I‘m starting to judge cafes by their espresso machines. The more serious the machine, the better the coffee. So when you walk into a cafe and you see a six group Synesso longer than a coffin worth some $40,000 and you know something special is going on. It sorta trumps even St Ali’s $30,000 Slayer which is pretty awesome but only has three groups. [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8bkRs77uX4] A Synesso in action. And I can tell you it’s official: Today coffee – and […]
Recent posts
Sydney food festival better than Melbourne?
Yu Bo’s Sichuan banquet at Sydney International food festival Is it possible to talk about Sydney and Melbourne without making a comparison of which is best? I think not. And so is the debate between which was the best food festival this year: the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival or Sydney. I went to both on freebies, although sponsored by NSW Tourism this trip was $$$$$$$$$$. I think Sydney wins for its focus and theming on Asia and perhaps reflecting […]
Where to start on the internet?
The problem for most small and medium businesses is that they are too busy doing what they are good at to have time to become experts on the internet. This leaves them vulnerable to being sucked in to commissioning expensive but potentially useless or annoying websites featuring flash animation, graphics and little information that is useful to a visitor other than brochure copy. Here are some tips on where to start:
Finger-licking good: My short history of sex in cooking television shows
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEbQ5S-LHc8] Only the other night gazing out at the opera house from Quay restaurant in Sydney I had the good fortune to sit at dinner with the new improved much, much larger than life Matt Preston. Not only was I subject to his advice on all things Myf Warhurst, his pony skin R.M. Williams boots and dressing-up box chic but his stagey sexy looks. The look that stuck in my mind is when his sultry eyes gaze towards what should […]
Beans means big business: coffee
IT’S too busy,” complains Mark Dundon the co-owner of Seven Seeds, a Melbourne-based specialty coffee roaster and cafe, which opened earlier this year. Customers are queuing and sitting around waiting for specialty espressos, and lattes and other newfangled brews. He’s not the only specialty coffee operator facing a boom in trade and a shortage of good baristas. People are replacing eating out in restaurants with coffee, and starting to look at the origins and treatments of coffee beans. That’s what […]
Good ideas beat all comers, but keep flexibility
IN a rapidly changing market, success isn’t just about bringing the right product to market at the right time but charting the correct course through the shifting media environment. For Geoff Hunt, who spent four years working on the launch of online print-on-demand photo book service Momento, his advantage in 2004 was that he was among the first in Australia. As such he was able to capitalise on the novelty of the service in promoting it to the media. At […]
Preserving the Australian Way
Ever wondered where salami comes from? Ed Charles spends a day learning the ropes from a family of winemakers in the Yarra Valley. Fattened on acorns, the end of three pigs Brick, Stick and Straw was always inevitable. A family meeting of the De Bortoli winemaking clan at their Yarra Valley property brought about a salami making day for winemakers, neighbours and friends and a celebration of wine and pork. On the second day of salami making, the action begins […]
Sod local food, it’s mango season
Fresh peppercorns Two things drag me out of the local groove; mangoes and mud crab. We did the mud crab on full moon. Now it’s the turn of mango. And the fresh green pepper corns discovered at Damian Pike’s stall on the recent bloggers’ tour of Prahran market. Fresh peppercorns are a real treat. In Cambodia and India I enjoyed them – thanks to French influences in Phnom Penh and Pondicherry – with peppered steaks. But few people have bothered […]
101 – sorry 127 – things not to eat and drink before you die
I recently had a non-brush with death while eating what turned out not to be my last meal. It made me think of all the meals I’d wasted. A bad meal is a wasted eating opportunity. Here, with a little help from my blogging and Twitter friends, are some tips on the food and drink best avoided. I’ll be updating as more come in. And please add to the list in comments. Or, why not publish your own list and […]