Sam tastes success as an aspiring chef

By Jacqui Bialocki

From making gnocchi with his Nonna to winning gold at the Victorian Apprenticeship Awards, Sam Castrechini is cooking up a future with plenty of promise.

Some chefs find their calling later in life. For Sam, it started at 12, standing beside his Nonna in the kitchen, cooking, tasting and soaking up everything he could.

There was always something growing nearby, too. When Nonna wasn’t making Sam’s favourite gnocchi, she could be found tending her citrus, apple and fig trees or working in her vegetable garden. It was an upbringing steeped in food. “I grew up around food and homegrown produce,” says Sam. That early connection to food and produce has become the foundation for a young chef who is already making his mark.

At 17, Sam began his apprenticeship at Moke Dining in Flinders, working under award-winning chef Michael Cole and getting his first taste of life in a professional kitchen. Now in the second year of his apprenticeship, he continues to sharpen his skills and expand his experience in the kitchens at the RACV Cape Schanck Resort.

Alongside the practical experience, Sam has been developing his craft through his studies at Chisholm Institute’s Mornington Peninsula campus, where teacher Michael Villani became another important influence on his culinary journey.

Then came the moment that showed just how far his hard work was taking him. Sam claimed gold in the Victorian Second-Year Apprenticeship category at the 2026 AusTAFE State Final Awards, before going on to win silver in September at the Australian Culinary Federation National Apprentice Competition held during the Fine Food Australia Exhibition in Melbourne. The competition reach is extensive, involving more than 4000 culinary students and educators.

For a chef still in the early stages of his career, it is an extraordinary achievement and one that has only fuelled his ambition. “I want to keep learning, keep training and explore what I can do,” he says. “And once qualified, travelling overseas is definitely on my to-do list.” And the destination he dreams of? London.

Closer to home, Sam has developed a particular passion for pastry and desserts, with strawberries among his favourite ingredients. He also draws inspiration from culinary legend Marco Pierre White, another sign that this young chef has his sights firmly set on mastering his craft.

From Nonna’s kitchen to the national awards stage, Sam’s journey has already been impressive. But for this ambitious young chef, the biggest chapter is still to come.