A taste of Spain in the heart of Maffra

The addition of a premier tapas, whiskey, wine and cocktail restaurant, Barrel & Bliss, has added an exciting new dimension to the Maffra Community Sports Club.

Words, Chris West | Photos, Doug Pell

When Derek Pohler interviewed successfully for the role of Sous Chef at the Maffra Community Sports Club two years ago, an additional opportunity canvassed by General Manager Eugene Downing during their discussion proved to be the cream on top.

“Eugene mentioned an idea he had to create a tapas restaurant upstairs at the venue and asked whether would be interested in bringing his vision to life,” he recalls.

It was a chance the experienced and highly skilled Scottish-born international chef accepted with relish.

“The promise of becoming the new restaurant’s Head Chef and to be given the autonomy to create a more refined dining experience at the venue was something that appealed immediately to me. I had reached a point in my career where I didn’t want to be limited to standard pub food, so this presented an opportunity that suited me perfectly,” he explains.

Derek continued in the role of Sous Chef in the Maffra Community Sports Club’s main bistro while the restaurant plans were put into motion and gradually took shape.

“The upstairs space needed a lot of work, but I could also recognise the potential that Eugene had seen in it,” he states.

“At the time it was predominantly being used as a storage area but could be cleared out for occasional larger functions. The upstairs kitchen was no longer fit for purpose after being dormant for some time, so had to be completely overhauled.” incorporate some tantalising Australian twists into the Spanish inspired tapas menu.”

Along with incorporating the internal fit out, the whole restaurant development project took just over a year to come to fruition.

Derek worked diligently on the creation of a Spanish inspired tapas menu that features a mouthwatering selection of large or small plated dishes and delicious desserts, which can be enjoyed with a wide variety of cocktails, beers, wines and prestige label whiskeys.

He has ensured that the menu’s signature dishes showcase a variety of meat, seafood, and vegetarian options. Many products on both the food and beverage menu lists have been sourced locally from Gippsland based suppliers. Every bite and sip tell their own individual story,

One of the unique aspects of Barrel & Bliss is how Derek has opted to incorporate some tantalising Australian twists into the Spanish inspired tapas menu.

“It’s a little bit of a culmination or fusion of authentic Spanish flavours and cooking with Australian ingredients,” he observes.

“For instance, we have crocodile on the menu, which obviously isn’t a traditional Spanish dish, but the way it’s cooked is made to represent calamari which is. We also have a kangaroo paella which I would describe as my fun take on combining the familiar with the unfamiliar.”

Although Derek was responsible for the development of the menu’s diverse canvas of flavours and textures, the man behind the restaurant’s naming and brand identity was Eugene Downing.

Eugene carefully crafted the name as an appropriate nod to the earthiness of the barrels that carry many of the whiskeys, beers and wines served in the restaurant and the truly emotional, blissful feeling of satisfaction that accompanies enjoying sumptuous food and beverages in a special kind of setting.

Barrel & Bliss was ready to trial a soft launch for Valentine’s Day last year, before officially opening three months later in May 2024.

Derek is pleased to convey that the reaction from diners has been overwhelmingly positive. » loyalty both ways. At a time when experienced chefs in Gippsland were hard to come by, we opted to cast the net wide in an endeavour to introduce more of an exotic influence into our kitchens otherwise you tend to just end up with more of the same.”

“In a small town it invariably takes a little time to get people to try something that is quite a bit different to what they’re accustomed to, but we’ve made great progress over the past nine months since opening and the feedback we receive about what we’re doing here has been excellent,” he says.

Comments amongst the regular “five star” ratings on popular review websites such as Google and Open Table from diners consistently praise the quality of the food and exemplary service.

Derek acknowledges that Barrel & Bliss is far from a solo operation. He is assisted by a kitchen hand and support chef, along with a dedicated team of front of house staff whose combined efforts help ensure diners enjoy a truly memorable experience.

After initially opening on Friday and Saturday evenings only, Barrel & Bliss subsequently added Thursday evening to its roster as the new restaurant began to gather momentum and word spread. The logical next step in the extension of hours would be the introduction of lunchtime opening, which is presently under consideration and likely to become available in the not-too-distant future.

Reflecting on how his vision for Barrel & Bliss has come to fruition, Eugene Downing attributes much of its initial success to the skill, energy and tireless effort Derek has put into the restaurant along every step of the journey.

