Behind the Apron: Brendan Fong, Tabasco’s Hot List Grand Winner

Oct 20, 2023

Talented Executive Chef at Restaurant Hubert, Brendan Fong has carved an impressive culinary journey, boasting a wide spectrum of industry experience, from casual dining to Michelin-star level cuisine. 

Fong's culinary accolades include being the grand final winner of the 'Tabasco Hot List,' which made its debut at Fine Foods Sydney with Tabasco's Ambassador Chef Morgan at the helm. Over the course of his career, Fong has had the privilege of working alongside acclaimed chefs such as Dan Hong and the late Jeremy Strode. His technique-driven cooking style is driven by a unique blend of influences from his upbringing as an Aussie boy from Queensland in a Chinese-Fijian household. Brendan was surrounded by the culture and flavours of home cooking and has seamlessly woven his heritage into his career; a path fueled by his passion for the culinary arts.

He’s been described as having an unrestricted approach in the kitchen and is an expert in blending cuisines to create memorable and mind-blowing dishes. We couldn’t agree more wholeheartedly with this; it’s no wonder he was crowned champion!

Barcats: Can you give us a quick highlight reel of your career to-date?

Brendan: Yeah, sure… Ok so this is going back a few years now (laughs) I started off with an apprenticeship like most chefs did of my generation, that was pretty standard, it's not like it is today, where there are so many options for young chefs. I started because I was either going to go to uni and study or do cooking but my parents never wanted me to be a chef. Because they were chefs and they didn't really do too well, in terms of like, success wise and money wise and stuff like that, and so they wanted me to study like everybody else. 

Barcats: Of course, you should have been a doctor. An engineer or a lawyer - right!?

Brendan: Asian thing you know, <laughs> so, yes, to be honest they were trying to stop me (initially) to be a chef, but I always wanted to cook and in the end, I think I wore them down, as they just gave up on pushing me into the university path. Look, I was okay at school, but I wasn't that great at it either. But, at the end of the day, deep down I knew that it just wasn't the path I wanted to take. So, yeah, That's when I did my apprenticeship and then just worked my way up that ladder. 

Barcats: Did your career keep you in Australia or did you go overseas?

Brendan: Not really like we were always encouraged to go out and explore the world. In terms of career opportunities, especially when I went to London. I originally intended to go over to the UK with the idea of opening a venue of my own with somebody. And then I helped open venues over there and then essentially came back. 

Barcats: So was that the ‘Brunch club’ pop-up?

Brendan: Yeah, we took over the kitchen for a one off brunch-time extravaganza with John Javier.  I brought my take on Cantonese and regional Chinese food for those diners in London.

Barcats: As a Head Chef for 3 years at a two hat Cantonese restaurant like Mr. Wong. Did you draw on these experiences in your career?  

Brendan: I definitely channelled my experience at Mr. Wongs, that role taught me a lot about how to read people and how to manage different ways, I ran a pretty tight ship and a fairly sizable team. And yes, moving over to the UK to run those pop-ups I learnt more about the business side of it, for sure. Your job was like taking someone's idea of what they have in their head and what they envisage their dream restaurant to be like - you then have to translate and bring that to life, because it's quite a difficult task. Not to mention the challenge of keeping every dish consistent when leading 45 chefs to serve 700-800 customers coming in daily.

Barcats: Apart from your culinary experience, it’s a completely different yet remarkable skillset to turn a concept into a commercially viable venue. 

Brendan: Yeah, making it commercially viable so that you know it can survive and make money. Compromising on certain key decisions because restaurateurs always want the best out of everywhere and then put them in one building. They assume it'll work when in fact, it doesn't. It's also about making something unique. You know you’re not copying someone else or, you know, just taking the best things from all different restaurants and combining it. You have to give it its own identity. 

Barcats: So is it still your ambition to have your own place?

Brendan: I've often thought about this. You know, working for a group is great because it gives you the flexibility and the ability to see different things in terms of different venues that they open. Yes,the end goal for myself would be to have my own. I haven't made a decision, Honestly, I could do whatever and go back and forth about it, You know? 

Barcats: Are you looking forward to collaborating with Morgan?

Brendan: Yes, it’s such a highlight working alongside such a legendary chef, this will definitely help my own personal brand and the exposure of working with the team at Tabasco, networking with culinary greats in the US is very exciting. I’m looking forward to spending some time creating and documenting the dishes I create on that trip - maybe it will help boost my own instagram profile. I mean, Tabasco is a very well known brand. and it's not only a brand that's used commonly in Australia. It's used everywhere. Yeah, especially in the United States. Essentially, if you can make it in the US you know, it kind of makes the world’s your oyster isn’t it?

Barcats: What advice would you offer to aspiring chefs and apprentices based on your own journey, and are there any key things you would suggest they do differently or keep the same?

