Shinboners

It's a shame that you didn't arrive in Melbourne about six months ago. Interlude, which is now closed, used to offer a dessert degustation. Anyway, I'd recommend that you try Bistro Guillaume (www.bistrogulliaume.com.au). Phillipa Sibley does the desserts there, and whilst you'll look at the menu and think, "it doesn't look too special", it's her level of execution that takes things to another level. If you go there late enough, and hang around long enough, and ask nicely enough, you might even get to chat to her after service is finished. Depending on when you're in town, keep an eye out on what Andrew McConnell is doing. He's just closed Three One Two, but you can check out a more simplified version of his desserts at Cumulus Inc. He will be opening a new restaurant, Cutler And Co., sometime in 2009.

Who, me? I cook at home almost every night, and it's usually things I can do quickly. Having two kids, it's hard to do anything elaborate. As for going out, the missus and I would probably dine out together about six times a year. And when we do, we'll go somewhere special. PCL, on the other hand, is rich beyond comprehension, never wears the same pair of socks twice, and he simply refuse to eat anywhere that doesn't have a Michelin starred chef behind the stoves. In fact, I once had dinner with him and he threw his bowl of pesto across the dining room when he tasted that the olive oil used wasn't a first cold pressing using olives that had been hand picked by virgin girls. He'll have me killed for making this public, but the truth has to come out.

You could try and track down a copy of "French Lessons" by Justin North. North is a New Zealand born, Australian based, Raymond Blanc trained chef. He got his name with Justin Tomlin at Banc (Sydney) before opening Becasse (Sydney). French Lessons is his second book (his first, Becasse is brilliant) and as the title implies, he takes you through French cooking, lesson by lesson.

Anyone who reads the books by Adria, Blumenthal, and Achatz would know the amount of work they put into developing a dish before it gets put onto their menus. Even if a dish does make it onto a menu, they still work at refining it. The problem with Tender Trap is that there doesn't seem to be much thought put into their dishes. In the few times I've had food that would fall under the molecular gastronomy umbrella, I've thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It just opens up the eyes (and all the other senses) to the possibilities of food. It's not the type of thing that I could eat on even a monthly basis, but as something to have once a year, it's great. As for the restaurant trade, it's the ideas from the cutting edge that eventually filter down to everyone else. For example, Adria's foams used to seem exotic, but now they're everywhere. Anyway, another Melbourne restaurant that delves into the world of molecular gastronomy is Vue de Monde (www.vuedemonde.com.au).

Respect to the owners for using the title of a Smiths song as the name of their restaurant.

...people became chefs so they could cook, not as a stepping stone to their TV show and book deal.

I'm hoping that Andrew McConnell (Three One Two, Cumulus Inc, Mrs. Jones, Circa, Dining Room 211 - all have been in Melbourne, Australia) finally releases his cookbook. The rumour is that it will have recipes from his restaurant. The same goes for Karen Martini. There is a book with recipes that she's used in her restaurants, but so far, she's released two books with home cooking. The last one is Phillipa Sibley who has apparantly written a book on desserts. If these three books see the light of day in 2009 and they all have restaurant recipes in them, I'll be very happy.

I think I provided the worst meal to one girl I had invited over for dinner. Mind you, things were doomed from the start. I thought she was attractive, so I asked her over to dinner and she accepted. That was all fine and good until she sent me an e-mail with a list of things she wouldn't eat - corriander, pork, coffee, tea, wine, offal, etc. etc. and that she liked her food nice and plain. Clearly, this was one relationship that wasn't going to get off the ground. By 5.00 on Saturday afternoon, I still hadn't prepared anything for dinner. My motivation levels having sunk. After all, food is a passion of mine, and she wasn't going to be someone I could share it with. Eventually, I walked down to the supermarket, bought a piece of lamb to roast, and some pumpkin and potato to go with it. It was something simple and it wasn't going to take too much effort on my behalf. Still, when you don't care about something, you tend to forget to do all the little things that make food good. I didn't let the lamb get up to room temperature before roasting (hence it ended up burnt on the outside and cold on the inside), and that led to the vegetables becoming burnt too. Since she didn't drink wine or anything with caffeine, it was just water to try and wash things down. It was by far the worst meal I had ever cooked, and I'm sure it was the worst meal that she had ever had. Thankfully, she left soon after and I was happy to write her and the evening off. As for bad meals I've had, my partner's dad once grilled us some salmon on the BBQ - for 30 minutes. On another evening, his (then) partner decided to cook us some vegetables, and she did this by letting them cook in the microwave for about 5 minutes. Nobody touched the vegetables that night.

