MOVEABLE FEASTS
In 2016 at the young age of 22, Charlie Carrington opened Atlas Dining. The restaurant was awarded Melbourne’s Best New Restaurant and one chef’s hat in The Age Good Food Guide , which made Carrington one of the youngest chefs and owners in Australia to be given that honour. A recent guest chef of the VRC at the Long Lunch in March, Carrington’s cooking philosophy embraces the diversity of the world and all of its wonders.
BY CELIA PURDEY
C harlie Carrington is excited by kitchen through food. Beginning his career aged 16 at the esteemed Vue de Monde, he has travelled the world extensively and worked in some of Australia’s best kitchens. He combined these experiences to open his own restaurant, Atlas Dining, in 2016 and has maintained the one chef hat status ever since, six years in a row. exploring and travelling, whether by plane around the world or in the Unique in that it changes its style of cuisine every few months, Atlas Dining is devoted to being a scholar of food from around the globe and the cultures and traditions that surround them. While each menu is Carrington’s and his team’s own interpretation, traditional ingredients and cooking techniques remain prominent and celebrated. Having featured sixteen cuisines so far (and counting), dining at Atlas is an unforgettable experience, as visitors are able to sample dishes that they may have never come across. For this winter season, Carrington has chosen to feature food from Spain. “There
will be lots of winter vegetables, especially the root ones, like celeriac and turnips.” Describing it as a warming menu to counteract the sometimes gloomy side of a cold, Melbourne winter, meats such as Wagyu and braised venison and steak will also feature, as will the culinary signature of Spain – tapas. “Travelling through Spain I always loved the snacky and delicious tapas, so we’ll have that on the menu. There’ll also be a hot seafood dish featuring multiple kinds of seafood, and the Spanish staple of beans and rice.” To top it all off is a delectable dessert, a Basque-inspired cheesecake, a particularly favourite dish of Carrington’s. While all the dishes at Atlas Dining are prepared using local produce wherever possible, there are some imported ingredients in order to stay true to the chosen region’s authenticity. “We might use Spanish anchovies, for example, but our meat, vegetables, dry goods and other things like olive oil are sourced as close to home as possible. I think that we have some of the best quality food here in Australia,” said Carrington.
Chef Charlie Carrington has been cooking up a storm since he was a teenager. (Atlas Weekly)
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INSIDE HEADQUARTERS ISSUE 2 2023
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