Rockpool est. 1989

In the fish bowl. Mitch Orr, Dan Hong and a few other familiar faces! Clearly loving it.

The scene was set. Seven of Sydney's hottest cheffing talents were ready and raring to go. The occasion was the Josephine Pignolet 25th Anniversary Young Chefs Dinner. And I couldn't think of a finer place to host this special dinner other than Rockpool which, in its new incarnation on Bridge Street oozes style and substance. A handful of the previous winners were charged with delivering a dish each representing them and just how far they've come. It's a tough game, the restaurant business.

Let the games begin!

Established in 1990, the Josephine Pignolet Award recognises the accomplishments of young talented chefs. The award was named after the late Josephine Pignolet, the wife of Damien Pignolet, and cook herself. Going from strength to strength, the award is coveted and includes a placement in an overseas kitchen, flights and a substantial cash prize. Tonight, was all about celebration - reaching a silver anniversary and a showcase of the finest and innovative food in town. Following is a snapshot of some of those delicious eats. Enjoy.

Rockpool was in charge of the canapés and boy did they rock our socks off. Sea urchin on squid ink cracker and black garlic purée. Umm, okay Rockpool - this was kind of amazing

Drunken Storm Clam - yep, it just got better. I must admit many of us were scratching our heads as to WHAT this was (mollusc wise) but it tasted awesome, and the slightly tangy dressing made it a complete package. Possibly the best canapé I've had in my LIFE.

Mitch Orr - ACME, Rushcutters Bay

Burrata, burnt bread, tomato. Mitch Orr is certainly making a scene in Rushcutters Bay at ACME, reviving a little pocket of undiscovered 'hipster' Sydney. This dish was an exciting way to start - the burrata had an irresistibly creamy inside and the burnt bread an intriguing addition to the light tomato infused dressing

Dan Puskas - Sixpenny, Stanmore

Poached potato with oyster and mushroom. Daintily covered in razor thin slices of mushroom, the potato was covered in what can only be described as beurre blanc goodness. The powdered oyster had an extremely subtle flavour as a dusting

Hamish Ingham - Bar H, Surry Hills

Mooloolaba Bug Tail, pickled celtuce, yuzu kosho & wasabi leaf. I asked myself one thing eating this dish. Why the heck haven't I been to Bar H?!?! Silly woman. This was proabably my favourite of the night. The slightly cured bug (but essentially raw) was accompanied beautiful by an explosion of textures and flavours with a hint of chilli. Bravo

Dan Hong - Mr Wong, Sydney

Double boiled soup with kangaroo tail and baby abalone. It's bound to happen, you start to pit the dishes against one another and unfortunately this wasn't up there. The soup was consommé clear but there was a bitter taste to the broth that I just couldn't shake. Perhaps it was touch of pith from the lime? Not sure. The tail meat was lovely and tender, the abalone was decidedly not.

Mark Best - Marque, Surry Hills

Mark Best was almost like the captain of the cricket team tonight. A sort of mentor like figure who was commanding this ship. His effort was Bar cod, fish & milk scales, pickled shiitake. What a pretty little thing. The cod was amazingly soft and cooked well, pity that it was lukewarm! The garnish tasted very, how should I say this? Green.

Phil Wood - Rockpool est. 1989, Sydney

Hot and sour oxtail with prawn and coriander. Well, well, well, can't menus be deceiving. This was the most deceptively complex dish of the night. The soft, shredded oxtail meat had been stuffed in a prawn MOUSSE which was then poached. It was pretty damned impressive (but also needed to be hotter when it hit the table).

Lauren Eldridge - Marque, Surry Hills
Also, this years JP Award winner!

Blue Mountains wildflower honeycomb and cultured cream. This was a pretty clever little dish. Kept it simple, stupid. A premade honeycomb (mind you a pretty bloody AMAZING one at that) sitting on a dollop of cultured cream. Smash it all together and you have two elements marry together perfectly well. A winner amongst diners.

