Anzacs on menu

By Ed Merrison
A HILLS restaurateur is serving up an Anzac Day treat to leave members of Upwey-Belgrave RSL overwhelmed and full of praise.
Ben Higgs, owner and chef at Olinda’s Wild Oak Café, Restaurant and Wine Bar, last week declared a wish to donate his full Anzac Day profits to the sub-branch, which has been tackling the dual challenge of financial hardship and a need to consolidate its place in the community.
“After reading that they were struggling financially at the moment, it just got me thinking.
“Anzac Day can be quite a lucrative public holiday for many restaurants in the Hills, but I feel I needed to contribute to this on a bigger, more significant level,” Mr Higgs said.
Mr Higgs, who has been at the helm at Wild Oak for three years, has held Anzac Day dear since his childhood in Marysville, where the whole town would come to a standstill to commemorate the diggers.
He recalls with pride how his grandfather, who served with the RAAF during World War II, used to pin on his medals for the special day.
“My grandfather has since passed on, but I still feel I should be marching out of respect for the sacrifice that he and so many men and women made preserving our way of life.
“Due to work commitments now I find it very hard to attend the ceremonies, so this is a way I can honour their memory,” he said.
Upwey-Belgrave RSL member and Vietnam veteran Lou Hesterman said he was overwhelmed at Mr Higgs’s generosity and hoped it might encouraged other local businesses to reach out in support of vital community causes.
“We can really do with a helping hand for this struggling little RSL club, and Ben’s local initiative is absolutely marvellous,” he said.
As well as buoying the RSL’s spirits in the lead-up to Anzac Day, Mr Higgs’s contribution will go towards upgrades aimed at making the premises more comfortable for current members and more attractive for future members.
Club affiliate vice-president Ross Carey said hundreds of volunteer hours had already gone into the upgrades, which include an extensive outdoor decking area, new walkways and pergolas, replanted lawns, a new toilet block and a facelift to the cenotaph.
“We have to look after the veterans and their families and remember those lost in the past, but (Mr Higgs’s) contribution will assist everyone in the community and help us make this a true community sub-branch. “Everybody is welcome to come and look at what’s going on, and it’s really a case of the more the merrier,” he said.
Mr Carey said this year’s Anzac Day numbers were expected to top last year’s record crowds of about 1000.
“It seems the longer we go, the more people we get interested. It’s just great to see,” he said.
And although he will be slaving over a hot stove on the day, Mr Higgs was himself aiming to attend the dawn service before work.
Furthermore, he hoped to rustle up some Anzac biscuits as part of his tribute.
“I haven’t made them in a while – I may have to call my mum for a recipe,” he said.