1

ON THE PASS

You’re both part of the National

Indigenous Culinary Institute

program. What’s NICI all about?

Samuel: NICI is a three-year

interactive program, which you

come out of with a Cert III in

Commercial Cookery. It brings

Indigenous people into some of

Australia’s top kitchens to learn

from the best. Luke is at Rockpool

Bar & Grill and I’m at Rosetta.

You’re twins. What drew you both

to professional kitchens?

Samuel: These are the first kitchens

we’ve cooked in. It’s scary to begin

with–there’s a lot of pressure –

but the mayhem,adrenaline and

camaraderie create more passion.

What’s the best part of the job?

Luke: We regularly have suppliers

delivering everything from David

Blackmore wagyu to Port Phillip

scallops. They talk to us about their

produce and what’s happening in

the industry. It’s a big insight into

what goes on behind the scenes.

What dish are you loving just now?

Luke: At Bar & Grill, we’re doing a

pesto bean salad mixing yellow,

green and roman beans with

pounded basil, garlic, pine nuts,

parmesan and olive oil. It’s simple

and lets the beans shine.

How can indigenous ingredients

gain a wider audience?

Samuel: I feel empowered to use

ingredients that were used by my

ancestors, but diners can be iffy

about things that are unfamiliar to

them. We need to put indigenous

ingredients on menus more and

get people talking about them.

I recently used powdered lemon-

myrtle leaf to make sorbet.

It’s aromatic with a subtle

lemon-cordial taste.

You both graduate from NICI in

March. What’s next?

Samuel: We’re both trying to gain as

much knowledge as we can to be

better chefs, then, down the track,

we’ll open a place of our own.

Something small and simple.

Rosetta, 118 Harrington St, Sydney,

NSW, rosettarestaurant.com.au;

Rockpool Bar & Grill, 66 Hunter St,

Sydney, NSW, rockpool.com

HARRIET DAVIDSON

Luke and Samuel Bourke

ROCKPOOL BAR & GRILL AND ROSETTA, SYDNEY

They might not be silver,

but these summery perspex

spoons by Germany’s GF Heim

Söhne are still covetable. Caviar,

soft-boiled eggs and prosecco

jelly, get ready. From $5.50.

essentialingredient.com.au

TIFFANY BLUES

Breakfast at Tiffany requires patience rather than

appetite. Online reservations for one of 40 seats at

Tiffany & Co’s Blue Box Café in Midtown Manhattan

open a fortnight in advance and are booked solid. If you

happentobewaitingattheFifthAvenuestore,there’s

aslimchanceyoumightlandatableleftemptybya

no-show and you’ll be able to order breakfast (coffee,

croissant, fruit and a choice of avocado toast, waffles,

truffled eggs or smoked salmon and bagel: $US29). Or

lunch, or “Tiffany Tea”. We arrived early, waited, and

failed to catch a glimpse of the dazzlingly blue room.

Instead, like Audrey Hepburn’s Holly Golightly, we went

searching for takeaway coffee and a croissant.

727 Fifth Ave, New York, tiffany.comOLIVER STRAND

Apprentice

chefs Luke (left)

and Samuel

Bourke

20 GOURMET TRAVELLER