In Melbourne, a city full of food and obsessed by coffee, I cook, I eat, I share the good news and the bad. essjay eats

Archive for 2011

Dinner with Matt Wilkinson

Monday, November 21st, 2011

[flickr id=”6374914755″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”false” size=”medium” group=”” align=”none”] Longer days are upon us and balmy nights are sure to be here really, really soon. We’re celebrating with the Fringe Food Festival and Chef, Matt Wilkinson. You might have heard recently that Matt’s plans to return to fine dining (at the Hen & Coq) have been stalled, […]

Ferran Adrià’s “Family Meals” at Geralds Bar

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

[flickr id=”6210741892″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”false” size=”medium” group=”” align=”center”] I had a chance to skim through this book the other day while I was having a glass (or two) at Geralds Bar in Carlton, and I wanted it straight away. While Ferran Adrià is perhaps better known for his work at the, now defunct, elBulli, when I saw […]

The Fringe Food Festival

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

If you haven’t heard yet, there’s a new festival around town.  Some trumped up food bloggers and tweeters  (me included) have prevailed upon their friends and contacts in the food industry to help put on some affordable, interesting and interactive dinners. So far we’ve hosted a truffle dinner and St Ali with Matt Wilkinson from […]

Growers Espresso / Eureka Coffee

Saturday, September 24th, 2011

Six or seven years ago I lived in (north) North Fitzroy.  A bit of a wasteland, the Loaded Dog hotel had recently closed and food and entertainment options close to hand were few and far between.
A new coffee shop, Growers Espresso, opened on the corner of St Georges Road and Holden street, serving locally roasted Australian grown coffee. My initial thoughts were … blergh – Australian grown coffee? locally roasted??  why would you bother?  Ten years ago, my Melbourne, and my tastebuds were very much directed towards strong, bitter, Italian roasted espresso blends.

The Brix Cafe and Bistrot

Saturday, August 27th, 2011

  [flickr id=”6083866389″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”medium” group=”” align=”centre”] It doesn’t happen very often these days unfortunately, but the meal I had at The Brix last week was astounding. Keen eyes have been keeping an eye on the space behind Foxton’s Real Estate Agency at 412 Brunswick street for a while now. The planning permit was […]

Stefano cook’s at Geralds Bar with matched beers

Monday, July 25th, 2011

Stefano de Pieri is the latest guest chef at Gerald’s Bar on Tuesday 9th August. 4 courses with matched beers for $60 Bookings (03) 9349 4748

Libertine Cider Battle – Victoria vs Normandy

Tuesday, July 5th, 2011

  [flickr id=”5901178740″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”medium” group=”” align=”center”] Autumn had just started to bite here in Melbourne, and it seemed like the perfect time to settle in and learn a lot more about cider, and eat some delicious food at Libertine in North Melbourne. Our hosts, Zoe and Nick, packed their restaurant with cider makers, […]

More Masterchef Musings

Tuesday, June 21st, 2011

I swear, this is not going to become a blog about Masterchef, but my recent post about contestants posting on Facebook has sparked many comments and a few conversations that have gotten me thinking. I been thinking about the structure of the show, particularly in light of some comments that have been made about the […]

So…where did feedlots come from?

Sunday, June 19th, 2011

I was listening to the Food Show with Sheila Dillon on BBC Radio 4 the other day. It’s a great podcast (links below) and I found her program about the history of the burger fascinating, with particular relevance to some of the debate that is happening in Australia right now.

Masterchef or Masterconspiracy?

Wednesday, June 15th, 2011

Disclaimer: I know Mat Byer via twitter and the Melbourne food blogging network, however I haven’t spoken to him about the incident nor the contents of this post. These are my thoughts alone and definitely not his, nor any other contestant current or prior. So, according to the Herald Sun they’ve expelled Mat from Masterchef […]