Andy Hearnden
New Zealand celebrity chef
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Andrew Hearnden (born 7 October 1985),[2] better known by his online moniker Andy Cooks, is a New Zealand chef, YouTuber, and cookbook author based in Australia. He worked in restaurants for 20 years before turning to social media in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic,[3] and two years later had 13 million followers across TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.[4]
Andy Hearnden | |
|---|---|
| Born | 7 October 1985 |
| Partner | Katelyn Flood[1] |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Subscribers | 6.18M |
| Last updated: 30 April 2026 | |
| Website | www |
Early life
Hearnden was born in Wellington and subsequently lived on a poultry farm.[3] He was passionate about cooking from a very young age.[5]
Career
Chef
After training at an Auckland culinary school, Hearnden worked in café kitchens there.[5]
Moving to London he started working for Michelin-star chef Tom Aikens at Chelsea's Tom's Kitchen, then at E&O in Notting Hill, before Shoreditch's Great Eastern Dining Room to be their Head Chef at the age of 24.[5]
After seven years in England, Hearnden moved to Sydney and French Bistro Felix. He became Head Chef at Gills Diner and then Entrecôte in Melbourne.[5]
Hearnden was Executive Chef at coffee shop chain St Ali and later managed restaurants and bars in airports around Australia and New Zealand.[5] He moved to the Sunshine Coast in 2020, joining beef processor Kilcoy Global Foods, as Executive Chef in their test kitchen.[6]
Content creator
In November 2021, Hearnden started publishing on TikTok under the name Andy Cooks.[3] Later, he posted Instagram, YouTube and Facebook content for home cooks.[7] Within 18 months of starting, he had 10 million subscribers across his social media platforms.[4]
The cooking videos are best known for the Hey Babe format,[4] and Basic Mitch catchphrase.[citation needed]
In 2022, YouTube identified Hearnden as one of Australia's Top 5 Creators,[8]The Sydney Daily Telegraph described him as a top 25 Australian on TikTok,[9] and The Australian ranked him Australia's #41 top influencer.[10] Taste.com.au considered him one of its most popular food influencers of the year[11] and The Courier-Mail one of the Sunshine Coast's top influencers.[12]
The following year, the Herald Sun named him one of Victoria's top Instagram influencers.[13] The Courier-Mail ranked him in its list of the Sunshine Coast's most influential people,[14] and also included him amongst Queensland's top YouTube[15] and Instagram creators.[16] YouTube Australia named Hearnden its top creator.[17]
Publications
- Hearnden, Andy (2023). Andy Cooks: The Cookbook. Marion's Press. ISBN 9780645255768.[18]
Personal life
Hearnden is in a relationship with Katelyn Flood.[1]
Television
| Role | Episodes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | The Cook Up with Adam Liaw on SBS Food | Guest | 4 |
| 2023 | Sunrise on Seven Network | Guest | 2 |
| 2023 | The Morning Show on Seven Network | Guest | 1 |
| 2023 | Breakfast on TVNZ 1 | Guest | 1 |
| 2025 | MasterChef Australia | Guest | 1 |