Setting the Scene.

There’s a certain theatre to heading out into the country for an event like this – part pilgrimage, part throwback to something unmistakably Australian, with just a hint of B&S ball energy in the air. The arrival set the tone immediately. A warm welcome at the gate, a brief pause while a particularly assertive chicken decided to live up to its namesake, stopped me for a while, and then a gentle redirection toward a paddock where cars were left behind in favour of the experience ahead.⁣

A short walk – a few hundred metres – carried guests deeper into the property and into a different rhythm entirely. The reward at the end of it was immediate: a glass of prosecco in hand, cattle grazing nearby, a lone horse lingering at the gate, and ahead, a dining space that felt both deliberate and beautifully unrefined.⁣

The setup was nothing short of remarkable. Tree trunks driven into the earth held festoon lighting overhead, casting a soft glow across long, thoughtfully arranged tables. A central fire pit, encircled by full tree trunks as seating, became an anchor point for the evening, especially as the temperature dropped. Nearby, a modest tent awaited the band, while a working tent buzzed quietly as dishes were assembled with precision. Even the details leaned into the environment – long drop loos tucked away that Tim was so proud of, a sauna quietly offering warmth, and a bar set beside a vintage Bedford truck that felt like it had been lifted straight from my grandfather’s front yard.⁣

And then, of course, there was the food.⁣

Before a single plate was served, the scale of it revealed itself. Structures built purely for the act of cooking meat. Suspended, stunning, commanding attention. Asado crosses bearing whole pigs, positioned with purpose. A hulking, wheeled barbecue groaning under the weight of its task – hundreds of bone marrow bones roasting on the same fire-warmed hotplates as the potatoes, pans of bubbling cheese catching the firelight. It wasn’t just a kitchen; it was a landscape of fire and intention, as much performance as it was preparation.

About Terra Firma and their Philosophy.

Taken from their website

Charly Pretet is a celebrated Chef the world over.

Born in France, after a successful career in hospitality in Paris, he moved to Australia in 2015.

Charly’s love of good food, cooking and the great outdoors started when he was a little boy, spending his childhood fishing, hunting, riding horses and growing organic vegetables on the family property on the West Coast of France.

He is the name behind renowned restaurants Cuistance in Paris, The French Pantree in Yamba and is also a recipient of the Australian Food Guide Chef Hat in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Charly made the switch from fine dining to fire dining in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic. Limited by where he could enjoy cooking good food, Charly took to the immediate environment around him and created his kitchen without borders. Inspired by the traditional Argentinian Asado barbecue method, he created Terra Firma Dining. Charly’s mission is to connect people back to the environment where food is grown. His unique dining experiences are all about celebrating, sharing and bringing people together by the fire. It’s edgy, it’s primal, but still a little bit French.

About The Food Farm and their Philosophy.

Taken from their website

Did you know that the average shopping basket of food has travelled over 70,000kms – equivalent to almost two trips around the world?

Or that urban sprawl means that the farming land surrounding Sydney is predicted to decline by over 90% in the next 10 years?

Meet Tim & Hannah, founders and first-generation farmers at The Food Farm.

If you’re like most people, you probably haven’t had the opportunity to connect with how the food you eat has been farmed.

And the truth is, we hadn’t either when we realised we had become so disconnected from the source of our food that we didn’t know what was in it, where it came from or what impact it had on our environment, despite being surrounded by some of the best farmland in Australia.

They knew that they had to find a better way and so their regenerative food journey began…

The Menu.

Canapes Around the fire

FIRE CHEESE FRYPAN, SMOKED GRAPES, CHARRED NUTS, HONEY DRIZZLE

BEEF TARTARE AND GRILLED BONE MARROW

Main Course

6H HUNG AND SMOKED BEEF RIBEYE FROM THE FARM

5H HUNG & SMOKED STUFFED CHOOKS FROM THE FARM

WHOLE PIG ON THE ASADO CROSS

CRISPY SMASHED POTATOES

SMOKED CABBAGE, GRILLED GREENS, FRESH LEAVES AND CITRUS SLAW, DUKKAH

COAL ROASTED PUMPKIN, BURNT BALSAMIC, TOASTED SEEDS, FETA, BASIL

ALL MENUS SERVED WITH HOUSE-MADE CHIMICHURRI SAUCE AND SPICED YOGURT

Dessert

6H SMOKED PINEAPPLE, GRILLED PEACH, CINNAMON GRANOLA, DULCE DE LECHE

The Food.

