Delicious Australia - (10)October 2020

MARKETBASKET

BYANDREWMcCONNELL
ASPAR AGUS
“Simplyblanchasparagusspearsfor
90 seconds,nomore,noless.Servethe
warmasparagusimmediatelywitha knob
ofbutterandplentyoftarragonleaves.
Theotheralternativeis toquicklyrollthin
spearsovera hotbarbecuetoblisterand
char.Servethiswitha drizzleofoliveoil,
salt,blackpepper and grated parmesan.”
AVOCADO
“Likemanyofus,thehumbleavocadohas
keptmealiveforthepast10-15years.
I eatavocadoontoasta fewtimesa week
fora ‘healthy’lunch.Oneofmyfavourite
things,though,is a reallywell-made
guacamole,witha goodamountof
coriander,limejuiceandfreshgreenchilli.
Ifalloftheseingredientsareplentiful,
thenanything else you add is a bonus.”
GARLIC
“Garlicis thebasisofsomuchin cooking
butnotoftenhasthelimelightallto
itself.In spring,whenthevarietyof
vegetablesis abundant,I reallyenjoy
servingLeGrandAïoli,a classicdish
fromProvence.Makea punchyaioli
(madein thetraditionalway)andserve
withanarrangementofrawvegetables
andcrudité.It is alsooftenservedwith
poachedfishandboiled potatoes for
a largermeal.”
WHOLECHICKEN
“Roastchickenis somethingI always
longfor,howeverlatelyit is barbecue
chickenthatis mygo-tofowl
preparation.MyfriendDuncan
WelgemoedfromAfricolagaveme
a jarofhisworld-famousperiperisauce.
Ibutterflya wholelargechickenand
marinateit in theperiperifora few
hoursbeforecookingovercoals.
I amyettofinda betterchicken recipe.
Or a better chilli sauce.”

NEEDA NIGHTofffrom2020?

ChefAndrewMcConnell’ssuavenew

supperclub,Gimlet,willtakeyoubackto

a simplertimewhenwaitersworewhite

waistcoatsandappetiserswere ferried

aroundonsilverplatters.

Startwiththevenue’snamesake

sipper,a classicginandlimecocktail

madefroma housemadecitruscordial

distilledfromorange,bergamot,yuzu

andfingerlime.“It’sbeautifullybalanced

andsubtleyperfumedwithcitrus;it’s

somethingwe’rereally proud of,”

McConnellsays.

Whilethegimletwillstayonthemenu

year-round,otheritemswillbeshaken

andstirredwiththeseasons.“What

peopledrinkin summerdifferstowhat

theyliketodrinkin winter.Theseasons

dictatewhatweserveandwe’reluckyto

havea wonderfulfamilyofsuppliersthat

bringsomethingspecialtothemenu.”

Buta greatdrinkis justhalfthestory.

The food menu, curated by head chef

AllanDoertEccles,celebratesthe

Europeanfavouritesofyesteryear.

Expectdecadentdisheslikeescargotin

anchovybutteranddryagedduck with

Cumberlandsauceandendive.

Thedapperdiningroomtakesits

designcuesfromitsheritagehome,

the1920s-designedCavendishHouse.

“I firstsawthespaceabout 15 yearsago

andinstantlyknewit wouldmakea

wonderfulrestaurant.”McConnelland

histeamhavebeenworkingonthe

venuefortwoyears,withthegrand

openingslatedforthesameweekthe

secondlockdownin Melbournehit.

“Openinga newbusinessis

challengingundernormalcircumstances,

howevertheuncertaintyfacingour

industryrightnowhasmadethisprocess

evenmoredifficult.”Thatsaid,he’snot

withouta little1920soptimism. “We’re

quietly confident.”

TheJazzAgebringsplentyof

inspirationforchefAndrew

McConnellwhosenewvenue

is settoservetime-honoured

drinks and dishes.

TIME

T R AV E L

@chef_andrewmcconnell

@gimlet.melbourne

PHOTOGRAPHY

SHARYN CAIRNS

AND

KRISTOFFER PAULSEN

22 delicious.com.au

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