Inspiration from the Best!

I was fortunate in the past few days to spend some time with some of the best and most innovative restaurant owners and chefs in Australia. It was a great opportunity to find out what is happening on the broader food scene - and it is not often you get spend time with people of this calibre. In particular I was thrilled to meet and talk with people such as Sydney chef and restaurant owner Matt Kemp about his beautiful two-hat restaurant Restaurant Balzac in Randwick.
I've been a fan for quite a while now and I love Matt's approach - his restaurant philosophy is simple – sensational food at affordable prices packaged in a suburban location. His food and restaurant has attracted some of the best reviews I've read. Brian and I am looking forward to celebrating my approaching birthday with a visit to Restaurant Balzac for Matt's wonderful degustation menu and matching wines!
It is always exciting to spend time with people so very passionate about food and service and I came back very inspired by his committment to always giving his customers the best food and dining experience that he can. And although our food is more modest, that's what we work hard to do here as well.
It's not often that you get to be in the room with a two hat chef (actually there were several very highly acclaimed chefs in the room) and I found a whole new level of inspiration which I am applying to our new menu.
One of the biggst trends in dining now is share plates and tapas style food and although we have had share plates for a while now, our new menu will see a special share plates and modern tapas style section to offer you an even great choice of great food.

Also exciting for us is a recent review from the website http://www.urcaferulz.com/. Thanks guys - it was very nice to get such great feedback!

Taste was recently awarded the 2009 True Local Business Awards Café of year. So the question is, did they deserve to win? We decided to put them to the test on the day after boxing day and went boldly to have breakfast. First impressions of the ambiance etc were good. The shop is airy and well laid out and the whole gourmet grocer feel reminded of the Red Hill district in Brisbane. The feeling is one of a café/grocer the buzzes with exciting and unique food ideas. A big sign, hanging at the door invited us to take a seat, because they have table service, yay!! Bonus points there. We were greeted quickly by a waitress who was genuinely happy to be there and wanted to serve us. She took our order and even thanked us for it. The coffee arrived in timely fashion. The Amanti bean is not a very commonly used bean around here and I had come to think of it as second grade, however Taste managed to espress the flavour from the bean very well. While the flavour wasn’t bold, it was woody and different and satisfying. The food was delivered by a different waitress who was even more sincere and thanked us again, during the meal she returned to check that everything was good and after the dishes were cleared she came back to check if we wanted to order any thing else. Hallelujiah, real service at last, I hear the trumpets sounding!!! While we are discussing the food, the quality was great, the portions were just right and it was presented nicely, nothing flash, just nice and tidy. So it would appear that Taste Gourmet Grocer and Café deserves the award of Café of the Year 2009. In fact I would even vote for them myself. Congratulations Taste.You do it the way it should be done. 8.9 out of 10.

A reminder, our new menu will be happening in the next week or two - stay tuned for the launch!
Oh, and if you are inspired to visit Restaurant Balzac, check out their website complete with menus! www.restaurantbalzac.com.au

BOUTIQUE HAND MADE FARMHOUSE CHEESE - IS THERE ANYTHING BETTER?

The popularity of great hand made cheese is expanding rapidly. It’s a global demand for interesting cheeses with authentic flavour and character and there are now so many in the fridges it can be hard to choose.

Here at Taste Gourmet we select the best authentic artisan cheeses from Australia’s small but exciting farmhouse cheese makers. The cheeses we stock are created by wonderful traditional skills - we wanted you to meet a couple of the passionate and inspiring characters who make them.

We asked Woodside Dairies in South Australia and Binnorie Dairies in the Hunter Valley to tell us more about how their cheeses are made.

We'll feature Binnorie Dairies in this blog and Woodside Dairies in our next blog.

BINNORIE DAIRY
Binnorie is owned by Simon and Sally Gough, Simon set up the Dairy about seven years ago.
Binnorie is in the Pokolbin wine region, Hunter Valley. They specialise in fresh style cheeses made from both cow and goat milk.
Binnorie has a simple philosophy - do it well or not at all. Opened in 2003, there range of specialty cheeses are already considered a benchmark in the industry, combining textures and flavours rarely seen in the Australian food landscape. By focusing on fresh style products that can be used in a myriad of dishes, Binnorie products endeavour to inspire both chefs and home gourmets alike to new levels of creativity.
Simon Gough is the cheese maker and we asked him to share some secrets of cheese making with us.
Why did you start making these products?
When I first started making cheese around 15 years ago, it seemed to me that cheese platters were becoming less and less popular, so I concentrated on making cheeses that could be used in dishes rather than just at the end of the meal. We have a core range of around 20 to 25 products, but regularly have a bit of a play with other special orders.
What makes your products special?
The milk we use is the same as the milk that heads off to the large processors. Where our product differs is that we combine some technical expertise (I have a degree in Microbiology) with some very traditional recipes that I have picked up while working in factories in Europe (and backpacking through Syria). One other factor that I believe is important is to concentrate on textures - a small change in texture can make a major change to how the palate picks up flavours.
What is your favourite product?
I have a number of products I really enjoy, but it depends on what I am using them for. I would choose the Marinated Fetta to put through a salad, Duetto (a blend of Gorgonzola and Mascarpone) as a dessert style and the Washed Rind to sit down with some pate and a glass of wine.
What’s the best thing about being a cheese maker?
What I enjoy most is creating products that can be used as part of somebody's dish. It gives me a buzz to hear when people have used my cheeses as a base ingredient to create a new and different taste sensation - e.g I have had one chef stuff my Labna balls with an olive, cover in Japanese breadcrumbs and deep fry as a finger food, another use the duetto to make a blue cheese icecream and served this with poached pears. Whilst it is enjoyable to create new products, it is far more pleasing to me to help others in their creativity.

