Queensland Restaurant and Food Reviews

Fasta Pasta lives up to its poor service reputation

2011-07-25T19:06:00.001+10:00

There was another poor service performance this evening at Fasta Pasta at Redbank Plaza.

ORDER TAKEN at 5.48PM

TRIO OF DIPS served at 6.17pm

MAINS served at 6.43pm

55 minutes for the mains to be served is way too long especially when there were only seven tables to serve on this quiet winter night.

The service is getting worse at this food establishment.

Fasta Pasta advertises a Meal and Movie Deal with the Reading Cinemas nearby.

But the time they take to serve the meal means most diners would arrive at the cinemas just in time to see the closing credits of their favourite movie.

Come on Fasta Pasta, where has your quality service gone - down Goodna Creek, into the Brisbane River and out to Moreton Bay, it would seem.

It's a real pity because the food is generally good at Fasta Pasta, the staff are friendly and the atmosphere very congenial.

Service rating 1.5 out of 10.

Mexican Restaurant Smokin' Kitchen opens at Redbank Plaza

2011-02-05T18:08:00.000+10:00

A great new local Mexican restaurant, Smokin' Kitchen, officially opened at Redbank Plaza this evening.

Smokin' Kitchen is run by Juan and Fatima Diaz and promises unique culinary delights for Ipswich residents and the people of Brisbane's western suburbs.

The Mexican food on offer is tremendous and well-priced.

Smokin' Kitchen is likely to become the best and most-popular Mexican Restaurant in southeast Queensland.

Consumer Warning: Fasta Pasta defies hundreds of years of tradition

2010-09-11T19:15:00.000+10:00

The switched salt and pepper
shakers at Fasta Pasta Redbank

Fasta Pasta at Redbank Plaza has defied hundreds of years of world etiquette by switching their salt and pepper shakers.

Some bright spark has decided to put the pepper in the salt shaker and the salt in the pepper shaker.

Not a big deal? Read on.

In a re-write of the rules for all patrons, Fasta Pasta is deliberately tricking its customers with this switch.

Pity some poor bugger with a salt allergy who picks up the 7-hole pepper shaker and douses their meal in salt.

Or a diner who suffers from ingesting pepper and picks the single-hole salt shaker resulting in a deluge of pepper over their meal.

One very honest waiter blamed the manageress for the idiotic decision to switch the shakers, claiming the salt hole was too small for the salt to come out!

My god, why couldn't she just buy some salt shakers with a bigger hole!

What is Fasta Pasta going to do when someone sues them for wrongly ingesting the wrong condiment, as a result of this stupidity by a manager who should know better.

Absolutely bloody hopeless!

Consumer Warning: Bucking Bull is Bucking Digusting

2010-09-04T12:52:00.000+10:00

PICS: The Bucking Bull at Mt Ommaney
with the mystery hair visible towards
the end of the black knife.

The Bucking Bull Roast & Grill at Mt Ommaney was caught out at lunchtime today serving up a Kids Combo with human or animal hair embedded in the chips.

It looked disgusting and makes you wonder what the bucking hell the Bucking Bull is doing as part of its quality control.

Consumers should always check their food purchases especially at the Bucking Bull in Brisbane's Centenary suburbs where a little hair goes a long way - right to the bottom of the chip box!

Steer clear of BBQ Chicken pizzas at Flavours Cafe Mackay Airport

2010-09-02T16:51:00.000+10:00

"Sickening" is how one passenger described this pizza today at Mackay Airport.

One look at this gooey concoction reveals why the customer ate one slice and abandoned it in disgust.

The customer is a senior state public servant who defiantly declared where "Flavours" could stick their flavours.

Worse still, he bought the meal with a $30 Qantas food voucher provided to passengers who were forced to travel on Jet Star after 5 Qantas link planes were grounded as a result of a safety scare.

Snob Hill comes to Brisbane while chefs stew as unknowns poach awards

2010-08-11T12:39:00.001+10:00

BrisbaneTimes.com.au

Industry insiders were shocked when
Aria wasn't named best new restaurant.

Brisbane restaurateurs have fried Monday night's industry awards after several shock winners.

Some of the city's leading chefs have criticised the Savour Australia Restaurant & Catering Awards for Excellence for making what they argued were many wrong decisions and questioned whether the public would take them seriously.

They were most surprised by a little known modern Australian cafe - Drift Cafe, which occupies the old Oxley's site on the river at Milton - beating famed chef Matt Moran's riverside Aria to be named best new restaurant.

