New Hire: Nick McGonigal Brings Three-Michelin Star Cred to the ‘Ninch

Melbourne-raised Nick McGonigal worked as an apprentice at Cecconi’s before leaving for London in 2018. There, he spent two years as chef de partie at Brett Graham's three-Michelin-starred restaurant The Ledbury.

McGonigal moved back to Melbourne in 2020, worked at Society, and has just taken on the executive chef role at Lancemore Lindenderry – a boutique hotel, winery cellar door and restaurant in Red Hill – where he oversees food across the property. This includes events, in-room dining and the restaurant, The Dining Room, which runs a la carte Thursday to Friday and has a $145 set menu on weekends.

“I didn’t have any real ties to the Mornington Peninsula at first. I started at Paringa after stepping away from Society, looking for a change of pace. What’s kept me here is the storytelling, the producers and the sense of place and community. It honestly makes my job easier,” McGonigal tells Broadsheet.

“It’s a broad scope, but it’s what makes the role exciting. It gives me access to a wide range of produce and allows us to work more sustainably and creatively by using ingredients across multiple areas of the business,” he says. “The support of the hotel structure means we can explore those more ambitious, expressive ideas that make a dining experience memorable.”

We caught up with the chef to find out more about what he has in store for the role.

What has it been like returning to the Peninsula?
It’s been really good and, honestly, a bit eye-opening. The food culture in England is completely different. So much of the produce is imported from all over the world, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but coming back to Australia and to the Peninsula in particular, you realise how close we are in terms of our food culture. The connection to local producers here is incredible. I literally go down the road, meet our suppliers, build relationships and sometimes hand-pick what we bring back. That connection makes everything more meaningful.

Are there any dishes you’ve added to the menu that you’re particularly excited
about?

One of the dishes I’m really excited about is a dessert that actually came together quite organically. It’s a white chocolate mousse with braised quince and hazelnut. It was partly inspired by an upcoming event where we knew we’d have some beautiful wine leftover, and partly by a farmer just down the road who had a ridiculous amount of surplus quince he wanted to offload. It felt like the perfect opportunity to create something seasonal, resourceful and delicious.

Another one is a scallop, tomato jam, bottarga and nori dish where the focus is purely on the quality of the ingredients. It’s one of the few times we reach as far as Western Australia, but those scallops are unmatched. We serve them with grated bottarga and local goat’s cheese, and the dish really speaks to our approach: thoughtful sourcing, celebrating producers and telling a story through every element on the plate.

What is the kitchen set-up like? How does this influence what you’re able to
serve?
The kitchen is set up in a back-to-front flow, which means dishes start at the back and move through each station before being plated at the pass, where my sous chef and I are stationed. It’s a system that gives us a clear line of sight over every dish before it leaves the kitchen. That layout really supports consistency and quality. It allows us to stay close to the food, to make those last-minute adjustments, and to keep a strong sense of rhythm during service – everything moves with intention.

What are you and head horticulturist John Dundabben growing right now?
Smaller herbs and edible flowers. Things like wild garlic, which adds this beautiful, delicate depth to dishes. We’ve just had a sunken garden bed approved too, so we’re looking forward to expanding what we can grow on-site in a big way.

What’s inspiring you in the kitchen?
Right now, it’s the produce, especially the connection to where it comes from. We often go down to see our suppliers. Hearing them talk through the ingredients and their tasting notes, it’s a whole experience and I often take the team down there so they can see, smell and taste everything first-hand. I find that with the newer chefs, it’s super important for them to see and understand where everything is coming from, and how much time and effort it takes each and every ingredient to end up in our kitchen and on diners’ plates. That appreciation flows through everything we do, and I think guests can feel that on the plate.