Bacchus Restaurant has announced Hayden Summers as Pastry Chef de Partie, working alongside Head Chef Massimo Speroni.
The appointment is an internal promotion and testament to the career pathways being celebrated within Bacchus under the culinary hand of Chef Speroni. Already a standout at creating gallery-worthy desserts, Summers is eight years into his career, and joined Rydges South Bank as Commis Chef in Banquets Pastry in July 2017. From here he was noticed by Chef Speroni.
Brisbane born and raised, Summers was always destined for a career in hospitality, starting where many teenagers seek their first job, at his local McDonalds. In high school he had the opportunity to pursue a vocational program centred on cooking with a school-based apprenticeship at former steak bistro Three Bistro in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley. Here, Summers learnt under the baton of Bruce McKenna.
What was a two-year pastry chef apprenticeship at Spoon Café and Wholesale. In 2015 Summers landed at Brisbane’s former signature sweet and dessert café Chester Street Bakery, where he worked his way from Pastry Chef to Head Pastry Chef. It was a formative time in Brisbane’s dessert appreciation history.
As his creative flair and depth of knowledge in the art of patisserie grew so did his interest in expanding his horizons – it was then that he joined Rydges South Bank. “I arrived at Rydges Hotel South Bank in 2017 just after the $30 million renovation and redesign. It has a sense of warmth with a hint of luxury and I was hired on as a Commis Chef in Banquets Pastry, before being promoted to Demi Chef at Bacchus. An opportunity presented itself late last year for the prestigious title of Pastry Chef de Partie and I jumped at it,” said Summers. “I am incredibly honoured and excited to continue to work under Chef Speroni’s culinary direction.”
Bacchus has recently announced the first seasonal degustation for 2019, The Crudo. Running from 7 February to 9 March, The Crudo follows in the delicious footsteps of the highly successful 2018 Seasonal Degustation Program which paid tribute to the Queensland Coast, Easter (Egg), Beef, Truffle and the sold-out Valentino Marcattilii experience.
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