It’s late January in Perth and aptly we’re shooting in The Pickle District. The noise in the cavernous studio rises with each arrival – some are old friends, others are meeting today for the first time. As I chat to each of our young pros, there’s a theme that becomes evident: the industry forges friendships, which is key to navigating a life in service. Finding your tribe is essential. People who understand the risk and reward of a career in hospitality, who you’ll open and close restaurants alongside, rescue when the proverbial hits the fan, and provide a shoulder when needed. Hospitality is tough but the rewards are plentiful for those who are skilled, creative and possess a certain amount of grit. Age isn’t necessarily a barrier and it’s an industry that takes all comers. Meet the future of hospitality in Western Australia.
Opening the door
“Expose yourself to culture, read books, seek experience and learn what you like,” says Larissa Gonçalves (head chef Si Paradiso and our Breakthrough Talent for 2026), of advice she’d give to new chefs. “I wish I knew that I could let myself make use of my background in my kitchen,’ she says. ‘Yes, I came up with good food, but for me it was still lacking something. Now I know that good food is expected, and what makes the difference is the intention, soul, passion you put into it. It’s tying together what I love with who I am.”
Gonçalves credits her parents who are in the hospitality industry back home in Brazil. “I saw and learned about dedication, passion and hard work,” she says. “I was lucky to start at Si Paradiso, where I saw a kitchen that was structured with some great inspiration. The group I work for has always been big on more than just simply serving good food and showing that from the kitchen is something that I aim to always do.”
Wine can seem impenetrable, so how do you get a head start as a sommelier? “ think beginning with something that you’re at least curious about is a great way to start,” says Sophie Johnston, who works with noted Wine Director, Emma Farrelly on shaping wine lists across the State Buildings. “And then learning about France and Italy can provide a good foundation. Once you know what an appellation is or that different grapes belong to different regions, you’ve a foundation,” she says, and “the rest of the wine world starts to make more sense.”
Johnston likes the collegiate atmosphere of wine but singles out Farrelly as an influence. “Working with Em was a huge draw card. I met her when I was working at Le Rebelle. She was there for drinks and was one of the first people who I opened up a bottle of wine for and she said, have you tasted this before? She said, grab yourself a glass. I knew that this was a person that is generous with their knowledge. I already had the basics and the passion but just getting into the Wine Merchant and looking at the big wine wall it was, where do I start, I want to learn everything I possibly can.”
The road less travelled
Eddie Bulatao faced the dilemma of whether his next move could be off the expected track, prior to moving to Gather Foods, an Aboriginal-owned caterer that puts indigenous ingredients centrestage. Restaurant kitchens and catering are different, says Bulatao, previously of Lawson Flats. “It was shocking when I first started, because I didn’t know what to do,” he says. “I had no idea how to run a catering gig, but you learn, quickly.” It’s paid off, he says, as it’s enabled him to develop new skillsets. “There’s a lot more planning before service and the prep is a lot harder than actual service,” he says. “Working in different kitchens every day, setting up in the middle of nowhere is hard, but fun.” The joy of the job is his grasp on native ingredients. “I like foraging as we get to go out with Elders every month; that’s what has always intrigued me.”
Pop-up to permanent
Drew Dawson reflects on his popup Off Licence, which now holds fortnightly events at Cool Room, a cafe he took on in 2025. “I choose whatever we’re cooking and if people like it, sick, and if not, they can come to a different night,” he says unapologetically. Nights sell out, the fixed menu all part of making it manageable, running the daytime cafe most of the time.
He credits fellow pop-up veteran and new business owner Bac Pham of North 54 in getting Cool Room up and running. “That’s what this industry is about,” he says. “I ended up getting the keys and he gave me a hand to get it ready, I mean that’s what this industry is about. It’s all part of this wider community. So yeah, he gave me a hand, I gave him a hand.
“I didn’t really want to work under anyone anymore,” was Pham’s thinking in taking his pop-up and parlaying it into North 54, offering his modern take on banh mi. While many chefs are eager to tell you what they’re cooking, Pham says, “you can be as creative as you want but if you don’t have the marketing side [sorted] your stuff isn’t going anywhere.’ His biggest learning? Realising you need to know your accounting, bookkeeping, sales and marketing. ‘It’s full on, I’ve had to learn all this.”
Pham also notes that you need to have a grip on the visuals these days. “It’s like Instagram, Facebook, everything is advertised through that and people want to see the food – if they don’t see the food they don’t want to come.”
Brian Cole enthuses about his 2025 pop-ups spotlighting the food of Sierra Leone and Ghana. “I knew people were wanting something new,” he says of this creative outlet, which he juggles alongside his role as chef de cuisine at Ritz-Carlton Perth. His project was an introduction for many to West African food and a chance for Cole to express his culinary identity.
Next up there’s collaboration with Si Paradiso, and another outing of the popup at Twenty Seats, this next iteration focusing on street food not fine dining.
The view from the top
In taking the head chef position at Petition, Jessica Roe (Young Chef of the Year 2026) tripled the size of her team to 30, running seven days a week. She’s clear that her job is to help the young people working for her flourish, and create a safe space for them to succeed or fail. “They have so many ideas and I never want to squash them,” she says. “So why not try it? If it doesn’t work, try again. You only learn from mistakes and trying, and it’s that intuition that you can’t learn in a book,” she says.
James Cole Bowen reflects on navigating the first few years when you’re starting out. “You sacrifice sleep, relationships, miss out on a lot of things to look after a new restaurant,” he says. “It’s kind of like having a child, you’ve got to be there watching it.” Having been in fine dining and working in the best restaurants he could, Cole Bowen reflects on hitting the ceiling at The Corner Dairy, a project that he is still very fond of. “I knew I wanted to take on something and I was ready for a new challenge. Gibney came up, I had the conversation, and I always want to do something world-class. George just had the vision and the money behind it to do that level. No corners cut, no expense spared. Cole Bowen is very aware that everyone’s watching what you’re doing and that expectations are high. ‘There’s a lot of things to figure out, a lot of uncharted territory.’ His takeaway though, is once you get a little more experience under your belt, things become easier and you can start to relax.
Blaze Young says you’re never off the clock. The challenge for her in moving to an executive chef position has been to “keep that pure creative energy going when there’s so much noise around you’ in terms of working in the business and not always the kitchen,” she says. “My process has become much more collaborative than it was, and it just had to become that way because I think I’d love to give people a little bit of autonomy on the menu.” Allowing her chefs to create a dish that makes it to the menu gives them, she says, “pride and a sense of ownership of that kitchen.” All part of nurturing the next generation of West Australian chefs.