Barzura feeding families near and far...

Over the past 20 years Coogee has become a melting pot of families and locals from many different nations. Barzura has evolved with these changes growing from a traditional café into a modern restaurant and bar.

Barzura's menu reflects this evolution and benefits from the diversity of the kitchen team. Boon, Head Chef for the last three years, has been in the Barzura kitchen for 15 years. Fellow chef Jayar has been there for 15 years. Most of the kitchen team have an Asian background.

"Rather than teaching chefs to cook traditional western café dishes, we encourage them to embrace their own cultures and blend them with contemporary dishes", explained Rodney.Dishes are full of sophisticated flavours with a sense of familiarity, blending the contemporary dishes with an Asian influence. On the menu for breakfast, there's traditional bacon and ens but also an Asian style omelette and traditional congee. A seared kangaroo fillet is a house special but it's the Nasi Goreng with the obligatory Bloody Mary that has crowds lining up on weekends.
Rodney and Matthew know that

Coogee means you need to offer family dining solutions and a child friendly environment. For many years, they were the only restaurant in Sydney's eastern suburbs with a baby change table and now they offer weeknight dinner specials that keep regulars happy.

Barzura is open from 7am until after 10pm seven days a weeek so the kitchen never stops!

Earlier this year Rodney knew it was time to replace the cooking line-up. The equipment was simply not performing to meet the demands of such a busy kitchen.

When Rodney was considering his options, the key for him was durability and longevity. After having other equipment that only lasted for three or four years, he wanted the "Rolls-Royce" of equipment that would last well into the next 20 years.

"I wanted something that is going to last and won't need replacing again in a few years. I spoke with Boon, Jayar and the rest of the kitchen team and we knew Garland was what we needed."

Working with Jason O'Brien, Comcater Area Sales Manager, Jason was able to help Rodney select the best Garland range that would offer the durability and productivity they needed.

Garland is well known as a workhorse in the kitchen and the line up featured two Garlaudfour-burner ranges, a Garland flat grill together with two Frymaster fryers. Rodney and Matthew worked with Trevor Tsiouris of ACT Stainless Steel & Catering Equipment to install the equipment in the very compact kitchen space.

This heavy duty durable equipment was better suited to keep up with Boon, Jayar and the rest of the kitchen team. And a hard working team the are...

Not only does the team manage busy service for the restaurant from early in the morning to late at night, they also cook all the meals for the Kids feeding Kids program overseen by Rodney's wife Mari Pizzinga.

Funds raised by the program support the work of Cotninitteeassist.org whose mission is to provide a sustainable difference for orphaned children in Africa. Mad is a director of the charity and draws on her skills as qualified architect. This work coupled with her passion for managing the Kids feeding Kids program is inspirational.

Kids feeding Kids started in 2011. Three days a week the chefs cook and prepare healthy children meals including meatballs, vegetarian pelme, uasi goreng and chicken pasta.These are delivered in recyclable containers to three local pritmuy schools at no charge.

The schools then charge the students for the meals and all this money from Kids feeding Kids is then donated to Committeeassist.org so they can continue the work supporting 31 African children with food, housing and education including fiuming and sustainabilitv practices.

Mari puts is simply: "Everytime a child buys a healthy meal at school they are helping feeding a less fortunate child on the other side of the world."

Kids feeding Kids has raised over $4,000 each school term for African children. *