Eating Well.

WORDS ROBERTA MUIR

TAKE A BITE OUT OF BRISBANE

Brisbane will sizzle this month when some of Australia’s best chefs come together for the third Brisbane Good Food & Wine Show, on 9–11 November. TV’s Surfing the Menu host Curtis Stone is flying in from LA to join local heroes Tobie Puttock (Fifteen, Melbourne), Matt Moran (Aria, Sydney) and Alastair McLeod (Bretts Wharf, Brisbane). Come down for cooking demonstrations and book signings by some of Australia’s favourite chefs, as well as a chance to try the hottest new products, see the latest culinary trends and taste some of Australia’s finest foods and wines. Adults AU$16.50, concession AU$13.50 and children over five AU$11.50. Call Ticketek on 13 28 49 within Australia.

A WALK TO REMEMBER

Now there’s another reason to explore the beautiful Port Hills, overlooking Christchurch and Lyttelton, thanks to the extensive refurbishment of Sign of the Takahe, one of four roadhouses built early last century as a rest stop for hikers. This beautiful hilltop castle, named after a New Zealand bird, now features an elegant restaurant upstairs and a café, bar and bistro downstairs. Executive chef Derek Allomes is championing local farms and artisanal produce. The café’s offers breakfast, Devonshire teas and home-style cooking, while the restaurant serves dinner from 6pm. 200 Hackthorne Rd, Cashmere, New Zealand, tel: +64 (3) 332 4052.

A SWEETER LITTLE ENGLAND

If you’re headed to Christchurch, consider taking a side-trip to the gorgeous Georgian town of Dunedin. The Mercure Hotel Dunedin, which opened in 1862, is offering a Tastes of Dunedin package with one night’s accommodation, breakfast, tickets to Cadbury World, a Speight’s Brewery Tour and a special Speight’s and Cadbury gift pack. NZ$250 per couple per night. Tel: +64 (3) 477 1145.

MEDITERRANEAN MAGIC

Celebrate La Dolce Vita among Victoria’s King Valley wineries on 17–18 November. This springtime celebration of the good life is a wonderful weekend of Mediterranean cooking, alfresco indulgence, new release wines and warm hospitality among the valley’s family-owned wineries. Primerano is featuring dishes from the southern region of Calabria, Paul Bettio Wines is releasing their 2007 Sauvignon Blanc Chardonnay to accompany their Italian barbecue, while Sam Miranda’s ‘Mambo Italiano’ is a fiesta of pizza, fizz and film – and fun! Tel: 1800 801 065, freecall within Australia.

INTERVIEW - ALASTAIR MCLEOD

Alastair McLeod is executive chef at Bretts Wharf, one of Brisbane’s leading riverfront restaurants. We spoke to him in the lead up to the Brisbane Good Food & Wine Show this month.

Do you agree that the freshest seafood is to be had next to the water?
Our restaurant’s right on the water so people think seafood but we don’t actually source any produce from the river. We do, however, source as much produce as we can from as nearby as possible. This means the produce is super fresh.

Do you have any menu items that you can’t remove?
We change the menu frequently, but if we ever remove our selection of reef fish from the menu, there’d be a riot.

Where do you go for a bite?
On my days off I like to try lots of different places. Most recently, I’ve been to Beccofino (10 Vernon Tce, Teneriffe, tel: +61 (7) 3666 0207), Liquorish Bistro & Bar (2/140 Oxford St, Bulimba, tel: +61 (7) 3399 1520) and for a special treat, Gianni’s (12 Edward St, tel: +61
(7) 3221 7655) in the CBD.

What’s your favourite dish?
At the moment, it’s roasted jumbo scallops, soba noodles and radish salad with passionfruit dressing. This dish really typifies summer in Queensland – I love the contrast of the passionfruit and lime in the dressing with the scallops; the soba noodles are chilled so it’s really refreshing, healthy and just gets your taste buds going.

After a hard day’s work, what do you whip up for yourself?
Seafood – grilled salmon especially. With just lemon and salad on the side, it’s healthy and quick to make. My kids love this too.