Three chef hats. Thirty-five years. One obsession.

Grant King grew up in Invercargill, New Zealand, in a house with a big garden and a mother who knew what to do with everything in it. That relationship with real produce, where it comes from, what it tastes like at its peak, how to honour it became the foundation of everything that followed.

From college in New Zealand to London kitchens to Greg Doyle's kitchen in Sydney, Grant spent years learning from the best, absorbing technique across cultures, building his understanding of what great food actually requires. At The Pier as Chef de Cuisine, he led the kitchen to three chef hats, an Australian Restaurant of the Year title, and a place on the San Pellegrino World's 50 Best list. He co-authored The Pier Cookbook.

In 2011 Grant opened Gastro Park, his first independent restaurant, described by critics as a playground of gastronomy and by some as Sydney's answer to Heston Blumenthal, though Grant's instinct was always more natural, more produce-driven, more honest than molecular. Gastro Park earned two chef hats, two Gourmet Traveller stars, and Gault and Millau's Chef of the Year with a score of 18 out of 20.

Today, Grant runs Grant King Chef and Smile Catering from Sydney. He still selects the produce himself. He still trains the team personally. He still gets excited about what is at the market on Tuesday morning.