He's been taking quite a collaborative approach to food and drink, working with other small businesses such as Sifters, Rookie and the Illawarra Brewing Company (IBC).

His latest venture along those lines is Dining Under the Influence, a beer dinner hosted by Shaun Blissett, head brewer with small Sydney brewery Wayward and Fairy Meadow local.

Burns felt the focus on the new GPT shopping centre - and the franchise stores within - was drawing a lot of attention away from smaller businesses.

"We're not trying to say that GPT have done a bad thing, but I think a lot of businesses have felt the pressure when they opened," Burns said.

"I think it's important to do these different events and nights with local people who have passion for our industry and skills in our industry.

"For us at the Heritage, with the new mall having opened and some new franchises coming in, the most important thing for us is to showcase what local people and small businesses can do.

"Working with Shaun, he's a local brewer and he's been in the area a long time and is really passionate about what he does.

"The beer dinner showcases the food and also showcases what small businesses like us are capable of doing and bringing a bit of attention back to that."

Burns has worked on beer dinners at Diggies and Dagwood, which is where he met Blissett, who, until recently, was a brewer at the IBC.

"We just became mates through that and our common interests - he loves the barbecue stuff, I love the beer," Burns said.

That "barbecue stuff" is the American barbecue that Heritage Kitchen has brought to the Illawarra. Using a 300-kilogram smoker Burns brought over from the US, he smokes a range of meats for up to 12 hours.

The result is a slightly sweet and tender meat that is fast gaining a following in the Illawarra.

Though the beer dinner will feature a barbecue dish as one of the five courses, there will also be a seafood dish and a dessert - but Burns is keen to leave some of the details as a surprise.

The beer selection was up to Blissett and, once he made his choices, Burns paired them up with dishes he thought suitable.

"I'll have a general idea of what I want to do, but then I'll just tweak the flavours just to match exactly what Shaun's chosen," Burns said.

"The beers are a progression, so he'll start with something a bit easier and then we finish with something big."

Those beers include two India Pale Ales (or IPAs) - the 77 from Riverside Brewing and the jasmine and hibiscus-infused Red Sky from Shenanigans Brewing.

Just as is the case with the food, the focus is to deliver these beers fresh - both have been brewed a little over a week before the dinner.

When it came to most beer, but IPAs especially, Blissett said it was important they were served fresh.

"They won't go bad," he said, "they just won't be tasting the way they're supposed to.

"The real best-before date on an IPA should be two weeks after it's come out of the tank. That's when it's going to be tasting the way the brewer wants it to be tasting."