FAB TALKS
From MasterChef to centre stage at FAB
MasterChef Australia 2017 winner Diana Chan joined The Moodie Davitt Report Founder and Chairman Martin Moodie on stage in Bangkok to share her thoughts on food trends and the travel retail sector.
Speaking about the moment she found out she had won Australia’s most-watched TV show, Chan said: “I was like, ‘Oh my god, sh*t, I won!’ I couldn’t believe it. It took me a while to process the news. For three months I had accustomed myself to not being disappointed, just in case.”
Like many of the FAB delegates and speakers, Chan’s passion for food started at a young age. “Mum and Dad were fantastic cooks and would talk about their day over dinner,” she said. “I thought that was a beautiful way to bring people together.”
No stranger to travel, regularly flying all over the world, the Malaysia-born Australian chef was frank about her perception of airport food. “Most of it is abysmal,” she said contentiously. “It varies from one to another. When you walk through an airport you know what you want and if it is not there, you might not bother. Sometimes I don’t even eat at the airport or the lounge.”
Predictably, that opinion was challenged time and time again by the industry during FAB. Speakers acknowledged that some things need to change but most pointed out how their companies have made things better, serving food & beverage that they are rightly proud of.
Asked by Moodie what the industry could do to improve, Chan said: “I would look for things that are comforting, and I don’t necessarily mean carb-heavy. Something fresh, local and comforting all in one would be my ideal airport meal.” And her best airport meal may have surprised some. Without hesitation, she said: “McDonald’s. You always get the same burger, the same pickles, it’s always consistent.”
Diana Chan in conversation with Martin Moodie about food and travel; above, the moment when she won Masterchef Australia 2017
Diana Chan kept delegates entertained with TV tales and frank opinions
Sharing a light moment with Martin Moodie
Moodie and Chan discussed what she would bring to an airport’s food & beverage offering. Simple, she said – dumplings and noodles.
“I’d like to concentrate on consistency and one would be dumplings because I already have a dumpling range. And secondly, there is nothing I love more in the world than pasta and noodles, so I would love to have a really inventive noodle bar that caters to everyone.”
With Sense Of Place such a key theme in travel dining, Moodie asked Chan what this meant to her at airports.
“If you were in China, it could mean getting noodles that are beautifully cooked, handmade even. It’s local and you can identify it very quickly,” she said. “Also, it’s about the ambience, the space that you are in. The fit-out has to relate. Often at airports, I find there are outlets where everything is very bright and stark. But for me, a Sense of Place is somewhere cosy and comforting. And those first moments and first impressions matter to entice somebody in.”
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FAB eZine
January 2024
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