead Merivale’s internal apprenticeship school, launching in 2019.
Doyle opened fine dining restaurant est. in 2003 after time at Reflections at Palm Beach, Le Trianon, Cicada and Celsius.
He was one of the first hatted chefs in Australia and has been awarded a number of accolades including 2006 Sydney Morning Herald Restaurant of the Year and the Professional Excellence Award at the 2011 Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide Awards for training, inspiring and nurturing staff.
Once he hangs up his chef’s hat in June, Doyle will complete a Certificate in Training and Assessment and work closely with registered training organisation, Allara Learning, to build course content that is consistent with the requirements of completing an apprenticeship.
The program will also see Merivale engage subject matter experts on specialised topics and focus on achieving competency completion to fast-track talent into the workforce.
The program will officially launch in January 2019, with up to 40 apprentice chefs joining the ranks.
“I’ve been teaching people ever since I started, for the last 40 years, so this really did feel like the right evolution,” says Doyle. “This is going to be face-to-face and hands-on, I’m really excited to get in front of a class and teach these kids the skills that have now become so instinctual.”
To celebrate his career, est. will launch a dedicated menu which will be available from 30 April to 2 June.
Peter Doyle’s Best. Years’ menu will feature dishes including pan-fried John Dory fillet, grilled scallop, spinach, carrot juice – sauternes emulsion and juniper-crusted venison saddle with beetroot, boudin noir, chestnuts, cocoa paper.
The Best. Years menu will also feature a wine list matched to the decades of Doyle’s years in restaurants.
est.’s head chef Jacob Davey will take over the reins in June, with a new menu set to be introduced in July.
