Raquel Stevens
Who doesn’t love a locals’ night in Daylesford. Pair some great French food and wine with some fabulous friends, and it’s a match made in heaven.
It’s even more inviting when the staff and chef are as wholesome as the food. This was my experience this week at Bistro Terroir. For owner and chef, Matthew Carnell, it’s been a dream come true to open his doors to the Hepburn Shire community and provide delicious simple food.
He also shared one of the best fun facts I’ve ever heard about a person.
How did you come up with the name Bistro Terroir?
I really wanted to pay homage to my upbringing through hospitality, with the people I had worked with and people who had trained me.
Terroir, they talk about as the foundation for growing, especially in wine terms. But also having the local terroir in Daylesford and working with local producers who grow not only wine, but fruit and vegetables. I think it really intertwined very well for me.
How did your love affair with French food begin?
I guess it was my mum, and the French part came later. I did a lot of cooking with mum when I was three or four growing up until I took on an apprenticeship.
When I was fourteen, I was lucky enough to go on a school trip to France. I loved the French food from that moment. Then I got the opportunity once I finished my apprenticeship to move to France and work with a chef, Thierry Marx, in Paris. I immersed myself in it.
It’s not just to eat a meal in France, it’s to enjoy a meal and enjoy the people you’re with. I wanted to do that here in Daylesford.
Is this how Bistro Terroir was born?
Yes, my parents had a holiday home up here, and the last three years of my time in France were spent in the French Alps and I really loved the outdoors. I decided that I’d come and look after the family home here and really fell in love with the food culture.
I was working for a restaurant at the time and everything was focused on local produce. I was really grateful to work with such amazing producers, some of them I still work with today. I fell in love with the town from that aspect.
With chefs like Gordon Ramsay and shows like “The Bear”, kitchens can be a scary place. How would you describe yours?
I think definitely that’s yesteryear. That’s not at all what I’m about. I haven’t seen The Bear, that would stress me out too much.
I don’t think people go to work to be stressed out. And part of being in the country too is the country lifestyle. I just I want my colleagues who work here to enjoy themselves.
How would you describe your restaurant in one sentence?
Good food, good wine, and good times.
What advice would you give someone who’s thinking of entering the restaurant business?
It’s very tough. I guess two things if they’re considering opening a restaurant. One, you have to be ready to give up a lot. Long nights, early mornings, weekends, a lot of stuff that people don’t see. And there’s a lot of sacrifice and be prepared for that sacrifice.
The second one would be know your numbers. If your numbers aren’t reflecting that you are turning a profit or keeping your head above water, you’ll go backwards very quickly in the restaurant industry.
With cost of living and things like that, it’s more important than ever to really know your numbers.
What’s a fun fact about you?
I met Michael Jackson when I was 18 months old. Mum and dad were over in LA for work. I was teething at the time, at three in the morning. My mum was walking me down the corridors of the hotel that we were staying in, and she jumped into an elevator and the next floor down, the lift opened, and security walked in. Then Michael Jackson walked into the lift and told my mum what a beautiful little boy she had.
Matt with his family in France recently.
Name your three favourite dinner guests.
It’s straightforward for me. My wife and my two kids. Daphne is almost four, and Harrison is now nine months.
Do they enjoy French food?
They do. Daphne loves her steak frites and her crème brulee. I got to take them to France. It was such a long flight, so we told Daphne we were going to the land of crème brulee.
If you were sent off to Wombat State Forest for the rest of your eternal life, what three items would you take?
I would definitely take my hibachi, little Japanese grill. I would take a fire lighter, and probably a tarp for shelter.
What would be the title of your memoir?
“I had a crack”.
I’ve always had a go at things, I’ve always tried my best.
What is your favourite restaurant in the world?
Allard in Paris. It’s an Alain Ducasse restaurant. It’s been there since 1890. It’s your typical French bistro done extremely well. There’s no frills on the plate, it’s not fine dining, it’s not fancy, it’s how French cooking should be.
Name an underrated dish and an overrated dish.
Underrated dish, I have a Rum Sultana at the moment. It’s effectively a brioche cake soaked in rum and sugar syrup with Chantilly cream. That’s what the French are really good at, turning simple things into something incredible.
Overrated dish?
Maybe not overrated dish but overrated technique, I think would be molecular gastronomy. I did that for a year and a half in Paris, and I felt like I was losing touch with real cooking.
What’s in your fridge at the moment?
Lots of kids’ Panadol because of winter. There’s usually a bottle of sake in there. I’ve got some cheese, some French butter in there too.
What is on your bedside?
I’ve got an old cigar box that was given to me by my grandfather, and it was his great-grandfather’s. There’s a bit of spare change in it. Also, on my wedding, my Dad did a speech and he read out of a book called “The Do’s and Don’ts for Husbands.” It was from the 1950s. It’s very old school and very backwards but I’ve kept it there because I would like to one day, hand it down.
What are you streaming?
I am very partial to watching Star Wars. My wife loves cooking too, she’s obsessed with Rick Stein so that’s kind of a bit of a laughing point between us.
What would your last meal be?
A simple French bistro in the countryside, eating whatever the chef prepared me.
What would be your hashtag#?
#Haveacrack.
Inspirational advice for anyone following a dream. They also need to follow their stomachs and get down to Bistro Terroir for some authentic French food. Locals’ night is on Thursday at Bistro Terroir. Enjoy a ’specials’ main course and glass of wine for $40. www.bistroterroir.com.au.
Listen to Raquel’s interview with Matt Carnell on the Hepburn Radio Soundcloud. There’s more on the podcast!
Raquel Stevens is a former Network Ten News Journalist. She has been a part time local for more than 25 years, and one day hopes to be a full time local.
