Introducing Luke Collard, Sommelier
Originally from New Zealand, Luke has one of the most extensive hospitality histories of our staff. His French grandfather instilled an interest in food and wine at a relatively young age, and he began a career in food and wine as a cocktail bartender in Auckland during the eighties.
In 1989 he moved to New York where he worked in several restaurants, including Soho Kitchen & Bar and Tribeca Grill. After two years, he moved to London, working initially as a private butler, and then as a manager for an event catering company. This involved functions for up to 600 guests in iconic locations such as the Natural History Museum, the London Guildhall, and also Highclere Castle (future setting for Downton Abbey) where he served HM Queen Elizabeth.
In 1995, Luke joined the ground-breaking UK wine merchant Oddbins to concentrate on the wine business and wine education. During his five years with Oddbins he sat all of the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) exams, completing an honours Diploma in 1998 and finishing in the top ten for the UK that year.
During 2002, he was recruited to be the Restaurant & Brasserie Manager at Harvey Nichols new store in Edinburgh, which involved being on board from very early in the project, through recruitment, training, planning, opening and the first six months of operation.
In early 2003, Luke moved his family to Sydney, settling on the Northern Beaches. He worked for Rob Walters at Palm Beach Wine Co for two years, then began work at “two hat” restaurant Pilu at Freshwater as a sommelier, later becoming the restaurant manager, spending over five years there.
In 2010, his wife opened a tearoom and bistro in Newport called Butler & Cook, and in March 2011 Luke left Pilu at Freshwater to concentrate on running this business. Due to an illness in the family, the business closed in February 2012.
Also in 2010, Luke qualified as a WSET Approved Programme Provider and continues to teach wine and spirits to hospitality industry professionals on Sydney’s North Shore and Northern Beaches through his company Globe in a Glass. He also consults to restaurants, providing advice and training on all aspects of restaurant management.
After a year as a sommelier/manager at Jonah’s Restaurant in Whale Beach, Luke was approached by Alessandro Pavoni of Ormeggio at The Spit to become Head Sommelier for the restaurant. He took the Ormeggio wine list to a three glass rating in July 2014.
In January 2015 Luke was appointed as the Head Sommelier at Jonah’s Restaurant. In 2015 and 2016 Jonah’s was awarded “Best Hotel Restaurant Wine List”, and in 2016 also won
“Best Wine List in NSW” and came second overall in the Australian Wine List of the Year Awards. In 2017 Jonah’s won the Wine List of the Year for all of Australia.
In late 2017, Luke became the Head Sommelier for Public Dining Room on Balmoral Beach. Over almost five years he built the list and made it more approachable, reaching and maintaining three glasses.
He joined the team at new Italian restaurant Civico 47 in April 2022.
Luke maintains a keen interest in food and wine, and regularly travels both within Australia and overseas. His wife is a chef, and they have been married for almost thirty years. They have two grown up daughters.