September 2nd, 2023Here’s cheers: Great times ahead at The Pig

Words and Images: Eve Lamb

Eammon Hamilton was determined when he set about securing kitchen maestro Joel Reilly to be head chef at the Pig&Whistle.

“We’d been getting along here without a head chef for six months, just doing reliable pub fare, and I was looking for just the right person,” says Eammon, owner-manager at the Trentham East landmark.

The historic hotel dates all the way back to 1866, and after a colourful past, reopened 18 months ago under its current management.

Since then The Pig, as it’s lovingly known by many locals, began building an impressive legion of dining devotees.

But since Joel accepted the role of head chef back in May, the Pig & Whistle Hotel Restaurant’s reputation as a must-do dining experience has ratcheted up a whole new level, with the formerly-Melbourne-based chef bringing his 27 years of cooking experience to lead the kitchen team.

“I had the pleasure of working with Joel in Melbourne in another hospitality venture for nearly 15 years, so I’d been slowly twisting Joel’s arm and enticing him with an opportunity in the country and eventually he kind of gave in,” Eammon recounts.

“We worked together for quite some time doing events at a place called Red Scooter Unique Events in Balaclava,” Joel says.

“And before that I was at Hotel Comme for a couple of years doing events. When I first arrived in Melbourne I worked at Marchetti’s Tuscan Grill. I worked at Matteo’s for a couple of years, and I worked at Cecconi’s at Crown Casino.

“So I had quite an Italian influence but I had also dabbled in other cultures and cuisines, a lot of work catering for large events and functions.”

Designing the Pig &Whistle new spring menu with a practiced eye to both seasonality and variety, Joel says taking note of what customers want is the main factor guiding his menu planning.

“You’ve got to cater for your clientele, working out what they like and what they want and catering towards that,” Joel says.

“My specials are my sounding board to find out what people like.

“The main focus here is still to provide good quality, wholesome pub food, but then I like to mix it up with weekly specials that will be from different cultures and different parts of the world, mostly to keep the locals entertained and interested.”

In a society full of special dietary needs it’s important to note that the Pig & Whistle caters for things like gluten intolerance, vegan and vegetarianism.

“We have a couple of vegan dishes on the menu and I’m hoping to run at least one vegan special every week,” Joel says.

“With our fryers we keep one completely gluten free and we maintain a lot of our products as gluten free so we’re utilising things like potato starch and rice flour.”

The wine list showcases many of the local wineries that the region boasts. But among all that is trendy and top shelf, the old favs still go down a treat and the management at this venue is noticing.

“A Carlton Draught and a parmi is still our number one selling product so it doesn’t matter how fancy you get,” Eammon says.

“We analyse the data a lot so we’re really looking at what’s selling.”

Working alongside Head Chef Joel, the kitchen crew currently includes three other full-time chefs, three part-time cooking staff and three additional staff, and the focus is on attracting and retaining top staff.

With this in mind, they’re building a brand new kitchen space adjoining the existing kitchen to improve both amenity for staff and work flow.

“We have used Tony Schindler Consulting. (Tony) is a chef but now specialises in commercial kitchen construction,” Eammon says.

The new kitchen is scheduled for completion in the next couple of months and complements the venue’s expanding capacity to cater for larger functions.

The rear beer garden is already an alfresco treat on warmer days and evenings, perfect for parties and functions, or simply kicking back to share quality times with friends.

All this is soon to be expanded upon further with the acquisition of an adjoining 0.7 acre parcel of land to accommodate more car parking, and to develop an onsite kitchen garden. Good times ahead look likely.