Bendigo is definitely reinventing itself; food is the new gold and locals and visitors alike are flocking to the former goldfields to enjoy the gourmet treats on offer.
Housed in a century-old brick building, BendiGo Wholefoods is at the forefront of the Bendigo region’s food revolution. This quirky community food store that strives for old fashioned customer service is a cafe, a greengrocer, a delicatessen and a provedore. It is overflowing with great products and even more great ideas.
Darren Murphy has run BendiGo Wholefoods since 2007. Together with Head Chef Gemma and Cafe Manager Tim, the team developed a menu that brings to life seasonal produce gathered from local suppliers. By combining a love for food, organics and people, Darren and the team have created a place where people can learn and enjoy the wonders of the wholefoods lifestyle. Meals can be consumed on site in the café, purchased in pre-packaged portions or whipped up from home by purchasing the necessary ingredients in the attached greengrocer.
“When the opportunity arose to take over the café, I went to Melbourne and walked the streets, taking in lots of different things and seeing what was out there,” Darren explains. “I caught up with Matt Wilkinson and his team at Jack Horner and they use the cook chill system utilising RATIONAL and FRIMA [now known as the RATIONAL VarioCookingCenter®]. It was something that was working for them so I took it from there.”
With the help of Marcus Watson from Caterworx and RATIONAL Technical Sales Manager David Elsum, the new kitchen was installed and the Darren hasn’t looked back since.
“We had to rethink the structure and processors to allow us to serve food quickly. The system we use with RATIONAL, FRIMA [RATIONAL VarioCookingCenter®] and Tecnomac provides us with quick service solution perfect for our café setup.”
Check out Darren’s incredible kitchen at BendiGo Wholefoods below.
There’s no doubt that the food culture in regional Australia is flourishing and with passionate professionals like Darren, customers at BendiGo Wholefoods are definitely spoilt for choice.
For more information on RATIONAL’s VarioCookingCenter® fill in the form on the page. Contact us for all types of commercial kitchen equipment.
