Gault&Millau Australia announced the 2017 winners on Monday 13 November at it’s fifth annual guide launch and industry awards night.
As 2017 Restaurant of the Year Attica, took out five hats, while newcomer Kisumé, which opened in May 2017, was awarded New Restaurant of the Year.
Other major awards went to Shaun Quade of Lûmé, who won Chef of the Year; French-born pastry chef, Pierrick Boyer (Le Petit Gâteau), who was awarded Pastry Chef of the Year; and John Rivera (Amaru) who won Young Talent of the Year. Last year’s Young Talent award winner, Katey Shaw (Campbelltown Catholic Club), was on hand to present the award to Rivera, who will head to Paris in 2018 to work in some of the French capital’s best restaurants.
Vue de monde’s Carlos Simoes Santos won Sommelier of the Year, and owner and manager of Montrachet, Clare Wallace, was identified as the Professional of the Year (Paddington, Queensland), while Pepe Saya (Tempe, NSW) won Producer of the Year for their signature cultured butter.
The awards night also marked the debut of Gault&Millau’s first nation-wide ‘Yellow Guide’, reviewing venues in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart, Perth and Adelaide. The 2018 guide includes over 700 restaurants, evaluated by 58 anonymous Gault&Millau reviewers.
“We have been overwhelmed by how enthusiastically The Yellow Guide has been embraced in Australia,” says Gault&Millau Australia’s editor-in-chief, Mark Dorrell.
“Chefs and restauranteurs respect the independent and anonymous review process we use all over the world. This global benchmark is so valued by restaurants, and our awards night is our way of honouring those that work hard and devote themselves to making our industry so incredible.”
