Matty Perry

Born: 

Melbourne, Australia. 

History: 

I started my apprenticeship at Kirks on the Esplanade on the Mornington Peninsula. 

I worked under Executive Chef Jeremy Hansen and his wife, Sous Chef Skye Hansen, both were amazing teachers and incredibly supportive of my schooling and my dream to be an Executive Chef. 

I did my schooling at William Angliss Institute under Executive Chef Ehrenfried Barth, where I represented the school twice in AUSTAFE competitions achieving a bronze medal at regionals and at state finals. 

After my apprenticeship, a very good friend of mine offered me a position at South of The Wall; where I am still cooking and having an absolute ball slinging tacos and love with a brilliant team of Chefs (Liam, Rajeeb, Nabin and Milan), who are an absolute pleasure to create modern Mexican with. 

Have you always wanted to be a Chef? 

Food has always equalled happiness for me, I’ve always loved eating and sharing food with friends and loved ones. 

The love and importance of food and feeding people was passed down from my Great Aunty, her daughter and both my Mum and Dad. The idea of feeding people and creating experiences for people for a living sounded amazing, so the idea of being a Chef always sounded perfect. 

How would you define your style? 

My style would be street food with love. Soul food done with a modern flair. 

What is your feature flavour these days? 

Modern Mexican. 

Obsessive-compulsive about? 

Sharp knives and constantly evolving as a Chef. 

Your greatest culinary influence: 

Matty Matheson, Mason Hereford (Turkey and the Wolf, New Orleans), Simon Kony (Short Order Burger Co and my cousin,) Mum and Dad. 

What do you love about this business? 

I love that food talks, a lot of people in this industry have a lot to say, it’s great that the food scene is constantly evolving. We are all challenging each other to be better Chefs and provide better eating experiences.

An ingredient you can’t live without? 

A tad boring, but butter. Can’t beat it. 

Most ‘eyebrow-raising’ menu item? 

Tacos de Canasta (Basket Tacos): A traditional Mexican dish where they fill up their basket with hundreds of tacos and ride their pushbike around town selling 50c tacos, with housemade salsas. We did a restaurant version, which is my favourite. 

Signature dish: