ED’S LETTER.
WHERE TO START for a spring clean this month? Brunch seems logical. The great Aussie brunch has well and truly gone global, currently making waves in New York as an array of expat eateries bring our fresh take on breakfast (and good coffee) to eager residents of the Big Apple. Back home, brunching options just get better (as Matt Preston wrote last year, ‘brinner’ – substantial breakfasts that double as dinner – is his favourite kind of meal). Given the ‘bottomless brunch’ is also becoming a popular at-home entertaining movement, we invited some breakfast pioneers to share their much-loved recipes on page 84, even convincing Emma Knowles of Sydney’s Ruby’s Diner, who also moonlights as a food stylist for delicious., to part with her secret recipe for coconut-chilli eggs with dhal that has punters lining up all weekend.
What about a wholesome take on spring flavours? Over to the phenomenon that is Guy Turland of Bondi Harvest, who shares his seasonal market basket with a twist on page 19, demonstrating why his fresh, beachy appeal has reached cult status on TV channels around the world. Even the Chef (Colin Fassnidge) and the Kom-butcher (Anthony Puharich) ‘come clean’ this month, riding the wave of kombucha in cooking as they use it in a marinade on page 48. Yotam Ottolenghi’s latest release sees him turn over a new leaf with a cookbook called, simply, Simple (p 76).
Tom Walton offers up inventive vegetarian (p 66), Shannon Bennett shares his new salad classics (p 102), and some of our top contributors take on seafood inspired by a delicious. family trip to NZ’s Marlborough region (p 94). The Three Blue Ducks debut their new diner at the W in Brisbane on page 56, and it will be interesting to watch this space with so much development happening riverside in the Queensland capital. Nearby on the GC, Alex Munoz broadens Burleigh Heads’ offering with the newly opened Labart and gives us a sneak peek on page 112 (don’t miss his recipe for apple pie ice cream!). Finally, Phoebe Wood and Charlotte Binns-McDonald get fresh with desserts via a spring high tea of elegant but epic proportions (p 120).
Global roaming takes us to hot spots such as Lisbon, Canggu and Shanghai. And don’t forget to watch for our annual delicious. 100 guide to the 100 most delicious restaurants in NSW ( Sunday Telegraph), Victoria ( Sunday Herald Sun) and Queensland ( Sunday Mail). Out next month, it’s just the ticket to map out how you’ll Eat Out for the festive months ahead!