“We are delighted with how Derek grabbed this opportunity with both hands and what he has delivered for us with Barrel & Bliss,” Eugene comments.

When visitors walk up the staircase to be greeted at Barrel & Bliss, it’s like entering a separate world away from the remainder of the venue. The newly created space is contemporary, trendy, versatile and completely private, protected from nearby noise beyond its walls by acoustic panelling and several Ash sliding barn doors.

Soft lighting and candle lit tables add to the relaxed, intimate mood in the restaurant. Diners do also have the option of reserving outside tables on the balcony overlooking Maffra’s main thoroughfare, Johnson Street, which can be particularly appealing on fine evenings.

There is also an adjacent function room, again with balcony access, which offers a superb setting for corporate events or larger private celebrations.

Derek made the journey to Australia in 2014 with a friend in search of a new adventure.

Originally from Glasgow, he had already accumulated eight years of experience in kitchens around different parts of Scotland, Wales and northern England. After arriving in Melbourne, he initially dabbled in a different line of work before quickly opting for a return to the more familiar kitchen environment and resuming his career as a chef.

Although his backpacking mate subsequently decided to return home to Scotland, Derek chose to stay and has started a family with his partner who he met in Melbourne. The couple now have two young children aged seven and five. Life took another dramatic turn for Derek during the COVID period, with city restaurants being particularly hard hit by the impact of lockdowns.

“I’ve put a lot of faith in him, and he’s believed in the vision from the outset. I think he has really thrived on being given the freedom to demonstrate his exceptional culinary skills and technical expertise.”

Eugene says the Maffra Community Sports Club feels privileged to have Derek performing such a pivotal role within its wider team.

“We currently have nine chefs in the venue across two kitchens. Our Executive Chef, Matt Craig, oversees the entire kitchen operation, with Derek now solely focused upstairs in Barrel & Bliss as the restaurant’s Head Chef,” he explains.

“Derek joined us in 2023 as part of a concerted recruitment strategy to expand our talent pool by sourcing international chefs on sponsorship programs. It is a method which often proves successful and helps build

“It was either stay in Melbourne and starve or come to the country,” he remarks.

Derek headed to Gippsland to pursue opportunities in the region and has really found his niche at Barrel & Bliss. He is happily settled in the area with his family and is looking forward to building on the restaurant’s early success.

The arrival of Barrel & Bliss has added a whole new dimension to the Maffra Community Sports Club, which has established itself as the social and entertainment hub of the town since opening in 1997.

The venue is one of the largest employers in Maffra and each year provides financial support to a long list of local sporting organisations and community groups. Throughout its history, the club has donated $2.5 million in sponsorship funding back into the community to help organisations participating in numerous sports including football, netball, cricket, golf, tennis, bowls, angling, equestrian, cycling, gymnastics, and many more.

“We’ve always positioned ourselves as more than just a club, and Barrel & Bliss is now a big part of that aspiration in making us a destination,” Eugene says.

The restaurant is attracting widebased clientele and bringing many first-time visitors through the wider venue’s doors.

“Being a table service restaurant, Barrel & Bliss is a completely different experience to the bistro downstairs,” Eugene comments.

“We’ve had to provide specialised training to our front of house staff to give them that additional skillset. We are rotating them through Barrel & Bliss on a fortnightly basis to widen their experience as part of an overall focus on encouraging professional learning and growth opportunities.”

Eugene says the two different hospitality experiences at the venue are combining well together.

“People can still come in for a pot and parma and watch sport downstairs like they’ve always done. We have something to offer everyone, whether it’s enjoying the bistro with the kids’ playroom which is the popular choice for young families, or if you wish to visit our TAB sports bar or gaming facilities,” he notes.

“But launching Barrel & Bliss has elevated what we offer to a new level and the positive response tells us that concept has definitely been validated already. We are getting noticed, which adds to the excitement and optimism for the future. A lot of our visitors are people from outside the area who’ve heard about us and they’re telling us they’ll be back.” gl

Address

Level 1, 122-126 Johnson St, Maffra

Opening hours

Thursday-Saturday 5.30pm – 11.00pm

Bookings essential Phone (03) 5147 2670 www.barrelandbliss.com.au

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