When it comes to chef’s knives, I tend to prefer the heavier, European knives, mostly because it’s what I’m use to. I have a similar mindset to knives as Boris the Blade does with hand guns (a character from the movie Snatch, if you’re wondering).

“Heavy is good. Heavy is reliable. If it doesn’t work, you can always hit him with it”.

Ok, maybe not that last part…

A number of food bloggers and other media types were invited to Carrick to not only test drive some European style knives from Wenger, but also to learn to cook some Southern Italian food from Antonio Ruggerino, owner & head chef of Verde Restaurant+Bar. Read more »

Schiacciatta con L’uva, a rustic grape studded flat bread of Tuscan origin, was recently featured on a MasterClass episode of Season 2 of Masterchef Australia.

During this MasterClass, Michael Klausen, CEO & Director of the popular artisan bakery Brasserie Bread, demonstrates the process of making this flat bread to a couple of the show’s contestants.

Watching how it’s made on television is one thing. Being shown how to make this delightful flat bread by skilled artisan bakers during a workshop at Brasserie Bread? Well, that’s another matter entirely. Read more »

Dim lights of orange and yellow cast rays of warmth, drawing forth a sense of comfort on an otherwise frigid winter’s evening. Lights, that barely give form to sophisticated cocktails and diners a like, provide an intimate mood of romance, elegance & class.

A party of five gathers around a small table, some of whom are old friends. The transformation from stranger to acquaintance takes place as introductions are made and pleasantries exchanged over martinis and aperitifs. A moment passes. Before long, an escort directs us to a booth. Positions are taken around a square table. A listless anticipation builds, as we await the first course of the tasting menu at Tokonoma. Read more »

From time to time, there are circumstances that arise in my life that make me sit back and look at the bigger picture. Being quite often a detail oriented person (to a fault at times), these moments tend to lend itself a significance that deserves some attention.

Well, at least in my mind.

In this particular case, a number of circumstances have arisen recently that has me evaluating not only why I blog but also the process in which I conduct such practices. A frank and informative chat with a restaurateur. An online chat with fellow food bloggers. A recent episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. Read more »

The beautiful, formal place-setting of the Opera Harbour private dining room at the Park Hyatt hotel. What amounts to around a case of various Chardonnay wines to sample; a wine that I rarely enjoy drinking, and thereby rarely ever drink. The watchful gaze of mature, high society ladies that are in their element. The dim lighting of candles and down lights, which makes for superb mood lighting but reaps havoc on correct exposure and white balance. If there ever was a time that I was out of my element, out of my comfort zone, this would be it.

A sizable number of food bloggers were invited to an exclusive dinner to “put Chardonnay to the test”.  As much as I had my personal issues of discomfort, this turned out to be a rather interesting and educational evening. Read more »