My dad used to bring home live chickens, ducks, pigeons, etc. and slaughter them himself for dinner. My sisters never ate those dishes, saying it was horrible how it was to have the poultry alive one minute and presented on the dinner table a few hours later. Incidentally, they had no issue with eating chicken, duck, etc. when it was bought already ready for cooking from the supermarket. And yet, when dad brought home live lobsters, crabs, and prawns to cook, my sisters had no issue with eating those dishes when put on the table.

btw, you could add Bo Innovation in Hong Kong to the list. This place was discussed on the Dining Forum in the China section of this board. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=120510

Ah, you'll cringe if you read the Age review of Tender Trap in my post above. In Keller's "Under Pressure" one of his chefs writes about how young chefs still need to know the basics of cooking before they can really use the new techniques. After all, without the basics, how can they know that the new techniques will deliver the results they need? In Australia, Alla Wolf-Tasker from the Lake House restaurant (Victoria, Australia) said the same thing. She's concerned that there will be a generation of chefs who can use all the latest equipment and ingredients, but won't know how to make a good stock from scratch. The thing is that Adria, Blementhal, Keller, Achatz, and co. were all well grounded in traditional techniques before they moved onto the cutting edge of cooking.

Interlude is no more. Reserve and Fenix were two other Melbourne restaurants that tried the "molecular gastronomy" path, and both of them closed their doors over the past five years. Still, the influence of el Bulli, Fat Duck, and co. can be seen on Australian menus with the use of foams, low pressure cooking, unexpected flavour combinations, etc. Two places in Australia (and I haven't been to either of them) who might be included in a list of molecular gastronomy restaurants are the Royal Mail Hotel (www.royalmail.com.au) in Dunkeld, Victoria and Marque (www.marquerestaurant.com.au) in Sydney, New South Wales. Dan Hunter of the Royal Mail Hotel was a former head chef at Mugaritz in Spain. At the other end of the scale, there's a place called Tender Trap (www.tendertrap.com.au) where....well.....here's the review from Epicure - http://www.theage.com.au/news/reviews/tend...6377235127.html

Does that book cover the last few years of Chinese cuisine in Australia? For the vast majority of the history of Chinese cuisine in Australia, it has been Cantonese cooking that has been the dominant influence. But in recent years, there has been a noticeable increase in restaurants offering other regional Chinese cuisines like Sichuan and Shanghai food. The other development in Chinese cooking has been a move towards refining Cantonese food. In Melbourne, places like Lau's Family Kitchen and, Tea House On Burke have followed the lead of the Flower Drum in trying to source better quality ingredients and better techniques to produce better food. There are some who feel that these restaurants are merely "westernising" Chinese food, but I feel that it's more an issue of refining food (as the French have in their culinary history), and imho, that's a good thing.

Hey PCL, Bistro Guillaume is at the Crown Casino and their website is www.bistroguillaume.com.au I reckon you'd also like Giuseppe Arnaldo and Sons too (it's part of the Maurizio Terzini empire). Speaking of L'Oustal, I remember the charcuterie platter we had there. I went to Griffs Wine Pub (Johnston Street, Fitzroy) the other week, and their charcuterie was excellent. The only thing that didn't quite work for me was their duck liver parfait - the flavour was very good, but the texture was too smooth for my liking. As for the other food we had, their steaks were good, their desserts were great, and they had a wine list that you'd enjoy flicking through.