Survived! It was a wonderful show of skill and teamwork too. The collegial spirit in the kitchen was so great to see. Hats off to them for a fantastic evening. Wow.

Thanks for reading!
xGourmand

Snapshot: Omnivore

That ominous looking, zig-zag for a sign is the logo for the Omnivore World Tour, a 'little' known festival around these parts. Coinciding with the Labour Day long weekend and the start of Good Food Month, Omnivore is all about celebrating the up-and-coming culinary talents of the world. With a series of masterclasses and pop-up dinners over the weekend; the air abuzz with a youthful energy and excitement. This year (the second year the Omnivore tour has come to Sydney), the festival descended on the Australian National Maritime Museum for some harbour-side capers, a nifty concept unto itself.

O-MNIV-ore, or something...

Tonight's feast was hosted by chefs Pierre Sang Boyer, of Pierre Sang in Oberkampf (Paris) as well as our own Hamish Ingham of Bar H (Sydney) (another restaurant I still haven't visited yet!!!). Both like to work with Asian flavours in a rather modern way, delivering refined and innovative dishes. Pierre Sang launched himself into the spotlight after being named finalist in Top Chef 2011, France. Now, in 2014 he has two restaurants in Paris which are consistently booked out. Yet again, the great table tussle continues #firstworldproblems. Luckily this time, Pierre Sang has come to us!

You've got to love a long table and male models for waiters (pretty much)...can't complain!

Hamish Ingham, a local Sydney chef carved a name for himself at Bar H Dining, a dinky corner eatery in Surry Hills serving Chinese inspired food. With various appearances on Masterchef and a Good Food Guide chef's hat in the arsenal, Ingham is a worthy contender in this pop-up duo. This is the Eurasian dream team on paper but shall we move on to the food? The dinner consisted of five courses with matched wines, with a focus on locally sourced Australian ingredients (but of course)!

Sashimi of snapper with wasabi snow, okahjiki and shiso. My favourite dish of the night, already. We peaked pretty early here, but Ingham's combination of everything in the dish was an instant winner. A few strands of samphire, the hint of wasabi powder and the freshness of the fish - all gone in an instant!

Spinach and oyster, pomegranate. A rather curious dish for me by Boyer, a prawn cracker (not quite crispy enough) sits perched amongst diced fresh oyster and a bundle of vegetables (par cooked, slightly too textural haha) without much of a sauce. The oyster and the roe could just be there alone and I'd be happy!

Tuna andouille, bearnaise sauce. A rich sauce for a very rich and oily fish. This dish is a staple of Boyer's, a signature on the menu of In Oberkampf. The tuna itself was incredible, the grilled onion and radish just accessory

Rangers Valley wagyu rump cap shiro miso, sichuan beetroot. Ingham experiments a little by using a lesser known cut of wagyu which has been slow cooked. Perhaps more chewy than most are used to, I found the meat still be nice and tender and the sauce had a lovely depth of flavour. The spiced beets were a nice accompaniment

In the spotlight, the frantic assembly line for the dessert course. All done outside on a makeshift 'pass'

Rose geranium pavlova, yuzu curd, muntrie jam and dried strawberries. That oozy curd, I could just bottle that up and bundle it home. The meringue unfortunately was rather chewy at the bottom, possibly an issue with pre-cooking them offsite. For balance and lightness, I thought maybe a bit more whipped cream might have helped. The coriander added a nice, tangy touch to what would otherwise be a very sweet dessert

A quick Q&A with Luc Dubanchet (creator of Omnivore) and the crew, many of whom had flown in from France especially for the Omnivore program. Read: junket!

