Gianni Hendrickx

Gianni Hendrickx’s path to Kangaroo Island began in Belgium, where childhood days cooking with his grandmother eventually led to training at Spermalie and time in Michelin-starred kitchens in Ghent and Antwerp. After stepping away from cooking for a stint in sales, the urge to travel brought him to Australia just before his 30th birthday. A Head Chef role in Broome put him back in the kitchen, followed by two seasons at Mount Mulligan, where Gianni rediscovered not only his creativity as a chef but his love of building and leading a team. When he was ready for another challenge, Southern Ocean Lodge caught his attention. He knew the lodge by reputation, but Kangaroo Island itself was largely unfamiliar. That changed quickly.

Today, the island is one of Gianni’s greatest sources of inspiration. Walks and drives reveal colors, textures, landscapes, and ingredients that spark ideas for new dishes, while relationships with nearby producers put exceptional produce within kilometers of his kitchen. His philosophy is to begin with Kangaroo Island and build outward, allowing local ingredients to remain the heroes rather than obscuring them with technique. The lodge’s four rotating menus evolve with the seasons, giving guests the chance to taste as much of the island as possible over the course of a stay. Gianni still draws on the precision, organization, sauces, and meticulous plating he learned in European kitchens, but his measure of success is considerably simpler: however beautiful or technically accomplished a dish may be, “if it doesn’t make you want to take another bite, then we’ve missed the point.”