In the thick of it
WHILE sports-mad Australia mourns its loss of innocence in a cricket match, on the other side of the world, a handful of people are making decisions which could impact adversely on Australia in the nottoo-distant future.
On one side an erratic US President abandons trade deals and reneges on climate control agreements, while involving his country in armed conflicts, granted that he inherited them. On the other side of the world, a rising China threatens world domination in trade markets, while engaging in friendly talks with Russia, arch-enemy of the West. China increases its influence over freedom of the seas as it annexes small islands in the South China Sea and builds military installations on them. England and the US accuse Russia of involvement in the attempted poisoning of a Russian dissident, and impose sanctions.
And where does Australia stand? We quietly acquiesce by following the lead of the US and England, at the same time juggling trade arrangements with China and the US. We follow the US into wars, increasing the potential for terrorism within our own borders. Australia has no obvious
Restaurant honours
ELAINE Reeves gives an interesting summary of our culinary history (“From mutton to MasterChef”, Mercury, March 20). It is indeed hard to believe our first restaurant licensed to serve wine was opened as late as 1968 in Burnie, and all praise to John Licandro for triumphing over the difficult formalities of the time, when even established Hobart restaurants like the Mona Lisa and Don Camillo had to fight opposition by Federal Hotels’ Wrest Point to obtain their ‘BYO’ licences. But was the Martini our first licensed restaurant?
Seven years earlier, on April 8, 1961, the Saturday Evening Mercury devoted three pages to the opening of a restaurant in Hobart, designed by Melbourne architect David Yencken and named The Bistro. The place offered good Australian wines, with European style food. It was independently owned and run, but depended for its legality on the licence of the Ship Hotel above. The basement of 73 Collins St is a bottle shop today, but many of your older readers will recall the unique restaurant’s good food and convivial atmosphere.