The anticipation here is not incidental – it is the experience. Time, fire, and patience are treated with reverence, and under the guidance of Charly and the Terra Firma crew, that reverence becomes something quietly extraordinary. The logistics alone are staggering, yet it all unfolds with an ease that borders on deceptive; what must be a monumental operation appears, at a glance, almost effortless – like they’re simply tending to breakfast.⁣

Charly himself is a study in momentum. He moves between stations with relentless focus, a constant presence across the sprawling cooking grounds. Photographing him proved near impossible – he rarely stood still long enough to be captured in a way that felt worthy. And yet, this is far from a one-man show. Surrounding him is a cohort of highly regarded chefs, each contributing to a collective that operates with both precision and instinct.⁣

The food, when it arrives, justifies every moment of waiting.⁣

The chicken was, without hesitation, the standout. Wood-fired for five hours, it carried a depth of flavour that redefines expectation – fire, time, and technique converging into something profoundly satisfying. It’s the kind of dish that recalibrates your standard entirely. The pork followed closely behind, rich and yielding, delivering exactly the kind of indulgence one hopes for in this setting.⁣

The beef, served with a confident hand, leaned further toward the rare than I personally favour, though it found plenty of admirers at the table who embraced it wholeheartedly. Elsewhere, the accompaniments held their own with quiet authority. The cheese was exceptional, deeply savoury and indulgent, while the tartare – served atop roasted bone marrow – was unapologetically decadent, a dish that revelled in its own excess.⁣

Potatoes arrived in abundance and were quickly devoured; the salads, often an afterthought in meals of this nature, were among the most impressive I’ve encountered – bright, balanced, and essential to the overall composition. Chimichurri and spiced yoghurt tied everything together, offering contrast, lift, and a sense of completion.⁣

By the time dessert appeared, it faced an impossible task. It struggled to assert itself against what had come before, though perhaps that speaks more to the completeness of the preceding courses than any shortcoming on its part. At that stage, satisfaction had long since set in – the kind that leaves you contemplating nothing more than a quiet seat by the fire, and the inevitability of a deeply contented, food-induced sleep.

In Conclusion

There are events that satisfy, and then there are those that linger – this was firmly the latter – I imagine I will remember this event until the end of days. An evening defined as much by atmosphere as it was by food, where a collective sense of contentment settled across the paddock. Glasses of wine in hand, conversations flowing easily, and a soundtrack delivered by Kirsten Allison – @kirstenallisonsings – that elevated the entire experience – her performance was nothing short of captivating.⁣

The success of the night rested not only on what was served, but on those who brought it together. Tim and Hannah, our hosts, orchestrated the experience with a generosity that never wavered. Charly and his team, meanwhile, operated with a kind of quiet mastery – producing food that ranks among the most memorable I’ve encountered, not through excess, but through intent and execution.⁣

What lingered just as strongly, however, were the connections made. Conversations with locals turned quickly into something more familiar, a reminder that these gatherings are as much about people as they are about place. For someone still finding their footing in the community, it felt like a small but meaningful shift.⁣

And somewhere along the way, almost inevitably, two days after, I found myself in a freshly purchased cowboy hat haha – proof, perhaps, that immersion had been achieved. The cap, it seems, no longer suffices here.

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I do apologise, there are so many photos, I loved twice as much and had to cut them hard to just get these in haha

SCORE BREAKDOWN: 3/3 food, 2/2 service, 1/1 drinks, 1/1 venue & ambience, 1/1 cost, 1/1 toilets & 1/1 bonus

All photographs are Copyrighted by Spooning Australia and Jason King – please feel free to share with full credit provided.

Terra Firma Details

Website

https://www.terrafirmadining.com https://thefoodfarm.com.au/

Phone

Terra Firma – 0466480020
The Food Farm – 0406 360 588

Address
Terra Firma – Located in QLD, but is doing international events now
The Food Farm – Wyong Creek, NSW

Bookings for Terra Firma – Essential – at events or book an event

Pricing for Terra Firma – HIGH

Vegetarian Options – My god NO haha

Kid Friendly for Terra Firma – Yes