day 1 of the good food and wine show totally buggered us because this year for the first time the organisers decided to do 2 sessions of the show- day and night, and the day session visitors were supposed to leave at 5pm so we stall owners could have a break and grab something decent for dinner instead of the junk food we’d no doubt been eating all day but of course the drunks paid no attention and kept wandering everywhere even hiding in the bathrooms to avoid paying! serves them right when someone got locked in hahahaha


sometimes i just really hate people that wont let me eat. you know? i get hungry!


i cant remember if this was a lunch or dinner but we ate at the Lindemans Early Harvest Restaurant where food was prepared by chefs including Ben O’Donoghue and Peter Evans. i got the Braised Pork Belly with Spiced Spaghetti in a Pork Sweet Onion Jus ($18). the line for this was the longest and stretched out past the entrance! i wonder if the other chefs felt sad their dishes werent as popular…


lol noods’ line was shorter than mine so it meant he got his food first and he sat at the table for a good 5mins pleading with his eyes to let him start eating before i took a foto while i was lining up hehe i didnt think he could eat so fast by the time my food arrived! and argh the menu on the good food website changed! and since i have such awesome memory skills all i can say was noods ordered a lamb shank ($18). on rice. with a side of naan bread. uh little help noods?


the bubbly beverly came to visit bringing along her other half mike chris congrats on the engagement dudes! and the lovely jenny came by bringing along a slightly intoxicated justin heh heh thanks to all the lurkers who visited too! kat did you start on the jams yet? and my mum said she was speaking to someone who congratulated her on my engagement and that was the exact moment i woke up from my nap under the table aww sorry i couldnt meet you dude


something to keep my sugar levels up: a cup of creamy melty milk chocolate from adora ($2)


i didnt go to any of the gordan ramsay shows. it felt like i did tho cos our stall was so close to the theatre that i wanted to punch the announcer every time he screams and its goooordaaan raaamsaaay! eh. anyways i thought this post wouldnt be complete without a shot of his head at the book signing


and then wally rocked up and off he and noods went in search of free wine samples. and whiskey samples. and vodka samples. and kahlua samples. and anything alcoholic they could get their hands on lol


lol noods is lopsided


day 3 started with a quick detour to the zumbo land (excuse the crappy shots i took them in the car with noods seemingly intent on driving in all the potholes and swerving around the roundabouts…) after having a dream about the passionfruit and yoghurt macarons but alas it was not meant to be!


instead a speckled bright blue macaron stared at me snug in its display case and it was so pretty! like the outside of quail egg! but blue… it was a blueberry and lavender concoction that i had hoped was more blueberry than lavender but no there was much lavender and it felt like i was eating air freshener hmph


but this! behold the wagon wheel! a gourmet take on the classic it comprised of 2 macarons sandwiching a disc of spongey soft marshmallow with a dollop of jam in its centre and enrobed in chocolate. enrobed! doesnt that just make you think happy thoughts?


hungry for some steak we walked up cockle bay wharf and into i’m angus where the heady steaky charcoaly scent made us drool


Ribeye Steak 350g ($36). it’s our first visit to im angus and while the price of my steak did make me wince i know i would definitely come back and eat this steak again it was fanbloodytastic mate! cooked to a perfect medium rare and well rested on a bed of smooth buttery mash i was incredibly happy and spent the rest of the day chanting steak steak steak!


Kangaroo Fillet ($29.50). of course noods had to get the kangaroo. he finished it pretty quickly so i reckon if they add another piece of roo and increase the price itd feel like more value?


and because i know how you all love a photo of me holding knives…


our haul from the end of the day! discounted free range chicken from lilydale, batlow apple juice, bottles of soy sauce and chilli, turkish delight, cans of pink (sooo delish), discounted fetta and labna cheese and when everyone was closing we scored FREE bottles of lemon lime and bitters, free milk, free crabmeat, free yoghurt, free gourmet garden herbs and sauces. and a giant thank you to stan for feeding my parents! and for the beers heh

clad in our bright orange exhibitor shirts, the good food and wine show started early for us when we arrived at the convention centre in darling harbour early thurs to setup our stall

dodging forklifts and fellow exhibitors we started setting up our stall to the sounds of an over-excited announcer rehearsing the lines “and its gordon ramsaaaaay!”


