INSIDE FOODSERVICE: St Vincent’s Care Executive Chef David Martin: raising the bar on aged care cuisine
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As Victorian Hotel Service Manager and Executive Chef Manager for St Vincent’s Care, Chef David Martin is passionate about raising the standard of aged care cuisine. Foodservice Rep spoke to him about his journey from fine dining to aged care and his focus on delivering high quality food that also meets stringent nutritional standards.
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Making the move into aged care
David Martin
“Before coming to aged care I worked in fine dining restaurants and large hotel chains for many years,” David recalls. “I was doing back to back 90 hour weeks and was run through the mill, and I decided I had to make a change if I didn’t want to burn out.
“It was my parents who suggested I give aged care a try – at first I was quite taken aback because back then, 10-11 years ago, it was where chefs went to retire, so I was quite perplexed as to why they thought I should go there, as I thought my skills would go to waste. In fact the move changed the course of my career and reignited my passion.”
David has worked for three aged care organisations – “I started off with one of the boutique homes in Camberwell, and during that time I was promoting and launching their new Signature range five star room service food delivery model. I spent five years there doing some avant garde food, then left just before Covid and moved into the Regent aged care home in Mount Waverley, under the Japara Group, which is now Calvary. We were recognised in regards to our food quality and delivery model.”
“I was basically trying to commission the home while picking up pots and pans from local suppliers, trying to get it all done”
After one year there, the opportunity arose of an executive chef position at St Vincent’s Care, which was launching a bespoke flagship five star home in Kew. “We launched that at the height of the pandemic in 2021 – a very interesting time to say the least!” David laughs.
“Looking back, I think the challenges that Covid presented were great for my personal growth. One of the stories I often tell in relation to this time - we had a hard opening for the home and our equipment had been ordered from SA, then the borders were closed and our equipment was stuck there. So I was basically trying to commission the home while picking up pots and pans from local suppliers, trying to get it all done - but we did it and looking back it was an amazing experience.
senior head chef Harry Shen (L) and david have built up a close working relationship
“The team that we had at the time of commissioning really pushed through. We had residents wanting to move in quite quickly – there was a waiting list and we were able to bring residents in on a consistent basis, to the point at which we reached capacity of 136 residents in under a year. It was a very busy time as we were hiring foodservice staff continuously as we opened each new section of the home – that in itself posed a risk, but due to the Covid lockdowns of commercial foodservice we were able to get some amazing staff members from the hotel, restaurant and café fields because they were available during that period.”
Push to improve food quality and delivery
David points out there has been an upshift in the health and aged care food delivery model in recent years - partly in response to the findings of the Aged Care Royal Commission, resulting in the introduction of strengthened Food and Nutrition Quality Standards, and partly because of changing demographics as the baby boomers start to enter aged care.
“Generally speaking, there's been a big push to improve the food quality and delivery model, in line with the concept of person-centred care for each resident. The biggest difference for me as a chef is that working in aged care you create a rapport with the residents - you work with them day in, day out and you get to understand their tastes, preferences and nutritional needs. Whereas in a restaurant you might see your regular customers once a month and some customers only once a year – you certainly don’t have daily interaction.
“I think aged care is becoming the new frontier where chefs can be avant garde and innovative”
“Knowing you’re making a difference in people’s lives with the food you serve is a big thing. Being exposed to their history, lessons learnt in life is a big difference as well.”
He adds that the greater emphasis on the nutritional component in aged care necessitates more complexity in menu development. “I think aged care is becoming the new frontier where chefs can be avant garde and innovative and be applauded for that.
“Obviously the tastebuds of the previous generations in aged care were attuned to the traditional meat and three veg, with a Sunday roast and fish and chips on Friday – then you filled in the meals on the remaining days of the week. But now the baby boomers are coming in - they’ve travelled, they’ve been exposed to different cuisines, they understand flavours and good food, they know what they want and what they like. So you have to be able to adapt and at St Vincent’s we’re able to do that, thanks to the quality of our chefs and our delivery model.”
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Raising the profile of aged care foodservice
One of the biggest challenges for David has been attracting new chefs to the industry. “We all know there is a skill shortage in the industry, and training the next generation of chefs to come in will be the major focal point. In the next couple of years I can foresee a shortfall in the number of young chefs wanting to come in, so we need to position it as a viable career option, not just a job.
“There is also work to be done in raising the profile of foodservice within aged care management. Generally speaking, foodservice, cleaning and laundry services are not counted as ‘direct services to residents’ but we all know there is a level of direct contact between the foodservice staff and the residents – these definitions impact how remuneration is set for staff so all that needs to be looked at. Even the food budgets need to be looked at, making sure they are sufficient for the chef to be able to meet the challenges that come with the territory.”
“Competing gives us the chance to showcase the talent within our organisation, to keep our knives sharp and to ensure we’re on trend”
As part of his commitment to raising the culinary profile of aged care cuisine, David and his senior head chef Harry Shen have competed in a number of chef’s competitions – bringing home two silver medals from last year’s International Salon Culinaire held in London.
“Competing gives us the chance to showcase the talent within our organisation, to keep our knives sharp and to ensure we’re on trend within the industry,” David says. “It’s about showcasing the techniques we use and the level of execution – and it’s a big thing saying that because the industry has always looked down on aged care chefs, so for us to be at the forefront of innovation has been a driving force for us. Every time we compete we’re putting our money where our mouths are – we truly believe in what we’re trying to achieve.
“We can look back with the team and say that together we’ve created a ripple within the industry which can turn into a wave”
“We also competed in the Australian Culinary Federation Restaurant Challenge last year and came away with 2nd overall - we only lost by a point and a half against Team NZ, which is the current Bocuse D’Or National team. To have chefs from an aged care home in East Melbourne compete against these guys and hold their own shows our quality and skillset can stand against the best.
“I think that gives a positive message to chefs everywhere – it says wherever you come from and wherever you work, you in yourself can be innovative and passionate about your approach to food. We’ve had providers come to us asking for advice on the new Aged Care Standard 6 and that reiterates that what we’re doing is the Gold Standard for the industry – we’re very proud of that and we can look back with the team and say that together we’ve created a ripple within the industry which can turn into a wave.”
Working to fulfil the St Vincent’s mission
David has also received staunch support from the management at St Vincent’s Care. “I’m very proud to be a part of an organisation with deep roots and heritage that goes back more than a century,” he emphasises. “Their mission and vision struck a chord with my personal ethos - seeing the words inscribed on the wall is one thing, but actually working towards the cause is the bigger picture.
“My senior managers have been so supportive - Bernadette Murphy, Julia Lawrence, Charlotte Milner, Lincoln Hopper plus Chris Blake from St Vincent’s Health Australia – without their support we wouldn’t have been able to achieve what we have. They’re consistently driving us and allowing us to showcase this great organisation - this is the first not-for-profit I’ve worked for and being a part of it will always be a highlight of my working career.
“What we've achieved in a span of five years has been astronomical and we would never have imagined the global footprint we've had around the work we're doing which is quite crazy - we didn’t think we’d be able to do that, we just do what we do and that comes back to the team I have - Harry Shen, Bianca Mercogliano, Bobby Chong, Richelle Carmona, Kritsanapong Lerttanathanee, Sarah Bangui, Theressa Giovanna and Cory Rowlands; I’ll be forever grateful for everything they do.”
