“They’re just like us,” Andrew Hardjchari said after meeting with Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla at a community barbecue hosted by NSW Premier Chris Minns at Parramatta Park on Tuesday, October 22.
Andrew co-owns Aril Estate with his brother Dimitris, and he was one of many regional NSW produce stalls on display showcasing organic and sustainable produce. His stall showcased traditional Greek and Mediterranean products such as naturally fermented table olives, extra virgin olive oils, and pomegranate syrups, molasses and jams.
“It was wonderful meeting them. The Queen knew her stuff. I was speaking with her about all the olive oil products we sell and she said ‘I’m familiar with them’ and I thought ‘wow they’re just like us. They like the same stuff we do’,” Andrew told The Greek Herald on the day.
Chris Zournazidis, General Manager at Beef Producers Australia, said he was honoured to be at the event and showcasing his Manning Valley Naturally grass-fed beef to Their Majesties.
“My little backstory is that my yiayia actually cooked fasolada for Prince Phillip back in 1954, so 70 years ago,” Chris said.
On the day, the King and Queen also met with a long list of inspiring Australians including the police hero of the Bondi Junction shootings, Detective Inspector Amy Scott; author and actor Anh Do; Olympian Noemie Fox and singer Casey Donovan. The Chancellor of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia, Father Christophoros Krikelis was also present.
School students were a highlight of the King’s walk through the barbecue, with His Majesty stopping at a Greater Sydney Parklands Mandala exhibit and exclaiming “that looks nice” as the Queen showed off a nature crown on her head created by the nearby youth.
The King and Queen later had a go on the tongs at the BBQ, with the King snapping the tongs, saying “they’re long aren’t they,” drawing laughter from everyone gathered.
At the Mediterranean BBQ stall, the General Manager of MISC Parramatta Sebastian Khouri said he was excited to promote Parramatta’s multiculturalism to the King and Queen.
“I think, the same way that Australia opened its doors to so many cultures, we’re taking the Australian classic and switching it on its feet a little bit and adding the flavours of Parramatta into it,” Sebastian said.
During the Royal Agricultural Society sheepdog display, the King and Queen looked on in amusement as the sheep were herded by dogs around a scrambling media scrum trying to avoid getting in their path.
In a speech, His Majesty praised the food on display at the stalls and the city’s multiculturalism.
“Being here in Western Sydney gives me an opportunity see first hand what I have heard about before, and that is the Parramatta and the region around it has become one of the most dynamic, enterprising and culturally diverse communities in the world,” he said.
*All photos copyright The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
