Raymond Blanc joins The Curated Plate line-up

Renowned British chef Raymond Blanc is headed to Australia, joining a host of other international and domestic culinary talent for new four-day food festival, The Curated Plate.

Running on the Sunshine Coast from 8–11 August, The Curated Plate will showcase the region’s famed produce, with a range of culinary events celebrating the relationship between chef and producer.

The Curated Plate’s featured events will bring together some of Australia’s young talent, culinary masters and international heavyweights.

Kick-starting the festival’s feature events is The Legends Lunch, which will see Quay’s Peter Gilmore reunite with Analiese Gregory (Franklin) for a long lunch held at Yandina Station on 8 August. Gilmore and Gregory will prepare a three-course lunch with paired wines.

Blanc (chef Patron of the acclaimed Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons) will then join forces with Alejandro Cancino (ex-Urbane) of Lola’s Pantry and Troy Rhoades-Brown of Muse to plate up a four-course dining experience at Mooloolaba Beach in the evening. Good Food presents Seasonal Stars is the first event on the roster for Blanc, who has retained two Michelin stars for 34 years.

On Friday 9 August, Blanc will cook alongside Cancino again, with Nelly Robinson (nel.) joining the pair for A Hinterland Harvest at Weddings at Tiffany’s in Maleny. The lunch event will see the trio dish up a four-course lunch with paired wines.

For Good Food presents Wild Forage Dining, Japan’s Zaiyu Hasegawa, whose restaurant Den was voted Best Restaurant in Japan (Asia 50 Best Restaurants 2018), joins Chase Kojima of Sydney’s hatted Sokyo and newly announced Chuuka, and Matt Stone, executive chef of the Yarra Valley’s stunning hatted Oakridge Estate, as they prepare a four-course dinner using the best locally-sourced ingredients.

Hasegawa will be in the kitchen again on Saturday 10 August, this time collaborating with Spicer’s Retreat executive chef Daniel Jarrett and Gelato Messina’s Donato Toce. The chefs will plate up a five-course dinner at Jarrett’s restaurant The Tamarind at Spicers Tamarind Retreat.

Clayton Wells of two-hatted Automata and Sunshine Coast local Nick Blake, owner of Wild Forage Australia, will join Monique Fiso, owner and head chef of Wellington’s Hiakai for forage-focused dining experience, A Regional Evolution. The event, which offers a four-course dinner with paired wines, will be held at Mooloolaba beach on Saturday 10 August.

At Australia’s first certified organic feijoa farm, Hinterland Feijoa’s, Wells, Stone and Darren Robertson (Three Blue Ducks & The Farm) will bring farm to table, with a substantial grazing menu on offer alongside paired wines at the Feijoa Fiesta on Sunday 11 August.

The Elements Long Lunch at Mooloolaba Beach, Fiso and Gregory will team up with Alanna Sapwell (Arc Dining and Wine Bar, ex-Saint Peter) for a four-course lunch with paired wines.

A range of other events are also on the cards.

“From the lush hinterland of rainforests and valleys to the majestic Glass House Mountains and iconic beaches, The Curated Plate sets the scene for a revitalising holiday and culinary experience like no other,” says Venessa Cowell, head of Food Events, Fairfax Events & Entertainment.

“We’re  proud to work closely with Visit Sunshine Coast, Sunshine Coast Council and Tourism and Events Queensland to celebrate this picturesque part of the world and champion the inspiring local producers who nurture the land and sea every day.”

The food and agribusiness industry on the Sunshine Coast is valued at some $700 million and features more than 900 companies.

“With an event like The Curated Plate, there will be plenty for locals and visitors to taste and see,” says Sunshine Coast Mayor Mark Jamieson. “Our region is home to a bevy of primary and world-class food producers including Australia’s largest wildcaught tuna and swordfish company, Walker Seafoods, our famous Mooloolaba prawns, CoYo — the company that helped develop the non-dairy yoghurt category — and Gourmet Garden, Australia’s most visible retail product in supermarket shelves
around the world.

“Food experiences and events such as this help to promote the premium quality of our regional produce as well as offering an outstanding visitor experience. Festival guests will appreciate our region’s diverse natural beauty while enjoying the finest produce prepared by the best chefs in the Australian and international dining scene.”

Tickets are on sale to the general public from 9am (AEST) Thursday 21 March.