There is this view in philosophy that there is a little bit of evil in good, and a little bit of good in evil, and whilst I think the Crown Casino is evil, the good that it provides are its restaurants. But first, a bit of background to our day. We took the kids out to the city, and spent a good five hours just wandering through Melbourne, exploring laneways that we hadn't visited for many years, checking out our favourite old buildings, bumping into friends, and the like. It was a long day for all of us, but the missus decided that dinner at Giuseppe Arnoldo And Sons would be a lovely treat and a great way to end the day. We got to G.A.S. at about 5pm. The restaurant wasn't open yet, but the barman invited us to have a drink. We were very tired and we wearn't too sure how they'd like a 3 year old and 11 month old in the dining room, but we were assured that the kids were welcome. And they did more than just assure us. After mixing us a couple of sensational campari with red grapefruit, he took the time to chat to us as he was getting prepared for evening service. Not only that, he cleaned our baby bottle and filled it with warm water so we could mix up some formula for our 11 month old. Later, one of the senior waiters set aside a high chair and a child seat for our kids. After we were seated, she brought out some pencils and colouring paper for our 3 year old to use. The only negative reaction we got was from a couple of women from another table who appeared to think that young kids shouldn't have been allowed into G.A.P. (although soon enough, other families came in to dine). As we looked at the menu, they brought out a plate with a selection of different breads, and we enjoyed that with the G.A.S. labelled olive oil (very fruity and fresh). Here is what we had: A mixture of warm olives, an antipasti of poplette (veal, pork, and mortadella fried meatballs) with lemon and celery salad), penne rigate (pork sausages, sage, tomato, garlic sauce and chilli), spaghettini (sea urchin, fennal poached tomato), baked chocolate pot with chocolate pearls, and vanilla mascapone tart with fresh raspberry and rose flavoured grappa. Like our dinner at Bistro Guillaume, it was simple food that was superbly executed. They used excellent ingredients and the cooking resulted in flavours that were bright and balanced. I'm not of Italian extraction, so I can't really say that the food was like "mama used to make", but my best mate is Italian and his mum is an amazing cook. The poplettes reminded me of his mum's cooking in that the flavour of the mortadella was enough to be noticed, but not strong enough to be dominating - so that did bring back some memories for me. The staff were wonderful. They were always checking to see how we were going, they put our pram into a safe place, and they took time to engage in some playful banter with our two girls. After a tiring day, the food lifted our souls, and brought smiles to our tired faces. We spent about $100 on the food, and we left there having had the perfect end to a busy day.

My God, Bistro Guillaume.......hmmm.....that was the best classic French dinner I've ever had. Bistro Guillaume is how I imagine Thomas Keller's Bouchon would be like. Click onto the menu on the Bistro Guillaume website, and you’re not going to find any dishes on the cutting edge of contemporary cuisine. Indeed, with people seemingly looking for new food thrills, the traditional French dishes on their menu could be seen as a negative by some. But to pass up dinner here based on what's on offer would be a mistake. Many of the dishes on offer could be done at home by a dedicated amateur cook, and there are home cooks out there who can do them better than a lot of restaurants. But it'd be a rare person who could do the same dishes to the standard set this restaurant. Here's a rundown of what we had. My entree was a mille-feuille of veal sweetbreads with braised shallots, mushrooms, and truffle jus, and my dessert was a peach melba "notre faon". The missus had jamon iberico served with olives, pimento, fennel, and quail egg and finished with a souffle au chocolat, soft ganache in the middle, with a glace a l'orange. We both had the steak frites with sauce bernaise, and all servings were very generous. I remember Daniel Southern's cooking from his days at L'Oustal, and whilst he is doing Guillaume Brahimi's recipes, you can still taste how far he has developed in his craft. Phillipa Sibley is responsible for the desserts, and the ones here just confirm to me that she is the best dessert chef in Melbourne (and probably Australia). The service was excellent, the staff did not miss a beat, and the dishes came out at a very comfortable pace. For the quality of the ingredients and the brilliance of execution, Bistro Guillaume is a bargain. Consider this, I went to look at the menu of my local French restaurant, and for a similar three course dinner plus a glass of wine for two would cost around $170. At Bistro Guillaume, we spent $200, with the mains both priced in the $35 to $40 region. For an extra $30, you jump from the local suburban restaurant to a 2 chefs hat restaurant. Melbourne is well served by many great French restaurants. But Bistro Guillaume has just set the bar higher.....and not by just a little bit either.

If you ever do the suckling pig dinner, then you'll need to round up at least 9 other friends to join you. Our table had 11 (4 guys, 7 gals), and we had leftovers from the main course. We booked our dinner about a month ago, and I know that I was hoping for cold weather - I don't think I could have handled a suckling pig with the 30 degree weather we had a couple of weeks ago! Still, I didn't quite expect it to be as cold as it was on Saturday night.

