Discovering a love and passion for food at the tender age of 15, Rob started his career in a boutique establishment in northern New South Wales. Awarded the New South Wales TAFE Award of Excellence in his first year of training, this recognition drove Rob’s aspirations to work with Australia’s top chefs and laid the foundations for what has been – and continues to be – a very successful career.
Rob returned to his home city of Sydney, taking up a position with Captain Cook Cruises – based on the infamous Sydney Harbour – catering for a fleet of 13 vessels renowned for chartering high profile corporate customers and celebrities. After many years working in the bustling hub of Sydney, and with a burning desire to take the next step in his career, Rob accepted a position with world-renowned hotel empire Hilton, working in their Brisbane hotel.
Mentored by industry leading Chef Rick Stephens, Rob displayed an exceptional level of skill and work ethic, scooping up Hilton’s High Achiever Award coupled with published articles in two industry publications. With a reputation as one of Australia’s up and coming Young Chefs, doors opened for Rob, allowing him to be mentored by many of Australia’s top Chefs, including the likes of Cheong Liew, Jean-Christophe Novelli, Jacques Reymond, Teage Ezard and Matt Moran.
Having achieved what he set out to, 2004 saw Rob take up a management position in the commercial arm of Southern Cross University, working within the Corporate Conference Facility. Catering to high profile diplomats and government figures, although very rewarding, was not challenging enough. This prompted Rob to take the next step in his expansive career, joining onata catering in 2006.
Based in dnata catering’s Brisbane unit, Rob’s talents were quickly recognised, rising through the ranks to Senior Corporate Chef. With the company’s reputation growing to position them as Australia’s leading inflight caterer, Rob was at the helm, heading up menu presentations and airline start-ups. Showing a great aptitude, it wasn’t long before Rob was promoted to General Manager Culinary heading the Culinary and Development team.
Having been a member of the dnata catering family for over Eighteen years, Rob now heads up the culinary division as Head Of Culinary. Leading a team of ten, Rob oversees product design and selection, menu designs and culinary training, whilst also driving & overseeing the culinary innovation of the APAC businesses.
