CATERING FROM BILLE & BRIE AT THE 2025 HOSPITALITY TASMANIA AWARDS. PIC: RICHARD JUPE
really settled,” Sharon admits. “So when I did this, I felt like that was the right thing to do.” That “this” became Bille & Brie — a catering business built not on grand ambition, but on opportunity and instinct. Early jobs came through word of mouth, including a store opening that proved a turning point. “People had asked me to do a few jobs here and there, and I had done some weddings previously so felt I could do that. And it was actually Kate Sice from Botanical, she asked me to do an opening for her next store. I was on a big break so said sure and everyone went crazy for it so I thought I could do it for myself,” she says. From there, the business grew organically, centred around grazing tables, weddings and events. Unlike the regimented structure of restaurant kitchens, catering offered Sharon something she hadn’t quite found before – control. “I’ve done all that, I’ve done the stressful restaurants,” she says. “You do your sort of time in those jobs but they can be pretty taxing.” Now, she operates from a setup that reflects that shift
in lifestyle and mindset, a purpose-built market van positioned at home, allowing her to move seamlessly between preparation and service. “Now I’ve got set up at home after trying to share spaces with people, that can be pretty hard. I just walk out my back door, put it on a big slab… and away I can go.” It’s a model that suits not only the work, but the way Sharon wants to run her business. She has a steady flow of work without feeling the hectic nature of years past. That restraint is deliberate. While growth is inevitable to a degree, particularly with new concepts entering the mix, Sharon remains focused on maintaining quality and creative control. Creativity, in fact, sits at the core of everything she does. Away from the kitchen, she draws and paints – an outlet that directly informs her approach to food presentation. “I’m a visual person,” she says. “So I can look at something, and I’ll look and see that it meets the highs, the lows, the flowers, you know, to give it that pop. “I’m a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to things like that.” It’s that attention to detail that has become a hallmark of Bille & Brie, particularly
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Tasmanian Hospitality Review April/May Edition
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