We made another visit to Libertine last night, and we had the suckling pig dinner. It was magnificent. The format allows you to choose an entree and a dessert, with the suckling pig as the main. Here were the choices: Entrée Slipper lobster niçoise, tomato jelly & poached quail egg Terrine du jour, mini brioche loaf & relishes Chèvre soufflé, asparagus & tarragon vinaigrette Plat du jour Whole roasted Western Plains suckling pig, baby vegetables & sauce Normande Dessert Quince tarte tatin, vanilla & muscatel ice-cream Honey crème brûlée, cumquat chausson Rhubarb clafoutis, crème anglaise Those of you who read last week's Epicure may have read Necia Wilden's article on going to a farm to see the slaughter of a lamb. In her article, she wrote about how a suckling pig was presented to a table, and one of the guests started to cry. Well, with us, a few people averted their eyes, whilst on another table, a girl stared at the pig in shock (ironically, her table had also ordered a pig). Not that ant of this stopped people from tucking in and loving the food. I won't go into details of the various dishes, but everyone was very happy with what they had. This was my third visit to Libertine, and their food just keeps on getting better. I reckon they will get a chef's hat next year. My only criticism is that we waited too long between the first course and the main. Other than that, the service was very good. For my dining group, we're already planning another visit, this time to give the game birds a try.

Adrian Richardson is the chef/owner of La Luna Bistro in Melbourne. As you'd expect, he's very passionate about his meat - he ages his own meat and he makes his own sausages - and at his restaurant, you don't leave hungry. The book is very good, but if you've already got a book like Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's "Meat" book (as I have), then you really don't need Richardson's book.

It would be interesting to know what these people think of someone like Fuchsia Dunlop and her work on Chinese cooking. It's just a shame that insularity prevents people from accepting the work of an outsider as the Thais have done with David Thompson.

I'm not really convinced that the Australian buyers do get it better. What it boils down to is that you're paying $35 to $75 extra for a box. A very nice box mind you, but it's still just a box. It might have been a lot better if Australian buyers got an option on buying a limited edition with a box or a standard hardcover without a box. That would have made it cheaper, and I probably would have bought the book locally. As for the book, it's general Asian cooking, but with an emphasis on Cantonese food. There are three main sections, chapters within each section, and recipes that are relevant to each chapter. The book is divided as follows: Finding Balance And Harmony In The Kitchen -Cooking Equipment -Asian Ingredients Basic Techniques And Recipes -Sauces, Dressings, And Pickles -Stocks And Soups -Salads -Braising And Boiling -Steaming -Stir Frying -Deep Frying -Tea Smoking -Curry And Spice Pastes -The Shared Table Advanced Recipes And Banquet Menus -Tofu And Eggs -Pork -Beef And Lamb -Poultry -Seafood -Vegetables -Noodles And Rice -Fruit And Sweet Things There's already a few recipes that I'm keen to try like the tea and spice smoked duck (page 148), the grilled beef with spicy dip (page 222), and the double boiled pigeons with shiitake mushrooms (page 269). Mind you, I reckon that a few of the Chinese cooking fundamentalists will get upset at some of Perry's adaptations of Chinese food. But hey, they can worry themselves sick over authenticity, whilst the rest of us can just cook up something tasty.

In the meantime, you should check out Neil Perry's "Balance and Harmony". I just got my amazon.co.uk delivery of it today. They key differences between the Australian and UK versions is that the Australian one has a red cover and comes in a presentation box. The UK version does not have a presentation box, but the box design is the cover. Oh, and the UK version works out to be about $35 cheaper than the cheapest Australian price ($85 at Target) and $75 cheaper than the Australian RRP ($125).

You shouldn't have too much trouble tracking down a copy at a second hand book shop or in an op shop. I'm not sure who Elise Pascoe is, but Cherry Ripe was an influential Australian food critic.

This is interesting timing with the current financial troubles. http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...50-2862,00.html Gordon Ramsay to open at Crown casino Glenn Mitchell November 13, 2008 12:00am MELBOURNE'S reputation as one of the world's great cities for dining has been boosted with Gordon Ramsay to open his world-famous Maze restaurant at Crown Casino. Crown announced yesterday that Maze will open in the casino's third hotel now under construction. Ramsay said he was excited by the challenge. "This is our first step in bringing the Gordon Ramsay brand to Australia and after having seen the way Crown operates we feel that this is an exciting and challenging opportunity," he said. Maze, one of London's most successful restaurants, is based on French cuisine with Asian influences and offers small tasting plates. Diners are encouraged to order individually or sample many dishes. Crown's chief executive officer David Courtney said Maze was renowned for being stylish, contemporary and innovative. "Bringing Gordon Ramsay and Maze to Melbourne further cements our strategy of bringing some of the world's best dining experiences to Crown and Melbourne." Crown's third hotel, expected to open in early 2010, will be on Clarendon Street. With more than 650 rooms the hotel is expected to accommodate 340,000 guests a year.

Like I said, you won't regret it. Personally, I've never regretted buying the hardback version of a cookbook after seeing the paperback that often gets released a year or two down the track.