Former World’s 50 Best Restaurants chef moves to Adelaide to head up Leigh Street Wine Room
A former chef of one of the world’s 50 best restaurants is moving to Adelaide to head up a CBD hot spot.
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One of the country’s hottest young chefs, Jake Kellie, is the new head chef at Leigh Street Wine Room.
The 29-year-old, formerly of Singapore’s Burnt Ends (World’s 50 Best Restaurants) and most recently Mimi’s in Sydney, arrives in Adelaide next weekend.
It’s been seven years since Kellie was last in town, when he cooked alongside Adam Liston (Shobosho) for a pop-up at Bistro Dom, which then had Duncan Welgemoed (Africola) at the helm.
“We jumped into Bistro Dom for the week and cooked for (the band) Tool, and went to their concert on the Friday night,” says Kellie. “It was a whirlwind trip.”
He’s “amped to come back” and join the city’s flourishing dining scene. Mostly, he’s keen to join forces with LSWR owners Nathan and Sali Sasi, whom he met at a pop-up dinner with chef Aaron Turner at Bali’s Ku De Ta. His residency was at Burnt Ends at the time, and the Salis were running restaurants in Bali.
“We got along really well,” he says. “Working with Sal and Nath, that’s my biggest intrigument; they’re good, young restaurateurs in the industry. And they’re in a climate in Adelaide where there’s good produce, up and coming restaurants, and I wanted to be a part of it.
“I just want to cook really good food in the restaurant and make people happy.”
With Kellie in the kitchen, Nathan will focus on business growth along with Sali, who’s also in charge of the business’s natural wine arm distribution, Juice Traders.
Sali said she’s “pumped” to secure their old friend. “It’s testament to how incredible Adelaide is,” she said.
