Category: FOOD & DRINK

Arbory Bar and Eatery Melbourne is open again!

Arbory Melbourne

As life comes back to the city, so does everyone’s insatiable desire to eat at trendy Melbourne cafes, so Arbory is heeding their call. They can host 94 guests and will reinstate 90 staff, so it’s a big yay for the economy. Open daily from 12pm ’til 10pm, they’re doing bookings and walk-ins, even with a special on offer to get the people in: burger and ale for $25 between 12-6pm, seven days a week. With other tasties like a double cheeseburger with bacon, pickles, tomato relish and crinkle cut chips, chilli dog of spicy beef, onion, cheese, mustard and jalapeño, salt and pepper fried calamari and Sicilian chilli aioli and a 250g Great Southern Pinnacle Sirloin, baby spinach, onion rings & pepper sauce, there’s enough on offer for all. Microsoft Word – Arbory Bar & Eatery opening_Media Release_June 2020_Final.docx Bookings and can be made online via arbory.com.au and are available up to 30 minutes prior to arrival. Minimum spend of $15 per person.

Grocery emergency? Get items delivered in 60 minutes or less with Dash Delivers

Groceries from Dash Delivers

Here’s the scenario: It’s Monday night, the kitchen is buzzing with activity with dinner preparations well on the way, it’s raining and you’re in your PJs. Shoot! You’ve just run out of pasta and you need more to continue cooking dinner, otherwise all bets are off. But the problem is someone in the family has taken the car for the night. What a freaking disaster!  Solution: Order your emergency packet of pasta from the comfort of your home, (in your PJs) via the Dash Delivers app, which should arrive in 60 minutes or less. Disaster averted.  Forget the 3-hour window offered by the supermarkets. Sometimes you need items a little quicker than that, which is where Dash Delivers steps in. Created to fill that void, Dash Delivers – an Australian owned and operated service – promises to offer a speedy 60-minute turnaround on deliveries from the users closest supermarket and pharmacy. And there is no minimum spend!  Purchases can be made using the app between 8am and 10pm, 7 days a week. What suburbs do they deliver to? They service all areas of Sydney from the Eastern Suburbs, Inner West, Northern Beaches, South Sydney and West Sydney.  Dash Delivers is simple to use. All you need to do is: Download the app Register and create your profile Scroll product lists and add to your cart (if there’s something you want that’s not on the app, simply request it and Dash Delivers will add it to the list) Checkout when you’re finished your shopping list Receive… Read More

Raise your glass on World Gin Day with Bass & Flinders Distillery’s latest gin releases

Bass and Flinders gin

Tomorrow is World Gin Day (13 June), so you may want to raise your glass to this very important day for gin lovers with a splash of Bass & Flinders Distillery’s newest offerings – their Orient Gin and Maritime Gin. Located in the beautiful Mornington Peninsula, this Victorian distillery was born in 2009. Taking inspiration from their surroundings, Bass & Flinders products embody the true holiday nature of the peninsula. The Maritime Gin is a nod to the local area, inspired by the Mornington Peninsula itself where crisp, salty air meets the eucalypt and wine-grown hinterland. A lovely mix of locally foraged kelp, samphire and locally harvested vine leaves have been incorporated into the Maritime Gin, creating a profile that compliments the dry juniper.   It also pairs seamlessly with the coastal saltbush, lemon myrtle and currant bush to provide a depth of flavour reminiscent of the Australian coastline bush. For something a little more racy, you may prefer the flavours of the Orient Gin. This tangy little number draws inspiration from the heritage of the family-owned distillery and highlights Australia’s love affair with Eastern flavours.  With every sip, you’ll enjoy flavours of sweet mandarin, native strawberry gum and kaffir lime leaf, balancing the dry juniper notes. Both gins retail for $78 (700ml bottles) and can be purchased directly from the website. Don’t forget to pair it with a top-notch tonic! 

