Sam Gruar - Head of New Zealand Course Development

When CI approached me to get involved with an online cookery course for NZ I said “why don’t you get a more famous NZ celebrity chef with a TV presence? There are quiet a few now.” They said no, we want a self-made chef made good through hard work, personal experience and travel who has built a successful restaurant business based on flavours and textures from international exposure. So, I investigated the course and the more I got into it I realised it reflected my personal development and life!
I started my first job at age 14 in Ponsonby, moved to apprenticeship during high school at Harbourside restaurant, Auckland. Moved to Arrowtown in 2001, joined the team at Saffron and continued my development at Eichardt's Private Hotel in Queenstown. My desire for international experience moved me to New York in 2008 only to miss NZ and return to the French Café in Auckland. International experience again beckoned and I worked in Spain for 2 years. Now with enough international exposure to flavours and textures I came back to Arrowtown with Penelope to open La Rumbla. 5 years later, its success has enabled us to develop other Cookery methods and opened our second food business, Slow Cuts. With increased exposure to flavours I am now also involved in a Brewery.
I was given access to the course developed by the Australian Institute and developed it for New Zealand with special emphasis on my favourite flavour and texture profiles for any dish. I hope this course can help fellow Kiwis start new careers, food businesses or just cook like Chefs with panache.

Ross Wiseman - Head Tutor

As a young man, food and all things cookery fascinated Ross. He started his cooking career as an apprentice chef at the famous Savoy Hotel. He then went on to work at the Hilton Hotel in Munich which returned him to Melbourne as part of the kitchen team to open the Melbourne Hilton. To gain more in depth knowledge of the intricacies of meat and meat products he also owned and operated his own butcher’s shop for over 3 years.

With enough experience under his belt, he opened and managed his own restaurant in Melbourne for over 6 years. His teaching experience includes over 30 years teaching students and developing cookery courses at a prestigious cooking institution in Melbourne. He has literally helped to start thousands of cookery careers and is our Head Tutor as well as on our Qualifications Standards Board.

He is now a member of a cookery network group in Melbourne that developed National Curriculum for cookery programs in Australia. He is also a member of the Australian Guild of Professional Cooks and is currently a judge for Catering Awards within Australia. 

Wayne McBean - Tutor

Wayne started his career as an apprentice chef at the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria once he qualified he went onto work in the kitchens of the Melbourne Hilton as Chef de Partie and Sous chef at the Tel Aviv Hilton as well as spending 2 years as a chef in the Dorchester Hotel in London.

He has also worked as the executive chef in Melbourne at the 250 seater Pamplemousse Restaurant featuring French cuisine managing a staff of 25 in the kitchen. He has owned and operated a fine dining restaurant in Toorak for 8 years as well as a Bistro for 10 years. He also spent 2 years as the Executive chef managing the restaurants at Hamilton Island resort. Wayne brings a wealth of cooking knowledge and experience to the Cookery Institute as one of our tutors.

Tina Snyder - Tutor

Tina experimented with some career choices until her passion for cooking determined what she really wanted to do. After completing her standard certificate course, she joined Ross's restaurant and progressed from Short Order cook to Line Chef and Sous Chef. Her passion for learning everything about Cookery exploded when Ross asked her to help him with his teaching duties. She has since excelled in tutoring hundreds of students and become a senior Tutor in her own right. Tina now brings 17 years experience in Cookery including 6 years as a Tutor - and more importantly, she keeps getting great student testimonials and reviews! We love to have her on our team.

Wendy Grouby - Tutor

Wendy hails from Wellington. She moved to Melbourne at an early stage where she was exposed to the immigrant cuisines of Italy and Greece and from where she developed an interest in all things Cookery. She trained and worked for Ross where she ignited a particular interest in baking. This took her to further studies on cake decorating. She has accumulated a wide experience from working in commercial kitchens, cooking on super yachts in the Mediterranean, eventually buying and operating her own restaurant in Palm Beach, Sydney. But Baking and the Kiwi lifestyle beckoned and now splits her lifestyle between Queenstown and Melbourne as a tutor. She helped develop our Baking Module and remains our Baking expert.