If only these walls could talk

The famous bar from South Yarra restaurant Lynch's is going under the hammer on Thursday. The stunning carved walnut bar, complete with original works by acclaimed artist Charles Billich, will be auctioned to raise funds for the Save the Children charity. Leading South Yarra auction house Mossgreen will conduct the sale at a fundraising lunch hosted by Lynch's new owners, Di and Sascha Pausewang, at the restaurant on Thursday. Lynch's, the restaurant established by Paul Lynch, was bought by the Pausewang family last year. It remains one of Melbourne's best-known and loved dining institutions. Sunday Herald Sun (Melbourne), November 16

Matt Moran’s second serve

Unlike his finely infused foods, chef Matt Moran keeps things simple in describing many of the restaurants he visits as part of Nine's The Chopping Block. The master chef, who maintains his TV commitments alongside running famed Sydney eatery ARIA, says he was shocked by what he found in restaurants crying out for help. ``To be honest, I was questioning my own ability, whether I could actually help them,'' he says. ``To walk into the first kitchen and see the dirt and the grime, I realised straight away it was a completely different league. ``The way I run my restaurants, we're proud of what we do . . . it made me realise that they, the featured restaurants, are not the kind of places I would ever go to. It made me just go 'f------ hell!' and realise there's another world out there.'' Sunday Herald Sun (Melbourne), November 16.

Becasse, that's why

Elizabeth Merryment

You have to feel sorry for restaurateurs opening new places right now. After years of good times, when it was almost impossible to get a booking even midweek at some places, restaurants are half empty and offering cheap deals to get patrons in. So chef Justin North's timing in opening Etch by Becasse in Sydney's financial district could not be worse. North has already enjoyed great success with his signature restaurant. Becasse, on Clarence St, which is a bastion of posh, fussy French-inspired food. He has been named NSW Chef Of The Year and won many plaudits but, perhaps befitting the times, this second restaurant concentrates on affordable, pared-back food. While he and executive chef James Metcalfe will use the high quality, organic ingredients that have made Becasse a hit, there's far less fuss. Sydney diners should be celebrating, for this is a venue of quality at bargain prices. That quality shines in a fit-out which is gorgeously understated, especially compared with some other garish new arrivals. Positioned just inside the InterContinental hotel, the dining room features huge arched windows, carpeted floors and pretty, shiny wallpaper. Quality linen and glassware adorn the tables and the service is attentive. Sunday Telegraph (Sydney), November 16.

Ramsay tests the tastebuds of Tokyo

If you ever head off for a meal at a Gordon Ramsay restaurant, you can be sure it will be with mixed feelings. Excitement, of course, as Ramsay is recognised as a master of French cuisine and one of the world's best chefs. Apprehension, too. After all, Ramsay's TV shows have made him famous as a loudmouthed, straight-talking taskmaster. So what are you going to say when you order medium beef and it comes back rather overdone? Eat up and say nothing, no doubt, because you criticise Gordon Ramsay at your peril. Ramsay famously booted renowned food critic A.A. Gill out of his London restaurant, resulting in a superb put-down from Gill: ``Ramsay is a wonderful chef, just a really second-rate human being.'' Ramsay's rows with his kitchen staff are also the stuff of legend. One incident resulted in a police complaint filed by a pastry chef. Rude and blunt, Ramsay is nothing if not honest. So here goes, Gordon: my beef really was overdone. Sorry, mate. And the chocolate pudding wasn't too successful either. I can say that with confidence, not only because I'm a chocoholic but because the chef came out of the kitchen to apologise for it. Sunday Telegraph (Sydney), November 16.