Doughnut worry, because Krispy Kreme has declared it National Doughnut Month

National Doughnut Day

Traditionally celebrated on the first Friday of June, National Doughnut Day dates as far back as 1938, and began as a fundraiser created by The Salvation Army, helping those in need during the Great Depression. It has also become a modern tradition for doughnut stores to give away free doughnuts to their customers on National Doughnut Day.  But these are strange times and we have a lot on our minds, so you’d be excused for losing track of what day it is, let alone the date. So just in case you didn’t realise, today is National Doughnut Month. But Krispy Kreme understands things are a little different this year, so they’ve declared it National Doughnut Month so you don’t miss out on your free doughnut.  So every Friday in June, when you purchase a dozen doughnuts, Krispy Kreme Australia will gift you a free doughnut of your choice at selected stores. Hooray! Hint: You might want to check out the new, limited edition Snickers Doughnut for your freebie. For more details on this offer, click here.  Happy National Doughnut Month!

Anna Polyviou’s famous cookie dough is back and we’re so happy about it

Anna Polyviou cookie dough

Chargrill Charlie’s and the ‘Punk Princess of Pastry’, Anna Polyviou have joined forces once again for the latest instalment of ‘Local Flavours’, a community initiative assisting chefs and businesses during the COVID-19 government restrictions.  As a result of the restrictions, many hospitality workers and businesses have felt the brunt of the crisis as venues have had to close down and let employees go.  By launching the ‘Local Flavours’ initiative, Chargrill Charlie’s extends a helping hand by allowing businesses to sell their delicious food via their online platforms and in-store. So you can do your bit by supporting this great initiative and buying some mouth-watering cookie dough. Yes, you heard right!  The latest offering is one you don’t want to miss out on – as many did the last time round – with Chargrill Charlie’s once again selling Anna Polyviou’s famous cookie dough. And check out the new edible cookie dough flavours – Fairy Bread Confetti and Brownie Beats! Cute, right! Plus, you’ll be glad to hear the OG Triple Choc Blast will also be available for purchase.  The 600g tubs will be available for $15 from all Sydney and Melbourne stores until sold out. Also on the menu are cookie dough thickshakes for $6.90, so get on down to your local Chargrill Charlie’s before it’s too late!  Visit them in-store or order ahead using their app. 

Forget Friday, I’ve got Monday Distillery on my mind…

Monday Distillery

With Monday Distillery launching their sophisticated, non-alcoholic beverage range in time for Dry July, there’s no need to feel guilty any longer about enjoying a refreshing G&T on a school night. Gone are the days when you have to wait for Friday (virtual) drinks to quench your thirst with your favourite G&T bursting with refreshing botanicals.  With many discovering healthy alternatives during iso and turning to non-alcohol alternatives, Monday Distillery’s offerings have come at a very good time. With fun choices such as the G&T Classic mix with rosemary, seasalt and other botanicals and the G&T Exotic Spice mix with selected spice and botanicals, what’s not to love!  There are no artificial additives or flavours in the G&T range, and it’s also sugar and gluten-free. Refreshingly carbonated, Monday Distillery is naturally sweetened with stevia and has subtle hints of natural bitters such as quinine and cinchona bark.  Beautifully presented, the four-pack gift box also makes a great gift idea for your health conscious friends and family members. When organising a gathering at yours, it’s also a nice offering for the designated drivers who are yearning for a chilled, G&T in an old fashioned crystal glass with a sprig of rosemary. How very civilised!  If you’re more of a whiskey or vodka type looking for an alcohol-free alternative, the good news, it’s in the pipeline, with ‘whiskey without the wobbles’ and ‘vodka without the vengeance’ coming soon. Watch this space! A full list of Monday Distillery stockists can be found here.  Cheers!

Turn back time with 90’s priced churros treats that promise to bring back childhood memories

Churros

With the days getting cooler and shorter, what better way to warm up than with a belly-full of delicious comfort food! And more precisely, freshly made, hot mini churros covered in your favourite childhood toppings! We’re talking Nerds, fairy bread and chocolate crackles – all the good stuff, straight from the nineties!  Amping up the nostalgia, chocolateria San Churro has launched a new range of snack packs that will bring back all your favourite childhood memories. The three new packs are part of the exciting ‘Throwback menu’. Take your pick from the menu with mini traditional churros sprinkled with iconic strawberry and grape Nerds; or playful fairy bread, specklies and white chocolate ice cream; or last but definitely not least, chocolate crackle chunks and milk chocolate ice cream. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, all snack packs are drizzled with a choice of milk, dark or white couverture chocolate.  To sweeten the deal, San Churro is offering nineties pricing on the ‘Throwback menu’ every Thursday until 28 May, 2020. Instead of the usual $17, the ‘Throwback’ churros snack packs drop to $11 between the hours 4pm to 8pm. Chocolate enthusiasts can also indulge in signature hot chocolate favourites with a twist, with San Churro rolling out four new ‘Throwback Hot Chocolates’, each sprinkled with sweet treats. The range includes a Nerds, fairy bread, chocolate crackle and honeycomb – all topped with whipped cream.