Drift owner David Moore said he was surprised and "shocked" to beat Mr Moran, but believed his team was worthy of the accolade.

"I think a lot of people expect that a well-known restaurateur or a celebrity chef will win but it comes down to how good does he run the business?" Mr Moore said.

"Just because I haven't got the celebrity status or the [reputation] throughout Australia doesn't mean that I can't provide any more than Matt Moran can provide.

"[The award] is judged on a number of criteria and that goes down through everything from answering the phone to paying the bill to the service quality."

Mr Moore has previously won two Restaurant and Catering awards.

"I may not have the profile that Matt Moran does but I certainly have the runs on the board, a lot of people don't know that," he said.

Chefs and restaurant owners interviewed by brisbanetimes.com.au were also surprised by Bravo Bar B Que in Fortitude Valley taking out best steak restaurant ahead of John Kilroy's Cha Cha Char Wine Bar and Grill; Viale Canova at Clayfield being named Best Italian Restaurant; and Brisbane's Customs House taking home Best Contemporary Australian Restaurant – Informal (50 - 100 Seats).

E'cco owner and chef Phil Johnson threatened to boycott next year's awards.

Mr Johnson, an internationally acclaimed chef, was beaten by Customs House but said it was not "sour grapes" that had him sizzling over the winners.

Numerous winners were undeserving, he said, and it was "unfathomable" that Aria was beaten by a cafe unheard of in the industry.

"[Aria] is a professional, well run restaurant; it's pretty staggering," Mr Johnson said.

"The awards have probably left me cold and I very much doubt I'll enter again.

"It's not about winning but if the awards can't throw up the right winner I just have to question how it's being done.

"I don't think the awards ever really reflect what's happening in the industry. They run hot and cold.

"And for that I can't every believe how the public would take it seriously."

Highly regarded new Fortitude Valley tapas bar Ortiga also did not appear in the awards on Monday night.

But owner Simon Hill said he had chosen not to self-nominate because the judging criteria went against what he was trying to achieve at the restaurant.

"The way the Restaurant and Caterers Awards are judged causes them to sometimes throw out results that are completely opposed to market perception," Mr Hill said.

"The judging criteria favours restaurants that are not idiosyncratic, specialised or different and as odd as it sounds this is exactly what we are trying to achieve.

"Criteria such as scope of menu, range of items on menu, menu explanations, value for money and so on can skew the results to favour the restaurant that is, say, cheap, has lots of varying menu items and easy-to-read menu terminology.

"And while you could mount a pretty good argument in favour of those criteria, the fact remains that the rest of the food writing/critic industry and in my opinion the general public are after quite the opposite."

Last month, Ortiga and Aria were two of six Queensland nominations for the prestigious Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards, the most of any state.

At the Restaurant & Catering Awards on Monday, Restaurant Two received the top gong as restaurant of the year.

Chef and owner David Pugh said he was "over the moon", but admitted if the judges had visited before he employed a new manager earlier in the year his restaurant would not have won.

The award would help fill more tables but, he said, at the end of the day customers would judge for themselves.

"It's all subjective," Mr Pugh said.

"It's been said before, on any given day the judges come in and make an appraisal of a restaurant and if ... they come on a bad night or day it's goodbye.

"You can't afford to rest on your laurels."

Mr Pugh said he was surprised by Aria and Cha Cha Char's results, but said it was not uncommon for smaller, suburban establishments to create memorable experiences.

It took only a few small glitches, such as spilling wine or a grim waiter, to disappoint the judges.

"When you come in with a reputation like Aria ... everything goes under the microscope," Mr Pugh said.

"[But] even though Aria didn't win best new restaurant last night, it's still one of the best places to go to.

"The fact there's another good new restaurant out there [Drift Cafe] should be supported."

In the case of 11-year-old Cha Cha Char, the judges may have viewed Bravo as being "fresher", Mr Pugh said.

"You can't expect to win awards year in, year out if you're going to offer the same thing," he said.

Mr Pugh said he applied that theory to himself and would not expect to again win next year.

Restaurant and Catering Industry Association chief executive officer John Hart defended the awards.

He said the marking system had been created by a mathematician and was "squeaky clean".

"I trust these results implicitly," Mr Hart said.

"It's absolutely as clean and objective as you can possibly make it.

"And if it says that there's a new restaurant that got a great score and that beat Aria then so be it."

Mr Hart said the system was used to review more than 2500 restaurants nationally each year.

Establishments were judged anonymously against 55 or 66 criteria and the results were posted to the association.

