Conversations
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John Cassie at The Wine Corner Store
Walking up Canning Street to The Wine Corner Store on a sunny day is joyous. There are people sitting at outside tables and lounging on the grass strip in the middle of the road with bottles of wine and snacks, catching up with friends and enjoying the tease of a possible early spring. It's a…
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Aleksis Kalnins at Molli
When I first met Aleksis Kalnins, I was writing a First Look story for Broadsheet about Molli. It was the afternoon of the soft opening and Aleks took me on a super fast tour of the kitchen, restaurant and up to the rooftop to admire the raised garden beds. He talked about the food he…
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Ryan Spurrell at The Clarendon
The Tiffy Group is known for its imaginative venues which transcend the ordinary. As Executive chef for the group, he oversees Goldilocks Rooftop Bar, House of Correction, Lost Boys, The Clarendon and latest Snow White inspired beauty, Mirror Mirror Rooftop Lounge. I spoke to Ryan in The Clarendon which has recently been renovated and is…
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Gagan Sharma at Strato Melbourne
I was lucky enough to be invited to stay at Oakwood Premier Melbourne in Southbank for two nights. We stayed on the 37thfloor in a glorious one bedroom apartment with a view out across the river and the city to the Richmond, Kew and even a glimpse of the Dandenongs. Everything looks different from so…
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Brendan Gamze at Gamze Smokehouse
When I was asked whether I would like to try Gamze Smokehouse's Gold Bacon and chat to Brendan Gamze about the process behind it as well as the philosophy behind the family owned and operated Smokehouse, I was thrilled. Gamze Smokehouse was started by Felix Gamze, Brendan's father, who migrated to Australia with his parents…
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Orlando Marzo at Drinks by Loro
I met Orlando Marzo when I was writing about Joe Vargetto's Bianchetto and Orlando was curating the drinks list. Orlando is passionate about what he does and a great storyteller. When I ran into him again at the Little Food Market recently and he suggested catching up to tell me his story and take me…
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Jess Liemantara at Ned’s Bake
Jess Liemantara, also known as Jess Lemon, is a pastry chef, self-published author and now Head of Innovation and Development at Ned's Bake. Jess has graced the MasterChef kitchen three times, first making waves in 2018 as the youngest contestant ever to compete and earning a spot in the top four, then in 2020for Season…
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Spencer Patrick at Taste of Port Douglas, Harrisons Restaurant
Some of Australia's best chefs (and quite a few friends of the podcast) are heading north for a feast in the tropics and its all thanks to chef Spencer Patrick and his Taste Port Douglas. Founder and culinary director of Chef-hatted Harrisons in the Sheraton Grand Mirage in Port Douglas, Spencer started his career in…
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Sunny Gilbert at Hofbrahaus
What a wild and impressive ride of a career. When I went in to chat to Sunny Gilbert at the Hofbrauhaus, I did not expect to hear about cooking whole crocodiles in a bread oven in China. A career as a chef can certainly take you places. Sunny hadn't planned on being a chef, but…
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Grace Loke at RMIT
Grace Loke is a PhD student at RMIT in Melbourne and is co-lead in a team of researchers exploring the role of our sensory perception in the way we enjoy eating. More specifically, they are looking at the reasons why astronauts report meals taste bland in space and as a result are failing to eat…