12 GOURMET TRAVELLERPHOTOGRAPHY ALANA LANDSBERRY (PORTRAIT), MARK ROPER & TOM ROSS (PARAMOUNT)Editor’s letter
Sarah Oakes, editor
Beijing, China
A quick and sparkly trip to China
for the opening of the Van Cleef
& Arpels Patrimonial exhibition at Today
Art Museum in Beijing.@sarahaliceoakesFollow@SARAHALICEOAKESFollowWhere we’ve been
From hummus to the halal snack
pack, this issue is a celebration of the
people, places and dishes that helped
food from the Middle East carve out
a special place in our culinary culture.
It would be remiss of me not to
mention the very real and devastating
impact of ongoing violence and
conflict in the region. Like all
Australians, our hopes and thoughts
are with all those whose lives are
affected by these tragedies. I want
to mention in particular that we are
passionately supporting #BakeForSyria,
#CookForSyria and the Ration
Challenge, all happening over the
next few weeks. All the details are
in our news section on page 19.EMAIL [email protected] // FOLLOW @GOURMETTRAVELLER // ONLINE GOURMETTRAVELLER.COM.AUI
’ve only lined up for hummus once,
but it was well worth the wait. It was
a hot morning on the waterfront
in Tel Aviv and the crowd that had
gathered around Abu Hassan made it
look like they were giving it away for
free. I struggled to the front, fought for
a spot at a shared table and had my first
taste of musabaha, morning hummus,
still warm and textured with whole
chickpeas, served with ful, raw onion,
hot sauce and bread. In that mouthful
I understood that hummus is a meal,
the star of the table, not just a side dish
or a final resting place for limp crudités.
The theme of this issue is the
Middle East, but the broader theme is
how, along with people, recipes travel,
immigrate, evolve and keep culture
alive. The history of how Australia
fell in love with food from Lebanon,
Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Iran and the
region isn’t well documented. As
historian Alecia Simmonds explains
in Suburban Spice Routes (page 68),
“It’s a secret history that can only be
gleaned through peering over backyard
fences, inviting ourselves into family
kitchens and uncovering the lives of
those whose survival once depended
on concealing their aromatic herbs
from delicate Anglo-Saxon nostrils.”Hummus
bi calamarip 114
Lisa Featherby, food director;
Byron Bay, NSW
We were up in Byron covering a story
for GT and I just had to make a stopover
at the Atlantic guesthouse in Byron Bay.
It’s been on my wish list of places to stay
for a long while. The downside? The stay
was way too short – I’m already planning
my return. @lisafeatherbyHelen Anderson, travel editor;
Thanjavur, India
Just when you think you’ve seen the
most spectacular temple in Tamil Nadu,
the southern Indian state with some
33,000 ancient temples, an older, more
glorious one appears. @handersonglobalCongratulations to
Paramount House
Hotel in Surry Hills,
our 2018 Hotel
of the Year.
For all the award
winners and the
complete list
of Australia’s
50 best hotels
turn to page 149.