Janine Richmond

Merricks General Store

Born and bred in New Zealand, Janine established a strong passion for food due to the influence of her self-taught mother who ran her own restaurants. After moving to Australia, Janine worked with Cath Kalka & Greg Malouf at O'Connells, and Kurt Sampson and Robin Sutcliffe at Owensville. Her interest in Middle Eastern food was greatly enhanced during travels through Morocco, Turkey and Spain, and is evident in her current cooking style.

After working as Sous Chef to Peter McLeod at the Flinders Hotel, she became head chef in their new dining room, which was awarded a chefs hat in the Age Good Food Guide 2007. At the Dining Room at the Flinders Janine taught two upcoming female apprentices, and she hopes that her passion for good food and cooking will continue to encourage other women to take up the profession.

In 2008, Janine moved to Merricks General Store.

---