From shy troublemaker to dessert king: how Adriano Zumbo overcame his demons to build an empire

A PAINFULLY shy young Adriano Zumbo wouldn’t recognise the man he is today. The dessert king now sees himself as a bit like Willy Wonka.

A YOUNG Adriano Zumbo wouldn’t recognise the man he is today.

The painfully shy boy who spent weekends cowering behind the checkout of his parents’ IGA Supermarket in regional Coonamble, New South Wales, terrified of having to speak to customers, didn’t imagine much for himself.

He certainly would’ve baulked at the thought of media appearances, his own TV show, books, and a rapidly growing business empire … and especially of everyone knowing his name.

“It’s a bit different to how I once pictured things, that’s for sure,” the celebrated pastry chef laughed. “Little Adriano would be so shocked to see me now.”

These days, Zumbo is regarded as the country’s sweets supremo, famed for his weird and wonderful dessert creations, with seven stores in Sydney and Melbourne.

His star is on the rise, as host of Channel Seven’s new smash hit baking competition Zumbo’s Just Desserts, which launched this week to a whopping 1.53 million viewers nationally.

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Adriano Zumbo is famed for his weird and wonderful reality defying creations. Picture: Peter Wallis

The significance of Australia’s number one network taking a punt on someone with minimal hosting experience fronting its bold new format isn’t lost on him.

“Being on TV like this never really crossed my mind so it’s kind of surreal,” Zumbo said.

But such is his reputation as the next superstar of the food scene. Twenty-odd years ago he had a reputation of a different kind.

“I was a bit of a wild kid,” Zumbo, now 34, recalled.

“Living in a small country town, there wasn’t a whole lot to do so you find your own fun. I was always getting myself in trouble.

“Despite being quite a shy kid, I was in my element with my mates. I definitely wasn’t shy then. We had a lot of fun, running around town getting into mischief.”

A young Adriano Zumbo was painfully shy and planned on being a truck driver. Picture: Supplied

Adriano Zumbo as a child with his mum Nancy, who helped inspire his sweet tooth. Picture: Supplied

His childhood ‘crimes’ included lifting lollies from the family shop to sell to kids at school — an early sign of his business ingenuity and fondness for confectionary.

For all his precociousness, Zumbo admitted he wasn’t overly ambitious and figured he’d become a truck driver. He had no interest in sticking around to help run the family business.

“As I got older, my parents would make me work the checkout and I couldn’t cope with it,” Zumbo recalls. “If someone started talking to me, I didn’t know what to do. I’d run.”

Zumbo’s Just desserts team — Adriano Zumbo, Rachel Khoo and Gigi Falanga. Picture: Supplied

At just 16, he did run, out of school and all the way to Sydney where he landed a chef apprenticeship and dived into the world of all things pastry.

An appearance in the massive first season of MasterChef Australia in 2009, in which he showed off his reality defying creations, put him on the map.

Despite the fame and success that has followed, Zumbo admits he’s still quite shy.

“In unknown places, in big crowds, somewhere I don’t know anyone, yeah, I struggle. I still feel it for sure. I’m much more comfortable than I used to be. Now I quite like it. I’ve gotten used to it.”

Adriano Zumbo's tattoo of Willy Wonka. Picture: Supplied

It’s not uncommon for Zumbo to be compared to the storybook character Willy Wonka — a reclusive kitchen genius who hid away in his factory, coming up with all manner of fantastical creations.

Perhaps that’s why got his eccentric fictional hero tattooed on his arm nine years ago.

“He’s a creator, an inventor, and I’m inspired by that,” Zumbo said.

“That way I look at it, I want to push myself to create things people could’ve never imagined. It’s a good motto to have in the back of your head, I think.

“The world keeps changing, people change, the industry changes … I want to be at the front of that. The idea of Wonka, I like it … I aspire to (it).”

Adriano Zumbo at his birthday party as a child. Picture: Supplied

He’s inspiring a new generation of home bakers, through his work as well as his TV show, in which a group of amateur dessert-makers compete in a series of challenges to win a $100,000 prize.

British celebrity chef Rachel Khoo, who co-hosts with Zumbo, describes him as a “genius”.

“Working with Adriano was an absolute delight,” Khoo said.

“I’ve followed his career for many years. His work has international reputation … he’s a star. And he’s so generous with knowledge and passion for all things sweet.

“He’s so full of crazy ideas. It’s hard to keep up, to be honest. It’s mind-boggling.”

Zumbo’s Just Desserts airs Monday and Tuesday at 7.30pm on Channel Seven

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Originally published as From shy troublemaker to dessert king: how Adriano Zumbo overcame his demons to build an empire