How Corey Waddell Turned State of Origin Night Into a Proper Feast

There are watch parties, and then there are watch parties. The kind where the food is so good it almost distracts you from the game. Corey Waddell's State of Origin dinner was firmly the latter, a full spread that matched the occasion in every way.

At the centre of it all was a menu that meant business. Roast beef rump caps and ribeyes cooked to perfection, roast garlic and almond broccolini, pan-fried chilli butter brussels sprouts, a house chimichurri to tie it all together ... and Potato Utopia gratins of choice rounding out the table. The kind of spread that earns its own round of applause before the first try is even scored.

The gratins did exactly what they do best: added something elevated and effortless to a menu that was already firing on all cylinders. No fuss, no prep drama. Just straight from the oven and onto the table, holding their own alongside every other dish on the spread.

Corey proved that big-night hosting doesn't have to be complicated. It just has to be well thought out. And when the food is this good, everyone wins ... regardless of the scoreboard.