Brisbane Airport worker Tyler Cheung Wong on the wong side of the law: Drunk chef caught with loaded gun in his underpants 'in wong place at wong time'

2010-08-09T17:38:00.001+10:00

YES, it really was a pistol in his pocket ... or rather, his underpants ... and police were not pleased to see him.

Brisbane Airport chef Tyler Cheung Wong was in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong item when officers pulled him and a mate over on the Gold Coast early today.

There had just a terrifying armed hold-up at the Parkwood Tavern, where staff were tied up and robbed by balaclava-clad gunmen, and police were on the hunt for the culprits who were in a stolen getaway car.

They noticed the late model Mercedes in which Wong was a passenger driving erratically on the M1 and intercepted it.

When officers patted Wong down, they found a loaded .22 calibre revolver concealed in his underpants.

Wong, 28, pleaded guilty in Southport Magistrates Court to unlawful possession off a weapon and ammunition.

Duty solicitor Vered Turner told the court Wong had been very drunk and had only come into possession of the gun a few hours earlier.

She did not explain how he got the gun but said he had told it was 'a very stupid thing to do'.

Magistrate John Costanzo said it was 'an appalling lack of judgement (and) ... grossly reckless behaviour'.

`'In this country, we do not tolerate people carrying loaded concealable firearms under any circumstances,'' he said.

Wong was given a two-year jail sentence, wholly suspended for two years.

His co-accused was given a notive to appear in court later this month charged with drink-driving.

CourierMail.com.au

Minister Schwarten 'ballistic' in Rockhampton restaurant

2010-07-03T06:33:00.001+10:00

CourierMail

Minister 'ballistic' in restaurant

From: CourierMail
July 02, 2010

WHERE'S Schwarto been - turns out he has been in a heated stoush with constituents at a Rockhampton restaurant.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/robert-schwarten-in-stoush-at-rockhampton-restaurant/story-e6freoof-1225887301828

Another Fu Kang Chinese Restaurant!

2010-06-28T07:55:00.000+10:00

On the Gold Coast Highway at Labrador on Queensland's famous Gold Coast tourist strip, you will find the Fu Kang GC Chinese Restaurant.

This is not just another Fu Kang Chinese restaurant but - by all reports - a very good Fu Kang Chinese restaurant.

Illegal Charging Exposed: Holiday diners slugged with sneaky surcharges

2010-06-15T07:00:00.001+10:00

CourierMail.com.au

RESTAURANTS across the southeast yesterday flouted pricing laws, slapping diners with public holiday surcharges of up to 20 per cent without advertising the full price on menus.

And most eateries do not even know they could face penalties of up to $1.1 million for the oversight.

More than a year after federal authorities outlawed eateries from slugging diners separate surcharges, 35 out of 50 restaurants visited yesterday by The Courier-Mail were still using their regular menus and adding holiday surcharges at the counter.

Under the federal laws introduced last May, separate surcharges are illegal and the full price must be displayed on special holiday menus.

But some restaurants said they had permanently increased prices to absorb the public holiday costs and avoid the expense of printing special menus.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has yet to charge any business with non-compliance, saying the laws were still in an "education phase". A spokeswoman said officers mainly relied on consumers making complaints.

National Retailers' Association chief executive Gary Black admitted compliance rates were low, saying the ACCC needed to step up its education process.

The Courier-Mail visited 10 restaurants in New Farm and Fortitude Valley yesterday and found only one complying with the new laws.

Big Fortune restaurant employee Desmond Lau said his New Farm eatery knew nothing about the new laws and was yesterday charging customers a 15 per cent surcharge.

"I never knew anything about putting out a separate menu," he said.

"The Government, or no one, has sent any information out saying this is what you should do on a public holiday."

About half of the restaurants on Little Stanley Street at South Bank were flouting the laws.

Bobbie Vaclavik, 46, of Southport, ate at Satay House yesterday and paid a surcharge in addition to the price displayed on the menu.

"There was just a note at the bottom of the menu saying it would be 15 per cent more," Ms Vaclavik said. "I don't see why we have to pay more on a public holiday."

A check of a dining hub in Broadbeach revealed at least a dozen eateries were levying a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge.

Three restaurants on the Sunshine Coast were also breaking the rules. A manager at one offending restaurant said he had not heard of the law.

Choice consumer group spokesman Christopher Zinn said that there was little excuse for non-compliance, given the laws had been in force for a year.

Aussie Restaurant Owner Orders Diners To Eat Everything On Their Plates

2010-06-05T16:51:00.001+10:00

http://newsblaze.com

"An Australian restaurateur fed up with the waste left by diners has ordered her customers to eat everything on their plates for their sake of the earth or pay a penalty and not return.

