Chef Philip Edwards

Six-star chef takes Songbirds to new heights
Melbourne trained chef Philip Edwards heads the talented team at Songbirds in the Forest at Mount Tamborine

Chef Philip Edwards was born and bred in country Victoria. He decided cooking would to be his career at 17 and set out to score an apprenticeship with Two Faces, one of Melbourne’s leading restaurants.

Philip completed his training with renowned chef Herman Schnider and went on to work at Jacques Raymond, Est, Est, Est and Luxe – three of Melbourne’s finest establishments.

Philip then joined Melbourne’s Restaurant Ondine. “It was an exciting year. Restaurant Ondine was the talk of the town and won Victoria’s Best New Restaurant award in the first year of opening,” Philip says.

Change and challenge are part of a great chef’s tools of trade. Philip was lured away from Restaurant Ondine by an offer from the then newly-opened six-star Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast.

Philip says he enjoyed working at Palazzo Versace. “It was a marvellous experience but I prefer working in a more intimate atmosphere. Songbirds gives me the opportunity to create individual dishes from the freshest seasonal produce,” he says.

Philip’s style of cuisine combines classic French, European and Asian techniques with unique Australian ingredients. Each dish is individually made and perfectly presented as an appetising picture on a plate.

Philip says he prefers simple flavours that stimulate the tastebuds. “My dishes are based on the flavours of the ingredients – game and seafood are two of my favourites,” he says.

“Songbirds’ owner Bonnie Rodwell insists on using nothing but the best. We use as much locally grown and organic produce as possible,” he says.

“I am a country boy at heart; I grew up in a farming community. My mum is a great cook, from her and the top chefs I have worked with I leaned the importance of fresh, prime produce.

Songbirds in the Forest at Mount Tamborine was voted the 2006 Queensland Restaurant of the Year, Best Informal Restaurant and Best Modern Australian Cuisine. The restaurant also won Gold Coast Restaurant of the Year 2006 and 2005 Gold Coast’s Best Restaurant, Best Modern Australian Cuisine, Best New Restaurant and a Best Wine List Award.

Songbirds in the Forest serves lunch every day and dinner on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.