Samesyn

Graham Jefferies has done more than most chefs could ever dream of. He grew up in South Africa before travelling through Europe, Asia and eventually landing in Australia. He’s cooked everywhere from pubs to fine-diners, notably the Fat Duck in London and Daniel in New York. His Geelong diner Tulip had been a local favourite since 2013; the tiny Torquay followup Samesyn a critical darling since 2019. But Jefferies isn’t one to rest on his laurels.

At the end of 2023 Jefferies temporarily closed Samesyn and staged at the acclaimed Silo in London, the world’s first zero-waste restaurant. He came home in 2024 to reboot Samesyn as a “profit-for-purpose” enterprise – 100 per cent of revenue goes to Feed Me, a local charity that intercepts produce en route to landfill, and feeds people who face food insecurity. Jefferies’ mission at Samesyn 2.0 is to “repurpose with purpose”.

Every dish on the Samesyn 2.0 menu has one item that’s usually discarded as surplus – think plant stems and offal. Everything right down to the butter is made in-house, with single-use waste eliminated at every turn (there’s not even a general waste bin).

As well, many dishes are grilled over an open flame. Take the oyster skewer, which stacks chicken oysters, local oyster mushrooms and dehydrated oysters on rescued-potato mayo. Elsewhere, Jefferies pairs grilled dry-aged retired dairy cow cuts with carrots saved from landfill, which are rolled up with surplus-pumpkin molasses in a nasturtium leaf ‘taco’.

All the cocktails – such as an Old Fashioned made with surplus persimmons – integrate rescued and foraged ingredients. The 130-bottle wine list includes traditional drops, with nods to the minimal-intervention world with producers like Latta Vino.

The 28-seat space is low-lit and intimate, with an open kitchen connecting chefs with guests over a mess-made timber bench. There’s no front of house staff – just a small co-op team of four chefs and an apprentice. Despite Samesyn’s elegant menu, Jefferies’ focus is on fun. Hip-hop and reggae pump through the speakers, and eating with your hands and licking the plate are both encouraged.