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On Saturday, May 30, a sellout crowd of 300-plus guests gathered at rustic Four Stones Farm in Malibu. The occasion? Celebrating the diversity of Australia’s home-grown ingredients, cosmopolitan cuisine and world-class hospitality at the 2025 Great Australian Bite.
This evocative dining event returned to Malibu for its second edition, bringing both an enlightening introduction to Australia’s hospitality and an amuse-bouche for a trip across the Pacific to experience its dining, wine and spirits – and their creators – all set against spectacular scenery.
Evolving from last year’s debut on Malibu Pier, the Great Australian Bite 2025 was helmed by Aussie chefs Curtis Stone (of L.A.’s Gwen and The Pie Room) and Clare Falzon (of South Australia’s staġuni) and hosted al fresco by Stone at his hilltop farm during a beautiful golden hour.
A partnership between the Los Angeles Times and Tourism Australia, the Great Australian Bite – its name a play on The Great Australian Bight, the vast bay that spans much of the country’s southern coastline – offered Angeleno foodies, in its first year, an immersion in the innovative contemporary cuisine emanating from Australia, with a focus on seafood. This year, land-based proteins were at the forefront, as the event once again presented a farm-to-table menu reflecting the country’s fresh produce and award-winning wines born of its nuanced terroirs – all served with a side of signature warm Aussie hospitality.
“Today’s about showcasing what Australia has to offer and showcasing young and up-and-coming chefs,” said Melbourne-raised, L.A.-based Stone. “We’ve got Claire Falzon here from the Barossa Valley ... she really understands flavor, cooking with her in my kitchen has been a lot of fun.”
“You see a lot of different multicultural influences in Australian cooking, but you also see a real spirit.”
— Curtis Stone
1. Australian waygu 2. Squash and Zucchini 3. Rabbit terrine 4. Roasted lamb shank
The menu, co-created by Falzon and Stone, featured three courses designed to not only highlight Australian ingredients and preparations, but their ability to interact in presentation and flavor with California’s best, included a zucchini and squash first course by Falzon, a second course of rabbit terrine with pickled veggies by Stone, and the main a family-style presentation of fire-grilled Australian Blackmore strip loin hand-selected by Stone on his recent travels Down Under paired with duck fat potatoes and Falzon’s spiced Margra lamb Shank with dates and pistachios, both paired with a watermelon, tomato and cactus fruit salad by Falzon, a nod to her Maltese heritage.
Of course, no menu is complete without a sumptuous dessert, so Falzon offered up a passionfruit custard tart, while Curtis sent lucky diners home with a dark chocolate and raspberry Lamington to share with their (surely jealous) friends.
The Great Australian Bite wasn’t just a dinner, but a multi-sensory event. Australian DJ Oliver Blank performed. In addition, guests were treated to insightful discussions on just what makes Aussie hospitality so special led by author and wine judge Mike Bennie. Bennie spoke with several guests, including Daniel Motlop of Seven Seasons, who shared the process of his unique yam vodka made by Indigenous Australians in Darwin, and Kim Chalmers of Victoria’s Chalmers winery and nursery.
And, as perfect pairings to the sunset Great Australian Bite meal, partners Four Pillars Gin and Starward Whisky poured their celebrated libations during cocktail hour and into the evening, tackling the warm weather with icy cocktails including a classic old fashioned, a citrusy whisky highball, and a refreshing take on a spritz with Four Pillars’ signature gin.
Diverse Influences & Ingredients
As the menu reflected, Australian cuisine today embodies a melting pot of influences and ingredients evolved over generations of immigration and cultural cross-pollination to create a rare breadth of sophisticated yet robustly flavorful dishes and drinks. “I’m most excited that there is an interest in what Australians are doing and creating and have to offer, both in the country and abroad.” said Falzon.
From ingredients like Kakadu plum, which has been utilized as both a food and medicine for centuries by Indigenous cultures, to the sensuous herb lemon myrtle, native Aussie ingredients offer a unique flavor set that chefs like Stone love to work with. Among his favorite native Australian foods is marron, a freshwater crayfish that is widely known for its delicious taste and perfect texture.
“Australian food is both about the flavor and the feeling”
— Clare Falzon
The Great Australian Bite event conveys the multicultural backdrop and ethos behind Australian cooking: a tapestry of influences including artful unions of Indigenous Australian, South Asian, and European cuisines seldom experienced outside of Down Under itself.
And every region of Australia – a country nearly 19 times larger than California – brings its own geography, ecosystems, characteristics and cultures, quite literally, to the table. For example, Falzon’s native Barossa Valley is a revered wine region draped in rich soil and abundant produce, known for world-class reds, including the prized Shiraz.
“What I enjoy the most about being able to create a menu in the place where I live is I can see the produce and get inspired by that,” said Falzon, whose Mediterranean-inspired restaurant, staġuni reflects her Maltese heritage.
“I’ve also really enjoyed getting to pair California grown produce with my own stories and food style. Cactus fruit is a huge part of Maltese eating, and once I had the realization that I could tie together something already iconic in California and my Australian Maltese story, I was thrilled!”
Before the Bite
Michelin-starred restaurateur Stone recently took a trip to Melbourne to seek ingredients and inspiration from the city’s influential dining scene. These include contemporary Australian butchery concepts that he will bring to Southern California at a time when dedicated butcher shops are becoming rarer across the region.
“Let’s just say we Aussies love our lamb, but we also have incredible beef,” Stone said. “I’ve been importing Blackmore Wagyu to the butcher counter at Gwen since we opened.”
Falzon also drew not just from her travels but also from her life. “There’s so many different backgrounds in Australia that shape the food as well. I’m utilizing memories from my childhood, experiences from different scenes as well as ingredients from Australia,” she said.
“The culinary community in Australia is a vibrant group of creators and thinkers but we don’t take ourselves too seriously,” said Stone. “I hope that showcasing our history and deep reverence for ingredients, with Clare cooking by my side, will spark guests to fall in love with the culture and pay Australia a visit.”
