Tetsuya Wakuda grew up in the Japanese town of Hamamatsu, and at the age of 22 decided to travel to Australia.

Arriving in Sydney in 1982 with nothing more than a small suitcase and a love of food, Tetsuya landed his very first job as a kitchen hand at Fishwives in Surry Hills. A year later he was introduced to Sydney chef Tony Bilson, who was looking for a Japanese cook to make sushi. It was there at Tony’s kitchen at Kinsela’s Tetsuya realised that he wanted to cook, and could cook very well! Here also he learnt the classical French technique that forms part of his unique style today.

Tetsuya left Kinsela’s in 1983, and opened Ultimo’s, where he quickly learnt about the responsibility of running his own business. His own restaurant, Tetsuya’s opened in 1989 as a tiny shopfront in the Sydney suburb of Rozelle and was booked out with daily waiting lists.

In November 2000, Tetsuya relocated his restaurant from Rozelle to a heritage-listed site in Sydney’s Kent Street. The restaurant features a large, custom-made kitchen that will continue to deliver Tetsuya’s unique cuisine based on the Japanese philosophy of natural seasonal flavours, enhanced by classic French technique.

Charlie Trotter said of this chef: “Tetsuya is part of an elite group of international chefs that has influenced other chefs through their personal styles and unique approaches to food. His culinary philosophy centres on pure, clean flavours that are decisive, yet completely refined. His amazing technique, Asian heritage, sincere humility, worldwide travels and insatiable curiosity combine to create incredible, soulful dishes that exude passion in every bite.”

Tetsuya’s website

Chef

Heading to America at the tender age of 12 to pursue his dreams of becoming a chef, New Zealand-born Daniel Wilson’s passion for food has only intensified.

After learning under chefs like Daniel Boulud in New York, Daniel moved to Melbourne to work with Andrew Blake at Blakes Cafeteria. In 2003, his reputation was only further enhanced after being awarded The Age Good Food Guide Young Chef of the Year.

Daniel is now head chef and owner of his own restaurant, Huxtable, considered to be one of Melbourne’s most exciting culinary hotspots.

Huxtable website

Executive Chef

Alla Wolf-Tasker is the Executive Chef of (and driving force behind) the award-winning Lake House in picturesque Daylesford, Victoria, one of Australia’s most highly-regarded gourmet retreats. Since its birth in 1984, Lake House has flourished from a 45-seat restaurant on a badly eroded paddock to into a boutique hotel with 33 rooms.

Passionate about the development of contemporary cuisine in Australia, Alla helms a team of creative and dedicated young chefs who continue to impress guests with the culinary skills that they have learnt under her guidance. She also participates in guest chef programs globally, such as James Beard House in NYC.

Alla is a director on the board of Tourism Victoria and a member of the Victorian Food and Wine Tourism Council. She is also a proud proponent of regional produce, as Chair of the Daylesford and Macedon Produce Group and Patron of the Daylesford Primary School Kitchen Garden.

The Melbourne Food and Wine festival awarded Alla the title of ‘Living Legend’. She is also the recipient of the Age Good Food Guide Award for Professional Excellence and was honoured with an Order of Australia for her services to the tourism and hospitality industry in 2007. Her book Lake House - A Culinary Journey in Country Australia , which sees her share stories of Lake House, local food and the hospitality industry, was released to excellent reviews.

The Lake House website