Masterchef's Matt Preston, a fleischmeister and a feast of salami

"You're a bad bad fleischmeister!"Now that is the kind of dirty talk guaranteed to get a gourmand's pulse racing.When those words are uttered by Matt Preston himself, well, let's just say I was glad I was sitting down at the time...The deli envelope containing the Don media lunchI have to confess that Matt Preston was the main drawcard to my attendance at the Don Smallgoods media lunch, although

Biggest mooncake in Australia

I did a double-take when I walked past this the other day at the Sussex Centre in Chinatown.According to the plaque alongside it, this mooncake weighs 65kg and is equivalent to 700 normal sized mooncakes, which apparently makes it the biggest mooncake in Australia. The mooncake measures 67cm across and is 12cm high.Made by Saint Honore Cake Shop on 14 September, 2009, the giant-sized mooncake

Malaysia Festival 2009, Darling Habour

Curry Chee Cheong Fun $8.50Sunday seemed to be a day of festivals. Before the trek out to Cabramatta for the Moon Festival and mooncake eating competition, Minh, Simon, Suze and I started the day at the Malaysia Festival in Darling Harbour.We arrived well before the crowds. A 10am start meant most stalls were still unpacking, but it did give us time to inspect the offerings at leisure, and we

Moon festival, Cabramatta

It was a weekend filled with food.My weekend started with a Friday night gluttony of two-hour all-you-can-eat yakiniku at Suminoya. It wasn't the first time I'd eaten myself into oblivion amidst a haze of charcoal, but I'd never before eaten with people who still had room for more - not just a snack, but chicken satay, roti tisu and roti kaya at Mamak immediately afterwards.The theme of excessive

Fix St James, Sydney

Artichoke and broad bean crostini $10We walk past it at first. The signage on Fix St James is so subdued we have to double back when we realise we must have walked straight past it.At first glance, Fix St James could almost pass itself off as an upmarket cafe, the entrance dominated by a espresso machine at the counter. The banquette seating, raised dining platform at the back, and a huge wine

Chat Thai, Sydney (and an interview on the Times Online)

The open kitchen at the front of Chat Thai is always a hive of activity.At least it means that the inevitable wait for a table at this busy restaurant is always entertaining. The narrow galley kitchen fits more chefs than you could think possible, industriously making desserts, checking on bubbling pots and searing skewers of chicken and pork on the grill.After a dinner of make-your-own tofu,

Less than two days to enter the Wellington prize pack giveaway

Entries have now closed for the o-mochi mooncake giveaway but don't forget there are still two more competitions you can enter!A prize hamper worth NZ$135 could be on its way from Wellington and straight to you in the Wellington prize pack competition. Hurry, entries close this Friday 5pm AEST. Enter now.And you could be enjoying a day of talks with chefs and all-day catering at the SIFF World

North Bondi Italian Food, Sydney

"Eating at North Bondi Italian Food is like eating with an Italian grandma," Pig Flyin muses thoughtfully, after dinner.I nod and counter "Except this nonna happens to have a beachfront apartment with a huge circle of friends who are hip, cool, young and pretty."Pig Flyin laughs. "Agreed."Postcard mural decorated by dining patronsTucked away at the northern end of Bondi Beach, North Bondi Italian

Kasumi Izakaya, Sydney

OMIGOD it's a water slide!I am beside myself with excitement. A water slide! With noodles! It's like the kids' bathttime water slide I never had but always coveted.It's not the only surprise dish we find at Kasumi Izakaya, the Japanese tavern on the northern offshootof Dixon Street mall, not far from the new Mandarin Club. Whilst we wait for the rest of our group to arrive, I'm easily entertained

Interview: Ten questions with Chubby Hubby, and your chance to win a ticket to the SIFF World Chef Showcase worth $285

Can you feel the excitement in the air? That's the anticipation of the first ever Sydney International Food Festival, due to launch on 1 October, less than two weeks away!The gustatory celebration once known as Good Food Month has been expanded and rebranded as the Sydney International Food Festival, with more events than ever before. Popular events like Let's do Lunch, Hats Off dinners and Sugar

Phu Quoc, Cabramatta, Sydney

It's a struggle to make it to lunch in Cabramatta without first ruining your appetite.The journey on foot down John Street is a chaotic din of sights, sounds and colour. Bright plastic stools, racks of tops for under $10, curls of incense smoke that tickle your nose, and shop upon shop crammed with bolts of fabric, leaning against each other in a mosh pit of polyester, lace and flannel.But it's

Cabramatta Food Tour

Durian stand

Who needs a passport when you live in Sydney?

