Andy Hearnden
New Zealand celebrity chef (born 1985)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Andrew Hearnden (born 7 October 1985),[1] better known by his online moniker Andy Cooks, is a New Zealand chef and YouTuber based in Australia. He worked in restaurants for 20 years before turning to social media in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic,[2] and two years later had 13 million followers across TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.[3]
Andy Hearnden | |
|---|---|
| Born | 7 October 1985 |
| Partner | Katelyn Flood |
| 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.[2] He was passionate about cooking from a very young age.[4]
Career
Chef
After training at an Auckland culinary school, Hearnden worked in café kitchens there.[4]
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.[4]
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.[4]
Hearnden was executive chef at coffee shop chain St Ali and later managed restaurants and bars in airports around Australia and New Zealand.[4] He moved to the Sunshine Coast in 2020, joining beef processor Kilcoy Global Foods, as executive chef in their test kitchen.[5]
Content creator
In November 2021, Hearnden started publishing on TikTok under the name Andy Cooks.[2] Later, he posted Instagram, YouTube and Facebook content for home cooks.[6] Within 18 months of starting, he had 10 million subscribers across his social media platforms.[3]
His cooking videos are known for the Hey Babe format.[3]
In 2022, YouTube identified Hearnden as one of Australia's Top 5 Creators,[7]The Sydney Daily Telegraph described him as a top 25 Australian on TikTok,[8] and The Australian ranked him Australia's #41 top influencer.[9] Taste.com.au considered him one of its most popular food influencers of the year[10] and The Courier-Mail one of the Sunshine Coast's top influencers.[11]
In 2023 the Herald Sun named him one of Victoria's top Instagram influencers.[12] The Courier-Mail ranked him in its list of the Sunshine Coast's most influential people,[13] and also included him amongst Queensland's top YouTube[14] and Instagram creators.[15] YouTube Australia named Hearnden its top creator.[16]
Publications
- Hearnden, Andy (2023). Andy Cooks: The Cookbook. Marion's Press. ISBN 9780645255768.[17]
Personal life
Hearnden is in a relationship with Katelyn Flood.[18]
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 |
| 2026 | MasterChef Australia | Guest | 1 |