Chef Yukako Ichikawa has introduced a 30 percent discount for diners who eat all the food they have ordered at Wafu, her 30-seat restaurant in the Sydney suburb of Surry Hills, that describes itself as 'guilty free Japanese cuisine.'" Reuters

Wafu serves organic (read:no taste) meals, that are free of gluten, diary and eggs. I would never patronize this dining establishment, I want my meals to be chockful of sugar, grease and gluten.

When I was a child my mother would chastise me whenever I left vegetables on my plate with these words: Don't you know that there are millions starving in India? Like I gave a rip that Indians were going to bed hungry. Today Indians still aren't eating very much, they're too busy working 14 hours a day in a call center.

I don't want to be treated like a child in a restuarant; I want to be treated like a responsible adult. If I leave a few vegetables on my plate, that's my business. I paid for the meal, and I can do whatever I want with my food.

A fine dining establishment doesn't have to bribe customers to eat all the food on their plates. If the food is delicious, diners will clean their plates.

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COMMENT: The owner of this restaurant sounds like a dickhead!

PaulGTully@gmail.com

Queensland beef sizzles with Russian chefs

2010-05-21T21:04:00.000+10:00

Media Release

Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Rural and Regional Queensland

The Honourable Tim Mulherin

21/05/2010

Queensland beef sizzles with Russian chefs

21 May 2010

A visit to Queensland by chefs from some of Moscow's most exclusive restaurants has showcased the quality of Australia's beef to entice Russian restaurateurs and consumers.

Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Rural and Regional Queensland Tim Mulherin said the visit was an important opportunity to build direct relationships between Queensland suppliers and consumers.

"Bringing the Russian chefs to Queensland was an opportunity for our meat industry to demonstrate Australia's food safety and quality controls," Mr Mulherin said.

"The Russian chefs gained an understanding of our cattle-raising conditions, processing facilities, different cuts of meat and how to prepare them.

"Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) hosted the delegation and collaborated with local meat exporters and Trade Queensland to organise the program including visits to meat processing and packing facilities.

"The chefs were also introduced to Queensland seafood, fruit and vegetables, and visited Queensland's first-class training facilities for commercial cookery, butchery and hospitality."

Mr Mulherin said Australian beef is highly sought after in the high end restaurant sector in Russia.

"Market research by MLA has found a number of chefs in Russia have a preference for Australian beef, rating it higher in its taste attributes compared to US product," he said.

"Our beef also has an outstanding clean and green image among consumers.

"Queensland Chef David Pugh joined Trade Queensland at a dinner held to demonstrate Queensland beef cooked to perfection in a variety of ways.

"Mr Sergey Yushin, Chief Executive of the Russian National Meat Association, and an advocate for Australian beef, also attended.

"The Russian chefs were pleased to be able to talk directly with the Queensland chef and compare and contrast food service trends, as well as input prices for quality beef."

Trade Minister Stephen Robertson said developing direct relationships with members of the Russian food service sector and Russian National Meat Association will help Queensland companies to build on their relationship with Russian importers.

"Importers in Russia are now able to increase their beef import quotas from Australia thanks to new regulations introduced earlier this year by Russian authorities," Mr Robertson said.

"Australia now has access to the multi-country quota for frozen beef into Russia, which has increased significantly to 448 300 tonnes.

"Russia is the second largest beef importing nation in the world behind the US, and is therefore a key export market for Queensland.

"Queensland currently exports more than half of Australia's meat exports to Russia, valued at around $124 million.

"In 2009 our meat shipments to Russia dropped due to the global financial crisis, but 2010 is expected to make a marked recovery.

"While Australia must compete with South America for market access, there are opportunities for Australia's processing and high end beef products in the medium to longer terms."

Trade Queensland will continue to work with MLA and Queensland red meat exporters to develop market access activities and expand its supply-chain contacts in Russia.

Breaking News: Shock announcement - Historic Ipswich milk and butter factory set to close

2010-04-28T18:24:00.000+10:00

Today's shock media release
from National Foods

The historic Booval milk and butter factory in Ipswich is set to close and relocate to Logan City.

The owner National Foods announced the closure today (see attached) which will result in the loss of 100 Ipswich jobs.

The factory has served generations of Ipswich residents and its closure has surprised locals.

In recent years, its key operation has been milk production.

It was formerly part of the Dairy Farmers chain.

Ipswich Planning and Development spokesman Cr Paul Tully described the closure as "totally disappointing".

"This has come without warning and will affect many Ipswich families.