Boutique hotel sets the trend

A designer hotel inspired by London's trendy Soho district will aim to breathe new life into Adelaide's accommodation industry. Clarion Hotel Soho is believed to be the smallest five-star hotel in the city, with only 30 rooms. The Soho, on Flinders St, is the first of a number of properties due to come online in the next few years giving Adelaide arguably its largest hotel room supply. The 16-storey Crowne Plaza hotel is being built on Hindmarsh Square, while a $30 million hotel is planned for the old CML building on King William St. Soho general manager Stephanie Horlin-Smith said the hotel, which opened at the end of last month, would ``breathe new life into Adelaide's accommodation sector''. ``Our vision was to create a modern masterpiece on a small footprint,'' she said. The Advertiser (Adelaide), November 15.

One of these bunches of carrots is good for you and the environment... the other is organic

There’s something deliciously authentic about organic food. It looks more appetising and tastes great. It's better for you—and the environment—than conventionally grown crops. The organic sector occupies a huge slice of the agricultural market, with everyone from suburban mums and dads to high-end restaurants getting in on the act. And why wouldn't they? Organically grown crops are free from cancer-causing pesticides and herbicides and they're chock full of extra vitamins and minerals. At least, these are some of the claims made by organic food proponents, claims which many people seem to accept without question. The truth is a lot murkier; many of the statements made on behalf of organics are not wholly true—and some are downright lies. Despite the hype about choosing green, organic foods account for about 1 per cent of the $40bn agricultural industry in Australia. It's definitely a growing sector (no pun intended) but it's unlikely that organic foods will ever become the mainstay of Australian family dinner tables. Part of the problem is cost, with organic fruit and vegetables anywhere from 10 per cent to 300 per cent more expensive to grow. The Advertiser (Adelaide), November 15.

Time to call in the KGB

It's rare to get nostalgic for the old Soviet regime, the good old boys who took the Romanovs out the back for a one-way trip. Yet where are they when you need them? If only they could have found the chef who initiated the placing of steak on top of mash and terminated him/her with extreme prejudice. Every time you try to cut into a steak on mash it slides all over the plate. It gets encrusted with a slime of whatever was cheapest at the market that week. Then the juices descend into the mash, making it discoloured and claggy. Half the time you need a building permit, the food is stacked so high. It's merely an excuse to avoid serving delicious calorie-free fries. All those Cossacks liquidated, and these kitchen criminals survive and thrive. Worse still, to decipher the menu you need a dictionary. It's a roulade of this, a clafoutis of that, a panada, a gribiche or a chiboust. Herald Sun (Melbourne), November 15.

Overcharge claim outrage Tassie eateries cry poor

Tasmania’s restaurant and hotel industry was up in arms yesterday over Tourism Tasmania's claims that some operators were overcharging. The Hotel Association and the Restaurant and Caterers Association said higher produce and labour prices were squeezing profit margins and there was no way their members could reduce their prices. Australian Hotels Association state general manager Steve Old said prices were spiralling and some of this had to be passed on to customers. In yesterday's Mercury, Tourism Tasmania chief Felicia Mariani said Tasmania's tourist operators were in for a tough two years—and those charging extravagant prices would not survive the economic downturn. Many operators were consistently charging prices that were too high, she warned. She said many restaurants and boutique pubs were charging $28 to $35 for a main course but in some cases this was worth only $18 to $22. Mr Old, who also heads the Restaurant and Caterers Association, said he had received many calls yesterday from members ``up in arms'' about the comments. Hobart Mercury, November 15.

Smoking ban costs $800m

The indoor smoking ban is ripping hundreds of millions from pubs and clubs, with gaming revenue falling by more than $800m in a year. Figures obtained from the NSW Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing shows poker machine turnover in hotels has already fallen 14 per cent this year, compared to 2007. Club revenue from pokies has dropped from $854m in August 2007 to $814m for the same period this year. Total gaming turnover in hotels— the amount of money put through the machines—also plummeted from $4.3bn in June last year to $3.7bn this June. Sunday Telegraph (Sydney), November 16.

