With a surname such as his, it is hardly surprising that Travis Dines has worked his way up to the top of the MCG food chain.
After 20 years experience with the club’s hospitality partner, EPICURE, Travis was recently promoted to the director of culinary operations role at the MCG, following the departure of long-time head chef Peter Haycroft.
A quick scan of his resume suggests that Travis’ extensive experience in managing first-class food experiences at events both small and scaled makes him a more than worthy choice for the high-profile role at the ‘G.
Travis’ has traversed Australia and overseen the food experience at both Melbourne and Sydney town halls, Sydney Maritime Museum, Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium and the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide.
He then moved back to Melbourne, where he has held the role of executive chef at the MCG for the past two years.
“My first job was as an apprentice at the Victorian Arts Centre, delivering high quality food at a reasonable scale,” recalls Travis. “I thought it was so exciting and glamorous, and that passion and feeling has never waned.”
Travis has had precious little time to ponder the significance of his appointment. He commenced just in time for grand final week, managing a kitchen team of more than 400 people and delivering restaurant-quality dishes for 30,000 people within 116 corporate suites and six dining rooms at the MCG’s marquee sporting event.
After the final siren sounded, Travis switched his focus to the Spring Racing Carnival at Flemington. It’s a period that excites him, as he explores new dishes that often eventually find their way onto MCG menus.
We work with some of Australia’s most notable restaurant chefs, who are frequently in awe of what Travis and his team can do,” said David Mercer, EPICURE’s Victorian State Manager for Leisure, Sports & Entertainment, in announcing Travis’ appointment.
“His expertise is in creating a restaurant-quality dish and then delivering it to thousands of people, without compromising any element of it.”
We looking forward to sampling some of Travis’ finest fare in the Members Reserve dining rooms over summer, and we thank Peter Haycroft for a fine term in charge of our food offering.