The woman selling durian on a street stall shields herself from the sun's blistering rays with a market umbrella. "It's just like Malaysia!" says Shez.

A passerby picks up a ripe durian and inhales deeply. She carefully checks the weight and then slowly inspects the other spiky fruits in the pile. The smell of durian, the heat, the

Sahara Restaurant, Parramatta, Sydney

Famous Turkish apple tea $3Six food bloggers in a restaurant can never be missed.I often wonder what we must look like to the casual passerby, a table of diners intent on photographing each dish with such seriousness, their faces obscured by a camera lens.Tonight I'm dining with fellow food bloggers Lex, Minh, Richard, Simon and Suze. It takes some time for six people to get the shot they're

Bodega Tapas Bar, Surry Hills, Sydney

It was a rhetorical question.

Did you want to eat at Bodega or somewhere else? I didn't hear the rest of the question.

For a tiny tapas bar, the menu is extensive - 22 different dishes and all of them so tempting.


"Fish fingers" $16
Sashimi kingfish on garlic toast with cuttlefish ceviche and mojama

The sashimi kingfish "fish fingers" is one of Bodega's signature dishes, and with good

Mid-Autumn Festival: O-Mochi Mooncake Giveaway

Have you noticed the brightly coloured tins appearing in Asian grocery stores?The Mid-Autumn Moon Festival falls on October 3 this year, a time for families to come together and eat mooncakes and pomelos, beneath the bright and full mid-autumn moon.The packaging and flavours of mooncakes continues to evolve each year. These fancy mooncake gift boxes are probably the most impressive I've seen -

Observatory Hotel Globe Bar, Sydney

It's hard to believe that the Observatory Hotel was only opened in 1993.Georgian-style architecture is complemented by a old-worlde charm from a bygone era. At the entrance to the hotel bar is a celestial globe from which it takes its name. Crafted in 1799, the globe features a handpainted face of the world's star configurations.Inside the bar, a thick carpeted room with heavy drapery and solid

Caffe L'affare, Wellington, New Zealand - and a competition giveaway for Grab Your Fork readers

[Read on for details on a new Grab Your Fork giveaway!]

I may have skipped breakfast on Sunday, but there was no way I was skipping lunch.

It's true that in my whirlwind weekend of Wellington, I ate until I was fit to burst. I had limited time in the Windy City and I was determined to eat and see as much of it as I possibly could. Instead of being suddenly hit with hunger pangs, I was

Moore Wilson, Wellington, New Zealand

Things that make you go awww........Just as this photogenic pug made me melt into a smile, so did the picture perfect food that awaited me at Moore Wilson.It was my final day in Wellington and after joining a tour of the Harbourside Market, I'd zipped over to the fancy new City Market. There was not a moment to waste as I kept an eye on my watch and walked the couple of blocks up to Moore Wilson

City Market, Wellington, New Zealand

Schneckenudel from BrezelmaniaThe City Market is a new addition to the markets scene in Wellington, established by local award-winning chef Martin Bosley (his restarant Martin Bosley's was the Supreme Winner in the 2007 Cuisine Magazine Restaurant of the Year Awards).Housed under the shelter of the Chaffers Dock Function Centre, the City Market is a gourmande's paradise of artisan breads, cheeses

Harbourside Market, Wellington, New Zealand

I was blessed with good weather during my weekend in Wellington.On Sunday morning the sun was shining, and though the air was brisk at about 9C, it was a gorgeous day to be out and about and taking in the local markets.When I'd first visited Wellington two years ago, I'd delighted in the Waitangi Park markets. Today the markets have expanded both in size and offering, including gourmet artisans

Becasse, Sydney - Spring Dinner with Champagne

It's a green carpet entrance.

As I approach the doorway to Bécasse, I hesitate, for in my way is a shallow bed of grassy turf. It's cut to a doormat-size, but positioned sideways so it runs like a small hall-runner. A little voice inside me shouts "KEEP OFF THE GRASS" but there's no other way around and that's when I realise we're meant to walk on the grass, a tongue-in-cheek start to

New World Supermarket, Wellington, New Zealand

Am I the only person who considers an overseas supermarket a valid tourist destination?Having eaten myself into oblivion at Hippopotamus, I know I need to walk off some off my dinner. Where better to head than the fluroscent-lit aisles of New World supermarket, an insight into Wellington's grocery habits?Fruit displayHaving spent much of my high school and university life working in supermarkets,