With Omnivore gracing our shores once again, here's hoping they make the trip Down Under for many years to come. It seems the Omnivore movement has been gaining some momentum and this dinner was a testament to that fact. You can catch some more glimpses from the night with the official coverage over here. At its heart, Omnivore helps to connect young chefs from around the world, promoting a strong spirit of collaboration. The best thing about these events are that they are a golden opportunity for some of the young guns to establish themselves. Even one of Boyer's youngest sous chefs (at just 19) was mucking in. This is what Omnivore is all about...the future is here!

Adios to another great evening!

Thanks for reading!
xGourmand

A Long Lunch with Matthew Evans

Sydney's Good Food Month has kicked off with a bang, and a spit roast. Oh yes, you read right. This momentous (and lamby) occasion was to mark the release of Matthew Evans' a.k.a. Gourmet Farmer new memoir, The Dirty Chef. His latest book documents his bold tree change from bustling Sydney to the tranquil of the Huon Valley in southern Tassie. And what better way to enjoy the October sunshine than a lamb spit roast and a long lunch? Warning: this post is not recommended for vegetarians.

Taming the Beast: this was our welcome. Hot fat drips into the coals and plumes of smoke puff back at you, tauntingly. Want a piece of me? [That was rhetorical, obviously]

Our luxuriously long lunch was hosted by The Commons, the 'local eating house' of Darlinghurst. A venue much suited because of their philosophy of sourcing food locally and knowing its origins. Ethical food choices are what they are all about and this is a message that Evans' also endeavours to get out there. Much of the produce from the lunch was sustainably sourced by providore Feather and Bone, whom you can find at Pyrmont Markets. I've written a bit about these ideas in a post that you can find here. Glass of La Zona prosecco in hand, you can't help but enjoy the surrounds!

The outdoor courtyard at The Commons, home to the spit roast lamb for this afternoon delight.

We were in for a looong lunch, 4 courses of a sharing style menu designed by Matthew in conjunction with the Commons kitchen. A veritable Spring feast i.e. the best. Here's my photographic rundown... Bon appetit!

Fried local zucchini flowers stuffed with ricotta and herbs. Plump and stuffed with creamy-as ricotta, these babies were a delicious and crispy starter

Charcuterie board (left) and Chicken liver crostini (right). The charcuterie by Feather and Bone included bresaola (a favourite amongst us), prosciutto and salami - cured meats that were surprisingly sweet and mellow. I'm a bit of a closet paté/terrine fan so this smooth liver crostini was lovely

Grilled mackerel stuffed with salsa verde. A sustainable fish course presenting a vibrant green hue. This was one of my personal favourites, with a squeeze of lemon and a smear of aïoli the little mackerel packs a punch

The mackerel (left, ain't it pretty?) and right, seasonal vegetables - a warm salad of asparagus (new in season), heirloom carrot and broad bean

Le pièce de résistance: whole 2 week dry-aged biodynamic White Suffolk lamb from Lynden Farm, Oberon NSW. Carved up with expertise by Matthew and Grant from Feather and Bone. Boom.

The lamb, in case you were wondering was the star. Rather tender, rather crispy skin, rather amazing. If we only had one plate for lunch, this would be more than enough. But no, we've gone for seconds and thirds and fourths...It makes me smile :)

For dessert we had a cheeseboard of Marrook farm biodynamic Brinawa (Tilsit style) cow's milk farmhouse cheese but this was the main event: blood orange, polenta & olive oil cake with mascarpone. Oh boy, this was a thing of beauty. The occasional crunch of the polenta grains was a nice textural touch.

Three glorious hours later we were nursing our food babies and listening to Matthew tell us about the highs and lows of working the land (he now has 2 farms to keep him busy) and a sneak peek into his upcoming project (which smells a bit fishy, hint hint). Evans is as down-to-earth and hospitable in real life as he seems on our TV screens. This afternoon was a wonderful feast of ideas, great food and good company. What more could you ask for?

Evans' new memoir, The Dirty Chef - a rather curious title indeed! I've got my signed copy next on the reading list ;)

Thanks for reading and Happy Long Weekend!

x Gourmand