"I am calling on the company to reconsider its decision," Cr Tully said.

'Gay dog' refused entry to Australian restaurant

2010-04-25T15:09:00.001+10:00

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net

SYDNEY – An Australian restaurant that refused a blind man entry because a waiter thought his seeing-eye dog was "gay" has been ordered to apologize and pay compensation.

Ian Jolly was told he could not take guide dog Nudge into Adelaide's Thai Spice last May because a member of staff objected, The Sunday Mail reported.

The restaurant's owners said a misunderstanding had arisen between Jolly's female companion and a waiter, who understood the woman "to be saying she wanted to bring a gay dog into the restaurant".

"The staff genuinely believed that Nudge was an ordinary pet dog which had been desexed to become a gay dog," the owners said in a statement to South Australia's Equal Opportunity Tribunal.

The tribunal on Friday ordered the restaurant to pay Jolly 1,500 dollars ($1,400) and offer him a written apology for discriminating against him on the grounds of disability.

The restaurant, which displays a "guide dogs welcome" sign, refused to comment to the newspaper and was unavailable to respond on Sunday.

Jolly told the Sunday Mail he was happy with the result.

"I just want to be like everybody else and be able to go out for dinner, to be left alone and just enjoy a meal," he said.

In the 21st century this is unbelievable: UK family ask for 'no black hotel staff' in Florida

2010-04-23T16:22:00.001+10:00

http://news.ninemsn.com.au

A British family has sparked a legal storm when they told staff at a US luxury hotel that they did not want to be served by any black people.

The family allegedly told staff at a five-star Ritz-Carlton hotel in Florida that they didn't want to be served by "people of colour" or staff with "foreign accents".

But Haitian-born waiter Wadner Tranchant has sued the hotel claiming that by preventing him from serving the family, the Ritz-Carlton violated the Civil Rights Act, the UK Times newspaper reported.

Mr Tranchant, who is black, was moved to other duties when the UK family were seated at the restaurant.

Mr Tranchant's lawyer said nine witnesses would testify that the family had made the racist request.

"My client was prevented from waiting on this couple because he was black," he said.

"Plaintiff was humiliated, embarrassed, frightened, intimidated, subject to undeserved shame and suffered severe emotional stress, which is continuing and for which Plaintiff is seeking medical and psychological treatment," the lawsuit read.

Prices at the luxury hotel range from $480 a night for a standard room to $5400 for the presidential suite.

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COMMENT: At least Australia has tough laws to stop this insanity.
This family should have been booted out of the United States.

PaulGTully@gmail.com

Are you food illiterate? You're not alone.

2010-04-23T08:26:00.001+10:00

Mayo Clinic

Are you food illiterate? If so, you appear to be in the majority. Recent headlines paint a dismal picture of what's happening to cooking these days:

"People's lack of food skills is getting in the way of them being able to make healthy food choices."
"Kitchen gadgets take the fast-food mentality into the home."

Some people — parents and children alike — have never seen a cabbage or a baked potato but they know coleslaw and French fries.

Researchers at the Queensland University of Technology studying the food skills of 16 to 26 year olds noted that these teens and young adults are food illiterate — they don't have the skills to choose and cook healthy food. The root cause, they suspect, is that these young people come from homes where meals and food preparation were outsourced.

At the recent International Home and Housewares show in Chicago, which drew 60,000 people, the focus was on gadgets that reduce cooking to a one- or two-step process, such as:

A toaster that toasts bread and poaches an egg simultaneously.
Toaster ovens with a "pizza bump" (a rounded front) to allow frozen pizza to more easily fit.
Ovens and microwaves with pizza and chicken-nugget buttons for "one-touch cooking."

If you count yourself among the food illiterate, would you like to change? Then try this one-week challenge:

Just say no to eating out. Yep, no eating at restaurants. Eat only food from home, preferably at home.
Eat only "real food." Think whole grains, fresh fruit and vegetables, small cuts of poultry, fish, lean meat, and low-fat dairy. Avoid boxed or frozen dinners and "junk food" snacks.
Get a cookbook. Or go online for recipes. Look for ones from recognized health organizations. Choose a few easy and appealing recipes, and give them a go.

By the end of the week, you'll definitely know what skills you have — and the ones you lack.

What have you tried to improve your food literacy? Share your ideas. Let's learn from each other.

Poor food choices cost us dearly

2010-04-22T21:26:00.000+10:00

The Sunday Mail

UNHEALTHY lifestyles dominated by fast-food diets are killing 1700 Queenslanders a year and costing taxpayers billions, a new report reveals.

