Looking for some ingredients in Melbourne

[Shalmanese]

I'm flying down this weekend to cook dinner for a friend. He wants a fairly adventurous menu so I'm throwing a few nice surprises in there for him. I'm staying just north of Melbourne Uni and we'll probably be shopping primarily at Queen Vic markets so I'm looking for places that are near to that area. I was wondering if anybody could give me some suggestions as to where to find these ingredients in Melbourne.

Kangaroo Loin that would be suitable for tartare

Marrow Bones that I could roast a la Fergus Henderson

Squid Ink

Kim Chee

Natto

Cheese Curds

Speck

Chorizo

Dark Chocolate Coveture

Good Quality Uni

Salmon Roe

I think most of them meat, I should be able to find at the butchers at queen vic but I'm not sure as I breezed through fairly quickly last time I was there. He can buy some of the stuff ahead of time if I tell him exactly where to buy it.

Thanks and I'll post additional ingredients as I think of them.

[Amarantha]

I know QVM has roo (not sure about tartare quality), chorizo and dark couverture. I've seen speck in supermarkets but dunno about quality.

Some provenders will not have the rare stuff on hand but can get it in if you order it, so you might want to try calling a few places in advance. My local butcher, for example, tell me they can get pretty much anything animal-parts-related given enough warning (they often have things like tripe and sweetbreads in the shop). I suspect they could get marrow bones, but they're in Doncaster East (Di Censo and sons, Tunstall Square) , so you might need to find a place closer to the CBD.

The Foodies' Guide to Melbourne 2007 By Allan Campion and Michele Curtis might come in handy. You could also try their Seasonal Produce Diary, although that seems less apt considering your ingredient list.

Good luck

[Shinboners]

Kangaroo Loin that would be suitable for tartare

Marrow Bones that I could roast a la Fergus Henderson - maybe Donati's Butcher on Lygon Street, Carlton

Squid Ink

Kim Chee

Natto

Cheese Curds - Curds and Whey at Queen Vic, maybe the Cheese Shop at Queen Vic

Speck - Lygon Street Food Store, Lygon Street or King and Godfree, Lygon Street

Chorizo - Delis at Queen Vic Market

Dark Chocolate Coveture - Simon Johnson in Fitzroy

Good Quality Uni

Salmon Roe - Delis at Queen Vic, Simon Johnson in Fitzroy

[Adam Balic]

Um, as a parasitologist I wouldn't serve kangaroo tartare. The risks are low, but there is potetially for passing on some interesting parasite infections. That aside, kangaroo is availble for the Chicken Pantry at the queen vic.

Natto - from Asian grocer next to the queen vic.

Marrow bones - many butchers from the queen vic.

Speck - what type of speck? A range is avaible from the Polish deli in the queen vic. Make sure you state what you want or you may not get what you expect.

Chorizo - various deli and at Spanish grocer in Johnston St.

Uni - hit and miss, contact fishmonger and pre-order.

Kim Chee - from Kim Chee making store in Brunswick street.

[Chimney]

It's probably a little too far and inconvenient if you're staying near Melbourne University, but you can get (pretty good quality) uni from Suzuran in Camberwell.

Tel. (03) 9882 2349

See map here.

http://www.truelocal.com.au/business/suzur...-ltd/camberwell