Culinary Leader Ben Shewry Shines a Light

Given Melbourne thinks of itself as Australia’s food capital, its double lockdown was particularly identity-shaking. Luckily, one of the city’s culinary leaders, New Zealand-born chef and restaurateur Ben Shewry, stood tirelessly tall and stayed relentlessly positive, shining a light through a dark winter, Dani Valent writes for The Sydney Morning Herald in a story about “40 Australians who mattered” in 2020.

In April, Shewry spray painted a new mantra literally on the wall at his restaurant Attica, Valent reports. “It felt like, you know what: f… this. This is not the same place any more, already. I consider myself a leader and I want to lead and I also want to put a positive message out there to the community to not give up,” Shewry says.

“This year has been exceptionally painful for hospitality but while Shewry has worn his pain on his sleeve, it’s been next to his heart the whole time,” Australian food identity Matt Preston says. “Whether it’s his Soup Project or more frivolous ventures like his online ‘Party for Melbourne’, Ben Shewry has above all maintained the employment of his staff by pivoting with the grace of a pirouetting ballerina.”

Original article by Dani Valent, The Sydney Morning Herald, November 27, 2020.

Photo by Kristoffer Paulsen.