gluten-free.Theoystersaucewaspressedfrom
smokedoystersandthefishsaucewaspureanchovy,
withnoadditives.“That’showit started
toevolveintoa completelygluten-free,dairy-free
andegg-freemenu,”hesays.
Everycurrywasgluten-freeandvegan– including
a smoky-yellowversionusingcauliflowerthatwas
slow-roasteduntilit resembledtenderlycookedmeat.
Dinersreturnedagainandagain,andbroughtnewvegan,
vegetarianandgluten-intolerantfriendswiththem.
“Sometimespeopleforgetthattheword‘hospitality’
is fromtheword‘hospitable’,andbeinghospitable
toeveryone,”saysTikaram.“Itdoesn’tmatterif you’re
vegetarianorhaveanallergy,everyonecancomeand
havea goodexperience.”
Nowadays,TikaramrunsStanleyinBrisbaneand
designshismenutobeasaccessibleaspossible– so
someonecanwalkinandtrymultipledishes,notjust
thetokenveganorgluten-freeafterthought.It makesit
easieronhisstaffandalsoensuresdinersfeelwelcome.
Doeshehavea “miracledish”thatcutsoutall
commonrestrictions?“I alwayshavea miracledish,”
hesays.It’scurrentlyhiszucchinimapotofu.“It’s
gluten-free,dairy-free,vegetarian– everything.It’s
reallygood.”Hemarinatesslicedzucchiniintoban
djan(broadbeanchillisauce)anda beanpaste,then
cooksit soit hasthesamevelvetytextureand
mouthfeelaspork.
Tikaramhastheutmostrespectforchefsthathave
a “mywayorthehighway”attitude– oneofhisfriends
is a northern-Italianchefwhowouldbeinsultedif you
askedhimtopre-sliceyourpizza– butTikaramprefers
tocatertoeverydemographic,restrictions and all.
“I’d rather be loved by everyone.”●ForYuOzone,beingunabletoconsumegluten,
dairyandeggswaswhatinspiredhertostartComeco
Foods,a gluten-freevegancaféinSydney’sNewtown.
Ozonegrindsherownflourtoensureit’snot
contaminatedbyallergens,andevenflewtoJapan
tolearnhowtomakericebread.Sheadmitsit’s
“veryhard”tocreatesuccessfuldessertswithoutgluten,
dairy,eggs,nuts,sesameandsoy,butsaysit’sworth
it toseecustomers’smiles.Onewoman,whohad
avoideddoughnutsfor 20 yearsduetoherallergies,
criedwhiletryingOzone’ssourdoughversion.
Personalattitudescanshapehowinclusivea venue
choosestobe.Fifteenyearsago,BrentSavagedinedat
Barcelona’sPinotxoBarwithhisthen-girlfriendFleur
(they’renowmarriedwithkids).Heaskedanemployee
if theycouldhavetheeggplantandcapsicumdish
withoutanchovy,asFleuris vegetarian.“Hesaidno,”
saysSavage,whowassurprisedbythestubbornstance.
“I wasalreadydoingvegetariantastingmenusandit
wasobviousthatyoulookaftereveryonearoundyou.”
Eventoday,Cirrus– Savage’sseafoodrestaurant–
offersvegetarianoptions.AtYellow,hisvegetarian
restaurant,he’sencouragedchefSanderNooijto
go“all-outvegan”withthemenu.Savagehasone
regulardinerwhoseallergiesaresospecificthat
they’redetailedona 26-pagespreadsheet,buthe’s
managedtocatertoherneedsforyears.
Savage’swelcomingattitudemadea lasting
impressiononLouisTikaram,whoworkedat Bentley
earlyinhiscareer.So,whenTikarambecame
Longrain’sheadchefin2011,hemadeeverydish
onthemenugluten-free.Hewaspartlyinspired
bythehighqualityofartisansoy,fishandoyster
sauces coming out of Thailand, all of which were
GOURMET TRAVELLER 63