A journey, when seen through the rose-tinted perspective of a metaphor, is one that not only implies a sense of adventure, but also a degree of change and growth in one’s self.

A recent journey (in the literal sense), a food-centric tour of Malaysia and Thailand, with fellow food bloggers Billy, Helen & Minh, along with a couple of additional traveling companions, had drawn me into a rather unexpected journey (in the metaphorical sense).

Things will no longer be the same. Read more »

Billy, from the food blog A Table For Two and Masterchef Australia auditionee, recently conducted his first photography workshop, held in a private function room at the MuMu Grill. His skills when it comes to food photography within the Sydney food blogging community is a class above the rest, as demonstrated on his food blog on a weekly basis.

With ever a keen interest to expand my knowledge and experience in photography, when the opportunity to learn from someone with his photographic prowess came around, there was little hesitation in my mind to take up such an offer. 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 »

When dining out with friends, do you find that you often order dishes to share amongst the group, or order individual dishes for each person to enjoy on their own? When faced with a plate of these fantastic lamb cutlets from Sahara, I wouldn’t blame you if you’d wanted these all to yourself.

For me, despite how fantastic these may be, sharing is by far and away the preferred option. Perhaps that’s due to my Asian heritage, where the concept of communal eating is as integral to life as breathing. However, when five succulent & smokey lamb cutlets are to be shared amongst six food bloggers (none of whom are vegetarian), you find yourself caught in what I refer to as the “yum cha dilemma”.

At yum cha, you’re often faced with the situation where there are an insufficient or uneven number of dumplings or portions to be shared equally. The question is, do you order more? Cut up & divide the portions evenly? Choose to fore go your portion in an act of self sacrifice? Or does it come down to a wild-west-like showdown of the quick and the dead unfed? Read more »

Image courtesy of GourmetRabbit

Denea aka Jessica Rabbit is the brainchild behind the newest food-&-beverage-centric publication on the block GourmetRabbit. A little while ago, a launch party was held at the French bistro & wine bar Tastevin in order to celebrate the launch of her print and online publication. The theme for the launch party was billed to be an “Alice in Wonderland” sort of affair.

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