Christine Manfield’s new Tweed life.
Chef and delicious. contributor Christine Manfield is reveling in her new life on the Tweed, connecting with the land while enjoying its abundant beauty and produce, writes Lyndey Milan.
CHRISTINE MANFIELD HAS always been ahead of the curve: with flavours, attitudes and experimentation. Little surprise then that pre-Covid she and partner Margie Harris decided to decamp from Sydney to the Tweed in Northern New South Wales, settling in a house by the beach.
“Leaving in March 2020 had a nice ring to it, exactly 32 years after our arrival in Sydney,” she quipped.
No longer tied to a restaurant, her business was global, comprising overseas gastronomic tours, publishing cookbooks, writing, hosting pop-up events and being part of the Governing Board for the delicious. Harvey Norman Produce Awards.
Her arrival in the region in 2020 came one week after Covid lockdown in Sydney. This gave her time to settle into her new life and reflect on how to move forward in a more meaningful way. Curious, and with a strong moral compass, she was determined to use her skills and concentrate on her own backyard, embracing the region with its rich biodiversity, produce, farmers and Indigenous heritage.
Meeting the locals from Currie Country who gave A Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony in the garden of her new home has further cemented her commitment to that land. She is now a champion of the area and a member of Destination Tweed, a collective of businesses across the Tweed region. She has already started hosting new tours featuring immersive food and agri-tourism adventures in the Tweed and regional Australia.
It’s this move that’s enabled Manfield to appreciate what that land provides
– an edible garden which she has planted, thrilled at how fertile the region is with good soil, sun and rain. The land has also provided great things from her favourite producers, featured at Picnic in the Paddock at the Tweed Artisan Food Weekend. This unique event centres on food experiences to showcase the people, place and produce of the Tweed. The next Tweed Artisan Food Weekend is on October 7-10, 2021. Go to destinationtweed.com.au for more.