The Flinders Wharf announces new lineup for their monthly visiting chef program, ‘On-Island Time’ commencing September, 2019.
There has been a surge of interest in Flinders Island among both the Australian and international chef community following the success of the Food and Crayfish festival that launched in April, 2018. Locals Tom and Jo Youl, owners of the island’s newest food and beverage venue, The Flinders Wharf are building on this momentum by spearheading a monthly guest chef program dubbed, ‘On-Island Time’.
Guest chefs are invited across in pairs, providing an opportunity for two industry professionals to connect and work together in a truly unique environment. Chefs spend four-days exploring the island, diving, foraging, hunting and meeting producers before setting up shop at The Wharf (as locals refer to it) and serving up their own menu for a weekend.
Jo and Tom are excited to announce the visiting chefs for September, October and November this year with 2020 dates also to be announced in the coming months.
Friday, 20th of September to Sunday 22nd of September is James Viles (Biota Dining & Barn) and Ryan Kovac (Bertha Meats)
October 25th to the 27th will see Hobart-based chef Matt Breen (Templo) and Adelaide-based Max Sharrad (Nido Pasta Bar)
Friday, 29th of November to the 1st of December Luke Burgess (ex Garagistes) and Adam James (Rough Rice)
Flinders Island – we are a no-fuss community of passionate farmers, growers and producers
Located in Bass Strait, north east of Tasmania, Flinders Island is the largest in the Furneaux Islands region with a population of only 900 islanders. Famous for untouched beaches with crystal clear waters and some of Australia’s greatest produce, the island has been a chef’s secret pantry for many years.
On Flinders Island we are about raw, pure, untouched basics: the way food was grown before mass production and chemical interference. We grow and farm the world’s finest beef, lamb, garlic, honey, fruit, vegetables and seafood. You’ll also find premium Tasmanian whiskey, gin and beer.
CALLING FLINDERS ISLAND HOME
Jo & Tom Youl – Our Story
Tom Youl grew up on a wool farm near Campbell Town in the Midlands, Tasmania. He left school and became a qualified landscaper, ski bum/traveller and then he moved to Flinders Island to complete his building apprenticeship approximately 8 years ago. He is now a Licensed Builder. Jo grew up on a cropping farm north of Melbourne. After school Jo studied in Geelong, completing a Bachelor in Farm Business Management. Jo specialises in Agribusiness Marketing before she moved to Flinders Island approximately 7 years ago to be with Tom. Tom fell in love with the lifestyle on the Island and convinced Jo to move not long after. Jo and Tom were married in 2013 and now have a four-year-old daughter Alice, one-year-old son Billy and one on the way.
Funnily enough, Jo’s family (her grandmother’s father) purchased a farm on Flinders Island and it has remained in the Hay and Clarke family since the 1930s. The Quoin has approximately 900 hectares of arable land that is best used to run beef cattle. A renovator’s delight, Tom and Jo now run about 500 Angus breeding cows and are improving the pastures and infrastructure year on year.
Jo started a business called A Taste of Flinders in 2015 that specialises in working with local producers. The ethos is to provide great local Tassie food and drink options for the community and visitors to Flinders Island. Jo is passionate about continually improving the visitor experience and is developing a new visitor hub on the waterfront in Whitemark. This will mean that visitors can go straight to the Wharf Shed to access the best and well-known produce such as crayfish, Tasmanian whiskey, fresh produce and order something off the menu in a great setting.
For more about Jo & Tom’s story go to Quoin.
THE FLINDERS WHARF
Our Team
The team behind the Flinders Wharf Experience are dedicated to quality and deliciousness. In the peak season between September and April, we are offering some short-term positions for a kitchen and front of house. We value our employees and work hard to train local talent. If you would like to apply for a position at the Wharf please email your resume to jo@theflinderswharf.com.au
FLINDERS ISLAND, BASS STRAIT & MOTHER NATURE
Freedom to live by the natural order
Mother Nature on Flinders Island is not passive. It is raw, elemental, peaceful and breathtakingly beautiful. Mother Nature in the Bass Strait is wilder: powerful and unpredictable. We are forced therefore to be at its mercy. It’s untameable, we need to be in harmony, just breathe, and go with the flow.
Human nature – evolved from the early settlers, alone in the Bass Strait, we’re self-sufficient and independent. We nurture and co-operate, with a shared sense of responsibility. We go at our own pace, in our own way; our own unwritten law of the land. We exist as a community.
