There is one thing I never do when I eat out. It’s dine alone. Call it extreme self consciousness combined with the fact that the best meals to me are the ones shared with friends or in company. My mind automatically thinks that people will stare (and let’s face it they stare enough when the camera comes out) and they may think “Poor girl, she has no friends.” I know it’s silly, after all many people that travel dine solo. But just not me. Until tonight.

Through lack of organisation on my part I find myself in Brisbane one evening without a date. When I walk into The Euro on Mary Street they ask me where I’d like to sit. Apparently solo diners like sitting at the bar but I want somewhere where there is good light. The best light is of course at the table at the very front of the restaurant in the window. Of course!

Euro is the more casual version of the 10 year old restaurant Urbane which is a fine dining affair (complete with a dessert degustation-lust!). Sitting side by side The Euro has an attractive design with a metal door with cut outs of knives, carrots, duck and pretty much anything you might find on their menu there. The design aesthetic goes through to their menus and coasters which feature a genuine Russian matchbox cover.

Jamon, manchego and pea croquettes (2) with green chilli mayonnaise $11

Listed under amuse bouche, this course, usually complimentary, the amuse is an item that you pay for (I think they’d do better listing this under appetiser). These are more substantial than a typical amuse though which often fits in a shot glass and these are more tapas style sizes. I start with the crunchy deep fried golden balls filled with jamon, manchego cheese and green pea which sit on a green chilli mayonnaise. They’re wonderfully crunchy and addictive although I don’t really get much of a chilli kick from the green chilli mayonnaise which would have been lovely.

Veal carpaccio

The veal carpaccio is appealingly pink centred with carrots in several forms: dried carrot and carrot jam and fossilized carrots. What? Fossilized carrots? Yes not carrots dug up from prehistoric times, instead they’re carrots that have been kept in a calcium dioxide solution for 24 hours to have all of their pectin removed. They then add moisture back into the carrots and scrape out the inside and then the outer is deep fried and served to give the dish crunch. The crunch from the bark like fossilized carrots and the thin croutons does add a nice crunch as well as the crumbs and the creamy labne and tender thinly sliced veal.

Hervey Bay Scallops

A gift from the kitchen this is apparently not on the menu which is  a shame as it’s really good. The Hervey Bay scallops are succulent and plump and are topped and tailed with thin slices of granny smith apple and topped with deep fried chicken skin. Don’t get me started on chicken skin, I love the stuff and all three elements work well together and they do need each other to balance the crunchiness, sweetness and tanginess.

Tortellini of pumpkin, with maple braised pumpkin, organic goats curd, candied walnuts, almonds and shaved roasted chestnuts $26

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Out of the Whitsundays’ seventy four islands, a mere eight are inhabited and the Northern most is Hayman Island, our third and final stop on our Whitsundays tour. Made famous recently by the devastation by two cyclones, the island had to be revamped, replanted, replenished and rebuffed. Enter the likes of Jamie Durie who was called in to tend to the gardens (and apparently he has expensive taste and required the buying up of thousands of exotic plants and clearing out exotic plant nurseries!). Reopened, slick and glowing at the beginning of August this year, we were curious to see what it was like.

We start our journey to Hayman by seaplane with Air Whitsundays where the seaplanes can go on both water and then land using their wheels. The flight to Hayman is only 10 minutes long as compared to 40 minutes by boat and we fly over water that turns from turquoise to the brightest blue passing other islands like South Molle and Hook island on the right.

And while I was mentally preparing to get on a dinghy the plane lands on the water with a small burst of foam before climbing up the ramp and depositing us dry and surprised on Hayman Island. Oh yes that deserved a round of applause and a happy dance

Our luggage gets whisked away (I just love it darlings when they deal with it for you) and we take the golf buggy ride to the main area where we check in. My first thought is that it the design and weather reminds me of one of those lovely resorts in Asia where they seem to strike the right atmosphere.

We have a pool room as this is the entry level of room so named because it faces the pool. The room is small, you can’t argue that, but it’s nicely furnished and I like the open plan bathroom and how the bath looks onto the bedroom which looks onto the pool. The design flows nicely.

I shower and dress for dinner in a nanosecond (I have to say that shower recess is small and you do end up wetting the floor outside) and we reconvene and walk to the bar where we have pre dinner champagne before being told of our special treat that evening. We are to dine at the Chef’s Table adjacent to the kitchen. Hayman Island is known for its food with a focus on fine dining eschewing resort style buffets that bloat with the best intentions. Here chef Glenn Bacon (yes with a name like that he really did have to become a chef) turns out exquisite portions in a kitchen that is apparently the second largest in the southern hemisphere, second only to Crown Casino.

We make our way to the kitchen via a small entrance clearly not made for guests. It feels a little bit hidden and exciting  and we walk through the Fontaine kitchen named after the hotel’s main restaurant. There are chandeliers sparkling in the distance and an enormous table is set up for us. We are dining in the area of the Grand Manger room and the butchery although Glenn points out that “not all butchers have a grand piano.”

The menu has a little description of the concept for the evening. It tells us that the chef’s table originated in Europe in the 18th century when chefs would serve patrons dishes not normally available on the menu. And on tonight’s menu there are some dishes that are only available through the chef’s table (including a sublime strawberry dessert, but I’m getting ahead of myself there!).

Chef Glenn Bacon

The chef’s table experience happens once a week and needs to be booked ahead of time but for more spur of the moment requests there is also the chef’s bench experience which is a fourteen course dinner that can accommodate two people.

Table setting that includes tweezers

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Island time is a concept that applies to islands where things just happen when they happen. Case in point when we are high up above Hamilton Island the plane circling above. There is a layer of clouds below and the pilot is telling us that we’ll be circling but “we have plenty of fuel”. You see Hamilton Island airport is a sight only runway which means that planes can only land if they can see the runway clearly. You see it all conspires to create the Island time phenomenon.

It seems the other journos in the group are having trouble landing today and the Brisbane flight does the circling dance above Hamilton Island airport. It’s in the final days of the Hamilton Island Race Week and as a keen sailor Mr NQN was rather jealous that I was going to be here. There are celebrities galore and the island is packed with all accommodation fully booked and during this time there is a 10 night minimum stay.

Clocking the time we notice that we’re running late so we get into the golf buggy and high tail (well as fast as a golf buggy can go) to the jetty back near the main airport where we have literally missed our boat within minutes. You know that feeling when you can see the backs of the heads of passengers as they are pulling out? Not to worry, we could still make it to Daydream Island. But we would just have to get there in a roundabout fashion.

Late in the afternoon we finally arrive at our destination for the evening, Daydream Island. We are greeted with  a shell necklace placed around our necks and make our way to our rooms.

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