Tasting Australia is the highlight of the year for gastronomes across the country. The 2025 program was announced last year, with 150 events featuring talent such as Chiara Pavan of leading Venetian restaurant Venissa, Masterchef’s Andy Allen, cookbook author and Sydney chef Danielle Alvarez, executive chef of Sydney’s Firedoor Lennox Hastie, co-owner of London’s Tayer & Elementary Monica Berg, and Dave Verheul of Melbourne’s Embla.
Two new events have just been announced with Douglas McMaster from London restaurant Silo. Silo is often touted as being the world’s first zero-waste restaurant. McMaster’s commitment to sustainable restaurant practices was documented in a short film by the Atlantic, in which he calls waste “a failure of the imagination”. He encourages creative solutions to waste, through his virtual academy, the Zero Waste Cooking School.
McMaster will be part of two Tasting Australia events: Zero Heroes on May 7 and Sous Chef! You Chef! on May 5. Zero Heroes sees McMaster team up with two of Broadsheet’s favourite chefs: Tasting Australia food curator Kane Pollard of Topiary and Ondeen and Melbourne chef Jacqui Challinor, formerly of the Nomad Group.
With Zero Heroes, the trio will cook a waste-free dinner at the Dining Galleries in Town Square. Tickets cost $295. Sous Chef! You Chef! will take place at the Food Innovation Lab at the university’s Waite campus. For just $80, you’ll get a hands-on cooking class along with food and wine. McMaster will focus on ways you can prepare waste-free dishes at home.
Tickets for Sous Chef! You Chef! and Zero Heroes are available online.
