Australian Gourmet Traveller - (09)September 2020 (1)

The art of travel

The more I tried

to picture

a perfect dining-

out scenario, the

more muddled

I became.

L

ikeanydedicatedfood-lover,I don’thave

an“idealrestaurant”.Infood,asinlove,the

trueconnoisseurneverconfinesthemselves

toa particular“type”.Weembracethefull

spectrumofedibleexperiencesoutthere,perfectly

willing– infact,hoping– tofindourselvespleasantly

surprisedbysomethingstrangeandnew.

Overthepasttwodecades,diningoutinAustralia

hasbecomea gloriouslydemocraticpleasure,and

Australianfoodiesknowthey’rejustaslikelytofind

a memorablemealat theMullumbimbyFarmers’

Marketsasa MargaretRiverwinery.

I lovea Michelin-starredtastingmenuina starched-

linenfine-diningestablishment,anendlessparadeof

unlikelypairingsandcuriousmolecularconstructions;

sagefoams,samphirefroths,gelatinisedcherry

tomatoes,charcoal-chocolate“dust”.MyfirstMichelin-

starredmealwaspreparedbyMichaelCainesMBE

(honouredbytheQueenforservicestoBritish

tastebuds)at ThePrioryinBath,England.Ourtasting

menuwasasmuchimmersivetheatreasit wasa meal,

andI leftfeelinglikeI’ddonea crashcoursenotjust

inculinaryinnovation,butinsuperlative service and

interiordesign.

I lovenerdyspecialistventures,

likeWillGoldfarb’sRoom4Dessertin

BaliandJaniceWong’s2am:Dessert

BarinSingapore,thatdemonstrate

howfocusingonjustonecourse– the

humblepudding– canelevatetheart.

Assomeonewhoregularlyskips

dessertanddoesn’thavemuchof

a sweettooth,I wasn’tconvinced

theserestaurantswouldworkforme.

NowI knowthatsaying“I don’tlike

dessert”is likesaying“I don’tlikeclassicalmusic”,

indicativeonlyofmyembarrassinglackofexperience

inthefield.

I lovelong-standingneighbourhoodrestaurants,

whereyouknowthewinelistbyheartandalways

goforthesamedishbecauseit servesupa plateful

ofcosyfamiliarityina chaoticworld.Tome,comfort

tasteslikelasagne.

I loveposhed-uptakeawayjointsand,eventhough

I’mfromtheUK,I don’tmindadmittingthatthe

besttakeawayfishandchipsI’veevertastedcame

from(thenowshuttered)Doyle’s,intheshadow

oftheSydneyOperaHouse.I gratefullyhailthe

foodtruckrevolution,whichhasmadeconversation-

worthyfoodaffordable,convenientandavailable

toall,andmadeblandburgervansa distantmemory

wecaninvoketohorrifytheteenagersinourlives.

I loveunassumingcafésandhole-in-the-wall

operationsasfarafieldasNaples,TehranandLuang

Prabang,thatjustdoonedish,butbetterthananyone

elseintheworld.I grewupinSingapore,wheremuch

of the city’s best eating was done at hawker centres;

in 2016 a $3bowlofHainanesechickenricebecame

thecheapestMichelin-starredmealontheplanet.

I lovethearrayofauthenticinternational

restaurantsrunbysuccessivewavesofimmigrants

inanycity,thatgenerouslyinvitedinersintoa new

andunfamiliarculture– seducingthemwithflavours.

I foundmyloveforEthiopiancuisineinTucson,

Arizona;I’vehadthebestsushiofmylife,outside

ofOsaka,inAuckland;andI’vetastedspectacular

VietnamesephoinWarsaw,Poland.

Yougettheidea:I amaninsatiableloverof

restaurants,anepicureanadventurereagertotastethe

delightsofanyunassumingkitchenthatcrossesmy

path. But duringlockdown,withrestaurantsshuttered

andthissignificantsourceofpleasure

abruptlyshutoff,I triedtoanalyse

preciselywhatit is I loveabouteating

out.I figuredthatif I couldworkout

therecipeformyidealrestaurant,

I couldperhapsrecreatethedining-

outexperienceat home.

I triedtopinpointwhatI missed

most,butthemoreI triedtopicture

a perfectdining-outscenario,the

moremuddledI became.I missed

newflavours,I missedfamiliar

flavours.I missedserenity,I missedbuzz.I missedfuss,

I missedinformality.I missedeatingalone,I missed

eatingwithothers.I missedsimplicity,I missed

sophistication.Eventually,I gaveupontheideaof

recreatingtherestaurantexperienceat home.Like

anymagnificentmeal,theexperience

ofa particularrestaurantis somuchmorethanthe

sumofitsparts.So,I resignedmyselftomyusual

simplebutunremarkablerosterofdishesandresolved

tosaveallmyenthusiasm,andmycash,forReal

Restaurants,whentheyreopened.

I knowthatthehospitalityindustryis facing

challengeswecouldneverhaveimagined– logistical

issues,financialpressuresandcompleteuncertainty

aboutthefuture.AndI knowthatsomerestaurants

simplywon’tmakeit into2021.Butevenamidall

thehand-wringingaboutbig-namerestaurantclosures

andstill-shutteredlocalcafés,I’mexcitedaboutwhat

thefutureholds.Notjustfordiners,butforchefs,

restaurateursandstaff.Authenticity,uniqueness,

invention,warmth,respectandclassarebackon

the menu. And we diners certainly are hungry.●

Annais a travel

andlifestyle

journalist,and

authorofthe

travelmemoir

Departures.

@annadothart

GOURMET TRAVELLER 105

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