The Queensland Council of Social Service (QCOSS) report found battlers forced to live on takeaways, because they couldn't afford fresh food, were having their life spans reduced by an average of four years.

The state's health bill could be cut by nearly $2 billion a year if more was done to help struggling families get healthier food and live a better lifestyle, the report said.

QCOSS president Karyn Walsh said poor families had come to rely on fast food because it was cheap, easy and available.

She said many mums were faced with searching for a meal with just $5 in their pockets.

"You can't walk into a fruit and vegetable shop and get a meal for that," Ms Walsh said.

"Even if you are vegetarian you need more money.

"Grabbing something quick from a fast-food store for under $5 would seem like a good option, but it's not the best option health-wise.

"Fast food is supposed to be a supplement to a healthy diet, not your diet itself."

Fast-food companies are pushing family value deals – with McDonald's advertising a pack to feed four people for less than $20.

One pizza advertisement features a family in front of a mound of pizza ingredients before suggesting it is quicker, easier and cheaper to buy the meal from them.

But without fresh food, particularly fruit and vegetables, other health problems only became worse, Ms Walsh said.

In disadvantaged areas, it was often fast-food shops that were the last to close, whereas shops selling healthy food were hard to find, she said.

A survey by Queensland Health in 2006 found it would cost $457 a fortnight to feed a family of six adequately.

With more than one in seven families in Brisbane surviving on less than $500 a week, thousands are struggling to find grocery money once rent is taken out, QCOSS said.

It's even tougher in Wide Bay, where more than a quarter of families try to manage on less than $500 a week.

In West Moreton, the figure is one in five.

University of Queensland lecturer Dr Paul Henman said low income earners had little option but to swap healthy food for cheaper, filling – but less healthy – options.

"Fresh fruit and vegetables have risen quite significantly in recent years," he said.

The QCOSS report said the Queensland hospital budget could save more than $1.9 billion a year by tackling the underlying causes of ill health among the state's battlers.

In some lower socio-economic areas, obesity rates were double the state average and smoking rates were 90 per cent higher.

And alcohol abuse was killing 80 per cent more people, the report said.

But Aloysa Hourigan, from Nutrition Australia, said the argument that fast food was cheaper than home-cooked meals was false.

The nutritionist said families could find healthy meals that were cheaper than takeaway options, but it took time and planning.

She said that aside from hot chips, takeaways were more expensive than home-cooked meals, despite what the fast-food advertisements suggested.

"The marketing around a lot of fast food is about 'two for the price of one', or feed your family for so much money.

"They are cheaper types of food that are high in salt and sugar," she said.

World First: Cafe Offers New Pizza Topping - Locusts

2010-04-22T16:52:00.000+10:00

Fox News

Is this the world's worst pizza topping?

An Australian cafe is taking advantage of an insect swarm to offer customers a locust pizza special, Australian national broadcaster ABC reported Monday.

Locusts have infested a huge area of eastern Australia roughly the size of Spain after recent floods, and are causing widespread destruction to crops.

Now a resourceful cafe in the northern Victorian town of Mildura has turned the tables on the pests by plating them up at the request of the local mayor Glenn Milne.

Milne confessed he hadn't tried the locusts pizza himself, but revealed at least one local had.

"I'm sure it's just as good as anchovies and olives," he said after confessing he didn't like either on pizza.

Milne came up with the idea after collecting a bag full of locusts, which have plastered vehicles in the town.

Chris Adriaansen, head of the Australian Plague Locust Commission, said the quick-breeding creatures had hit a region stretching from Longreach in Queensland to Melbourne and Adelaide -- about 190,000 square miles.

Pizza battle over fat content

2010-04-22T16:33:00.000+10:00

Hospitality

The fat in pizza, or lack of it, is the latest big weapon in the marketing battle between our pizza giants.

Eagle Boys has launched a campaign to highlight its low fat credentials with claims that it leads the pizza market when it comes to offering a low fat choice.

The Queensland based chain claims its new Vegetarian Bianco pizza has the least amount of saturated fat of any pizza available from a large pizza chain in Australia, new figures reveal.

Eagle Boys said its Vegetarian Bianco—which is part of its new Lighter Choices range—has less than one gram of saturated fat per 100 grams.

It compared the pizza to the lowest fat offerings of its major competitors including Dominos, Pizza Hut, Crust and Pizza Capers.

The Vegetarian Bianco is one of five pizzas that are part of Eagle Boys’ Lighter Choices range. Altogether the new range includes 31 new menu items that also include kids meals, side dishes, desserts, and a gluten “friendly” pizza base.

