Joel Bickford

Growing up in a small rural town in the Blue Mountains gave Joel Bickford a passion for regional produce and a less is more approach to food that celebrates and heroes the natural. 

Joel has been cooking for over 25 years, honing his craft at, among others, Bel Mondo, Eschalot and Restaurant Arras. In 2013, country life called again and he spent two years as head chef of the iconic Biota Dining in the Southern Highlands before heading up the stylish waterfront Sydney hotspot, The Gantry Restaurant & Bar.  

This year, Matt Moran approached Joel to take on the role of executive chef at Aria Sydney. Here he has been able to fully express his philosophy of creating stunningly stylish, contemporary cuisine that showcases the finest ingredients Australia has to offer. 

Joel was named Daily Telegraph’s Chef of the Year in 2015, has won two Sydney Morning Herald Chef’s Hats for both Biota Dining and Aria Sydney and was recently awarded 2018 Chef of the Year at the Savour Excellence awards.