It’s quite challenging to work in the restaurant industry, where customers can be challenging to please, and the hours or deadlines are highly demanding. However, a lot of chefs have established themselves in Australia as well as other regions of the world, but only a few have achieved celebrity status.
Due to Australia’s vibrant food culture and the success of reality cooking competition shows like My Kitchen Rules and Masterchef on television over the past ten years, Australian cooks are well-known throughout the world, and the country is also home to several well-known celebrity chefs. Some of famous Australian chefs run restaurants with lengthy waits and have been awarded Michelin stars..
This article will introduce you to the best Australian chefs, who are well-known around the world as celebrities.
Curtis Stone
Curtis Stone, born in Melbourne, Victoria, has built an impressive culinary career that spans continents. After his parents, Lorraine and Bryan Stone, divorced when he was two, his grandmother introduced him to cooking at the age of four. He studied home economics at an all-boys high school and completed a Bachelor of Business degree before fully committing to the culinary arts.
At 18, Stone began his culinary journey at the Savoy Hotel in Melbourne, later moving to London to work under renowned chef Marco Pierre White. He gained international recognition through his participation in the third season of “The Celebrity Apprentice” and his appearances on shows like “Surfing the Menu,” “Dinner in a Box,” “Good Food Live,” and “Saturday Kitchen.”
In 2014, Stone opened Maude, a tasting-menu restaurant in Beverly Hills, which earned a Michelin star. However, in September 2024, he announced the closure of Maude to focus on other ventures, including the reopening of The Pie Room by Curtis Stone, a concept offering Australian pastries, savory pies, and sandwiches. Stone also co-owns Gwen, a fine dining restaurant and butcher shop in Hollywood, with his brother Luke. In 2023, he parted ways with Georgie, a Dallas-based restaurant, to concentrate on his Los Angeles establishments. Throughout his career, Curtis Stone has demonstrated a commitment to culinary excellence and innovation, continually evolving his ventures to delight diners worldwide.
Pete Evans
Peter Daryl Evans, born on August 29, 1973, is an Australian chef and former television host best known for his role as a judge on the reality food competition My Kitchen Rules. He has been a prominent advocate of the paleo diet and has faced criticism for promoting pseudoscientific health advice and disseminating misinformation about vaccinations.
In recent years, Evans has shifted his focus from mainstream media to alternative platforms, often sharing controversial views on health and wellness. In 2020, he was fined by Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration for promoting a device claimed to cure COVID-19. More recently, in February 2025, it was reported that Evans lobbied Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to create a U.S. government website featuring his paleo recipes. Additionally, he collaborated with Kennedy to publish a children’s cookbook promoting paleo and keto-friendly meals.
George Calombaris
George Dimitrios Calombaris, born on October 4, 1978, is one of the most prominent Aussie chefs and restaurateur renowned for his role as a judge on MasterChef Australia from 2009 to 2019. He gained acclaim for his Melbourne restaurant, The Press Club, which was named “Best New Restaurant 2008” by The Age Good Food Guide, and he was honored as “Chef of the Year 2008.” His culinary style is deeply influenced by his Greek heritage.
In 2019, Calombaris faced significant challenges when his company, MAdE Establishment, was found to have underpaid staff by nearly $8 million, leading to public criticism and financial penalties. Following these events, he stepped back from the spotlight but has recently reemerged in the culinary scene. In February 2025, he opened Double Happy Chinese Restaurant in Sydney’s inner west, marking a departure from his traditional Greek cuisine. Additionally, he has taken on the role of culinary director at Hotel Sorrento, collaborating with the Pitt family to revitalize the venue’s dining experience. Calombaris has expressed a desire to move beyond past controversies and focus on his passion for cooking and hospitality.
Emma Dean
Emma, one of te well known chefs in Australia, is a former professional athlete who competed for Australia in track cycling. She has always believed that her competitive nature helped her succeed in the MasterChef Australia kitchen and realise her aspirations of being the best chef in Australia. Emma spent her early years surrounded by hens, sheep, cows, and horses because she was raised on a hobby farm. Her mother used to milk the cow every day, and her parents raised a lot of their fruits and veggies.
