For most of his career, acclaimed Kiwi chef Peter Gordon has been on a mission to promote Aotearoa’s produce on the world stage. But after watching our local food industry crumble under the strain of Covid, Peter has returned to help remind Kiwis of the delicious kai in our own backyards.
“I thought about what I wanted to do now I’m home and I knew it had to be something to help the country,” he asserts.
After 31 years of living in London, Peter, who started the popular Sugar Club restaurants, decided at the end of 2019 it was time to come home to be closer to his family.
When the pandemic spread around the world, he rushed back to our shores, arriving two days before the borders closed in March 2020. Peter and his partner Alastair Carruthers, who was recently appointed the Chair of the NZ Film Commission, spent their first weeks here glued to the news, watching as the local food and hospitality industry became crippled.
They knew they wanted to help rebuild, so the idea of Homeland was born. Based in Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter, it’s a restaurant and community hub that hosts cooking classes, and a retail space to bring the best produce from around the country to customers.
“I said I didn’t ever want to do another restaurant because they’re just too hard – and we’ve ended up setting up the largest restaurant I’ve ever had,” Peter laughs. “Our aim with Homeland is that within two years, we won’t use any ingredient that’s not from Aotearoa or the Pacific. It’s about helping our whānau, the team of five million.”
Hospitality begins at home: Holding a community day at his restaurant.
While Peter is the foodie, Alastair, 57, is the business mind. And though they’ve worked on the odd project together, this is the first time in their 16-year relationship they have gone into business together.
“We work very well together, there are no clashes,” shares the 59-year-old. “We both know what the other is best at, which is good. Al is fantastic at names, numbers and all that sort of stuff, but he is a really good cook as well.”
To add to his already busy workload, at the start of this year, Peter accepted the offer to be one of the new judges on The Great Kiwi Bake Off, alongside Jordan “The Caker” Rondel.
While he’s no stranger to television, Peter admits he struggled with the guilt of sending passionate young baker’s home. So, when he returned for The Great Kiwi Bake Off Celebrity Christmas Special, which sees six famous Kiwis facing off in the kitchen for their chosen charities, Peter was delighted he finally got his wish of not having to eliminate anyone.
Enjoying a cuppa with fellow Bake Off judge Jordan.
“They all took it really seriously, which was kind of cute,” tells Peter. “But it was easier judging because this wasn’t their life-changing experience. I love to see people taking cooking seriously, whether it’s a scone, a muffin or a slice. I think it’s really important.”
Peter’s first experiences in the kitchen were with his grandmother Molly. After Peter’s parents separated when he was four, he moved in with his gran for a time and spent most days by her side, helping as she prepared food.
“She believed that children should be working,” he recalls with a smile. “So, I was always in the kitchen with her.”
Those hours spent helping Molly prepare various sweet treats and snacks are where his passion for food grew, long before he ever knew a career as a chef was possible.
Whisking up a treat.
In 2009, Peter was invited to cook for Queen Elizabeth II and he knew the menu had to include a tribute to his grandmother, who had sadly passed away in 1996, aged 97. So, for dessert, Peter served his gran’s shortbread to Her Majesty.
“She needed to be there,” Peter says. “One of Gran’s favourite memories was when the Queen presented her with a QSM for her charitable work.”
While cooking for the late Queen is near the top of his list of greatest achievements, Peter says the thing he’s most proud of in life is helping raise millions of dollars for leukaemia research.
With his dogs Fiver (left) and Pixie.
In 1994, his sister Tracey, 61, was diagnosed with leukaemia – a cancer that forms in the bone marrow. Peter was the only blood match in the family and happily donated his bone marrow to save his sister’s life.
A few years later, when a blood cancer charity approached him about donating an item for an auction, he knew he needed to do more. So, Peter came up with the idea for a dinner where each table is presented a one-of-a-kind four-course meal from some of the most famous chefs in London, including Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay and Rick Stein.
Since that first dinner in 1999, Peter’s annual Who’s Cooking Dinner event has raised more than $18 million for leukaemia research in the UK and New Zealand.
“It’s an amazing event and every year all the chefs in London want to be part of it,” tells Peter. “All the other stuff, cooking for the Queen or Barack Obama, that’s all fun, and I do think, ‘I can’t believe I’m doing this.’ But raising a crapload of money to fight blood cancers is really cool.”
The Great Kiwi Bake Off Celebrity Christmas Special screens Tuesday, December 20, at 7.45pm on TVNZ 1.
