CEO CookOff goes down a treat!

The 132 business chiefs who took part in last night’s inaugural CEO CookOff faced two challenges – feeding 1,000 people in Sydney’s Cathedral Square and supporting Australians in need.

In make-shift kitchens under threatening skies, they did both in spectacular fashion, raising well over $885,000 for Mission Australia and OzHarvest – and counting!

Among the chiefs who donned aprons last night were Alan Joyce of Qantas (which sponsored the event), National Rugby League CEO David Gallop, Therese Rein of Ingeus and Allens Arthur Robinson Chief Executive  Ewen Crouch – who is also Chairman of Mission Australia.

Our own CEO Toby Hall, who cooked with Teague Ezard in the Black by Essard kitchen, and MA Housing Chief Executive Andrew McAnulty also rolled up their sleeves to raise funds and awareness of homelessness.

The executives took their orders from 30 top-notch chefs, including Neil Perry, Bill Granger, Guillaume Brahimi and Maggie Beer, who kindly donated their time to help raise awareness of homelessness and food security.

Guests included people invited by Mission Australia services such as Missionbeat, The Fairlight Centre, the Housing and Accommodation Support Initiative (HASI), Women in Support Housing and MA Housing tenants, as well as other Sydney-based not-for-profits.

They sat down at long banquet tables with community services workers from a range of organisations as well as volunteers from both Mission Australia and OzHarvest, who came in to set up and pack up the outdoor restaurant.

Among the diners was Judy, who has struggled with homelessness and drug addiction since her teens. She’s now getting her life back on track. "I've got a place to live, I've stopped using and I've got a job," she told AAP.

"I'm just happy to be here with my brother, my husband, my sister and my Mum and Dad.” Between courses, guests snuck a few photos with TV stars such as Poh Ling Yeow of Poh’s Kitchen and Masterchef judge Matt Preston.

For many, however, the real treat came after dessert when Jimmy Barnes took to the stage, who almost raised the roof of nearby St Mary’s by belting out classics like Flame Trees, Khe Sanh and Working Class Man. His set topped off a night of great music with performance by the Australian Girls Choir and King George.

Ronni Kahn, founder of Oz Harvest, a food rescue charity that delivers 333,000 meals per month in in Sydney, Canberra, Newcastle, Adelaide and Brisbane., said the night gave those receiving a meal dignity.

"Most people see disadvantaged people and turn their heads when they see them on the streets because they don't know what to do with them," Ms Kahn said.

Toby Hall also told CEOs of the pressing need for Australia to provide enough housing for all: “Every Australian deserves a roof over their head every night of the year,” he said during an on-stage interview with MC Karl Stefanovic.

Huge thanks to OzHarvest and Qantas, who jointly designed the CEO CookOff to raise awareness of food security and homelessness, to all the chefs, volunteers and businesspeople and supporters who all so generously gave their time, talents and funds to make this event such a success.

Also special thanks to the young homeless man who stayed late to personally thank Toby and Ronni and the volunteers for the work being done by Mission Australia and Oz Harvest. Having lived on the streets for many years, he said the support was “absolutely vital”.

To find out more about the event, including a full list of all 30 chefs and donation tally of each chief executive, visit the CEO CookOff website. The money raised will be split between Mission Australia – and with donations nudging the $1 million we’re looking forward to using the funds to make a difference to the lives of Australians who are doing it tough.

View photos of the event on our Facebook page.