Eat Drink Think - In Conversation

Grab a drink and gather fuel for your next dinner party conversation (and menu) - we're bringing together 5 insiders with unique stories on culture, celebration and what makes our local food scene tick.

From the farmers behind the ingredients in your favourite restaurants, to the joy and impact of celebrating local food, to feminism and food sovereignty, join us for honest, wide-ranging chat about our food culture - where it's been, where it's going, and what it says about us.

Host: Dani Valent

Dani Valent is one of Australia’s most respected food communicators. She is a longtime freelance journalist, restaurant critic and award-winning cookbook author. She hosts the Dirty Linen food podcast, where she explores the hospitality industry in all its marvellous and messy glory. She was named a Legend by the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival in 2022 and was honoured for her Outstanding Contribution to Hospitality in the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards 2023.

Authors in conversation

A panel discussion with the 3 women authors behind recently released (and raved about) books on food in Brisbane and beyond. A combo deal of casual chat and deep insights into what they've loved, learned and noticed about food, and the people and communities behind it.

• Lucy Ridge, Fed Up - a disillusioned chef who walked away from the male-dominated restaurant world to find a more meaningful relationship with food, travelling across Australia to learn from the women growing, harvesting and making it differently.

• Sam Parish, Chefs Eat Brisbane - a chef-written and chef-lead exploration of Brisbane's blooming restaurant scene, and the identity its forging - sharing the wisdom they’ve earned, the dishes that define them and what they actually eat in their own time.

• Shika Finnemore, Eat Brisbane - a love letter of stories and recipes from the diverse chefs, producers, artisans and dishes who bring us together over a good feed.

From the farm

Short but sweet talks from two of our region's most community minded growers and advocates for local food.., who somehow still have time to supply veg and herbs to some of your favourite chefs and venues:

• Phil Garozzo, Loop Growers. A wildly productive market garden in the Samford Valley, nourished by community, creativity, attention to soil health, and Loop's unique compost collection system. They were one of the first farm's to spearhead a (increasingly popular) collaboration with local venues through collecting their food 'waste' - turning it into rich compost for their top-notch produce, redefining the potential of these 'yields' and tackling our huge food waste problem.

• Jacki Hinchey, Blue Dog Farm. The face behind the infamous 'Really Fancy Salad' mix you've probably tried even without knowing. Based in Ocean View, Jacki is an avid locavore and prolific people-connector - she instigated SEQ's REKO movement, once undertook a challenge to only eat food grown within Moreton Bay region, and is one of the farmers featured in Lucy Ridge's book.

Food and drink available to purchase at the venue - including award-winning beer brewed onsite by Blind Boy Brewing.

Eat Drink Think is part of Industry Day of SEQ Food Summit 2026. If you want to go deeper into the conversation, find out more about the full SEQ Food Summit.