Brendan: You know what? Just listen to what your head chef tells you. Take on the advice that they tell you. Travel. And remind yourself that you’re stuck in one place forever. Oh and don't be lazy! Look, the hardest years are when you first start. It also gets harder as you get more experience, but like,you kind of set your attitude in the beginning. Defining your outlook and mindset for your career.

Barcats: Would you suggest going into smaller places or it's better to go into restaurants that become big, like really big teams. 

Brendan: I started in, like a large-scaled restaurant, It was the old Jordan Seafood. That’s where I started my apprenticeship. You know, in some way, I think it helps because straight off the bat all I saw was like it was really busy. There was so much prep like it was bulk prep all the time. And when I moved to small venues that actually helped because I knew that I would get those jobs done fast, although the attention to detail was way higher. Which is something you have to learn when you make that switch. But that's the thing you can learn. You know, that's the thing they teach you. You know the way you do things and how organised you are.

Barcats: Now going back to the competition final. Did you feel that because you've had a lot more experience that it helped in terms of dealing with the competition  pressure.
Brendan: Not really.  just because I had the experience doesn't mean I can’t lose. It may be an advantage in terms of thinking fast. Yeah, I love solving problems, but in terms of creativity, these young kids live and breathe industry every day, because they're doing the hard yards. As much as it did help with me being calm and having a workflow, they’d run circles around me in creativity!

Barcats: Did you have previous menus that you had to submit the ideas 

Brendan: Yeah. So the first part of the comp was you had to submit an idea and that was Australia-wide. But we didn't really know if we had to actually have to cook that dish. If I had to cook that dish I wouldn’t have made it because it's like a four hour dish. And then once you got chosen, you got narrowed down to the top eight. And then we had to cook a surprise dish on the day. So we were told the night before. We have no one had any idea of what the dish is going to be. So this was shrimp and grits. Okay, so the idea was you can change it, but you have to make it similar to where the dish originates from. So I wanted to do something simple but that represents the South and where I'm from. So then that got judged and we were narrowed down more. And then it was like the next day we had dinner. It was basically cooking whatever you wanted. Provided what was in the pantry. I think the hardest part was trying to incorporate Tabasco. Because a lot of people just used Tabasco as seasoning, right? Like they just put it on their oysters or chicken wings but how can you make it part of this dish?

Barcats: So, do you think during this time of winning this comp you would try to create a signature dish with Tabasco that can be part of your repertoire as a chef. 

Brendan: I would love to do that. I have been thinking about how we can incorporate it here. Besides putting the mini bottles on the oysters and how we can incorporate the menu. We have been using it but not as much as we should like just yet.  

Barcats: Will you try and create a signature Tabasco dish at Hubert?

Brendan: Yeah, definitely. I think I’d love to be known for that!

Barcats: What things have you taken from this experience, what do you look forward to championing as the new Hotlist Ambassador

Brendan: It's all about encouraging the new generation of chefs - There's no excuse why you can't put yourself out there and enter the next competition. I want to bring as much awareness to those young apprentices and people who want to join this awesome community. It's not just slaving away in the kitchen being yelled at. You can do fun things and fun tricks You can learn by doing competitions. It's also wanting to try and bring people into this industry because it's not how it used to be. The industry is changing for the better. It's catching up to all the other industries in terms of taking care of its workers like how they deserve to be treated.

Brendan's culinary adventure with Tabasco promises an unforgettable journey across the United States. It kicks off with a luxurious business class flight from Sydney to California, followed by a delectable exploration of Cajun cuisine in New Orleans. The apex of this experience takes place on Avery Island, Tabasco's birthplace, where Brendan will partake in a private tour of the Tabasco headquarters, delving into the hot sauce ageing process and indulging in extensive tastings.

What adds to the excitement is Morgan's connection with Mason Hereford, the creative force behind Turkey and the Wolf, celebrated as the best new American restaurant by Bon Appétit and featured among 'The Most Important Restaurants of the Decade' by Food and Wine. Brendan will have the unique opportunity to stage a pop-up takeover at this renowned establishment with Morgan, exploring the fusion of flavours and culinary innovation that defines American cuisine. He then heads across to Nashville, Tennessee and then rounding off the trip in Austin, Texas with another pop up at Underdog by Partners Claudia Lee & Richard Hargreave’s, a Korean focused food menu as an homage to Claudia’s heritage; a match made in heaven for Brendan whose culinary approach centres around Chinese and South East Asian flavours. 

We're eagerly awaiting the unfolding of Brendan's epic journey, and you can rest assured that we'll be following every step of his American food adventure, generously sponsored by Tabasco. Join us in savouring the flavours, traditions, and innovations that await on this delectable road trip through the United States. Bon appétit!