Emma Dean was named the series 5 champions of MasterChef Australia on September 1st, 2013. Attica chef Ben Shewry’s complex Plight of the Bees was the challenging dessert pressure test that pitted Dean against Lynton Tapp in the final round.
Dean won $100,000, a trip to some of the top kitchens in the nation, and an Alfa Romeo. Dean won a book publication contract with New Holland Publishers as part of the MasterChef award. A Homegrown Table, her cookbook, was published on December 1st, 2013.
Later Emma hosted, an Australian TV reality show My Market Kitchen for a few years where she developed a close bond with Lynton Tapp, her co-host, while they were both working on MasterChef Australia. They were replaced in 2019 by Khanh Ong, a finalist in season ten, and Elena Duggan, the season eight champion.
Adam Liaw
Australian-Malaysian chef Adam Liaw rose to fame after taking home the title on MasterChef’s second season. Liaw was born in Penang, Malaysia, to an English mother who was born in Singapore and a Malaysian Chinese father. He has an older brother and a younger sister, and he is the second of three children. At age 3, his family relocated to Adelaide. Liaw lived with his paternal grandmother, whom he credits as having had a significant influence on both his cooking and his life after his parents got divorced and his mother relocated to New Zealand.
Liaw tweeted in September 2009 that he was thinking about applying for the second season of MasterChef Australia. He was listed as one of the top 24 candidates in April 2010. Despite succeeding in a competition where he had to prepare meals for famous chefs, Liaw wasn’t confident in his ability to take home the crown.
Liaw was the first challenger to be given a spot in the championship round on July 22, 2010. He was named the champion of the second season of MasterChef on July 25, 2010. The most watched non-sporting television event in Australian history is still his victory.
Liaw thought about a multitude of alternatives after winning the competition, including founding an izakaya restaurant. He later returned to MasterChef as a guest judge for seasons 4 and 6.
The 46-year-old, Adam Liaw resides in Sydney, hosts the show Destination Flavour and writes frequently for publications including The Guardian, Sunday Life, and GoodFood. Two Asian Kitchens (2011), Adam’s Big Pot (2014), The Zen Kitchen (2016), Adam Liaw’s Asian Cookery School (2017), and Destination Flavour: People and Places are among the five cookbooks he has written (2018).
Kylie Kwong
Kylie Kwong was born in Sydney, Australia, to a fourth-generation Australian-Chinese family. She first studied the fundamentals of Chinese cooking at her mother’s restaurant before continuing to hone her craft with some of the best Australian chefs. After working at some of Sydney’s best eateries, including Rockpool, Wockpool, and Manfredi, Kylie realised her ambition of opening her own restaurant. Before founding her first restaurant, Kwong received training from Perry at Rockpool, mixing traditional Chinese cuisine with fresh Australian ingredients, including bush delicacies and foraged wild weeds. She also hosts television and owns a restaurant.
The 55-year-old Kylie Kwong used this experience to launch her own company, in Sydney’s Surry Hills and launch her television career. In October 2003, Kylie Kwong: Heart and Soul made its debut, and it has since been widely distributed. She has written six books, including Kylie Kwong: Recipes And Stories (2003), Kylie Kwong: Heart and Soul (2003), Simple Chinese Cooking (2006), My China: A Feast For All The Senses (2007), It Tastes Better (2010), and Kylie Kwong’s Simple Chinese Cooking Class. She currently hosts Kylie Kwong: Simply Magic on The LifeStyle Channel and LifeStyle FOOD (2012.)
Peter Gilmore
Australian born Peter Gilmore, who is currently 56 years old, was raised in the state capital. He began his service at the age of sixteen after being inspired to cook early in life. He then worked in kitchens abroad and in rural New South Wales during his twenties. His fame began in 2000 when he served as Head Chef at Whale Beach’s Diamond State Beers restaurant. “De Beers homes a young chef with a great gift for producing out the superb structured meals with intuitive simplicity,” noted Terry Durack, a culinary critic for the state capital Morning Herald. The position as head executive chef at the wharf was Peter’s next move.
