

Ombre - from Monet to cakes
"To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon verdure is the most perfect refreshment." Jane Austen Once again I am trying out a new technique to combat lack of inspiration. The idea is to randomly pick a photograph, a picture, an object ... and extemporise upon it, hoping that in some way there will be a connection to food. I find this kind of thing makes you think a little, explore a little and look at things in a different way perhaps with an eye to detail, perhaps t
Jan 4


A medley
Medley: "a varied mixture of people or things." Oxford Languages In a post-Christmas lazy lull, and on a hot day, I am resorting to little bits and pieces. I feel a bit like this quote I found in the Smitten Kitchen newsletter: "confused, full of cheese and unsure of the day of the week." So oddments from here and there ... 'Medley' implies some sort of organisational process behind the combination of this and that to me. A selection has been made with an overriding t
Dec 31, 2025


Semillon and Brachetto - unloved and unknown
"I find Semillon to be one of a few dry white wines that can age for decades" Dan Berger/Napa Valley Features Last night was our annual trek to our local fine diner Mercer's for 'diner à deux' but I have talked about Mercer's before, and yes the food was gorgeous - this is dessert - a kind of pavlova, but the thing that struck me most perhaps about the meal were two of the wines. We had decided to go with the wine matching options and they were all really, really nice - whi
Dec 21, 2025


Acai bros come to Eltham
“We want to be a one-stop health food café and the inter-section between health food stores and restaurants, making unbelievably...
Sep 14, 2025


Pinot gris or grigio?
"And why do Aussie winemakers not just call it ‘grey pinot’? Well, that one’s obvious – ‘a glass of the grey stuff’ doesn’t sound quite...
Jul 26, 2025


Recent eating - from the thrown together to the sublime
They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, and I guess that's what I have been trying to do for almost 60 years now. So I...
Jun 21, 2025


BIR - British Indian restaurant food
I wanted not only to learn how to cook Indian food correctly, but also really get to know how all those spices and other ingredients...
May 5, 2025


Valentine's Day on Melbourne's river
"There will always be ladies who lunch. Always. And apparently they live a long time." Elaine Stritch I think I may have used that quote...
Feb 15, 2025


Who are these people?
"I know of three reasons that people go to coffee houses: to drink coffee, eat pastries, and socialize." Martin Bayer/Quora On Wednesday...
Dec 5, 2024


Geese, dancers and friends by the river
"Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day." A. A. Milne The goose, well geese were the stars of the show really. ...
Oct 24, 2024


A little drop of poison
"I like my town with a little drop of poison" Tom Waits It's a curious name for a place to eat and drink isn't it? I mean - 'poison'. ...
Oct 3, 2024


An Italian day out in the city
It's Italian Film festival time and my friend Clare proposed going to see something with a lunch beforehand. I, of course, agreed and so...
Oct 1, 2024


Dining in the neglected outer suburbs
"With such a strong migrant culture and ever-expanding suburban sprawl, Melbourne’s best suburban restaurants are popping up on the reg,...
Aug 8, 2024


Ambience over food
"I don't go to restaurants, I go to tables." Langdon Winner It was that time of year when the females of the extended family get...
Jul 29, 2024


Stephanie's idea of 'simple'
"A lot is said about simplicity in modern, Fench-influenced cookery. I find it very difficult to find a suitable definition of a simple...
Jun 28, 2024


Date night
"we should stop confusing dating with Date Night." Bella Elwood-Clayton" Sydney Morning Herald It's my birthday today - and David's in...
Jun 20, 2024


The pleasures and pitfalls of dining out
"The other night I ate at a real nice family restaurant. Every table had an argument going." George Carlin Last night we dined out with...
May 31, 2024


Chicken butter cream - the real deal?
"Who invented the butter chicken? None of them did. It's like asking: Who discovered fire? Butter chicken was probably made at several...
May 6, 2024


Amuse-bouches
Amuse-bouches: "a bite-sized hors d’oeuvre sent out at the whim of the chef, to whet diners’ appetites (or “amuse the mouth”) for the...
May 2, 2024


Omelette at the Savoy
"There is no reason why this dish should ever change. I can’t improve it" Tom Kerridge On the other hand Felicity Cloake says that it's...
May 1, 2024

