Matt Stone & Jo Barrett

chefs
Melbourne, australia

Hailing from the remote and bountiful region of Margaret River, Western Australia, Matt Stone spent his formative years surrounded by one of Australia’s richest landscapes for produce. As a chef and author, his cuisine underscores an ideology deeply rooted in connection to country. With profound respect for the land, Matt’s strong convictions and inquisitive nature have led him to become one of Australia’s leading sustainable chefs.

In joining Greenhouse Perth as head chef at just 22 years old, Matt was brought into the orbit of restaurateur and sustainability champion Joost Bakker. Joost and his restaurant’s philosophy of using hyper-local, organic ingredients to produce nutritious dishes with zero waste had a significant impact on Matt’s own culinary ideology. This strong conviction has continued to echo through all of Matt’s subsequent projects.

Following Greenhouse Perth’s success, Matt joined Joost in opening Australia’s first zero-waste cafe, Silo (then known as Brothl), as well as heading up the kitchens at Greenhouse pop up restaurants on Sydney Harbour and in Melbourne’s Southbank, in 2011 and 2012 respectively.

Jo backs her culinary ambitions with prodigious skill. Her pastry and baking ability honed at Tivoli Road Bakery and culminating at the World Championship of Pastry in Milan after winning gold in Australia for Pastillage. Jo’s expertise with traditional foods, such as cheese and salami, is also explored in her publication, Have A Go Series.

Naturally Jo’s passion for the outdoors extends to fishing, diving, and hiking, strengthening her connection to environments where food is grown and harvested.

In July 2015, Matt became executive chef at Oakridge in the Yarra Valley, Victoria. Working closely with his partner and co-executive chef Jo Barrett, the pair created a new identity for the restaurant which echoed Oakridge wines’ connection to and love for the land.

The Oakridge kitchen served an ever-changing menu that become known as ‘Yarra Valley Cuisine’ – offering a distinct taste of the local area. With help from the winery’s knowledgeable viticultural team, Matt created a significant kitchen garden and cooked only with ingredients that could be grown, foraged or sourced on the Oakridge property or from producers in the Yarra Valley region.

In 2020 Matt and Jo departed Oakridge to take up the opportunity to work again with Joost on his newest project – futurefoodsystem. Located at Federation Square, Melbourne, Matt and Jo have taken up residency at the futurefoodsystem house - a two bedroom home built on the banks of the Yarra River. The house built from natural and recyclable materials will demonstrate a self-sustaining, closed loop – a home that will shelter, feed and provide energy for its inhabitants. The human driven system mimics nature - upcycling what we currently regard as ‘waste’, in order to grow nutrient dense, delicious produce that Matt & Jo will create dishes from.

As a literal, ‘chefs-in-residence,’ the duo create a futuristic menu derived from a productive building which is closed loop, zero-waste and set in a truly urban environment. Their passion for sustainability, environment and local food systems has been recognised internationally by World 50 Best in their inaugural, World 50 Next – ‘as an innovator, having an influence on the future of the culinary industry around the world’.