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GUT FEELING
The once fetishist practice of, ahem, improving
one’s intestinal flora (strict diets, detox, prolonged
chewing, colonic irrigation) has hit the mainstream
with a trio of high-tech Austrian alpine clinics
leading the way. Viva Mayr’s two medical spas in
spectacular lakeside locations have taken the 1930s
gut-focused doctrine of Dr FX Mayr and given it
a 21st-century wellness spin. Also in Austria, the
renovated and newly reopened Lanserhof Lans,
near Innsbruck, is a minimalist hotel-spa with
farm-to-table dining, views of the Tyrolean
mountains and state-of-the-art health facilities
including anti-inflammatory therapies in
a minus 11-degree cryotherapy chamber.
vivamayr.com; lanserhof.comHOT 100
Don’t mention the “F” word to fish-ageing proponent
Josh Niland from Sydney’s Saint Peter. “We never push
it to the point of fishiness,” the chef says. “The aim of
dry-ageing is to sum up what the fish actually tastes
like.” So wild kingfish aged for nine or 10 days might
taste as though it had been dressed with lemon, say,
while Spanish mackerel acquires complex, savoury
mushroom-like notes. “Dry-ageing produces significant
changes to the fish’s flavour and the way it acts in the
pan,” Niland says. “It’s not a gimmick and it doesn’t
work on all fish – you can age mulloway for 15 or 16
days, for example, but it tastes a lot better on day two.”
Sokyo chef Chase Kojima, from Star City in Sydney,
prefers wet-ageing to bring a fish to flavoursome
ripeness, working with the likes of tuna, ocean trout
and alfonsino.saintpeter.com.au, star.com.au
DRY-AGED FISH,
SAINT PETERHAPPY FEATS
It’s been a seamless transition from fashion to
food for Cameron and Jordan Votan. The brothers
created Imperial Brand Clothing, a niche denim
label, and Cameron is co-founder of online retailer
The Iconic. In 2014 they introduced Brisbane to
hip Chinese diner Happy Boy and last year they
opened Greenglass, a French-inflected eatery
in a low-rent section of the city, a showcase for
Cameron’s Spokenwine online cellar door. Happy
Boy 2.0 is due this month. “There wasn’t a lot of
experience there when we started,’’ says Jordan.
“But we’ve always been interested in the business
side of things and we have an obsession with food.”
happyboy.com.au; greenglasswine.com>TENDER AGE
JORDAN (LEFT) AND
CAMERON VOTAN
AT GREENGLASS