me stall… there seemed to be a greater emphasis on the wine and alcohol stalls this year and with the free wine glass on arrival meant people were walking around rather sloshed and only interested in getting more sloshed…


at 10am the doors opened and the crowds streamed in. it soon became apparent people were only interested in the free samples bah! the day was brightened by a visit from the lovely helen who took some photos of me being ridiculous. heh. and crazy nat arrived soon after who scored us some fanbloodytastic truffle cheese not to mention the first of many colourful frozen daiquiris


and then noods arrived after work and his eyes lit up at the free beer and we found the yellowtail stall was awesome with their vinyl bar complete with headphones to listen to music, the kahlua stall with their free hand massages while sitting in basket chairs strung from the roof and the lowenbraus giant pot of salty pretzels was a beautiful sight to see


snacks from the show! a packet of sweet potato chips ($5), pink energy drink that tastes like nerds ($2), bagel crisps ($2), freenut butter and random chocolate and candy


a late dinner of a tart of unknown description from the cafe because the fancy schmancy restaurant closed earli.


so if youre into wines and beers this show will definitely be worth it for you. tix are $25 for adults and the show is on sat 21st 10am-6pm and sun 22nd 10am-5pm. if youre in the area come and have a chat and try some biscuits! if im not at the stall it could be becos im hiding under a table or something so ask whoevers manning the stall where i am lol


cheers!

its june already? halfway point to xmas kids! the days and the weeks have crept up so quickly its kinda disturbing how ive lost track of time. ill be at the good food and wine show this fri 20th june somewhere near the celebrity theatre. im hoping the theatre is enclosed so i dont have to listen to gordon ramsay swear every 2 words… and heres hoping he doesnt eat more human fingers! anywhos come find me manning my biscuit tree stall ill be at stand number R30 directly opposite the Lyndey Milan regional Producers Area and 2 aisles away from the celebrity theatre. come and have a chat and try some biscuits =D

last week in true food blogger style noods arranged a belated bday day in the city to eat and eat and eat.


we started off with lowenbrau home of the glorious pork knuckle ($29.50) with its kickass crackling and soft creamy mash and half a litre of mango beer. we ordered a pork knuckle each. because i dont share my pork crackle with anyone. heh.


a short 2 hours later after a wander thru the rocks markets and around the harbour we arrived at Sofitel Wentworth (61-101 Phillip St, Sydney) for the Lenotre high tea ($38). The Sofitel has become the first hotel in Australia to serve the patisserie brand Lenotre with Chef Patissier, Mark Stone the only chef in Australia to have the accredited certification. EDIT: LENOTRE HIGH TEA IS GONE!


coffee and tea is bottomless and the boy was fascinated by the hourglass timer that came with our tea set


and what a stand! it towered over us with its cute pink levels like stairs to a sweet cakey heaven =D


Cone au chocolat. when the lovely waitress brings it out our stand all eyes in the room are drawn immediately to the 2 cones perched high on the top tier and it is a sight to behold! almost identical in size to an icecream cone but instead of a waffle cone it is a dark chocolate cone filled with macerated strawberries and a very generous filling of cream mmm cream


Camaieu. a gorgeously soft cake with layers of chocolate sponge flavoured with marzipan in between layers of dark and milk chocolate mousse topped with ivory chantilly cream. i particularly liked the tiny curl of hazelnut and chomping into the rectangle of lenotre branded chocolate


Macaronades. hee hee giant macarons! with fresh raspberries and lemon curd. i love raspberries! i couldnt really taste the lemon curd but that was ok i dont think it really needed it. heh try eating this ‘delicately’ and it will explode over your lap


Ambiance. oh man thats the worst shot ive ever taken of cake argh so overexposed! i was getting a bit impatient and actually forgot to take a foto (the cake was actually double the size… this was half a portion size cos this foto was taken when i went back a second time with other ppl). anywhos. the ambiance was creamy and not too sweet with layers of vanilla bavarian cream with fruits of the forest jelly and caramelised hazelnuts.


Tarte au citron. the classic french lemon tart, sweet pastry filled with almond and lemon cream and topped with lemon meringue. thankfully the lemon curd filling wasnt too sour and went well with the crisp buttery tart


Opera. the gold standard of all cakes is the opera! chocolate pastry with layers of almond biscuit, decadent chocolate ganache with coffee butter cream and topped with gold leaf. seriously what is more luxurious than eating gold?


Finger sandwiches! ah i love thin rectangles of crust-less sandwiches! (cos you know crusts makes your hair go curly) my sandwich fillings were smoked salmon & rocket, cucumber & cream cheese, ham & cheese and egg


Fruit Scones! with a very generous serve of homemade jam and cream. we were so full that we had to leave a cake but were given a cute bright red box to take it away which was awfully nice of them. high tea is 2pm-5pm daily but make sure you have made a booking dudes!


and to end the day a walk to luna park for some fairy floss because i hadnt had enough sugar…