New restaurant is a tribute to a legend

 

Mietta O'Donnell was a legendary Melbourne restaurateur, who is fondly remember a quarter of a century after her death.

Mietta's was an conic restaurant much loved by the the city's movers and shakers, and O'Donnell was  also an influential figure in the arts and cultural world.

Now a new restaurant named in her honour: Miettas, has opened as a fine dining destination at The Queenscliff Hotel on the Ballarine Peninsula, where she once oversaw the property when it was Mietta's Queenscliff in the 1970s.

With a kitchen brigade led by executive chef Salvatore Giorgio, Miettas aims to establish itself as a destination restaurant, with a one-seating-per-service model "designed to create a relaxed and elevated experience". 

Giorgio, former owner and chef of Bar Taralli, has built "a strong reputation for honest, flavour-driven cooking grounded in southern Italian tradition", the local tourism authority reports. The chef has worked at kitchens including Marnong Estate, Scopri, and Bar Bambi.

The menu includes hand-crafted pasta, local seafood and premium meats with an Italian accent. 

There are two degustation menus for $115 and $135 per person, as well as vegetarian and Vegan options.

See thequeenscliffhotel.com.au

Marketing: telling it like it isn't

Can we just stop with the marketing nonsense?

I know businesses have to promote themselves in these testing times, but can you please not all say the same thing.

I reckon around 80% of the marketing emails I get from restaurants and their PRs say something along the lines of "the chef is passionate about championing local and seasonal produce".

Then you take a look at the menu and see seafood from thousands of miles away, vegetables that are out of season etc.

And eat at many of these establishments and you might detect pre-prepared ingredients from many miles away - even other countries. 

And often the wine lists in such "local champions" will feature dozens of wines from France, Italy or New Zealand

Winemakers also get in on the act.

Here's a popular one: "Our wines are 100% Vegan friendly".

Well let me tell you something, No wine can be 100% Vegan friendly, no matter how hard the wine producer tries.

There is the little matter of MOG (matter other than grapes). It is the wine industry's dirty little secret.

When grapes come into a winery they come along with a whole lot of protein. Think caterpillars, rats, snakes, spiders, mice, insects and other bugs, even bird's nests.

All of which live happily in and among the vines and go into the crusher/de-stemmer along with leaves, dirt and other undesirables. 

Some will get through the process no matter how rigorous the table sorting. A small percentage will survive filtering - leaving just a little meat in your Vegan wine.

There are dozens of other examples, so could we all please try to just be a little more realistic with our bold claims?

Image: Jessica Lee, Scop.io

Veteran winemaker shows he has some new tricks

 

David Lowe has been making wine for some time. Back in the 1980s, I drink shedloads of the delicious wines he made at the late lamented Rothbury Estate in the Hunter Valley.

But Lowe is also a winemaker who keeps abreast with consumer trends, hence the release of his Bio-Logical range of wines that very much capture the zietgeist.

For the past couple of decades Lowe has been based in Mudgee, sourcing fruit from the across the various regions of the Central West of New South Wales, but mainly from his own organic and biodynamic vineyards. 

The Lowe Family Vineyards Bio-Logical wines, which retail for $45 a bottle, and are preservative free, vegan friendly and, except for the white, certified organic.. 

The range comprises a very crunchy and vibrant 2023 Bio-Logical Red, made from shiraz, a dashingly youthful and very drinkable 2023 Rosé, also crafted from shiraz, and a 2023 White made using fruit from the Murray Darling region in Victoria. 

The red is unoaked, just grape juice and wild yeast. It doesn't even see oak and is probably best enjoyed in its youth, well chilled. All three wines share a wild spirit; a sense of "otherness".

Interestingly, the white is made from what Lowe calls ansonica, a white variety from Sicily that is probably better known as inzolia and is still rare in Australia. 

If you are heading to Mudgee, a tasting at the Cellar Door and lunch at the Zin House eatery operated by Lowe's partner Kim Currie is de rigueur. See https://lowefamilywineco.com.au/ 

    

New gourmet drawcard for Northern NSW

Northern New South Wales is about to get a new gourmet drawcard. 

Tweed River House, a new bistro and bar in rural Murwillumbah, will open on Friday, September 24. 

Just down the road from the Tweed Regional Gallery, the colonial-style riverside manor has for over a century been a focal point for great occasions in locals' lives. 

And locals are getting behind the new venture with the first weekend already booked out. 

Tweed River House has sweeping views across the cane fields to Wollumbin and the Border Ranges. 

Guests can dine on the river terrace or inside under elegant pressed-tin ceilings and cooling fans.

“Old world hospitality is our keynote” says Gregory Lording, the general manager and co-owner. “We want guests to feel immersed in the relaxed style of bygone eras - think Singapore’s Raffles and Penang’s E&O dining rooms; and cocktails on the terraces of grand old homes in Australia’s tropical north.

“We are very fortunate to have found so much talent within this region with massive industry experience both here and abroad, who are just delighted to be able to showcase their skills locally.”

Executive Chef Joseph McGrattan, Irish born with an Australian family, has classic European training and a love of fresh local produce. 

He has worked at Kooljaman Resort, Cape Leveque on the Dampier Peninsula and will also be sourcing indigenous ingredients. 

Options will range from light bites to full degustation menus, and there will be special vegan menus available. 

Guests can expect dishes like venison and bush tomato terrine, pancetta, celeriac choucroute, apple, rosella and nasturtium capers, or perhaps Drake Creek duck smoked breast, crispy rillettes, riberry compote, parfait and fig puree. 

The new eatery will be open for lunch Thursday to Sunday and dinner Friday and Saturday. For bookings go to www.tweedriverhouse.com.au