Apprentice Chef Cassi Vollmer

Once in a while you get a promising apprentice chef.

Now that might take a long time to come, I have been a chef now for over 24 years and can count my promising apprentices chefs on one hand!!!. You might think that’s crap, well if you want to count the crap then the number will definitely climb.

I am from the old school and probably not many out there still cooking can relate to that, the most of us are well gone from the industry, sad to say but that’s the way it goes.

I am quite demanding in the sense that all I ask for is perfection within certain boundaries. The very best they can do is great, but generally we can always do better.

Anyway back to my apprentice. Cassi started out as a school based apprentice whom came to me with her mum for an introduction chat. This was very impressive and reminded me of the time when I had my first interview at the London Hilton on Park Lane, a bit different from Beaches but none the less a key moment within my career. Read more

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Tasting Spoon with a difference

This tasting spoon is one that we used in Switzerland and was a standard chef’s kitchen item.

The spoon is now the pride and joy of Kenny, and is the envy of the other chef’s. It is always on his jacket and used with great pleasure and a cheeky smile. Read more

Matt Dobson, artist-pizzaman

This is Matt Dobson, our new pizza man.
Matt has done some time with pizzaialo Maurizio at the wood fired oven and learnt the method of making pizza dough, toppings and the art of rolling the dough and baking the pizza in the wood fired oven.
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Pizzaiolo Maurizio

Here at Beaches restaurant & Bar we have a wood fired pizza oven. Now having a wood fired pizza oven is one thing, but being able to make a good authentic Italian style pizza is something else.

Since controlling the kitchen at beaches I have experienced many pizza’s some better than others. But for the past 18 months we have had the pleasure of Maurizio Sevesi in my chef’s kitchen.

Maurizio is Italian as you may have guessed from a name like that, but has lived in Australia for many years now. Being Italian who better could I have to bring the standard of pizza to such new heights.

After creating a new pizza menu with 22 different pizza, we tested many a dough until we found one that we could use. This actually came about from a visit by Maurizio to Cairns and a pizzaiolo there. With the dough recipe set the toppings were created. The napoli sauce was not a problem, the cheese mix neither.

Now contrary to the Australian thinking, pizza’s should be thin based with a minimal amount of topping, not a mountain full!!!! This proved to be one of the biggest hurdles for us to overcome.

With the new menu came new prices, a considerable drop in price, also a considerable drop in topping. The outcome was in our opinion great. An authentic thin crisp pizza with a full flavoured topping that allows you to appreciate the pizza for what it is.

The sad end to this post is, that Maurizio my good friend has just left us and will be enjoying his life in Cairns. A dream that himself and his partner Barbie have had for some time. I wish them both lots of joy and great times in there new home, knowing that they will be sadly missed.

Fresh Fish

Holy cow, fresh fish!! Are you for real……..

Yes we have been getting fresh fish recently. This might sound strange but believe me it is not easy to get fresh fish from the local area as you may have read in my earlier post how hard is it to get fresh fish?

Just recently we have been getting a regular supply from the local fish market at Rosslyn Bay fishermans market in Yeppoon, delivered to my chef’s kitchen.

Chef Kenny has been busy with the scaling and filleting of the  fish.

We have had a supply of Red Jew, Red Emperor and Rossy Job. All of which have great eating qualities.

We spend considerable time preparing the fish and then freeze our product. The  required amount is then left out for our service in the evening which features on the menu.

Ever changing daily fish creations are  available for the customers to enjoy, don’t forget that the fish is fresh and local from our waters, not imported from wherever!!!!!!!!!!

Enjoy your catch of the day

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Grab a Bite Eat Anytime, Anywhere

Do you remember the old saying, “never trust a skinny chef”?

Well I think today the tale has turned.

Firstly you rarely find a fat chef in the industry with some age these days. Secondly, at least you know that the skinny ones can move at pace around a busy kitchen.

A busy chef has hardly time to eat! Due to pressure of work, lack of hunger after preparing so much food, (that sounds strange but sometimes you just don’t feel like eating)  lack of staff, no time to enjoy a sit down lunch or dinner break, are to mention a few.

I consider myself to be one of those chefs that finds it hard to sit down for a meal at work, because of the above reasons, and also I hate to cook for myself at work, and knowing that my other chefs are also very busy, how can you justify a break, we are a team after all.

