Interview with Executive Chef Telina Menzies

Are you ready to manage 700 chefs? That’s the responsibility of Telina Menzies, Executive Head Chef for the Australian Venue Company (AVC), with a portfolio of over 50 unique venues across Victoria, WA and regional NSW. That’s a little different to the small kitchen teams in most venues, but there are a lot of lessons she’s learned along the way that can guide restaurant, cafe and hotel owners, no matter how many in your crew.

At the Foodie Coaches Member Retreat in Melbourne (October 2023), Telina was interviewed by our founder Tim Kummerfeld, and there were also questions from the 160 Foodie Coaches members in the audience. She shared frankly and openly about the complexities of running a large-scale culinary operation, the personal and professional growth of leaders, and the changing nature of the industry.

Telena’s approach to management issues involves a three-pillar strategy focusing on People, Product, and Business. These guide her decision-making process:

1. People: Assessing how decisions affect the team and the overall culture in the kitchen. Understanding individual motivations and creating an environment that leads to personal and professional growth.

2. Product: Considering the impact on the quality and integrity of the food or services provided. Ensuring that choices do not compromise the standard of the product offered to customers.

3. Business: Evaluating how decisions impact the business, including financial implications and matching with business goals and values.

This way, human resources, product quality, and business objectives are all considered essential for sustainable operations and growth in the hospitality industry.

Other issues and themes discussed…

Leadership and Management: The importance of effective leadership in managing a large team of chefs and venues. Mentoring and supporting team members is crucial for their development and success.

Training and Development: The vital role of continuous learning through internal training and personal development is to develop managerial roles and improve leadership skills. Telina has become increasingly aware of this as she has grown in the industry. Sometimes, we must insist that people follow through on training commitments, even if it doesn’t seem exciting.

‘Listening to Telina, I realised there’s no magic bullet – even someone managing a team of 700 has many of the same struggles as small business owners. So it’s important to get over the idea that you can do it all yourself. Start understanding what motivates your team and bring together people with strengths that complement yours. Then you can start growing and focus on what you should spend time on.’

James Griffin, Foodie Coaches Senior Coach

Work-Life Balance: Telina raised the challenges of maintaining a healthy work-life balance within the hospitality industry and her personal experience with this. For young chefs, the late nights and long hours can be intoxicating and fun, with a corresponding downside for others who don’t want to ‘play the game’. This has led to an important role for her in mental health advocacy, especially within the stressful environment of professional kitchens. We need personal strategies to deal with it and workplace structures that prevent problems from arising.

It was inspiring to hear her speak honestly about her personal journey in this area, from being a part of the problem in kitchen culture to becoming a mentor and positive influence in the industry.

Changing the Culture: At AVC, the focus is now on understanding individual motivations and creating a supportive work culture that encourages retention and productivity. This also means improving management styles and being open to new ideas and feedback to improve operations and how teams work together. More accountability in leadership roles allows team members to make decisions and learn from mistakes, positively impacting business operations.

It was epic to hear someone so real who admits they weren’t born as a leader and now shows that anyone can become a great leader.

One of my biggest takeaways was to ‘eat the frog’ and have those difficult conversations with your chef. Don’t delay these (unless you have a lot of emotion around something that’s happened); it will usually go better than expected.

Another insight: the head chef role doesn’t have to be just one head chef; it could be a combination of chefs (or administrative people) working together toward the same goal of effective kitchen management. Sometimes, we think we need a super-chef who can do all the recipes, ordering, costing, team leadership and brilliant cooking when some of the most productive kitchens with the lowest food costs don’t have a head chef but a combination of people working together.

Tim Niesler, Foodie Coaches Accounting

Facing Industry Challenges: Like most operators, Telina and her crew faced massive challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in Victoria with its lengthy lockdowns. She’s proud of the ‘meals for mates’ program that AVC ran during this time, providing free meals for hospitality workers on temporary visas who could not get government financial support.

Now, the challenges are different, particularly recruitment and staff retention – and the importance of attracting the next generation into the culinary field. There was a strong feeling from those in the room that AVC, led by Telina, will be well placed to be a powerful ‘employer of choice’ as the industry grows and develops.

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More about Telina Menzies…

Coming from a family of chefs, Telina took on an apprenticeship at the Hyatt Regency Perth as an ambitious 17-year-old before joining the team at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre in 2005. In 2008, Telina headed to the UK to further develop skills and expertise at a number of London’s culinary institutions. Telina headed up a team of 30+ as Head Function Chef and duties included preparing food for the Royal Family and Richard Branson and catering for major events at Tower Hill, London Bridge and the Chelsea Flower Show.

Telina returned home to Perth to join The Publican Group Australia in WA before taking their ‘cheeky and fun’ approach to food to a few well-known WA venues. After being appointed as Executive Chef for The Publican Group – Western Australia, Telina was honoured with the Australian Hotels Association’s (AHA) Cookery Service Employee of the Year Award in 2013. In 2014, Telina relocated to Melbourne and was appointed Executive Chef for The Publican Group Australia, overseeing its portfolio of 14 businesses across Melbourne and Western Australia. Telina now manages a portfolio of over 50 unique venues across VIC, WA and regional NSW for the Australian Venue Company.

Check the other useful blog posts on the Foodie Coaches website…

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