Hospitality Excursion to Poachers Pantry

On Wednesday 5 June, Year 11 Hospitality students visited Poachers Pantry to learn about the smoking process that is undertaken to produce the stunning cured meats that the restaurant offers.

Students were very lucky to hear from Executive Chef Adam Wilson who has a wealth of experience both locally and overseas, contributing to his success working in many hatted restaurants. It was great to hear Adam’s career journey as a positive and passionate advocate of the hospitality industry. Adam also shared how he makes decisions when curating menus and enticed students with discussions of various flavour combinations as well as the different needs of the clients that he put into consideration.

The students also learnt about the smoking and curing process and the technological developments that have allowed much of the smoking and curing process to be automated, which in turn allows for a greater quantity of final product. They enjoyed seeing hospitality from both a back and front of house perspective.

Poachers Pantry’s General Manager, Lauren Allen, spoke about her personal journey regarding the growth and development of the family business since its inception in 1991. Students learned about the restaurant’s history from being an establishment built to supply restaurants with smoked meats through to their renovation in 2016. Lauren also shared the impact COVID-19 had on the hospitality industry overall and how changes have been made as a result. She emphasised the importance of sustainability and the advantages of using fresh produce that was cultivated from the kitchen gardens on the grounds surrounding the restaurant.

Students were then treated to an array of beautiful and delicious food from the Poachers Pantry snack menu. The menu consisted of cured prosciutto, bush tomato and mountain pepper; kangaroo prosciutto, toasted cocoa nibs with wattle seed; smoked duck breast, pickled beetroot with shaved macadamia; smoked turkey, cranberry, tarragon mustard and garden sage, and salt and vinegar fries served with pecorino cheese.

We all agreed that Poachers Pantry has the best food in Canberra and it was well worth the visit. If you would like to know more about Poachers Pantry and what they have to offer, please check out their website.

Article supplied by Ms Nutt, Food Technology, Hospitality and Textiles Teacher