Our Team

Our catering team combines over 30 years of hospitality and business expertise to help you create the perfect menu for every event.

Head Chef Abbey has an impressive CV, with experience in several prestigious establishments in and surrounding Sydney, and is proud to have worked at the NSW RAAF base in Williamtown. She has collaborated with some of the world’s most prominent chefs, including Jamie Oliver, Cameron Matthews and Matt Moran.

Since joining HW Catering, Abbey has shared her passion for vegan and vegetarian cooking with our trainee cooks, and together they have created tantalising new menu items.

When Abbey first heard about the values and purpose of House of Welcome, she was immediately inspired. She continues to enjoy being part of the team and sharing her culinary knowledge, and is excited to help our clients build a future in hospitality.

Chef de Partie Avedes (Avo) is one of our Chef de Parties. His story is glorious. He started with HW Catering in December 2021 as a trainee client chef and completed our training program mid-2022. Our Head Chef Abbey recognised Avo’s strong skillset in the kitchen, and his passion for cooking, and offered him a full-time position at the end of his trainee period as a senior chef. It hasn’t stop there for Avo: he continues to excel and is now one of our Chef de Parties.

He works directly with our Head Chef and has introduced some of his own recipes to our menu. Currently he is undertaking the Certificate III in Commercial Cooking to complete his qualifications. He already holds the Certificate III in Hospitality.

Chef de Partie Ivan is our second Chef de Partie appointment. He joined the team in June 2023, after working in another social enterprise. The opportunity to work at HW Catering was very appealing to him. His background spans many years experience working within high-profile hotel groups in Sydney.

He is excited to infuse our menu with his cultural heritage. Ivan reports directly to our Head Chef.

Our Current Trainee Cooks continue to excel in the kitchen. Two of them began in our program in early 2023, and are nearing the end of their training. A third trainee started mid-year and is already well on the way to learning new skills in commercial cooking, under the expertise of Abbey.

During training, they learn how to prepare food in a commercial kitchen environment, and learn about food service through the opportunity to engage with customers and share their knowledge of our menu. During the training process they receive extensive mentoring from our Head Chef.

Every trainee enters our kitchen with much enthusiasm and little experience beyond cooking for their families at home. On exiting the program, they will receive a Food Health & Safety Certificate, and a personal reference presenting their newly attained culinary skills.

Anne leads business operations. Anne brings more than 25 years of small business expertise to the enterprise. She has also held management positions with publicly listed companies both locally and overseas, with specialised responsibility in sales, marketing, event management and advertising. She built her own successful business, and understands the importance of satisfying your catering needs.

She has led multiple projects, large and small scale, for various blue-chip businesses. Her strong marketing, creative, communication, financial, negotiation and counselling skills go towards driving business expansion and establishing strong, longstanding relationships. With her many years of experience, she will help you deliver an amazing menu.

Anne looks forward to speaking with you when you are ready to place your order with HW Catering.

Our Supporters

To everyone who has placed an order with us, thank you for choosing this catering service. Your support makes a significant difference to the lives of refugees and people seeking asylum living in Australia.

We are particularly grateful to Cumberland Council and City of Parramatta for providing the funds to help us build a dedicated commercial kitchen, where our trainee chefs can acquire professional skills and experience that will foster their journey to independence and self-determination.

We have been touched by the number of people in the community who have embraced HW Catering by providing donations to support our activities, or booking us for regular events.

Our trainee chefs have the opportunity to gain a Certificate III in Hospitality, thanks to PAYCE Foundation. Through its partnership with House of Welcome, PAYCE supports many of the employment pathways available to our clients, and we deeply appreciate its ongoing support.