Bream Creek in Tasmania has a population of just over 100 residents. The rural town held the Bream Creek Show since 1886 which sees many events take place, including the coveted Giant Pumpkin competition. It’s also the location of Oirthir, a Scottish–French fine diner that has replaced Van Bone. Timothy Hardy and Laura Ducken opened Van Bone in 2021 to much acclaim. But after close to four years in business, the pair made the decision to sell the 20-seater with all the trimmings — a furnished dining room, commercial kitchen, garden, and paddock space.
The owners weren’t going to sell to the highest bidder, and were adamant on finding the right fit for the site — meet Bob Piechniczek and Jillian McInnes, the chef couple who are paying homage to their Scottish (and Michelin-star) roots while paving a new legacy on the east coast.
Bob Piechniczek and Jillian McInnes both started their culinary careers at young ages — 14 and 16 to be exact. Piechniczek worked as a kitchen hand at a local pub, earning 10 pounds per week, “which was a lot of money back then for a 14-year-old boy,” he says. After spending many hours observing professional chefs, Piechniczek decided to study hospitality at college after he finished secondary school. But spending time in a formal learning environment wasn’t for him.
Piechniczek was granted work release from the classroom and dispatched to five-star hotel The Balmoral in Edinburgh. He spent five years learning the ropes and moving from kitchen to kitchen until he ended up cooking for the hotel’s Michelin-star restaurant Number One. A fortuitous opportunity at Harvey Nichols department store later presented itself, which is where Piechniczek met McInnes, whose culinary journey started at catering school.
The budding pastry chef worked part-time at a local hotel in her hometown but decided to make the move to Edinburgh to work in the pastry department at Harvey Nichols. The pair worked together for around three years before they decided to relocate to Melbourne. McInnes snagged a role at Donovans and Piechniczek at Bacash.
A move back home to Scotland followed a few years later due to homesickness, which saw them return to work at Michelin-star kitchens before a stint in New Zealand in 2014. They returned to Melbourne in 2017, where they worked together once again at QT. During this period, they tied the knot and enjoyed some time in Tasmania. “We had our honeymoon in Tasmania in 2019 and we always wanted to live there,” says Piechniczek.
The pair first visited the Apple Isle back in 2012, but “there wasn’t much happening”, says McInnes. “When we came down again in 2019, there was so much going on with the food scene. The produce is outstanding, and it reminded us of home with the whiskey distilleries, the weather, and the seafood.” The chefs spent a total of seven years in Melbourne and were ready to start a new chapter as business owners. “We wanted to become our own bosses and do our own thing,” says Piechniczek. An Instagram post asking for expressions of interest to purchase Van Bone caught their attention, and they reached out. “We emailed them and built communication from there,” says McInnes.
The initial email resulted in the sale of the restaurant, with the four keeping in touch until the handover, which took place earlier this year. “The communication with Tim and Laura was second to none,” says Piechniczek. “For us as new business owners, to have them help with suppliers, the garden, and [getting to know] the community, was helpful. Their support has been incredible.”
Oirthir translates to east, which is a fitting name for McInnes and Piechniczek’s first restaurant. While a Scottish–French concept makes perfect sense for the couple, there’s no doubt it’s something new for Tassie — and Australia. “We have learned many French techniques over 20 years, and we enjoy that style of cooking,” says McInnes. “The produce in Tasmania is similar to what we get in Scotland, so marrying it all together came naturally for us. It’s not normal, but it works for the location and the ingredients we’re using.”
The pair spent around three months developing Oirthir’s debut menu, which consists of seven courses. Offering a set menu was a decision rooted in sustainability, dining experience, and organisation. “Being a small restaurant, you don’t want to waste produce,” says McInnes. “You also want people to experience this side of Tasmania.” It’s a two-chef show at Oirthir — McInnes takes care of entrées, cold dishes, and desserts and Piechniczek, the hot courses. The pair recently recruited a front-of-house manager and consulted with Van Bone alumni Luke Monks to develop the wine list. They’ve also signed on a part-time gardener to assist with the inherited kitchen garden that grows much of the produce seen throughout the menu.
Keeping the team small not only saves on labour costs but ensures a carefully curated dining experience that sees the two chefs at the helm of both food and service. “We wanted to work the floor together, take dishes to guests, and explain the courses,” says McInnes. A meal at Oirthir currently begins with Tassie Gold oysters and wood-fired soda bread made with locally foraged seaweed.
The menu is subject to change according to seasonality and availability, but there are some standout dishes in the early weeks of service. Blue Lip mussels from Freycinet are teamed with zucchini kimchi and beurre blanc, and haggis makes an appearance on a dish of Bangor lamb and turnip. Cranachan, a traditional Scottish dessert of whipped cream, raspberries, oats, and whiskey has been reinterpreted by McInnes, who likens it to a fool. “I’ve done my version with toasted barley ice cream, honey whiskey, fresh raspberries, and a tuille with buckwheat and oats.”
As the cool season sets in, there will be some new additions to the menu, one of which will make the most of the restaurant’s smoker. “We do a lot of smoked fish back home, so we will do a dish called Cullen skink,” says McInnes. “It’s like a fish chowder with potatoes and smoked fish. We will also use wild game and we might do venison haggis in winter.”
Making connections with the local community is a key focus for the chefs, who have created a supper menu available every second Friday and Saturday night. The three-course offering is priced at $75 and covers an entrée, choice of main, and a dessert. “It’s more relaxed and designed to get the locals to come in,” says McInnes. “We will change up the dishes every two weeks and we might do some Magnum wines and French wines as well because locals don’t always want to just drink Tasmanian wine.”
Oirthir has been operating for just over a month, with McInnes and Piechniczek speaking to Hospitality after opening weekend. “I think we surprised ourselves,” says Piechniczek. “You can have a vision and write a menu and a wine list, but when it comes to the experience and the execution, I’m pretty happy about our first week.”
Most new restaurant owners have ambitions to receive a hat or an industry award, but racking up the accolades isn’t the number-one priority for the pair. It’s a lot simpler than that. “We’ll change the menu five to six times a year,” says Piechniczek. “The variety is what inspires us. If awards come, it’s just a bonus. For us to have this site, and access to the produce we do, is more than enough for us.”
