Darren's family is well entrenched in the hospitality industry. His Grandfather was a chef and his father, uncle and brother are also chefs! His uncle is part owner of the famous BBQ King & Golden Century Restaurants in Sydney's Chinatown.
Darren has been in the kitchen since he was seven years old. He came to the Hunter Region in 1997 when he took the position as Executive Chef of Bay Views Restaurant in Warner's Bay. Here he started to gain recognition within the Hunter Region winning many awards including Hunter Region Chef of the Year in 1997 & 1998 from the NSW Restaurant and Catering Association.
From July 2000 to February 2003, he was the Executive Chef at Hunter Valley Gardens, where he personally oversaw the running of Seasons Restaurant at Hunter Valley Gardens Lodge. In 2002 Hunter Valley Gardens was awarded at the 2002 Restaurant & Catering Associations Hunter Region Awards, "Best Wedding Caterer". Again their apprentice won 4th Year Apprentice of the Year.
Darren spent 10 months as a Director of Food and Beverage for a Hotel Group, but his passion for hands on cooking saw him give this away.
Darren became the Chef de Cuisine at the site of 1 Broke Road where he re-named the restaurant to "Terroir Restaurant @ Hungerford Hilll". The restaurant evolved to become one of the best restaurants in the country, winning "Best Restaurant in a Winery" at a regional, state and national level for the Restaurant and Catering Association.
Darren has also Captained the Hunter Valley Wine Country Team to victory at the prestigious 2001 LifeStyle Channel's Australian Regional Culinary Competition at Tasting Australia.
Now he has embarked on his newest venture: Cuvée Restaurant @ Petersons Champagne House. Here he will evolve the restaurant into becoming his own. Evolve to be one of the leading restaurants of the Hunter region and Australia, together with Peterson's Champagne House, the leading quality producer of fine sparkling wines in the Hunter Valley.
i m a cook and work with chef derren for very less time . i was the smallest and the newest guy in the industry and kitchen but chef derren always used to treat me as his friend and try to teach me various things and various ways. He used to call me THE EMPEROR which makes me bit happy and proud. He uses to treat his all team and juniours in a way that no one does. Thats what makes him something different and makes him stand out of the box in my view. He is not only a good chef but very very very gud human being ... the rare combination we usually find in the industry and society. From - SAMMY ( THE EMPEROR )
i worked with Darren over 20 years ago at the Royal Easter Show in Sydney , he was a very passionate chef then and it was great to work with him, I am not surprised to hear and see that he has gone on to much bigger things now, I am currently away working on the oil rigs and in Brazil right now. I wish Darren and his wonderful family all the greatest for the future, he certainly deserves it. Wonderful stuff Dazza. From an old friend Kevin Wright
Have tried this out at the Hunter, best tasting I've had so far, well done !