Unique boutique

The term ``boutique hotel'' seems to have become almost meaningless, losing much of the suggested sense of exclusivity in design and/or service it once had. Hotel design has been evolving rapidly, partly to cater for well-heeled travellers who want something more than pillow menus, flat-screen TVs and iPod docks. Sure, these things are considered de rigeur, but many discerning travellers now look for a point of difference, something that goes beyond luxury to offer the added interest of a genuine, one-of-a-kind experience. Enter a new breed of ``designer hotels'' -- accommodation houses that offer lifestyle experiences rather than just a room. This is the hip thing in the hotel world, and some of the planet's biggest lifestyle brands and fashion names are in on the act. Among them are Milanese fashion house Missoni, whose first property in a proposed lifestyle hotel chain opens in Kuwait next year; Bvlgari, which has branded hotels in Milan and Bali; and another Italian fashion house, Giorgio Armani, which is designing what will be a chain of luxury hotels in cities including Dubai, Paris, London, New York and Tokyo. In Australia, Donatella Versace's Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast has been among the leaders in this evolution of fashion/lifestyle into the designer hotel sector. But a smaller property that is blazing a trail out of the boutique cliche and setting a new bar for freshness and design is The Storrier, in Sydney's Potts Point. The Courier Mail (Brisbane), November 15.

Saucepans at 10 paces for gun chefs

It was the fresh linguine tossed with crab meat, chilli, garlic and olive oil that got Richenda Pritchard over the line. Not that the crowds gathered around her paid too much attention to the detail - they were more caught up in the frenzied activity and energy at the market. Pritchard was last year crowned winner of the inaugural Tin Chef cooking competition at the Footscray Market. Pritchard - a chef at Delizia Cucina in Seddon - had been pitted in the final against Hue Nguyen and Lien Tran from Quang Minh Buddhist Temple in Braybrook. As decided by the judges, their vegetarian rice-paper rolls were no match for the linguine. Tin Chef made its debut as part of last year's Big West Festival, a biennial event. Organisers felt that Tin Chef, based loosely on the cult Japanese television series Iron Chef on SBS, would be a neat way of showing off the diverse cuisine and talents of chefs in the western suburbs, an area often overlooked by those on the other side of Westgate Bridge. The cook-off was such a hit that this year it's broken free of the festival to become a stand-alone event. For those who haven't seen it, Iron Chef each week pits one of the show's resident chefs against a rival pro chef. The two compete (with the help of their teams of cooks) by preparing a multi-course banquet based on an unusual or extravagant theme ingredient, such as caviar, lobster, river eel, foie gras or shark fin. After tasting, the judges crown the winning chef with much fanfare. The Age (Melbourne), November 17.

Celebration for the best of the bunch

Queensland wines have shown their potential to mix it with the best at the 25th anniversary of the Courier-Mail/Mercure Brisbane Queensland Wine Awards. Chief judge, South Australia's Stephen John said the results of the annual competition boded well for the Queensland wine industry, with more drops of high quality emerging each year. ``We're seeing elements of extremely good winemaking in every class,'' Mr John said. ``We're just lacking the bulk now, but the wines are there.” Trophies were awarded in all classes, with 40 per cent of the 352 wines entered winning medals and a total of 18 gold medals conferred. The trophy for best red was awarded to a reserve cabernet sauvignon from Robert Channon Wines on the Granite Belt and Mr John said that this year cabernets outshone both shiraz and merlot. In whites, a 2007 reserve chardonnay from Heritage Estate Wines took top honours. The Courier Mail (Brisbane), November 17.

Yellow Tail has global appeal

The Yellow Tail brand, the brainchild of an industrious, innovative Italian family in the Riverina, has taken the wine world by storm. Spotting a sudden opening to export big-volume, commercially attractive and palate-friendly wines to the US, Britain and Germany, the Casella clan leapt at the opportunity. Seven years on, Yellow Tail exports more than 10 million cases a year, is the most popular imported wine in the US and the biggest-selling Australian brand in several other important international markets. From its Yenda winery, Casella processes fruit from more than 550 growers throughout Australia. And although international sales account for 95 per cent of production, Australian consumers are lapping up extraordinarily good-value Yellow Tail whites, reds and sparkling wines for around $10 a bottle. Yellow Tail has also excelled as a producer of premium wines, its 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon (from Wrattonbully) claiming the Royal Melbourne Wine Show's Jimmy Watson Trophy and 2003 McLaren Vale Shiraz winning the Royal Queensland Wine Show's Stodart Trophy. Sunday Telegraph (Sydney), November 16.

