KYLIE KWONG PHOTOGRAPHY
DYLAN ROBINSON
AGRARIAN KITCHEN PHOTOGRAPHYMATHEW FARRELL“There’s no denying kitchens are
stillmaledominated,butitmakes
suchadifferencehavingfemale
team members,” says Alessandro
Pavoni, pictured with Sotto Sopra
pastry chef Flavia Beniamini.diversitybeingapertinentissuefortheindustry.“Iwasverylucky
Iworkedwithreallycoolpeoplewhohadgreatpoliticsand
understood what equality meant. At the time I started working as
achefinthemid’80s,therewerealotofwomenleadingthefield
whoweregreatrolemodelsandnurturedsomany.However,for
thepast25years,women’svoiceshavenotbeenasprominent
as they could be, given the number in the industry.” Manfield
believes that promoting gender equality isn’t about hiring women
forthesakeofit,butrathercelebratingthefactthatmenand
women contribute different skills and qualities to a business.
Nowhereisthismoreevidentthaninthecollaborations
between male and female chefs and front-of-house teams in
someofourtopeateries.Forinstance,GuillaumeBrahimiand
gunpastrychefKirstySolomonatSydney’sBistroGuillaume,
Rodney Dunn and Ali Currey-Voumard at Tasmania’s Agrarian
Kitchen, and ArChan Chan, who was head-hunted by Andrew
McConnelltoleadthe17-strongbrigade–“agoodmixofmen
and women” – at his latest Melbourne venture, Ricky & Pinky.
That’saplayChanputsdowntoherleadershipstylethat’s
“tough, but positive and caring”, a philosophy seeded by her
mentor, McConnell Group development chef John Paul Twomey.
NomadheadchefJacquiChallinormakesthepointthatthere
isn’tnecessarilyanincreasedfemalepresenceinhospitality,there
justseemstobemoreofaspotlightonitatpresent:“Wehave
alwaysbeenhere;peoplejustseemmoreinterestedinthefact
thatweareherenow!”Thatlong-standingpresenceisn’tthe“She is creative and
brings a calmness
to the kitchen,”
says Rodney Dunn
of head chef Ali
Currey-Voumard.delicious.com.au 29