Behind the Apron: Chef Cameron on his Culinary Career - Part I
Aug 18, 2023
In collaboration with our partners at Nestlé Professional NZ, we recently interviewed talented Chef Cameron Davies from The Fat Duck about his culinary journey.
Cam took us through his story on owning and operating a successful restaurant, his philosophy on sustainability and championing locally sourced produce.
We had so much to chat to Cam about that we’ve split this into two parts so there’s twice as much for you to enjoy!
Part One
Barcats: As you know we work closely with Nestlé Professional NZ, one of Barcats' valued partners. And I know you've been involved in a whole heap of their competitions or ones that they've sponsored. We use the NZ Chef Exchange Facebook page to inspire people who want to take hospitality seriously. So it's not just a stepping stone for say students to get through university, Barcats you can use our entire platform, and you can carve out a fantastic career path.
Cam: They say that's where we all need to be moving as an industry. We need to be showing these guys the career path all the way through, and that they don't have to step up to something else to be successful.
So, that's awesome to hear and that's part of our vision as a business is to create growth maps for people within the industry.
Barcats: Within your career, how many competitions have you been involved in or competed in?
Cam: So … probably not as many as you think, actually! I competed as a student back in 2005 at the Nestlé Toque d’Or competition back then, it was made up of two chefs and one front-house person, before they called it the Golden Chef’s Hat. So before that, there was a 15-year anniversary and I represented Christchurch Polytech back in those days and we managed to take home double gold.
Since then, I've done a couple of yacht show competitions. I competed in 2014 at the Antigua Super Yacht and won that and then later that year competed again, and didn't place, luck of the draw. The next one was Global Chefs here in NZ in 2023. It’s been an 18-year gap between all the Nestlé-sponsored competitions. I wanted to just challenge myself.
And there's no better way, I think, than in the white-hot environment of a competition kitchen, it doesn't get any more competitive, and you probably can't find a bigger challenge. So, look, I've enjoyed each competition, especially the opportunity to put myself out there.
Barcats: So you were a finalist in your last competition?
Cam: Yeah, I won the semi-final in Auckland a couple of weeks ago, which got me a ticket through to Singapore at the World Chef Congress. I will be competing there in the final Global Chef challenge in October next year.
Barcats: Well, that's very exciting. Congratulations! So how long have you been in the hospitality industry?
Cam: I started in the industry in 1999, washing dishes at the local pub. I got my first chance at the Crowne Plaza Christchurch Hotel back in 2000 and late 2003. That was where I held my first chef position. Gosh, I’ve been cooking for just about 20 years, and in the industry for about 24 years!
Barcats: Speaking as someone who does most of the cooking in my household, how do you feel after a full day shift in the kitchen? Are you the one at home who turns around all the food?
Cam: Yeah, I do generally, but I got a pretty good work-life balance. To be fair, I've just been spending lots of time with my kids and I'm not on the stove every single night. I've got a great team behind us, and it allows me to be a bit more of a dad these days, which I enjoy. So yeah, I do mostly cook and I stick to the things I’m good at.
Barcats: Who’s the harsher critic a four-year-old or cooking for a food critic?
Cam: The kids are more of a challenge, I’ve got a pretty fussy eight-year-old and I'm trying to expand his culinary horizons which can be a challenge.
Barcats: Did you have any formal training as a chef?
Cam: Yeah, I did a 2-year professional course, so I did my Level 3 Certificate and my Level 4 Diploma at the Institute of Technology in 2004 and 2005. I was also extremely blessed along the way to work at the Crowne Plaza, which was probably one of New Zealand's biggest hotels. They had five good restaurants operating out of the area, with a team of about 40 or 50 chefs. It's been an honour to work alongside some very talented people, right throughout my career.
I've been blessed with the knowledge that's been passed on to me, but I've always been a hard worker, putting what I've learned into practice. I truly believe that formal training is an awesome start for any chef.
Thanks for reading Part One of this interview and we’ll be back next week with Part Two for you to enjoy.