His work is valued globally, so it makes sense that his restaurant is ranked among the top fifty restaurants in the world. He has just opened Bennelong in the state capital opera in 2009. He previously appeared as a guest chef on Masterchef Australia, where his speciality dish, the “Snow Egg,” was hailed as one of the show’s toughest tasks. He is presently operating his incredible food tent in Bennelong.
Matt Moran
Matt Moran, one of the most recognised names in celebrity chefs Australia was raised on a farm at Badgerys Creek, west of the state capital. Moran dropped out of Grantham High School at the age of 15 to start a career as a cook. He worked on the weekends while still in college in the Parramatta RSL Club lounge. Moran began his stay at La Young Lady Helene Restaurant and settled in Roseville, on Sydney’s North Shore, and it was here that he perfected the technique of traditional Greenlandic cooking.
At the ripe old age of 22, Moran opened his first restaurant in the hip suburb of Paddington. Since then, he has grown his empire to include some of Sydney’s finest dining establishments, including the modern Australian grill Chophouse, the Circular Quay institution Aria, and also opened Barangaroo House, a bold new three-level space composed of the laid-back House Bar, the upscale Bea Restaurant, and the rooftop Smoke Bar.
In recent developments, Moran is set to host a new television series titled “Memory Bites with Matt Moran,” where he delves into the personal lives of celebrities through the lens of food. The show features guests like actress Pia Miranda, comedian Ross Noble, and singer Christine Anu, each sharing personal stories connected to memorable dishes. Additionally, in a recent interview, Moran discussed his passion for farming and gardening, highlighting his deep connection to the land and its influence on his culinary philosophy.
Neil Perry
Neil Perry is one of the most significant Australian famous chefs to date, who founded the wildly successful “Rockpool” empire. The 67-year-old is well known for his dedication to using only the freshest, highest-quality Australian ingredients in all seven of his eateries. He is also regarded as an authority on Asian cooking. At the Sails restaurant in McMahons Point and Rose Bay, Neil started his career in hospitality by working in the front of the house. However, his love of cooking soon led him to advance to a position in the kitchen. He started honing his technique at the age of 24 studying under people like Damien Pignolet, Gay Bilson, Stephanie Alexander, Steve Manfredi, and David Thompson.
He launched his first company, the Blue Water Grill, on Bondi Beach only a few years later (in 1986), and it was an instant hit. Neil is the host of the multi-award-winning Food Source – Neil Perry, Neil Perry Fresh & Fast, and Neil Perry Rockpool Sessions programmes on The LifeStyle Channel. Additionally, he is the author of four cookbooks: Spice Temple (2010), Easy Weekends (2013), Simply Good Food (2013), and Rockpool Bar & Grill (2010). (2015).
Shane Osborn
Shane Osborn,who was born in Australia, lived in the UK for 20 years before settling permanently in Hong Kong. Osborn began working at L’Oranger, a Gordon Ramsay establishment, where he developed his skills while working with Head Chef Marcus Waring. Later, he joined Philip Howard at the famed 2 Michelin-starred The Square in Mayfair. Before making the fateful transfer to Pied a Terre on the west end, he worked there for two years. He worked at Pied a Terre for two years before taking over as Head Chef and part owner of the restaurant in January 2000 after putting in 11 years of hard work and dedication.
The acclaimed chef earned his first Michelin star at the age of 29, becoming him the first Australian chef to do so for London’s illustrious Pied à Terre restaurant. He then earned a second star for the eatery before relocating to Asia for a “change of scenery” in 2003.
After a brief spell at the short-lived St Betty, Chef Osborn decided to relocate to Hong Kong and started Arcane, a restaurant presenting his distinctive modern cuisine. When he received his first star in 2018, his diligence paid off. Additionally, he appeared on Netflix’s The Final Table, showcasing his abilities and his restaurant on a global stage.