Eagle Boys move comes after Dominos earlier this year launched its new Good Choice Range with a marketing campaign that included teaming up with The Biggest Loser television series and bringing one of the show’s stars, fitness trainer Shannon Ponton, on board as its “brand ambassador”.

A cracker of a win for ATO in Australia over a piece of Italian bread

2010-04-10T08:40:00.001+10:00

Does this look like a biscuit?...Alfred Abbatangelo took the
AustralianTax Office to court over a ruling on his ciabette's
GST status. He lost and it has cost him a cool million dollars.

IF IT looks like a cracker and snaps like a cracker, then it's not a piece of bread.

That finding means Alfred Abbatangelo, a small-scale Melbourne food importer, will have to clear his cookie jar of more than $1 million after unsuccessfully challenging the tax office over the GST status of Perfetto Mini Ciabatte.

Mr Abbatangelo and witnesses including a cereal chemist argued the mini ciabatte was more bread than cracker, owing to its composition and baking method. ''I was extremely confident [of winning] because the product has been recognised for 200 years in Italy as a bread,'' he said.

But Judge Ross Sundberg ruled that overseas perceptions of ciabatte, also known in Italy as ciappe, were irrelevant: ''For all I know, the meaning of biscuit or cracker may differ in Italy or Europe from that accepted or understood in Australia.'' The mini ciabatte had the same ingredients as ciappe, classified as bread in Italy, but ''I do not accept that the size and general appearance of mini ciabatte can be put aside''.

Its placement in the biscuit aisle in supermarkets added weight to the argument that it should be subject to GST, the judge said.

Mr Abbatangelo said the decision ignored multicultural influences on Australia's food industry. He is considering an appeal.

Good Thai food at Augustine Heights near Springfield

2010-04-08T19:24:00.002+10:00

The following has been emailed from a local blog site:
Restaurants - Boostcruising.com

Good Thai if you're way out west near Augustine Heights:
http://www.thaiemperor.com

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COMMENT: Augustine Heights - Way out west?
The Ipswich suburb of Augustine Heights is closer to the Brisbane GPO than some Brisbane suburbs such as Upper Brookfield.

PAUL TULLY: PaulGTully@gmail.com
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Ruffles Lodge Joins Peppers Portfolio in Gold Coast Hinterland

2010-04-06T20:33:00.001+10:00

Voxy

Peppers has expanded its collection of retreats, resorts and hotels in Queensland with the launch of its first retreat in the Gold Coast Hinterland - Peppers Ruffles Lodge & Spa.

Officially joining the Peppers portfolio on 1 May, Peppers Ruffles Lodge & Spa is a perfect addition to the Peppers collection of well-appointed retreats offering a hedonistic escape in a key holiday destination.

Mantra Group chief executive officer Bob East said he was delighted to be launching the Peppers brand on the Gold Coast with such an exquisite property.

"Peppers Ruffles Lodge & Spa perfectly embodies the ideals of the Peppers brand - renowned for its irresistible and indulgent range of escapes selectively located throughout Australia and New Zealand,'' he said.

Perched high on a ridge in the magnificent Gold Coast hinterland, the architecturally stunning Peppers Ruffles Lodge & Spa offers the height of style and comfort with eight beautifully appointed villas and one exclusive one or two bedroom executive suite, all echoing the natural environment through natural timbers and warm interiors.

Like all Peppers retreats, Peppers Ruffles Lodge & Spa is dedicated to providing a personalised and unique experience which flows through to their dining facilities, where fine cuisine, is coupled with great service and a well-stocked wine cellar.

First class facilities include a day spa, an infinity edge swimming pool, heated therapeutic spa, 85 metre par three golf practice area, walking tracks for the more adventurous plus a lounge, bar and dining area.

Restaurants to wear their ratings on their sleeves

2010-04-06T20:27:00.000+10:00

Australian Food News

New schemes in New South Wales and Queensland will encourage restaurants to display their food safety and hygiene ratings on the front door.

The scheme will both allow prospective customers to make an informed decision about their dining choices, and encourage restaurants to keep standards up.

The NSW system will use a school-style ranking of A, B C or P (for ‘pending’), where A means an establishment has met all benchmarks for kitchen hygiene, food handling and preparation, refrigeration and equipment. The system will be trialled in twelve council areas from July 1 this year.

The Queensland system will use a two- to five-star ‘plates’ system, with five plates for the highest compliance and two for the lowest. One-plate restaurants will have to improve their game or face closure.

