Elke Travers is a Commercial Development Chef at Nestl Professional Australia, driving customer-led menu strategies and supporting Nestl ProfessionalOs new product innovation across the foodservice channel. She partners with customers to turn insights and trends into commercially viable menu solutions, delivering training and demonstrations that lift kitchen consistency and efficiency.
Her commercial career began in the kitchen at 15 and spans cuisine, pastry, and bread across restaurants and private catering. Highlights include Riberries Restaurant with Jean-Paul Bruneteau, Red Ochre Grill Cairns with Craig Squire, and Head Chef at Aqua Dining in Lorne. She also worked as a private chef and ran her own catering company, Bite Size, for nearly 15 years.
Influential mentors include Jean-Paul Bruneteau, John Roche, Kerry Brown, Craig Squire, Christine Mansfield, and Kylie Kwong. ElkeOs approach reflects modern cuisineNsimple, produce-led, and grounded in sustainability.
ElkeOs strong education and training foundation includes an HSC, TAFE Commercial Cookery Trade, Pastry & Bakery Trade, and a Certificate IV in Commercial Cookery Operations. She is passionate about developing the next generation of chefs through past teaching roles with Sydney cooking schools (including Le Cordon Bleu and ACU Culinary Nutrition) and by supporting emerging talent via the Nestl Golden ChefOs Hat Award.