Home chefs Cory Frayling and Leon Tartaglia are making such a noise in the kitchen, that their daring exploits in Perth have been heard as far as Gordon Ramsay’s house. Copping a spray from the foul-mouthed chef in 2022 for their pork lollipop creation, the brothers-in-law behind the viral cooking brand CheatMeats have amassed a following of more than 1.3 million fans on TikTok due to their boundary-pushing creations.
“Come on Cory, big boys like you don’t need lollipops,” Ramsay barked as he reviewed their BBQ adaptation of the sweet treat. “Fifty shades of pork!” he yelled at another porky dish before being surprised by the outcome. Just like their expanding audience, bigger is always better.
“That’s the thing with CheatMeats, we always bring it to the next level,” Mr Tartaglia said. Inventing the hot cross ‘fun’ filled with crayfish, and eyebrow-raising Vegemite steak, there’s nothing off-limits for the grill masters. Beginning their CheatMeats venture six years ago, the Italian half of the duo said he landed on a dust-catching goldmine that was right under their noses.
“We found an old Weber in the old man’s shed. Pretty much brand new, never been cooked on. And we just decided to start mucking around cooking some burgers,” Mr Tartaglia admitted.
“Cory would take some photos and videos to get a bit of attention. And it just snowballed from there.” What began with “a few free hats and stickers” has turned into a fully-fledged enterpris.