WORLD FAMOUS CHEF MARCO PIERRE WHITE TO HEAD THIS YEAR'S MARGARET RIVER GOURMET FESTIVAL IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA, 2 HOURS' FROM PERTH! SEE YOU THERE 20 TO 22 NOVEMBER 2015!

KEE@FSWMAG.COM

THE ORIGINAL ROCKSTAR CHEF TO HEADLINE THIS YEAR’S MARGARET RIVER GOURMET ESCAPE FESTIVAL

Margaret River Gourmet Escape presented by Audi 2015 is set to be bigger than ever before, with the announcement of international headline chef, the ‘Godfather of modern cooking’, Marco Pierre White. 

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Marco Pierre White - Biography

After leaving Allerton High School in Leeds without any qualifications, White decided to train as a chef.

He began his training in the kitchen at the Hotel St George in Harrogate, North Yorkshire and later at the Box Tree in Ilkley, West Yorkshire.

Arriving in London as a 16-year-old with "£7.36, a box of books and a bag of clothes" he began his classical training as a commis under Albert Roux and Michel Roux at Le Gavroche, a period that would lead Albert to describe him as "my little bunny".

At 24, Marco became Head Chef and joint owner of Harveys with a kitchen staff that included the young Gordon Ramsay.  By the age of 33, Marco Pierre White had become the youngest chef to be awarded three Michelin stars.

During these years White had working for him Gordon Ramsay, Eric Chavot (The Capital), Heston Blumenthal (The Fat Duck), Bryn Williams (Odette's), Matt Tebbutt (The Foxhunter), Robert Reid, Thierry Busset, Jason Atherton, James Stocks and in front of house Max (Mark) Palmer, one of the few English Maître d' of a Michelin 3-star, Claude Douart, Philippe Messy (youngest sommelier to gain 3 Michelin stars) and Chris Jones, unusual in being an English sommelier in a 2-star Michelin French restaurant at the age of 21.

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Marco will take part in the three-­‐day culinary extravaganza, with a full program of events hosted by over 40 of the world’s leading food and wine personalities and showcasing the best of WA and the Margaret River Wine region. Tickets go on sale at midday on Tuesday 28th July (AWST).

Marco has built an empire of London restaurants and was the youngest chef to win three Michelin stars and this year celebrates the 25th anniversary of his cookbook, White Heat, “the coolest cookbook ever written”. 

Known for his fiery nature, the famed British chef, author and restaurateur who mentored the likes of Gordon Ramsay and Mario Batali will engage with Margaret River Gourmet Escape’s audience and showcase quintessential produce and wine from the South West. 

One of the most anticipated events across the three-­‐day festival will see Marco host a Q&A over dinner at the exquisite Vasse Felix winery with his alumni Jock Zonfrillo, Richard Turner and Patrick Spencer. 

These great chefs will re-­‐ create signature dishes that the then young chefs had to produce under Michelin starred pressure from the kitchens of Marco Pierre White’s eponoymous restaurants.

“Eating is one of the most important aspects of living. I like indulging. I like to eat one food at a time, to savour each individual thing,” says Marco.

“The Australian food scene fascinates me so I am especially excited to return and be part of this extraordinary festival and explore the diversity of incredible produce and wine from this beautiful region, Margaret River. 

"Joining me is an impressive line up of international talent who feel the same way from Mexico to Russia, Chile and Thailand."

German luxury carmaker, Audi, has joined the event as Presenting Partner. The brand, well known for its exceptional lifestyle events, is thrilled to be collaborating with Margaret River Gourmet Escape alongside some of Australia’s best cooking talent including Guillaume Brahimi (Audi Ambassador) and Matt Moran (Audi Ambassador).

From all corners of the world, an incredible and unique coming together of global talent, six of whom are from the *S.Pellegrino World’s 50 Best list will join Marco on the Margaret River stage to inspire and excite guests through a mutual respect of biodiversity and sustainability making their trip to a region rich in these practices.

  *   Marco Pierre White (headline chef)

  *   Gaggan Anand (Gaggan, Bangkok) *No 10

  *   Rick Stein (Chef & Restaurateur, UK)

  *   David Thompson (Nahm, Bangkok)*No 22

  *   Jeannie Cho Lee (Master of Wine, Hong Kong)

  *   Enrique Olvera (Pujol, Mexico City)  *No 16

  *   Sat Bains (Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms, Nottingham)

  *   Ashley Palmer-­‐Watts (Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London)  *No 7

  *   Rodolfo Guzman (Boragó, Santiago)   *No 42

  *   Shane Osborn (Acarne Restaurant, Hong Kong)

  *   Vladimir Mukhin (White Rabbit, Moscow)  *No 23

  *   Ryan Clift (The Tippling Club, Singapore)

  *   Fulvio Pierangelini (Irene Restaurant, Florence)

  *   Lisa Perrotti-­‐Brown (Master of Wine, Singapore)

  *   Richard Turner (Hawksmoor, London)

  *   Ch'ng Poh Tiong (Wine Journalist, Hong Kong)

  *   Chele Gonzalez (Gallery Vask, Manila)

  *   Sam Leong (Forest, Singapore)

  *   Chris Salans (Mosaic, Bali)

  *   Tetsuya Wakuda (Tetsuya’s Restaurant, Sydney)

  *   Matt Moran (ARIA, Sydney)

  *   Jock Zonfrillo (Orana and Street-­‐ADL, Adelaide)

  *   David Moyle (Franklin, Tasmania)

  *   Mark Best (Marque Restaurant, Sydney)

  *   Matt Preston (Food Journalist & Restaurant Critic, Melbourne)

  *   Ryan Squires (Esquire, Brisbane)

  *   Joost Bakker (Melbourne based artist)

  *   George Calombaris (The Press Club, Melbourne)

  *   Guillaume Brahimi (Guillaume, Sydney)

  *   Hadleigh Troy (Restaurant Amuse, Perth)

  *   Adriano Zumbo (Adriano Zumbo, Sydney)

  *   Ben Milgate (Porteño, Sydney)

  *   Elvis Abrahanowicz (Porteño, Sydney)

  *   Josh Whiteland (Wadandi man, Margaret River)

  *   Matt Stone (Oakridge Wines, Yarra Valley)

  *   Nick Stock (Wine Writer, Melbourne)

  *   Oliver Gould (Stokehouse, Melbourne)

  *   David Hull (Cullen Wines, Margaret River)

  *   Aaron Carr (Vasse Felix, Margaret River)

  *   Dany Angove (Leeuwin Estate, Margaret River)

  *   Anna Gare (Celebrity Cook, Australia)

  *   Nigel Harvey (Voyager Estate, Margaret River)

  *   Melissa Kokoti (Xanadu, Margaret River)

  *   Poh Ling Yeow (Celebrity Cook & Author, Australia)

  *   Michael Elfwing (Cape Lodge, Margaret River)

  *   Ben Day (Aravina Estate, Margaret River)

Event Details

Dates: 20 – 22 November 2015

To see the full program of events, visit www.gourmetescape.com.au Tickets available through Ticketek from 20th July (AWST) – www.ticketek.com.au