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Carryduff chef and star of the hit BBC show Great British Menu, Gemma Austin, is looking forward to a new ‘era’ as she prepares to open a restaurant at Hinch Distillery.

Gemma has made a name for herself with her creative culinary art over the last few years, not only with her appearance on the small screen, but also with her inventive Belfast restaurant ‘A Peculiar Tea’, where foodies enjoyed a whimsical dining experience with themes including Harry Potter, Beauty and the Beast, and Alice in Wonderland.

Sadly, Gemma recently took the difficult decision to close A Peculiar Tea, for now, but she is eagerly looking forward to going back to her roots with the opening of ‘Era’ at Hinch Distillery later this month.

Gemma has become one of the most well known and popular chefs in Northern Ireland in recent years. However, this was not her first choice of a career path, as she explained when she spoke recently to the Ulster Star.

"I trained to be a nurse,” Gemma explained. “I went to Queens and then had a back injury that put me out of that.

"I worked in Tesco for a long time and didn’t really know where to go.

"My mum, who was a chef before she had us, was the one who suggested going into a kitchen.”

Gemma got a job as a Commis Chef at Slims Kitchen in Belfast and she has never looked back.

"That was the start of it,” she continued. “I instantly fell in love with it. I went back to university and did a degree in culinary arts.

"For my dissertation I put together a business plan for ‘A Peculiar Tea’.”

Gemma, who also worked in the Old Inn in Crawfordsburn, decided to put her plan into action and began pop-ups of A Peculiar Tea before opening the restaurant itself on University Road in Belfast in 2021.

"Great British Menu reached out to me because they had seen the A Peculiar Tea pop-ups,” Gemma explained.

"When I was asked to go back for a second series that was just at the tail end of covid. It felt like it was the right time so we moved into the University Road building on November 3, 2021.”

Gemma could not have dreamt of how popular the new restaurant would be, booking out months in advance as people sought out a very different dining experience.

"The popularity was unbelievable,” Gemma admitted.

"We have had the most amazing time here. People loved the concept because it is a real escape from reality. It’s a bit of craic.

"I will be really sad to see it go.”

Fans of A Peculiar Tea will also be disappointed that the restaurant is closing.

With the end of their lease this year, Gemma and her team struggled to find another suitable spot in Belfast, with rates sky high, the cost of living crisis continuing unabated, and energy and food prices on the increase, the local chef revealed that opening a new restaurant in Belfast city centre can be even more expected than opening in London, a fact which will no doubt shock many people.

"Everywhere we went just wasn’t right for us,” Gemma continued. “Everywhere seemed very expensive and we were under pressure to find somewhere very quickly.”

However, despite closing the doors on the University Road restaurant, Gemma promises customers that A Peculiar Tea will be back as a pop-up so keep an eye out for its re-appearance.

"A Peculiar Tea isn’t dying. We will continue doing it as a pop-up for one or two nights so that people can still experience everything about A Peculiar Tea. We will return,” Gemma assured fans of the popular restaurant, which served a seven-course tasting menu, as well as magical afternoon teas.

Gemma is now focussing on a brand new restaurant, ‘Era’, which will be based at Hinch Distillery on the Carryduff Road close to Temple.

"We had a mutual friend with Hinch Distillery and they put us in touch,” explained Gemma, who revealed the new restaurant will open on July 17.

"Their brasserie has been empty for quite some time.

“I feel like this is going back to my roots. It is a new era for us.

"It is going back to what good food is.

"I am very passionate about using local produce and we will be sourcing produce within 50 miles of the restaurant, supporting local people.

"We want to take it back to what really matters to us – good food cooked well.”

Bookings are already open for Era and can be made online at https://dishcult.com/restaurant/era

Gemma also has plans to expand beyond the food, creating a fantastic atmosphere and hosting events throughout the year,

"There is a lovely big yard so we hope to have live music, and some markets as well,” she continued.

"We want to bring something really special to the area. We want it to become a resort, bringing tourists as there is so much beauty in that area.

"We are very excited.

"Era is a really great opportunity for us to do something totally different that is more accessible for people.

“There is nowhere else in the world like here.

"The support in Northern Ireland is like nowhere else. We support each other when it matters and that is what makes hospitality and the people in Northern Ireland so special,” Gemma added.

Carryduff chef and Great British Menu star Gemma Austin looks forward to opening a new restaurant at Hinch Distillery