Margaret River pop-up that served Andy Hearnden ‘one of most interesting meals of his life’ tours Australia

When I suggested Andy Hearnden check out Dahl Daddy’s while he was in Margaret River for the inaugural Pair’d festival, I expected the popular chef would enjoy himself. (Then again, who wouldn’t fall headfirst for a spirited curry canteen – operating out of the local skate park, no less – specialising in heavy-hitting Burmese flavours including, as its name suggests, a deeply nourishing dahl?)

What I wasn’t expecting, however, was how into Dahl Daddy’s he would be – and that there would soon be a reunion.

“In November last year, I had one of the most interesting meals of my life,” said Hearnden on Instagram after he and fellow New Zealand-born chef Ben Shewry visited Dahl Daddy’s and ate various dishes including lahpet thoke: a Burmese fermented tea leaf salad Hearnden hailed as “absolutely delicious”.

“For the first time in ages, I tasted bold, beautiful flavours that I’d never had before,” says Hearnden. “My mind was blown.”

Sadly, leasing issues forced Dahl Daddy’s owners Corey Rozario and Imogin Mitchell to close their popular community eatery in June: devastating news for Hearnden as well as anyone else with an appreciation for bold South Asian cooking. The silver lining to this especially gloomy cloud, though, is that losing their permanent home has allowed Rozario and Mitchell to hit the road and introduce the rest of Australia to Dahl Daddy’s singular, free-spirited take on Burmese and South Asian cuisine.

Until mid-October, Dahl Daddy’s caravan of curry will wind its way around Australia and stop in Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney, the Sunshine Coast and Adelaide before ending the tour in Perth at Big Don’s Smoked Meats. Throughout the tour, Rozario and Mitchell will set up shop in everything from a pizza-slinging record shop in Melbourne’s inner-east (Sunday, August 16) to an Adelaide burger joint (Thursday, September 25). Each city’s event will be unique, with formats ranging from set-menu dinners to takeaway nights.

One of the tour’s key moments takes place in Sydney on Sunday, August 31. A joint effort with the team behind Kyiv Social – a socially minded eatery affiliated with the Plate It Forward movement and winner of the innovation prize at the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide awards in 2023 – this event is a fundraiser for earthquake relief efforts in Burma as well as a reunion between team Dahl Daddy’s and Hearnden.

“The morning after I posted my video cooking a Burmese-style prawn curry, I woke to news that a massive earthquake had hit the region [Burma],” says Hearnden. “I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had to do something. A week later, almost like serendipity, Corey called and asked if I wanted to be part of this new project. I said yes straight away. I can’t wait to get in the kitchen with him, share this incredible food, and hopefully do some good along the way.”

Like Hearnden, Rozario is also looking forward to giving back and has been touched by the offers of support he’s received from people around Australia, even from those who aren’t part of the official tour schedule. (“It’s great to see a community come together,” says Rozario.) He is equally inspired by the opportunity to work in new environments and alongside different people as he and Mitchell figure out what the next chapter of Dahl Daddy’s looks like.

“The people I’m teaming up with are fun and creative,” he says. “I’m sure I’m going to pick up lots of knowledge and skills and learn to become a little more adaptable and modular in how I think and cook. It’s been a lot of work piecing this tour together, but I think it’s going to be worth it. Not many people get to embark on a journey like this.”

Dahl Daddy’s Australian tour includes Melbourne (Skydiver Records, August 16); Canberra (AK’s Diner, August 22 and 23); Sydney (Kyiv Social, August 31); Sunshine Coast (Samila Gaeng, September 9); Adelaide (99 Gang Social, September 25) and Perth (Big Don’s Smoked Meats, October 18). Follow Dahl Daddy’s social media for more details.