About
The cuisine of Martin Benn is original and technique-driven -widely described as avant-garde and contemporary Australian.
Martin began his career in London at the Michelin-starred Oak Room, later moving to The Criterion under chef Marco Pierre White. Relocating to Australia in 1999, he joined Tetsuya Wakuda at Tetsuya's, becoming head chef at twenty-five.
In 2009, Martin opened the internationally acclaimed Sepia with his partner, Vicki Wild. One of Australia's most awarded restaurants of its decade, Sepia held three chef hats from 2011 to 2018 and gathered almost every accolade possible, named One to Watch by the World's 50 Best in 2015.
Martin has been named Chef of the Year by the Good Food Guide, Gourmet Traveller, Gault & Millau, The Australian and The Australian Financial Review. He has appeared as a regular guest chef on MasterChef, creating the finale dish in 2016, 2020 and 2021.
His first book, Sepia - The Cuisine of Martin Benn, was published by Murdoch Books in 2014. His second, The Dinner Party (Hardie Grant, 2023), was named among the top ten cookbooks of the year by the Los Angeles Times.
Today, Martin consults on innovation across restaurants and hospitality, bringing three decades of craft to operators, hotel groups and developers. He is passionate about mentoring the next generation of culinary talent - sharing not only technique, but the standards and integrity that define a life in kitchens.
