Gordon at the Media conference

Forgive the deliberately provocative title if you will but I was literally waking up with Gordon Ramsay this cold Winter’s Friday morning.  Thanks to the lovely Johanna from Stellar Concepts, at 8:30am several members of Sydney’s press including myself and Helen, assembled in the LG VIP Lounge to have breakfast and to meet Mr Ramsay himself. Walking in and looking tanned and fit in a blue tshirt, he’s nursing a cup of coffee before he gives us a little speech letting us know about the higlights in his Australian visit including a holiday with the family on Hamilton Island and a memorable dinner at Quay. It’s all very cordial and rehearsed and doesn’t really sound like the Ramsay we know and love with none of the edge normally associated with him. At the end, an eager Channel 7 reporter jumps up and asks him “Is your publicist keeping you on a tight leash this time?” which he pointedly ignores. We’re left to ponder what happens next which is Gordon’s first cooking session for the event along with our very generous goodie bags (containing a copy of his book “Healthy Appetite”, LG cooking utensils, a wine bag and some rosemary and oregano olive oil.

We’re seated in row B seat 30 and after the obligatory warm up from Alistair McLeod (beware, don’t put your hand up unless you want to get up and dance in front of everyone!), Gordon and his offsider Stuart Gillies (executive chef at Boxwood Cafe), come out to much applause. Gordon has a strip of tape over his mouth. Yes he knows he needs to behave to avoid another Tracy Grimshaw incident (although that was about as bad as what he said about Lisa Wilkinson and Dannii Minogue at the show last year which passed without controversy so he must be confused as to how far he can take things).

Gordon chats to onstage guests

Click here to read the full story

If you enjoyed this post, why not share it with your friends?

I always have an eye or ear out for blogging opportunities. With an ear to the ground and a loyal readership that generously share their recommendations with me, I love seeking out new places that I haven’t tried before. So this evening when we drive past Wilsons we see a cafe on the opposite side of the road which has a large crowd gathered around it. I get excited and say “Oooh let’s check that place out!” to Queen Viv and Miss America, my intrepid dining pals and we head towards Cafe Cana. Getting closer, we encounter some curious looks and it suddenly dawns on us that we’ve almost gatecrashed a dinner session feeding dinner to the homeless. Yes, embarrassing but true.

Sheepishly, we head off to Wilson’s, a Lebanese restaurant which opened over 30 years ago and is said to be Sydney’s oldest Lebanese restaurant. And why the rather un-Lebanese sounding name of Wilson’s? Apparently “Wilson” was the anglicised version of the original Lebanese chef’s name.

The sign is cracked and repaired but when we step in, it’s all retro but charmingly so. With a parachute ceiling and what we can assume to be the original fixtures and decor, it’s like a step back in time. Queen Viv recalls seeing older Lebanese men sitting outside on crates on a hot Summer’s night although this cold, wet rainy Winter’s night there are none.

Cinnamon tea $3

There are two other tables but things are quiet here. We order a range of dishes from the menu and they come out in quick succession. Meanwhile I warm myself with the cinnamon tea which is sweet and heady in cinnamon.

Mixed dips $16

We start with the Mixed dips which is not a huge serve but has babaganoush, hommous, tabouli, two crispy felafel and a pile of soft bread. It’s delicious and we learn the standout dish of the night, particularly when you mix the dips and tabouli and a bit of felafel and pile it on top of the bread.

Kibbeh $10

Click here to read the full story

If you enjoyed this post, why not share it with your friends?

There’s nothing more painful than ill conceived or contrived beachside chic and conversely there’s nothing better than welcoming true beachside chic. Sydney does it so well and so badly at times. Badly is when the view speaks or shouts louder than the food which is a scant afterthought and prices rival that of a 5 star restaurant just because you happen to be sitting across from the ocean. Vespacific cafe is of the other ilk, a little retro style beachside cafe with a Vespa theme running through it in Narrabeen on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Service is said to be friendly, servings tasty and huge and they also happen to be very vegetarian friendly (and incidentally we see that they also compost but not in that in your face kind of way that shouts “I’m fashionably green!”). It’s a beautiful sunny Winter’s day in Sydney so what better way to spend it than to be beachside. I confess it’s a compulsion of mine whenever we get a nice sunny weekend day in Winter.

Vespacific is relaxed - when I call them to see if I need a booking the woman says “Oh ok sure, for how many people?” and when I answer “Two” I hear her tell the staff “Hey guys there’ll be a table of two at two o’clock, just keep a table for them”. When we arrive, we see that the cafe is located across from the water where there is a raised wooden viewing platform. And what’s this for? For checking out the surf of course. Canny locals get their sustenance to take away from Vespacific and watch the waves breaking.

When we arrive we nab a table near the window. It’s not quite an ocean view, more a grassy view but there is some comfort to know that the ocean is past the grass. I breathe a sigh of relief to find that the menu features all day breakfast items. That means that their famous Mega Bacon and Egg roll is available and it’s got my name on it. We order the Punjabi Eggs for my husband and a croissant with banana and a liquid chocolate shot to share. The menu has a wide range of vegetarian options including some that have me switching allegiences from omnivore to vegetarian such as the “Gourmet toast with roasted capsicum, eggplant, caramelised onion, capsicum and olive tapenade topped with fried halloumi and fresh herbs”. Prices are extremely reasonable with most items under $10. I kid you not.

Australian Meat!

I look around. It’s almost like a set of Home and Away it’s so beachy and laidback. There’s plenty to see including a bookshelf with a book “How to do sex properly” and a battered but well loved 1869 edition of “Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management” simply propped up on the shelf without ceremony. I enjoy flipping through it and reading about the “Mulligatwany Soup made with Australian Meat” and the wages awarded to male and female household servants with different wages suggested for those that receive sugar, tea and beer.

Also true to the name, there’s a red Vespa adorning one wall behind a print of a surfer midflight (we spy a mini Vespa keyring on the owner’s key chain too), paintings from local artists and Barbie, Skipper and Ken in a red convertible on the countertop. Perhaps I’ve been too absorbed in my copy of Mrs Beeton’s Guide to Household Management but the food arrives quickly. It’s freshly made and hot and smells inviting so I dig in eagerly.

Cappucino in a Mug $3.50

Mega Bacon and Egg Roll $12

Click here to read the full story

If you enjoyed this post, why not share it with your friends?