Job: Private chef

Where: Magic Mouthfuls Catering and Events

My job in a nutshell: I cater for boutique events and lifestyle retreats. I might do weddings for up to 40 people, or private dinners. Most of them are held in the houses out and around Port Douglas, where I live. They are unique, private settings. I'm also the chef for boutique retreats held at a venue called Cassowary; it's in the rainforest outside Port Douglas, they run lifestyle retreats or corporate teambuilding weeks with meals and cooking demonstrations.

How did you start out? I joined the hospitality industry when I was at school in New Zealand; I was 16 and working as a waiter. I used to think what the chefs were doing looked exciting. I've now been in the industry 24 years, most of it as a chef. I spent a few years in the UK, worked in Sydney for a long time and then made a lifestyle switch up north.

A great day is: Being able to work in this environment where you can look out at the view.

A challenging day is: Obviously there are constraints to what you can get up here. The opportunity to work with the local producers is great, but you can put a menu together and then need to work with the reality of supply and demand. You're also working with the tropical weather, which can be changeable.

I'll never forget: When I was on a private charter cooking for BMW when New Zealand won the America's Cup. We all stopped cooking and started drinking champagne up on deck.

Most people don't know: Reality television has turned being a chef into a superstar environment. Half of the chefs working in the industry don't get half as far as the people spending three months on television: I think that upsets a lot chefs.