Private Retreat Chef
I am available as a Retreat Chef, Private Nutrition Chef, and wholefoods-driven caterer, catering to events of all sizes. Explore my portfolio here, and feel free to reach out if you'd like to chat about how I can bring nourishing, delicious meals to your event.
As a Retreat Chef, I specialise in crafting culinary experiences that nourish your retreat guests from the inside out, allowing you to focus on running on the retreat itself.
With a gift for balancing nutrition with deliciousness, I craft every meal to showcase the power of wholefood ingredients, offering a diverse array of options all the way from welcome drinks to the final meal.
Sample Menu
Each retreat is unique. From intimate meditation retreats to large-scale yoga training courses, all menus are designed with one goal in mind: a flawless and stress-free execution of deliciously healthy meals throughout your retreat.
Explore the sample menu below or get in touch to create a bespoke menu.
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Antioxidant shots with cold-pressed beetroot, pineapple, ginger, lemon and orange
Homemade granola with coconut yoghurt, bananas and berry coulis
Scrambled eggs with thyme
Selection of sourdough, rye, multi-grain and gluten free bread
Avocado and tomato platter with sprouted micro-greens and toasted pumpkin seeds
Homemade hummus, basil pesto, cultured cashew-feta, extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper
Assorted seasonal fruit platter
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Green smoothies with banana, coconut yoghurt, spinach, kiwifruit, mint, chia seeds and spirulina
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Rustic roast pumpkin tart with filo pastry, parmesan, crispy thyme and caramelised onions
Garlic and herb roasted chickpeas
Creamy caesar salad with cos lettuce, shaved celery, coconut 'bacon' & sourdough croutons
Slow-roasted beetroot salad with candied walnuts, olive oil and micro-herbs
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Raw bounty bars dipped in dark ghana and cacao dust
Assorted seasonal fruit platter
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Butternut, turmeric, lentil and ginger soup, served with a coconut cream ripple
Portobello mushrooms with garlic confit, crispy rosemary and macadamia gremolata
Marinated tofu, grilled with capsicum and red onion, drizzled with chimichurri
Roast broccolini with caramelised lemon cheeks and flaked almonds
Quinoa salad with orange, goji berries, toasted almonds and fresh herbs
Garden salad with assorted greens, cucumber, tomato, olives, french vinaigrette
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Spiced pear, ginger and nutmeg cake, served with vanilla bean and brandy thickened cream
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Herbal tea and coffee station, rolling and replenished throughout the day
Retreat Feedback
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“Thank you so much for the awesome job you did at the retreat. We loved you, we loved your food and I really appreciated how willing you were to make everything work for my retreat.”
Yoga Within Retreat
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“They consistently deliver excellence in every aspect…. service is prompt, food consistently delicious, and the commitment to sustainability is unwavering. It's this reliability and dedication to quality that keep me coming back time and time again.”
Hot Yoga Works Retreats & Trainings
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“Thank you again for all your amazing work on our last retreat. We all really enjoyed the food, service and presentation.”
Your Time Yoga Wellness Retreat
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“Thank you so much for the food on Saturday it was delicious! I will definitely keep you in mind for future events.”
Melissa Vranjes Women’s Retreat
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“Thank you so much for providing us with such nourishing, tasty, sustainably provided food. It was beyond thoroughly enjoyed by everyone and we are so grateful to have found you guys for future events!”
Zenthai BodyWork Training
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Kula, Muriwai. Coming soon!
Sammy Flemming & Nook Studios Retreat
FAQs
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I’m based in the beautiful Byron Bay, and travel all around NZ and Australia (and beyond) to cater for retreats.
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The earlier the better really! As a general rule of thumb, retreats are booked in 6-12 months in advance.
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An accommodation allowance of $80 AUD per night is required for all retreats, and I will arrange my own accommodation with this. I find this to be the preferred option (rather than a room in the retreat accommodation) allowing you to fill all vacancies on retreat.
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Absolutely, the kitchen will be cleaned spotlessly between meals. You or your guests won’t need to lift a finger - I'll take care of all things catering related.
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All meals are served buffet style, allowing guests to help themselves to each of the different meal components.
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Chickpeas, lentils and other pulses are quite a common source of protein and fibre in my cooking. Their nutritional and environmental benefits are huge - I just love them as an ingredient.
To mitigate the gas and bloating caused by the complex carbohydrates which some people do experience, I only use dried pulses. I cook them for a long and slow 24 hours in the slow cooker which helps removes some of the phytic acid, making them more digestible. While they are cooking I add half a teaspoon of baking soda to the water to increase the PH of the water, in turn weakening the pectin bonds. Once cooked thoroughly, they are triple rinsed to remove any leftover phytic acid and pectins.
At the end of the day our stomachs are all different and things like this are bound to come up during retreats. I like to let everyone at the beginning of the retreat know that they can chat to me about any funky things that come up during the retreat so I can adapt and find them something else suitable - this may in relation to dried pulses or something else.
There will always be a variety of protein sources with the meals as well (e.g. tofu, tempeh, eggs, nuts and seeds).
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They can be but they don’t have to be - this is totally your call.
The sample menus provided are a combo of vegetarian and vegan dishes, but I’m more than happy to either:
a) make your whole retreat menu vegan
b) make your whole retreat menu vegetarian
c) incorporate some ethically sourced meat and/or seafood throughout your retreat menu
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Totally. Whether it’s salads, mains, sides, smoothies, desserts or something else, no two days will be the same!
The only exception being the Herbal Tea & Coffee Station which will be the same each day.