Dur-e Najaf Dara (born 18 September 1945) is an Australian restaurateur and businesswoman.

Early life and education

Dara was born on 18 September 1945 in

Ipoh Ipoh (, ) is the capital city of the Malaysian States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Perak. Located on the Kinta River, it is nearly north of Kuala Lumpur and southeast of George Town, Penang, George Town in neighbouring Penang ...

, Malaysia, in 1945. She moved to Australia in 1962 and attended Presbyterian Ladies' College in Melbourne. She later studied social work at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

Career

After graduating, Dara worked for the Youth Welfare Division of the Victorian Social Welfare Department, based at

Winlaton Winlaton is a village situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. Historically in County Durham, it was incorporated into the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear and Borough of Gateshead in 1974. In 2011 the vill ...

and Turana in Melbourne. In 1978 she started waitressing at Stephanie's Restaurant and later became the manager and co-owner. She also worked on establishing the Pavilion (later Donovan's) in St Kilda and the Nudel Bar in the Melbourne business district. In 1987, she became a partner in a tea import business and in 2000 she established the Lip café. Dara has been involved in the hospitality industry as president of the Restaurant and Catering Association of Victoria (she was the organisation's first woman president) and board member of the Victorian Wineries Tourism Council and Business Matrix Victoria. She has also been director of the

Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition Musica Viva, also known as Musica Viva Australia, is a national organisation in Australia dedicated to chamber music. History Music Viva was founded in Sydney in 1945 by Romanian-born Vienna-educated violinist Richard Goldner, who had fled Naz ...

, and has served on the advisory boards of the Women's Reference Group of the Victorian Equal Opportunity Commission; William Angliss College;

RMIT The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (abbreviated as RMIT University) is a public research university located in the city of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia., section 4(b) Established in 1887 by Francis Ormond, it is the seventh-o ...

School of Tourism and Hospitality; and the Swinburne School of Hospitality and Tourism. She is or has been patron of the Victorian Foundation for the Survivors of Torture; elder, Women's Circus Victoria; and a member of the Victorian Immigrant and Refugee Women's Coalition, the Tamil Eelam Women's Organisation, the Melbourne Chapter of the Australian Symposium of Gastronomy, Asia Link,

Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or Habitat, is a U.S. non-governmental, and tax-exempt 501(C)(3) Christian nonprofit organization which seeks to build affordable housing. The international ...

and Asia Society.

Recognition

In 1997, Dara was awarded a

Medal of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of then ...

in recognition of service to the community and to promotional and fundraising activities for women's groups. Dara has also received the Vida Goldstein Award for excellence in her trade.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dara, Dur-e Najaf 1945 births Living people Malaysian emigrants to Australia University of Melbourne alumni Australian restaurateurs Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia