With customers spanning every corner of the globe, from familiar local pubs to famed fine dining restaurants, there’s one thing brings us all together: great JBS Aussie Beef! Here, we speak to our customers across different markets about what motivates them, what they love about beef and what they see for the future.
Javier Codina – Chef & Owner, Moda – March 24
From completing his apprenticeship in Barcelona in 1989 to moving to Hayman Island, Australia 10 years later, Javier Codina’s culinary career is as rich as the dishes he creates. Currently serving up authentic Spanish flavours at Brisbane’s Moda Restaurant, Javier’s approach has always been about uniting community through culinary excellence. We sat down with the maestro behind Moda’s menu to discuss his culinary journey, lessons learnt, and his approach to choosing the best beef.
Dan Johnston – Chef & Catering Manager, JBS Australia – February 24
As JBS Australia’s Corporate Chef, Dan Johnston lives and breathes beef. Each day he passionately works with beef from the ground up – meticulously sourcing, selecting and serving the finest Aussie cuts to customers. Always putting quality first, Dan takes a thoughtful approach that ensures consistency is always achieved across the board, delighting his customers with premium produce that you just can’t beat.
With his craft expertly refined, we sat down with Dan to talk about his journey in the beef industry and why, for him, Australian produce will always take top shelf.
Richard Ptacnik – Head Chef, OTTO Sydney – January 24
From a sponsorship to Head Chef, Richard Ptacnik has been working his culinary magic at one of Sydney’s most famous locations, OTTO Sydney, for almost 20 years – delighting guests with a modern Italian menu that is fresh and ever evolving but with its roots firmly planted in the classics. Driven to deliver longevity, consistency and reliability, he keeps flavour at the forefront and constantly adapts his menus to bring something fresh to the table.
Gustavo Morandi – Executive Chef, Cafe Del Mar – December 23
Brazilian-born Gustavo Morandi, raised on a family cattle farm, brings heritage and culinary finesse to Sydney’s Cafe del Mar. As the newest head chef, he focuses on selecting premium beef and fresh produce to create dishes that exude simplicity, confidence and, above all, flavour, reflecting not just a commitment to excellence but a profound respect for the craft.
Corrine Ryan – Director of Operations – October 23
Corrine Ryan is known as one of the best food brokers in the world. Her job is to find producers and build relationships between them and restaurants to ensure that the best produce reaches the plate. The beef she sourced needs to be of superior quality and exclusive for the three venues she runs in Florida.
Carlos Nakajima – Master Churrasqueiro, Barbacoa – September 23
Carlos Nakajima has always put the animal first. From a very early age, he understood how the relationship between the way the animal was raised played out on the plate. By his early 20s, he was in the kitchen, dreaming of opening a “churrasco” restaurant. Churrasco is a way of cooking meat that goes back to the indigenous Brazilian peoples’ way of paying respect to the cattle they raised. Meat would be cooked over fire and shared by communities, a barbecue in the true sense of the word.
Trent Robson – Executive Chef, MooMoo – August 23
As far as steakhouses go, MooMoo has been a Brisbane institution for more than a decade. And as the man who’s been a fixture behind the grill for almost as long as the restaurant has been around, Executive Chef Trent Robson knows a thing or two about great steak. Here, Trent shares his experiences with beef around the world from both sides of the counter, and what he thinks sets Australian beef apart.
Jake Nicolson – Executive Chef, Ghanem Group – July 23
As executive chef for Brisbane-based Ghanem Group, which owns and operates 9 premium Australian venues, Jake Nicolson knows a thing or two about ensuring food is more than just, well… food. We recently spoke to Jake about what he brings to the table in Australia’s evolving culinary scene.