RECIPE - MARINATED FETTA WITH MUSHROOMS
Simon gave us this recipe; he says it is a simple dish, but the heat from the mushrooms slightly softens the fetta and really brings out the flavour. A great side dish or a really indulgent breakfast!

Ingredients
Binnorie Dairy Marinated Fetta
200 gms Field Mushrooms
2 teaspoons Garlic
50 gms Butter
Baby Spinach Leaves
Flat leaf Parsley

Method
De-stem the field mushrooms. Soften butter and mix with garlic. Top mushrooms with garlic butter
Place in oven or under the grill until soft . Top with chopped Marinated Fetta and some chopped continental parsley. Place on some baby spinach leaves and serve.

STORING YOUR CHEESE!
The average Aussie eats 12 kilograms of cheese a year, but imagine how much more we could get through if we didn't have to throw it out when it dries up or goes mouldy.
The best way to store hard cheeses, such as cheddar, is to wrap them loosely in plastic wrap.
Soft cheeses, such as brie and camembert, need to breathe, so wrap them in a damp cloth or greaseproof paper. If you're planning on using soft cheeses within a couple of days of purchasing them, you can store them in the paper or plastic wrap they came in.
Keep fresh unripened cheeses and stretched curd cheeses, such as ricotta and haloumi, in the brine or oil they're sold in.

HAVE YOU GOT YOUR TASTE GOURMET TICKET TO THE WINTER GAMES YET?

Australia has sent it’s biggest team ever to Vancouver for the Winter Olympic Games.

We’re having two weeks of celebrations to encourage you to support our Aussie team with some fun promotions and a great Canadian inspired menu! Our Winter Games promotion is now underway We want you to get right behind our Aussie athletes!

TO GET YOU PREPARED, we’re handing out the Taste Gourmet Winter Games Ticket.

Bring your ticket back in any time during the Winter Olympics and you will win a Gold, Silver or Bronze prize - guaranteed!

Each level has it’s own great prize - free goodies from our Canadian Menu which will be running throughout the Games:
WIN Gold: FREE main meal
WIN Silver: FREE sweet treat
WIN Bronze: FREE coffee

Our Taste of Canada Menu is now availabe with lots of great dishes!
So make sure you come in and collect your ticket NOW, so you are ready for the fun and games of the Vancouver Games, bring it back during the Games, and win great prizes.

NEW CATERING & PICNIC HAMPER MENU

This glorious summer weather is just perfect for a romantic picnic for two! And now, you don't have to worry about the food, or even the picnic hamper. We've got it all organized for you!

We’ve expanded our great catering menu and added a special new section - you can now order and enjoy a delightful picnic basket - we supply great fresh delicious food and you can even use our great new picnic sets.

Picnics can be prepared for Two or Four or more people.

USE OUR RETURNABLE PICNIC SET TO COMPLETE YOUR DAY!
All foods will be packed in our special Picnic Hamper Carry Basket. We also include our Deluxe Picnic Set with shoulder strap, stylish plates, cutlery, wine goblets, salt and pepper shakers and a wine/bottle opener. A deposit is required for use of our picnic carry basket and set, which fully refunded upon return.

OR We can also pack your food in re-useable insulated bags (which are yours to keep) and provide plastic plates, cutlery, napkins and glasses.

NEW BATCHES OF GREEN TOMATO PICKLES IN STORE

Just out of our production kitchen are new batches of Green Tomato Pickles, made with our own home grown tomatoes.

We've been growing a bumper crop of smaller tomatoes which we have been picking wheile still green and cooking right away to make our pickles.

This is my grandmother’s recipe from the 1920’s and is really fabulous. The only change we've made to the recipe is to reduce the somewhat extravagant amounts of salt, otherwise it's just like Nan made it.

Our green tomato pickles are bottled and sold under our own label and are available for tasting on our new tasting table in store from this week!

Serving suggestions: Fabulous teamed with ham off the bone, rare roast beef, corned beef, or chicken.
Try serving over warm chicken skewers or add sour cream for a moreish dip.
Serve as an accompaniment to barbecued or roasted poultry, meat or fish.

AVAILABLE FOR TASTING NOW IN STORE!