Lennox Hastie is the chef and owner of Firedoor in Sydney, awarded 2 Hats in the Good Food Guide.
Known for building one of Australia's most distinctive restaurants around wood-fired cooking, Lennox has spent more than a decade refining a philosophy that places fire, ingredients and restraint at the centre of every dish.
From Europe to the Basque Country
Before opening Firedoor, Lennox worked in some of Europe's leading kitchens, spending time in the UK, France and Spain. While the experience exposed him to a wide range of techniques and styles, it was his move to the Basque Country that proved most influential.
Lennox joined the team at Asador Etxebarri under Victor Arguinzoniz, where he developed a deeper understanding of cooking with wood fire. What began as a planned one-year stay became five years, learning how different woods, temperatures and cooking methods could bring out the best in ingredients.
The experience would go on to shape the direction of his career and provide the foundation for what would eventually become Firedoor.
Building Firedoor in Sydney
When Firedoor opened in Surry Hills in 2015, it offered something few Australian restaurants had attempted at the time.
The kitchen was built around a series of wood-fired ovens, grills and hearths, with every dish cooked using fire. Rather than treating fire as a finishing technique or a source of smoke, Lennox made it the foundation of the entire restaurant.
The concept quickly attracted attention from chefs and diners alike, earning recognition for its disciplined approach and unique identity.
Over time, Firedoor has become one of Australia's most respected restaurants and a destination for chefs wanting to better understand the possibilities of cooking with fire.
Cooking with fire, not smoke
A common misconception about Firedoor is that the food is built around smoke or barbecue flavours.
For Lennox, fire is a cooking tool rather than a flavour.
Different woods are selected for different ingredients, temperatures are carefully managed, and the focus remains on highlighting the natural characteristics of the produce. Whether cooking seafood, vegetables or premium cuts of meat, the objective is precision rather than intensity.
This approach has helped define Firedoor's style and distinguish it from many other wood-fired restaurants.
A restaurant built on restraint
One of the qualities that stands out in Lennox's cooking is restraint.
Rather than relying on complex presentations or lengthy ingredient lists, the focus is on quality produce and careful execution. The simplicity of the dishes often masks the technical skill required to deliver them consistently.
Cooking exclusively with live fire adds another layer of complexity. Temperatures shift throughout service, wood behaves differently depending on its type and age, and every ingredient requires a considered approach.
Maintaining that level of consistency is one of the reasons Firedoor continues to earn respect throughout the industry.
Why Lennox Hastie matters
Few chefs have built a restaurant around a single idea and remained committed to it for so long.
Through Firedoor, Lennox has demonstrated that innovation does not always come from introducing new techniques or technologies. Sometimes it comes from mastering one of the oldest methods of cooking and applying it with discipline and precision.
His influence can be seen in the growing number of Australian kitchens embracing wood-fired cooking, but Firedoor remains unique because of the clarity of its vision.
More than a decade after returning from Spain, Lennox continues to show how a strong point of view, backed by skill and consistency, can create one of the country's most recognisable dining experiences.
