Greg Malouf
🇱🇧 Lebanon · Lebanese cuisine · b. 1956
The Australian chef whose books are the leading English-language reference on modern Middle Eastern cuisine.
Biography
Greg Malouf is a Melbourne-born chef of Lebanese descent whose work since the late 1990s has established him as one of the most important contemporary voices on Middle Eastern cuisine in English. As executive chef at MoMo in Melbourne and later at Petersham Nurseries Café in London (one Michelin star), he developed a style that translates the home cooking of Lebanon, Syria, Persia and the broader Levant into fine-dining presentations without losing the flavour profiles of the originals.
His cookbooks, written with his ex-wife Lucy Malouf — including 'Saha,' 'Saraban,' 'Arabesque,' 'Turquoise' and 'New Feast' — won multiple international awards (the IACP, the World Cookbook Awards) and remain the leading English-language reference works on modern Middle Eastern cooking.
He has consulted for restaurants and hotels across the Middle East, Europe and Australia, and is widely cited as a key influence on the current generation of Middle Eastern chefs working in the West.
Cooking Philosophy
Middle Eastern cooking deserves the rigour of fine dining without losing its soul. Malouf takes the layered spice mixtures (baharat, ras el hanout), preserved-lemon brines, slow-cooked stews and elaborate sweets of Levantine and Persian home cooking and presents them in modern restaurant formats — but he insists on flavour fidelity over visual gimmicks.
Restaurants
- MoMoMelbourne (closed)
Malouf's earlier flagship; modern Middle Eastern.
- Petersham Nurseries CaféRichmond, London
Held one Michelin star while Malouf was head chef.
Awards & Recognition
- Michelin star (Petersham Nurseries Café)
- World Cookbook Award (Saha, Saraban)
- IACP Cookbook Award
- Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
Iconic Dishes
Cookbooks
- Saha
- Saraban
- Arabesque
- Turquoise
- New Feast
- Persia: A Cookbook
Signature Recipes Inspired by Greg
Original recipes we created as homages to Greg's cooking style and signature dishes. Not direct reproductions of any copyrighted material — these are our interpretations of the traditions Greg has worked with throughout their career.
Recipes in Greg's Style
These recipes from our database reflect the lebanese cooking tradition that Greg works in. They are not direct reproductions of Greg's copyrighted recipes, but traditional dishes inspired by the same culinary heritage.
Career Timeline
Becomes head chef at O'Connell's Hotel in Melbourne.
Becomes executive chef at MoMo in Melbourne, where he develops his modern Middle Eastern style.
Publishes 'Arabesque,' his debut cookbook with then-wife Lucy Malouf.
Publishes 'Moorish' and 'Saha' — establishing him as a leading authority on Middle Eastern cuisine in English.
Becomes head chef at Petersham Nurseries Café in Richmond, London; the restaurant subsequently earns a Michelin star.
Publishes 'New Feast: Modern Middle Eastern Vegetarian.'
Awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for services to Australian cuisine.
Frequently Asked Questions about Greg Malouf
Why are Greg Malouf's cookbooks important?
Malouf's cookbooks — Saha, Saraban, Arabesque, Turquoise, New Feast — are widely regarded as the leading English-language references on modern Middle Eastern cuisine. They combine careful regional research, accurate technique and beautifully written context, and have won multiple international cookbook awards.
Where did Malouf train?
Malouf trained in classical French technique in Melbourne and then in restaurants across Europe and the Middle East. The combination of French rigour and the Lebanese-Syrian home cooking he grew up with in Melbourne underpins his entire body of work.
Is Greg Malouf Lebanese or Australian?
Malouf was born in Melbourne to Lebanese parents who emigrated to Australia. He identifies as Lebanese-Australian, and his cooking draws on the family Lebanese-Syrian tradition he grew up in alongside his classical French restaurant training.
What is the Petersham Nurseries connection?
Malouf was head chef at Petersham Nurseries Café in Richmond, London, during which time the restaurant retained its Michelin star. The Petersham years were an important phase in introducing his modern Middle Eastern style to British audiences and to a generation of younger London chefs.
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