Mister Jennings Creative Sessions

I’ve got a lot of respect for Melbourne chef Ryan Flaherty – he’s a contributor to my first cookbook, In the Mix: Great Thermomix Recipes (those cauliflower sausages are so delicate and delicious). We’ve co-hosted a cooking class together. I love eating his food in restaurants, especially now that he’s opened his own place, Mister Jennings. (See my review here.) He was also a Chef of the Year finalist for The Age Good Food Guide 2016.  

All of the above goes some way to explaining why I leapt at the chance to co-host Ryan’s first Creative Sessions. This two-part event comprised two nights, four weeks apart. On the first night, Ryan collaborated with diners (keen foodies, chefs, restaurant lovers) to design a five-course spring menu. Along the way he shared insights into his creative process and helped participants unlock their own culinary creativity. For example, one exercise required everyone in the room to take a different piece of cutlery and design a dish that would be perfect for it. Ryan is a massive cutlery geek so there was plenty to choose from. Fun! (Oh, and we ate homemade pizza – no cutlery required for that.)

Four weeks later, on the second night, Ryan cooked the menu for the same guests. Some of the participants became kitchen hands, washing lettuce and herbs for the meal ahead. As he served the dishes, Ryan shared more insights into the dish development process, giving us all lots of tips to take forward into our own cooking. (My fave: fill a pepper grinder with a special spice mix tailored for different dishes.) The buzz went both ways: Ryan plans to adapt some of the dishes for Mister Jennings’ new menu. 

Diners also brought canapés and petit fours to share. It was an awesome concept, nicely realised and he’s planning to do it again. Sign up to the Mister Jennings mailing list to hear about the next one.

Special thanks to chef Mathew Macartney who helped Ryan in the kitchen (that’s him in the pic at bottom left).