From the Editor, Leigh O’Connor.
A father…someone whose wallet and arms are always open with unconditional love and support - and also someone many of us take for granted as we cope with our own families and the pressures of everyday life.
My father was my best friend, my mentor and my coach not only in my sporting life, but also as a work and family life role model. I fondly remember Sunday nights in Aotearoa, Dad would be in the kitchen making his homemade beer-battered fish that he had caught that day, along with triple-cooked chips.
Don’t get me started on his pickled onions – the best I have ever had and to this day, I still have no clue as to his closely guarded recipe!
This week, we celebrate all the fathers out there in preparation for Father’s Day on Sunday, September 1 – from what to give the discerning food or wine buff in your life to where to treat Dad to a meal he won’t forget.
We taste test Teeling Irish Whiskey and Frank Mac’s Liquid Gold cocktail, especially concocted for Dad, along with Sebastian Atkins-Davis’ latest wine, a 2022 Shiraz that has garnered high praise for Steels Gate’s young winemaker along with positive reviews at this year’s Good Food & Wine Show in Melbourne.
Marie-Antoinette Issa talks to eight Chefs about their unforgettable Father’s Day memories – Sean Hill shares how his father played a pivotal role in shaping his understanding of meat which, carries through to the ethos of The Meat & Wine Co. in Sydney; while Brisbane’s Matt Woodhouse’s food memories with his father and stepfather are filled with hearty, comforting meals.
For Grant Collins of Gin Lane, the ‘Bonfire Night’ cocktail at his cult Sydney bar reflects the cherished traditions with his father each Guy Fawkes Night (November 5) in the UK; what are your favourite food memories spent with Dad?
For this week’s Chef Chat, we head to Oakridge restaurant in Coldstream, where Chef Daniel Snooks can be found singing along to Pavarotti in the kitchen as he whips up temptations such as Corner Inlet calamari, celeriac, kohlrabi and toasted yeast sauce – a recipe he shares which will make Dad very happy come Sunday.
LARGO is the new way Aussies say lager! Treat Dad to this new brew from Aussie chart-topping band, Lime Cordial, and you’re sure to be his new favourite for the day.
Thanks Dad…