Here's to diversity in the fruit of the vine

Tim Atkin

The other day, someone gave me a copy of The Vine in Australia: Its Culture and Management, published in 1862 by A.C. Kelly, MD. The chapter that interested me most was the one on "varieties of vine". Some of these, such as Miller's burgundy, aucarot and shepherd's grape, have disappeared, while others (riesling, grenache, "scyras" and cabernet sauvignon) have gone on to play major roles in the development of Australian wine. There couldn't be a greater contrast with the situation today. Australia still has a surprisingly large number of grapes, but just five (shiraz, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, chardonnay and sauvignon blanc) make up nearly 70 per cent of its vineyards. Diversity has gone to the wall. To put this in context, Italy has 800 indigenous varieties, Portugal 250 and Greece 200. Part of the problem with the big five, in the New World at least, is that they are rarely blended. Indeed, a huge part of the appeal and marketing spiel of New World wines is based on their simplicity. Ever since Robert Mondavi started to use the names of grapes on labels in California in the 1960s, stand-alone varietalism has held sway. A merlot is a merlot is a merlot. Perhaps that's about to change. Three of the New World's top winemakers Eben Sadie from South Africa, Steve Pannell from Australia and Gordon Russell from New Zealand have told me of their frustration with the status quo. Canberra Times, November 15.

Drinkers prefer beer

Even in tough economic times, drinkers reach for a cold one, recent figures show. Australians spend $7.9bn on beer a year, which is almost half of the overall alcohol expenditure of $16.3 billion, market research by Ibis World show. Although beer production is declining, due to higher wine and ready-to-drink sales, beer still dominates the market. The figures showed wine sales at $4.8bn and spirits at $3.5bn annually. Australians also have expensive taste, with the demand for boutique beer growing by 11.3 per cent last year. The Daily Telegraph (Sydney), November 15.

Jimmy Watson goes West Our wines reap most awards

South Australia has dominated the podium at this year's Royal Melbourne Wine Show, winning 11 out of the 21 trophies awarded. But the show's best-known gong, the Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy for the top red wine from last year's vintage, went to another state after a three-year winning streak by McLaren Vale. This year's winner was Margaret River-based Flametree Wines, in WA, with its 2007 cabernet merlot. The previous SA winners were Scarpantoni Estate Wines, Shingleback Wines and Geoff Merrill Wines. Among the top SA trophy winners, Yalumba's Y-Series 2008 Sangiovese Rose was noted for its bargain-priced success in one of the fastest-growing wine categories in the country, topping more than 90 other entries. Rieslings from the Clare and Eden Valleys, the Leasingham 2005 Classic Clare and Grant Burge Thorn Eden Valley 2008 Riesling won trophies in their classes, while the Peter Lehmann 2003 Wigan Riesling was recognised as the best white from 2004 or before. The Advertiser (Adelaide), November 14.

Deep doo-doo: ice cream saga reveals the risks

The Coogee Bay Hotel is facing one of the greatest threats to its profitability and its all-important brand with the discovery that a customer was served human faeces in a chocolate ice cream desert. This raises an issue for all small businesses: how vulnerable are they to employee or even customer sabotage, and what protection they should have. The lesson from this case is that business owners and managers have a massive business risk and while insurance offers some protection, highly enlightened leadership and top-notch employee relations are critically important. In case you missed this controversial event, a family reported that they had been served human poo in a bowl of chocolate ice cream. The hotel has settled the case with a $50,000 compensation payment. The matter is still subject to police investigation and the culprits are still to be identified. It's reported that staff have been DNA-tested. The Australian, November 17.