Just the other day, a Saturday it was, we had a wedding that evening as well as lots of a la carte. The function room was set, the restaurant likewise. Kenny & I had the chance to down a salad which Cassi had made earlier.

With no place to sit, I turned up a plastic tub and we sat and ate our salads. It brought back memories of the time 19 years ago sitting on milk crates and boxes scoffing down a meal at any chance we had.

How times change for the better…………..NOT.

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The last of summer New Menu

Having just started our second summer menu for 09, things have been hectic for Kenny and myself. Cassi our apprentice has been at tafe and with Philip and Maurizio departing us it’s been all go in the kitchen.

But as all good professionals do we knuckled down and got on with it. The new menu according to Kenny the Chefs Beeatch (Bitch) as he puts it, is very exciting with new flavours that will not disappoint.

We have 18 entree dishes and 16 main meals which is by far one of the most extensive menu’s on the coast. This alone is a challenge itself. Oh let’s not forget the pizza as well…..

Writing a menu is one thing, creating and cooking it is another, hey Kenny. (I chuckle to myself) a private joke. Many a so called chef can copy, read books, repeat recipes, and glorify dishes with flash descriptions, but what happens after that, well………………
any way check out some of the pictures below. More will be added as we get them taken. The pdf of the new menu will be here soon.

Beaches Restaurant say’s bye to Callum

Yet another departure from Beaches Reastaurant in Yeppoon.

A very good member of our team, this time from the floor.  A waiter is often referred to as part of the  floor staff because they patrol the restaurant floor.

Callum Heald came to us after experiencing a few other places in town, unhappily not satisfied he then found Beaches, where he has been supervising the restaurant for the past 6 months. A very good restaurant operator who has managed to motivate the team and get the most out of his fellow staff.

His experience has been much appreciated at Beaches and will be definitely missed. A smooth operator would be a description of Callum, one that does not crack under pressure but finds a solution to help the situation. That in itself is a great attribute to ones resume. I and the other staff wish Callum a continued great future where ever he ends up.

How do Chef’s Play Golf?

Poorly!!!

Although we have had the pleasure of Yeppoon’s own ‘tiger’ who regularly hits a round of under par!!!

Yes well we rarely get time for such luxuries. but when we do we certainly enjoy ourselves.

A day out on the greens is a welcome change from boxed up in a kitchen. Coming from overseas, being able to play golf on such courses that we have at our disposal in yeppoon is precious. Golf is a high profile game in many places and without knowing a member to get you your left standing and watching from the fence!!

A day out with the staff is not just fun it is usually a good team building time. We all tend to relax more with each other and work is forgotten.

As for our game, well with ample spare balls we attack the course, literally, Many would say the best bit is driving the buggy like schumacher, but the fresh outdoors feeling is the best for me. A few holes take about an hour for us as we make our way in zig zag pattern down the fairways!!

With a beer in one hand and the club in the other we laugh and joke the day long.

Of course we keep score or try to, the odd 10+ is noted with maybe one or two par’s, but with the average score of 105+ we are in dire need of more practice.

Cyclone Hamish

Well I guess that most of you have seen or heard about Cyclone Hamish that has been battering the east coast of Australia the past week.

It has been the hot topic on the news and weather channels of late.

Living on the Capricorn Coast I can confirm that Monica & I were concerned to say the least. We had prepared our cyclone emergency boxes and had our birds well locked up in case of a quick escape. With cyclone Hamish a category 5 cyclone, one of the strongest to ever visit our shores we were not going to sleep easy.

How fortunate we were, along with most of the east coast to escape lightly from the big bad wolf bearing down on us with all it’s might. Only to feel a slight wind gust in Cooee Bay, Yeppoon 4703. No more than a windy day.

The next morning though the tidal surge was well seen along with king tides at full moon the beaches took a battering. Many a local could be seen viewing the breakers on main beach as they bashed in against the rock facade at very high marks.

The bad news is that although Hamish has been downgraded and passed us by, it is now turning and heading back up!!! albeit only a category 1, still strong enough to cause damage to any area it chooses.

Thankfully it came over Sunday & Monday my two days off which allowed myself to be home and clean up the garden.

Hopefully it is the closest we come to experiencing such force of nature………….

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