Culinary coup: Top chef Matt Moran to be special guest at next year’s Shore Leave festival in Geraldton

Guess who’s coming to dinner, Geraldton? Organisers of the Shore Leave festival have revealed a special VIP guest for the 2023 event — top chef, restaurateur, TV host and author Matt Moran. Moran will be hosting and curating the menu for the Midwest Paddock to Plate event, one of the marquee dining events at the Shore Leave festival. The festival, from April 27 to 30 next year, will be the third Shore Leave in Geraldton and the Mid West. The culinary coup of Moran’s attendance will also come with a change of scenery for the 2023 Paddock to Plate event. Instead of being held on Geraldton’s foreshore, the feast will be at Yanget Farm, a homestead and station that has been rearing cattle since the early 1900s about 25km east of Geraldton. “I am so excited to be part of Midwest Paddock to Plate; it’s a philosophy that is very close to my heart,” Moran said. “The connection between the land and produce is extremely important to me and having the opportunity to serve quality local produce on the land that it came from is a really special thing. “We are so incredibly lucky in Australia with the variety of fantastic produce available to us, and the amazing landscapes and destinations we can all access through travel. “I am thrilled to be part of Midwest Paddock to Plate and I can’t wait to get over to Geraldton April next year.” Damian Tully, CEO of paddock to plate sponsor Midwest Ports, said the experience would be a “true celebration of the Mid West region”. “To have the legendary Matt Moran curate the menu and showcase the best produce in the area is very exciting. We look forward to seeing Geraldton and the Mid West shine in the spotlight during Shore Leave 2023,” he said. More than 30 events involving dining, music, art and performance are scheduled over the four-day festival. The luxurious long table lunch at the Abrolhos Islands is back again, but in a new option guests can choose to travel to the lunch at East Wallabi Island via seaplane, touching down right in the middle of Turtle Bay. A Mid West Food Hall — including fish and chips from Barnacles or slow-smoked ribs from Burnt Barrel — will be set up at the event’s HQ, known as The Helm, where there will also be an inaugural western rock lobster cook-off. The State Government contributed $300,000 over three years to kickstart the signature festival. Funding has been secured through Tourism WA until 2024. Tourism Minister and Deputy Premier Roger Cook said the annual world-class culinary and cultural event would attract people to the Coral Coast, create local jobs and inject funds into local businesses. “I encourage everyone to make the trip to Geraldton to explore the many other attractions this region has to offer,” he said. Regional Development and Agriculture and Food Minister Alannah MacTiernan said events such as this generated a boom for local businesses that would last long after the event wrapped up. More than 14,000 people attended last year’s event, with about 60 per cent of ticket sales to the premium dining events coming from outside the Mid West. The overall economic stimulus to the region from this year’s event is expected to be more than $2 million. Tickets go on sale from Thursday, September 15. For more information, visit shoreleave.com.au.