Queensland food businesses will commence the scheme in November this year.

The two schemes are a first for Australia, but similar schemes in London, Singapore and Los Angeles have reported success, with ‘A’ rated restaurants in LA going from 39% in 1998 to 83% in 2008.

While the schemes are voluntary, Restaurant and Catering Australia (RCA) said it won’t be easy to avoid joining once it goes statewide.

”While it will be possible to ignore it, it will be hard to avoid because restaurants not displaying a rating will be under suspicion that they are doing the wrong thing,” said chief executive John Hart.

Restauranteurs were positive about the schemes’ introduction. Glen Bongioletti, of the Pig’n'Whistle in Brisbane, told the Brisbane Times that the new standards would lift the bar for everyone.

“There’s no doubt this is a good thing and I’d expect everyone will be publicly displaying their rating, unless they get a bad score,” he said.

“What it will do will get those venues that aren’t up to standard to re-think their practices and improve their hygiene.”

Queensland eateries set to tuck into 'scores for doors'

2010-04-05T20:49:00.000+10:00

Brisbane Times

South-east Queensland is setting the pace on hygiene ratings for restaurants, cafes and take-away shops with NSW set to follow the "scores for doors" scheme.

The ratings system was first backed by two Brisbane councils earlier this year after Brisbane City and Logan City voted to implement the scheme.

From November this year, all Queensland food businesses will be encouraged to publicly display their hygiene rating at their door, giving customers a new level of clarity.

Ratings will be displayed in a star system using "plates", in which eateries with the highest level of compliance are awarded five plates and the worst-performing get two.

Those scoring fewer than two plates face closure.

Brisbane’s move increased pressure on NSW food authorities and last week it was announced that the southern state would also adopt the system.

While the "scores on doors" won’t be compulsory, local councils in Brisbane and NSW expect a near-universal take-up of the scheme because those that don’t will be under suspicion they have "something to hide".

Glen Bongioletti, assistant manager of the Pig ‘n Whistle gastro pub on the Queen Street Mall, said the new standards would "lift the bar for everyone".

"There’s no doubt this is a good thing and I’d expect everyone will be publicly displaying their rating, unless they get a bad score," he said.

"We’re a very high-profile eatery and I’d expect us to get a five-star rating – why wouldn’t we want to have that on display for all our customers to see?

"What it will do will get those venues that aren’t up to standard to re-think their practices and improve their hygiene."

He said he was not surprised NSW had mirrored the new southeast Queensland system.

"Everyone thinks this a positive step. At the end of the day, everywhere should have five stars anyway – and I think this will definitely help. Those who don’t have their score on the door will miss out," he said.

Co-owner of Paddington café Spoon, Mark Milner, said he expected the ratings system would become a selling point for restaurants.

"If some customers can see one restaurant has a five-star rating and the other next door has a three-star rating, which restaurant do you think they’ll walk into?" he said.

"This greater transparency is good for customers and good for the business themselves, because if you’ve got a great operation then you’ve got nothing to hide.

"This new system is at no cost to the business but carries big rewards for everyone."

Scores on doors will be an Australian first in Brisbane but follows similar schemes in London, Los Angeles and Singapore. In LA the number of businesses rated A rose from 39 per cent in 1998 to 83 per cent a decade later.

Genia McCaffery, president of the Local Government & Shires Association said the ratings would bring a new level of visibility to what’s happening inside 20,000 commercial kitchens.

Restaurant & Catering Australia (RCA) said it would be hard for restaurants to opt out of scores on doors once it goes statewide.

RCA chief executive John Hart said: ‘"While it will be possible to ignore it, it will be hard to avoid because restaurants not displaying a rating will be under suspicion that they are doing the wrong thing.

"‘We’ve been talking about a scheme like this for a long time, bring it on."

If a restaurant agrees to be rated it will be obliged to display whatever rating it is given for at least 12 months.
Consumer group Choice has also been calling for a visible hygiene ratings scheme.

Golden Circle in a jam - Aussies to boycott US impostor

2010-04-01T07:08:00.000+10:00

The once great Golden Circle Company - originally an Australian icon - has been a US owned company since December 2008.

That didn't stop the Yanks from unlawfully continuing to label their products as "Proudly Australian Owned" - until the ACCC caught up with them.

Now, the US owner - H.J. Heinz Company - has been forced to apologise to all Australians for their misleading and deceptive conduct, in a series of national newspapers advertisements.

True blue Aussies will be appalled at this anti-consumer deception and will boycott the US Golden Circle brand for their unlawful conduct in treating Australians as dills.