Top 5 Scottish Breakfasts My favourite meal in Scotland is undoubtedly breakfast. Although I’ve had some fine lunches and dinners in my father’s homeland, what always stands out for me is the quality (and often quantity) of Scottish breakfasts. Perhaps because of the cold climate, they are inevitably hearty affairs of smoked fish, porridge and […]
I’ve been accused of featuring the eastern suburbs too heavily, but I can’t help it if there’s a concentration of great eats (and drinks) in that part of town. So I’m delighted to be celebrating something that the northside (my home turf) has in abundance – great eats with great views! Time to enjoy a […]
Top 5 International Dishes 2015-2016 It’s been a big year of eating and I’ve tasted some wonderful dishes overseas as well as at home. So, rather than knock any of my local favourites out of the Top 5, I decided to give you my Top 5 International Dishes as well. It’s a hard choice – […]
Australia has a long tradition of Asian food, with the Chinese restaurant a mainstay in every suburb and country town beyond living memory. In the late ‘70s, Thai and Vietnamese entered the mix and, over time, more Japanese and Korean restaurants followed. Initially they were clusters of ‘cheap & cheerful’ ethnic restaurants in specific suburbs […]
Sydney’s always been a great place to eat the food of the Eastern Mediterranean – delicious shared feasts of dips, salads, flatbread and charcoal-grilled meat – less expensive and healthier than a lot of other offerings and mainly along Cleveland Street in the city and in the south-western suburbs. But there are also a band […]
Looking for more great Chinese food in Sydney? Try my Top 5 Dumplings & Noodles. Top 5 Chinese China is a huge country, with as much regional diversity as Europe. But for too long, Chinese food in Sydney meant Cantonese, the food of Hong Kong and Guangdong province, the ancestral homeland of many Aussie-Chinese. More […]
I love language almost as much as I love food and I enjoy combining the two, discovering what the original meaning of food words tells us about the history of that food. Lately I’ve had cause to think about two terms often used synonymously: ‘Fast Food’ and ‘Junk Food’. For the word geeks out there, […]
Paris has many beautiful public squares (‘place’ in French), but none more attractive to lovers of good food and drink than the one built around the imposing 19th century neoclassical Madeleine Church (L’église Sainte-Marie-Madeleine). Ringed with gorgeous, indulgent food shops, Place de la Madeleine is always my first stop in Paris. Whether I want to […]
I was in Paris less than a week after the terrorist attacks in November 2015. It was confronting to see the bundles of flowers, candles and notes outside the restaurants and other sites … but also uplifting to see the Parisians defiantly out and about, eating, drinking, socialising and celebrating life. One of their favourite […]
This may be the most contentious Top 5 I’ll ever write … so please consider it a mere introduction to the many places serving excellent authentic pizza in Sydney today! For me it starts with a thin, slightly charred crust. I generally prefer pizza bianca (without tomato), but rosso (with a smear of Italian San […]