The spice tailor butter chicken: an Indian classic

The spice tailor butter chicken

The Spice Tailor of London is a magician with spices and delicious dishes. The king of Indian (restaurant) curries, butter chicken is a velvety, tomato-based curry with little nuggets of lightly charred tandoori chicken hiding in its creamy depths. I have so many memories of eating this dish that i think we must have ordered it every time we went to an Indian restaurant! My two Delhi favourites were served at Moti Mahal and The Embassy and, later, the restaurant at The Park Royal where I spent some time learning in the kitchen. The recipe does have a few steps, and you can cheat by buying ready-made tandoori chicken or pastes, but it won’t be as good or as satisfying. This sauce has a lot of tomatoes, so the end product will depend on how sweet or sour the tomatoes are. You will need to taste and adjust the final dish as necessary, adding more or less sugar depending on how tart or sweet the sauce is. Serve with Naan or Paratha for a delicious and satisfying meal.  Ingredients For the tandoori-style chicken pieces: For the chicken: 6 skinned, bone-in chicken joints, cooked as for Tandoori-style Chicken, but cook for 18 minutes(for original Tandoori-style Chicken when not cooking for butter chicken, cook for 20 – 22 minutes, until cooked through.) A slice of unsalted butter, melted  A little paprika or Kashmiri chilli powder For the marinade: 2½ tbsp lemon juice 1 rounded tsp salt  120g full-fat plain yoghurt  4 large garlic cloves   1 Indian green… Read More

Crank up your day in iso with a cold press coffee infused with superfoods

Cold press coffee

Yes, the world is strange place right now and we’re all looking at ways to stay healthy and mentally focussed during this health emergency. And who would’ve thought cold press coffee in a can is one way of achieving this? You can get your morning coffee hit while taking in some next level superfoods. So, what’s so special about BeforeYouSpeak Cold Press High Performance Coffee? It’s 100% natural, vegan friendly, paleo friendly, keto friendly, dairy free, gluten free and there are no artificial sweeteners.  This ready-to-drink, single original Columbian coffee is infused with all the good stuff, like MCT oil, turmeric, Siberian ginseng, green coffee bean and black pepper extract The good people at BeforeYouSpeak brew their ready-to-drink coffee using a cold press technology, which is different to cold brew. When compared to other brewing methods, cold press coffee yields a greater number of compounds in the liquid concentrate, meaning there is an explosion of flavour whilst having unparalleled smoothness.  So, while we’re all in iso and thinking of ways to cheer ourselves up, why not treat yourself to coffee that can be delivered to your home! Hop online and order a batch of cold press coffee – you know the best part is when the delivery guy knocks on the door with your goodies in hand! 

The best of isolation eating: How to make the viral Dalgona Bailey’s whipped coffee dessert

Dalgona recipe

Coffee? A favourite. Bailey’s? A dessert must. Combine the two? Ultimate heaven. It’s gone viral, especially on the Bailey’s Facebook page and now, you can make the Dalgona yourself. It’s quite easy… Baileys Dalgona Coffee Prep Time: 5 minutes Servings: 2 servings INGREDIENTS 60ml milk 60ml Baileys Original Irish Cream 60ml vodka 1 1/2 tbsp instant coffee 1 1/2 tbsp light brown sugar (18 grams) 1 1/2 tbsp hot water INSTRUCTIONS 1. Combine milk with Baileys Original Irish Cream and vodka (this should be a 1:1:1 ratio). Divide between 2 serving glasses with ice. Set aside. 2. Add instant coffee, sugar, and hot water to a tall container. Whip using a hand mixer or immersion blender with whisk attachment for 1-2 minutes until it reaches a thick and creamy consistency. 3. Spoon the whipped coffee on top of the milk in the 2 serving glasses. Serve with a straw – it’s best to stir as you go