Queensland food: Celebrity chefs Alastair McLeod and George Calombaris praise state's produce at festival

Brisbane's restaurant scene is coming into its own as the spotlight on celebrity cuisine starts to shift to local producers, chef Alastair McLeod says.

Celebrity chefs Alastair McLeod and George Calombaris praised Queensland produce at Good Food and Wine Festival. (ABC News: Kym Agius)

Mr McLeod, a regular on the TV circuit, began his career in Brisbane 20 years ago at a French restaurant.

"I thought, 'why are we cooking dishes from the French culinary cannon and dropping them in the subtropics'," he said.

"I couldn't understand it."

Mr McLeod said Brisbane had embraced its natural environment.

"There is a clear flavour to it; you open a menu here and I think you can tell where you are in the world," he said.

"Brisbane is forging an identity. There is a pride, veneration, advocacy of our produce."

Mr McLeod said the closer you were to the source of your food, the better it tasted and the smaller the carbon footprint created.

"Food should be a love letter to your own backyard," he said, rattling off the names of his producers.

PHOTO: Ana Krarena, Ilias the Greek and Daniela Costa and at the food show. (ABC News: Kym Agius)

"I think the spotlight is coming off the celebrity chef and it's going onto the produce and the producers.

"They are really the stars of the show."

Mr McLeod spoke to the ABC at the Good Food and Wine Show, held in Brisbane this weekend.

Thousands of foodies sampled the latest products from around Australia, with 90 businesses from Queensland participating.

MasterChef co-host George Calombaris uses Mooloolaba prawns, and soft shell crabs and vanilla pods from the Sunshine Coast at some of his five restaurants.

"There is no excuse not to produce good food in Queensland; it's a massive food bowl," he said.

"Brisbanites, they need to embrace that they have a beautiful place with its own food culture and stop getting caught up in if they are doing it better than Sydney or Melbourne.

"You've got cutting edge, young chefs doing some incredible stuff."

Queensland's Liberal National Party agriculture spokeswoman Deb Frecklington said foodie events helped build awareness and loyalty for local food and wine products.

"Which in turn support local farmers who supply ingredients," she said.

Source: ABC News, Kim Agius, 1^st November 2015
Originally published as: Queensland food: Celebrity chefs Alastair McLeod and George Calombaris praise state's produce at festival