Paul’s love for cooking began at the ripe old age of nine, when he found himself combining a sour, sweet Granny Smith apple, cinnamon, sultanas and buttery, flakey puff pastry. Admiring the thinness of the pastry, making sure to cover all the apple so there were no cracks, he believed he was creating a masterpiece. His thought as he cut into his baked creation and took that first bite – magic.

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Since then Paul spent some time at Prospect House where he learnt about the relationship between farm to plate. He would begin his day collecting eggs from the hen house for the souffles to be baked for breakfast that morning, picking herbs from the herb garden, and collecting fruit from the fig tree just outside the kitchen door. It was here that he discovered new ingredients like sorrell and mushrooms growing in the overgrowth, and experienced the cooking opportunity of having half a venison carcass hanging in the cool room. This was Paul’s first regional experience and one that you now rarely see.

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Moving from regional to city dining, Paul’s next adventure was with Caesar’s Restaurant, now Burger Got Soul, in Sandy Bay. Working in such an intimate 45  seater restaurant, it was here that Paul discovered another skill and passion of his – establishing a bonding connection with the customer, sometimes serving the food himself after preparing it in the kitchen. This experience was Paul’s first delve into modern Australian cuisine and fine dining. He touched on bush foods when it was coming into its prime. His experimentation again started, and he realised a philosophy that would stay with him throughout his cooking career – Good food was all about technique, consistency, passion, confidence and the produce. The confidence to experiment, fail and then succeed became his mantra as fortune favours the bold.

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After a few years in WA working at large fine dining establishments and with twenty years of experience under his belt, Paul found himself in his first Head Chef role at Gondwana, a new restaurant in an old, worldly cottage in Battery Point. It was at Gondwana that Paul blossomed and spread his wings. He was in the driver’s seat to create a menu for an intimate, fine dining experience and it was here that he created and served some of his most iconic dishes – his gin and lime brulee tart with candied cumquats, white bean and porcini soup with white truffle oil, and twice roasted duck with apricot pesto and pave. He received recognition for his menu, including THA best new restaurant and THA best modern Australian restaurant in 2003 and 2004. Paul also held a cooking school once a month on Sundays, where he taught six people some of the dishes on his menu.

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Having spent five years developing his craft at Gondwana, Paul began as Head Chef of Marque IV. Similar to Gondwana, Paul began this journey in a newly established restaurant and looks back on Marque IV as a highlight in his career. The Ethos of Marque IV was local is law and was based on the prestige of fine dining previously only found in Mainland restaurants. Bringing a touch of Melbourne and Sydney to Hobart, Paul worked sixteen hour days but describes the experience with pride – the passion outweighed the blood, sweat and tears. Creating dishes with Spring Bay scallops, Doo-town wallaby and venison and Shima wasabi his dishes were recognised with further accolades, receiving the THA restaurant of the year, as well as the National award for best modern Australian restaurant of the year. Vogue Magazine, Mercedes Benz, and Delicious Mag’s annual event held their functions at Marque IV, with Delicious Mag’s 90 seat function selling out in 45 minutes, giving them no choice but to book Marque IV again for the following evening. Paul also had the opportunity to cook alongside cooking greats such as Tetsuya Wakuda, and held the first of the Savour Tasmania dinners hosting Michelin star chefs such as Shane Osborn. Marque IV was at the forefront of fine dining in Hobart at the time and is an experience that Paul reflects on with pride and fond memories.

Returning to his apprenticeship roots, Paul’s next adventure was as Operations Manager of Kalis Group Hotels where he spent eight years utilising his leadership skills, knowledge in kitchen operations, costing, recipe and menu design, and chef recruitment. During this time, Paul fleshed out his skills and began his own food truck business, Black Box Kitchen, serving crispy cheese breads with gourmet fillings. Paul has also delved into food theatre with his good friend, John Xintavelonis forming the Chef and the Showman.

With over 30 years of experience, Paul is experimenting and creating new dishes with his own catering business, and giving back to the food industry, that gave him so much, in the form of chef consultancy. Recently returning from PNG where he consulted with the Hilton Hotel, Paul looks forward to consulting further with Tasmanian businesses and maintaining its reputation as a destination for foodies worldwide.