Executive chef returns to Townsville to showcase importance of regional produce in major Queensland integrated resorts

Queensland blue leg ocean king prawns and green papaya, handpicked from the state’s north, will be the star of a culinary demonstration in Townsville next week, to give locals a taste of why regional produce is important in creating authentic Queensland experiences for locals and visitors to the state. 

The demonstration is part of a roadshow touring Queensland talking about jobs, training, and procurement opportunities with integrated resort company, The Star Entertainment Group. 

The company is the lead partner in the Destination Brisbane Consortium, which will deliver the multi-billion dollar Queen’s Wharf Brisbane integrated resort development due to open in Brisbane’s CBD in 2022. 

Treasury Casino & Hotel Executive Chef Steven Jones will tempt tastebuds when he creates an Asian-style dish using Queensland blue leg ocean king prawns from Townsville accompanied by a zesty salad made with green papaya from Innisfail. 

Originally from Wales, Mr Jones lived and worked in Townsville for nearly four years, and is looking forward to returning to the regional centre to show how The Star Entertainment Group uses local ingredients in its tantalising menus. 

In Queensland, the company operates the Treasury Casino & Hotel in Brisbane, and Jupiters Gold Coast. 

“I’ve worked for the Treasury Casino & Hotel for the past six years, but before that I worked in Townsville and developed a great appreciation for the local seafood and produce in the region including barramundi, prawns, and tropical fruits,” Mr Jones said. 

“At Treasury, we seek to find the best and freshest produce right across the state to highlight in our diverse offerings and a lot of it comes from north and far north Queensland. 

“We know that locals and visitors want to experience high quality, authentic, and local Queensland flavours – that’s what creates special memories for them and keeps them coming back. 

“This will be so important when Queen’s Wharf Brisbane opens in years to come, as it is expected to attract an extra 1.39 million tourists to Queensland each year. 

“The development will have 50 new bars, cafes and restaurants, so this is just one of the aspects we want to speak to north Queensland suppliers about: to start the conversation about how they might leverage this opportunity with their locally-grown produce, and to help us meet this demand.” 

The Star Entertainment Group Managing Director Queensland Geoff Hogg said the roadshow aims to drive awareness and innovation to help create ‘quintessentially Queensland’ integrated resorts. 

“Queensland tourism has a bright and exciting future with record demand coming from Asia, in particular China, and forecasts predicting this will continue to rise strongly in the future,” Mr Hogg said. 

“The size and scale of our developments will provide significant jobs, training, and supplier opportunities for Queenslanders – but these do not need to be limited to the south east corner.”

The Queen’s Wharf Brisbane integrated resort will create a world-class tourism, leisure, and entertainment destination, and is expected to generate more than 2000 jobs at peak construction, and 8000 jobs once fully operational. 

Meanwhile, Jupiters Gold Coast is currently undergoing a $345 million transformation including a refurbishment of the existing five-star hotel and the building of a new six-star all-suite hotel. 

This investment could potentially increase to around $850 million with a proposal for a new 700-key hotel and apartment tower. 

“We’re really looking forward to starting a conversation across regional Queensland about what will be needed in the form of jobs, training, and suppliers with our developments in the years to come,” Mr Hogg said. 

“We want people and businesses to start thinking now about whether they could help contribute to making these developments a great success stories for Queensland.” 

The roadshow is being delivered by the Department of State Development, in partnership with The Star Entertainment Group, as part of its annual Major Project Series. 

Following seminars in Brisbane, Toowoomba, the Sunshine Coast, Mackay, Rockhampton, and Townsville, the roadshow will continue onto the Wide Bay Burnett region (via Maryborough), Brookwater/Ipswich, the Gold Coast, and Cairns until the end of November this year. 

The Townsville event will take place on Tuesday 4 October 2016 from 5pm to 7pm at the Mercure Hotel, 166 Woolcock St, Townsville. To register, or to view the full Queensland schedule, visit www.statedevelopment.qld.gov.au/mps.

Source: The Star Entertainment Group, 26th September 2016