When SBS last spoke with Chris, Black Star Pastry was one of Sydney's leading patisseries, thanks in part to Chris’ famous creation - the strawberry watermelon cake.
In December 2017, business expanded to its fourth location in the Sydney suburb of Moore Park to keep up with demand.
“We found with our existing kitchens, we were hitting the limits of what we could make and as our brand grows more people want to eat our food,” Chris says.
The expansion required a $1 million loan, and while it was expensive, the huge investment means an opportunity to grow further, and possibly expand overseas.
"It means that we now have the muscle to keep growing, whereas if we didn't make this move then we were really stopped where we were," he says.
The 2018 Australian Small Business Champion Awards held their Australian Young Pastry Chef Champion competition at the new Black Star location.
As the mastermind behind the most Instagrammed cake in the world, and a former winner of the competition, Chris was an obvious pick to be one of the judges.
“I hope they see what we’ve achieved here at Black Star was through hard work,” he says.
“As a former winner of the award, the best thing about it is the recognition you get - not so much for you, but for the team. It really lifts morale... it makes the year a great year.”
There were times in my career where I was ready to give up because it’s very hard work, and this is me saying, ‘hey, stick in there.’”
Four finalists flew in from around Australia to face off for the title.
Richard Dormer was crowned the 2018 Australian Young Pastry Champion. Source: Supplied
The standout dessert was a chocolate hazelnut layer cake, served up by Perth chef Richard Dormer, who won an all-expenses-paid trip to Italy to visit leading patisseries in the region.
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