Renowned chef and restaurateur, Dietmar Sawyere has been named Chef & Director of Restaurants at Hayman, Australia’s acclaimed Great Barrier Reef private island destination.

Swiss-born, Dietmar is recognised in Australia and internationally as one of the finest exponents of the ultimate culinary experience achieving benchmark levels of service and dining at the many award-winning establishments with which he has been associated.

His long list of professional accolades includes being named Chef Of The Year in Sydney, London and New Zealand as well as garnering a host of restaurant awards before arriving in Australia in 1988.

Dietmar has been a driving force in the evolution of Australian restaurants having created and run Le Restaurant at The Regent Melbourne, Gekko at Park Lane, Sydney and the legendary Forty One Restaurant, Sydney which won more than 45 best restaurant and wine list awards as well as holding 3 Chef’s Hats in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide for many years and winning Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Of The Year.

He re-opened Berowra Waters Inn, Sydney re-establishing this iconic eatery as one of Australia’s top dining venues which was named Restaurant Of The Year in Time Out in 2011.

Dietmar designed and opened Brasserie Cassis and Ad Lib Bistros in Sydney, which became the standard bearers for French bistros while also running restaurants in New Zealand and Singapore.

Overseeing a brigade of 150 food and beverage professionals on Hayman, Dietmar is committed to delivering Australia’s top resort food and beverage offering, “building upon Hayman’s long-standing reputation for quality food and wine in a beautiful setting”.

“Fontaine should be recognised as one of Australia’s finest restaurants celebrating the best food and wine while Oriental, La Trattoria and Azure should be known in their own right for an individual and personalised style of dining and service,” he said.

“We will also further develop the resort’s philosophy of taking dining outdoors – to special locations in the rainforest, on the beach and into numerous other stunning island settings – and out into the reef.”

“As an island destination, we have lots of opportunities to create amazing memories for guests which is an exciting prospect for me working closely with a great team.”