Jock Zonfrillo facts for kids
Zonfrillo in August 2017
|
|
| Born | Barry Zonfrillo 4 August 1976 Glasgow, Scotland |
|---|---|
| Died | 30 April 2023 (aged 46) Melbourne, Australia |
| Cooking style | French, Italian, Scottish |
| Spouse | Lauren Fried |
|
Rating(s)
|
|
|
Previous restaurant(s)
|
|
|
Television show(s)
|
|
|
Award(s) won
|
|
| Official website | |
| https://jockzonfrillo.com | |
Jock Zonfrillo (born Barry Zonfrillo; 4 August 1976 – 30 April 2023) was a famous Scottish chef. He was also a television presenter and ran restaurants. Jock lived in Melbourne, Australia. He started The Orana Foundation and was a judge on MasterChef Australia.
Contents
Becoming a Chef
Jock Zonfrillo started working in kitchens when he was just 12 years old. His first job was washing dishes part-time. This was at a restaurant where his older sister worked as a waitress.
Just three weeks later, one of the chefs had an accident. Jock stepped in and started cooking! He left school at 15 to become a chef. He began an apprenticeship at The Turnberry Hotel.
After that, he worked at the Arkle Restaurant in Chester. This restaurant had a special award called a Michelin star. Jock then worked for the well-known chef Marco Pierre White.
At 22, Jock became a head chef for the first time. This was at The Tresanton Hotel in Cornwall. He later moved to Australia in 2000. There, he became the head chef at Restaurant 41 in Sydney.
In 2011, Jock was named head chef at Penfolds Magill Estate Restaurant. This restaurant is in South Australia. He worked there for about 18 months.
Jock's Restaurants
In November 2013, Jock opened two restaurants in Adelaide. They were called Restaurant Orana and Street ADL. Later, in September 2017, he changed Street ADL to Bistro Blackwood.
Restaurant Orana became very famous. In August 2017, a magazine called Gourmet Traveller named it Australia's Restaurant of the Year. In the same year, Jock was called Australia's Hottest Chef by The Australian newspaper.
In October 2018, The Good Food Guide also named Orana Australia's Restaurant of the Year. It also received high ratings in the Chef Hat Awards in 2019 and 2020.
Jock opened another restaurant, Nonna Mallozzi, in December 2018. However, it closed in July 2019. Bistro Blackwood closed in late 2019. Restaurant Orana closed in March 2020.
The Orana Foundation
In 2016, Jock Zonfrillo started The Orana Foundation. This foundation aimed to protect old cooking methods. It also wanted to save special ingredients used by Indigenous Australians.
The Orana Foundation won an award in October 2017. It was called The Good Food Guide Food for Good Award. One big project of the foundation was a database. This database listed 1,443 Aboriginal food plants. It was made with the University of Adelaide.
The database was launched in September 2020. It shared information about these plants. This included their nutrition, taste, and how best to cook them.
MasterChef Australia
In October 2019, Jock Zonfrillo became a new judge for MasterChef Australia. He joined Melissa Leong and Andy Allen.
In July 2020, Jock was also announced as a judge for Junior MasterChef Australia. This show was for younger cooks.
Jock's Memoir
On 28 July 2021, Jock Zonfrillo released a book about his life. It was called Last Shot. In the book, he shared many stories from his journey.
Personal Life
Jock Zonfrillo was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He grew up in Ayr. His father, Ivan, was a barber. His mother, Sarah, was a hairdresser. His mother's family was from Scotland. His father was from Italy. Jock also had an older sister.
On 1 January 2017, Jock married his third wife, Lauren Fried. They met online in October 2014. In February 2018, Jock and Lauren had a son. He was born early and was very small. In October 2020, they had a daughter. Jock also had two other daughters from his earlier marriages.
After his restaurants closed, Jock and his family moved to Melbourne around March 2020. Before he passed away, they lived in Carlton.
Death
Jock Zonfrillo passed away in Melbourne, Australia, on 30 April 2023. He was 46 years old.
Awards and Recognitions
Jock Zonfrillo received many awards for his cooking and restaurants:
- 1993 Young Scottish Chef of the Year – The Federation of Chefs Scotland
- 2014 South Australian Best New Restaurant and South Australian Restaurant of the Year – The Advertiser Food Awards
- 2015 South Australian Restaurant of the Year – The Advertiser Food Awards
- 2015 Chef of The Year – Restaurant & Catering Awards
- 2015 and 2016 Australia's Hot 50 Restaurants – The Australian
- 2017 Hottest Chef & Hottest South Australian Restaurant – The Australian
- 2017 Food for Good Award – The Good Food Guide
- 2018 Australian Restaurant of the Year – Gourmet Traveller magazine
- 2018 Australia's Hottest Chef – The Australian
- 2018 Australian Food for Good Award – The Good Food Guide
- 2018 Basque Culinary World Prize – Basque Culinary Center
- 2019 Australian Restaurant of the Year – The Good Food Guide.
Television Appearances
Jock Zonfrillo appeared on several television shows:
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | MasterChef Australia | Guest chef | Series 6 |
| Nomad Chef | Host | Filmed in 10 countries across the world and aired in over 180. | |
| 2015 | Restaurant Revolution | For Seven Network in Australia. | |
| 2016–2017 | Chef Exchange | First and second season for Qingdao TV (QTV) in China and South Australia. | |
| 2018 | MasterChef Australia | Guest chef | Series 10 |
| 2019 | MasterChef Australia | Series 11 | |
| 2020 | MasterChef Australia | Judge | Series 12 |
| Junior MasterChef Australia | Series 3 | ||
| 2021 | MasterChef Australia | Series 13 | |
| 2022 | MasterChef Australia | Series 14 | |
| 2023 | MasterChef Australia | Series 15 |
