CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT HOW THE KITCHEN WORKS AT FISHBOWL?
It’s actually pretty crazy – Most people don’t realise we cut and process all the veg for ~60 stores. Every single day, seven days / week. (At peak, we process over 1000kg of cabbage per day!) We have one central kitchen in each state – NSW, VIC, QLD – which ensures we can deliver fresh, high quality produce nationwide.
The same goes for signature FISHBOWL menu items like our 15-Hour Braised Beef and Chilli Jam. Freshness is really important to us, so we make those from scratch every week as well.
WHAT DOES A DAY IN THE LIFE LOOK LIKE?
My day starts around 5am. The kitchen starts early to make sure restaurants are supplied for the coming days. First things first, I walk the kitchen – check the cool rooms; counts, production lists, orders. Then, I’ll usually check-in on my kitchen managers & supervisors to see how they’re getting on. Some days, we’re evaluating the quality of an ingredient. Other days, we’re reviewing equipment and process. And then there are my favourite days…taste testing a new recipe and developing new menu items. Every day is different, but I always try to find time to be on the kitchen floor with my crew.
Then it's school pick-up, head home, cook my daughter's favourite – osso bucco – or my son's, steak and pancakes. Chef life turns into mum motions most nights.
WHAT'S BEEN THE MOST CHALLENGING THING ABOUT SCALING THE CULINARY DEPT?
Honestly, it’s the process of scaling recipes from one pot to ~60 stores. Most people think you can just take a recipe and multiply it by 200. But the reality is that the flavour of a recipe changes as you scale it. You have to work out what you can change, and what you can't touch. Even once we nail a recipe, we have to adjust production for the natural & seasonal variation in vegetables and proteins.
We also consider how to use ingredients that are naturally gluten free and dairy free, while still making sure we don’t compromise on flavour, texture, or appearance.
WHAT MAKES THE FISHBOWL KITCHEN SPECIAL?
The crew. All of them. And the culture that comes with it — the pumping music, kitchen lunches, and monthly barbecues. We've got our own rituals too, shaped by the crew over the years. Like on beef days, there's no music. Everyone is heads-down — working through slow-cooked brisket. Then the second it's done? Music goes on. Loud.
YOU’RE KNOWN FOR YOUR PINK CLOGS AND BANDANNA. WHAT’S THE STORY?
You know, it’s funny because pink isn’t even my favourite colour. But before I came to FISHBOWL, I worked in other kitchens. And honestly, kitchens can be tough environments. So I decided to show up to work one day with these bright pink clogs. You should’ve seen the Head Chef’s face when I walked into the kitchen. They told me they'd never seen pink shoes in a kitchen before. And then it just stuck.
The bandannas come from a little shop in Brisbane, across the road from FISHBOWL Gasworks, actually. Every time I go to Brisbane, I find a new colourful bandana. Bringing those little bits of joy into the kitchen has always just felt right.
WHAT FLAVOUR DO YOU LOVE THAT’S MADE ITS WAY ONTO THE FISHBOWL MENU?
Ginger. I was on the mortar and pestle at four, banging out ginger and spices with my grandma. That same mortar and pestle is now in my home kitchen. We’ve added ginger to many FISHBOWL favourites over the years — CHILLI JAM, COCONUT CHICKEN, MANGO PINEAPPLE GINGER SODA, etc.
