Background reading for foodies giving an insight into a true Melbourne melting pot of the famous Lygon Street in Carlton, Lygon Street is a well-researched, insightful and in-depth historical study of the multicultural history of the street and the businesses and eateries contained there. Lygon Street is both an interesting read from a cultural point of view and a culinary delight with recipes often passed from generation to generation or by an establishment was best known for. The reader is shown a diverse array of businesses as well as individual personal stories interviews from those who grew up in the area. As a reference tool, used more for background reading and insight into the influence of our migrant heritage Lygon Street makes for fascinating reading and leaves the reader with a desire to walk the length of the street, sampling the plethora of foods available. Although no actual reviews are given, prices nor current standing of the businesses this book is a delight for foodies wishing to know the history of the multicultural background in relation to food as is found along famous Lygon Street. At 359-pages this is quite a sizable book complete with bibliography for further reading and an index at the back referencing all businesses and individuals mentioned through its pages as well as all recipes shown in bolt text. The content lists chapter headings with food related titles as the book flows from the street's earliest history through to current day. Filled with historic photographs, portraits and lush colour pages of food. Found in a library's cookery section (641.5099451 HARD) Lygon Street is more a biography than a cooking book, a biography of a street best known for its multicultural background and with it the eateries contained there to. J.S.
Showing posts with label book. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book. Show all posts
Monday, 16 May 2011
Lygon St.: stories and recipes of Melbourne's melting pot
Harden, M 2008, Lygon Street: stories from Melbourne's melting pot, Murdoch Books Australia, Millers Point, NSW.
Background reading for foodies giving an insight into a true Melbourne melting pot of the famous Lygon Street in Carlton, Lygon Street is a well-researched, insightful and in-depth historical study of the multicultural history of the street and the businesses and eateries contained there. Lygon Street is both an interesting read from a cultural point of view and a culinary delight with recipes often passed from generation to generation or by an establishment was best known for. The reader is shown a diverse array of businesses as well as individual personal stories interviews from those who grew up in the area. As a reference tool, used more for background reading and insight into the influence of our migrant heritage Lygon Street makes for fascinating reading and leaves the reader with a desire to walk the length of the street, sampling the plethora of foods available. Although no actual reviews are given, prices nor current standing of the businesses this book is a delight for foodies wishing to know the history of the multicultural background in relation to food as is found along famous Lygon Street. At 359-pages this is quite a sizable book complete with bibliography for further reading and an index at the back referencing all businesses and individuals mentioned through its pages as well as all recipes shown in bolt text. The content lists chapter headings with food related titles as the book flows from the street's earliest history through to current day. Filled with historic photographs, portraits and lush colour pages of food. Found in a library's cookery section (641.5099451 HARD) Lygon Street is more a biography than a cooking book, a biography of a street best known for its multicultural background and with it the eateries contained there to. J.S.
Background reading for foodies giving an insight into a true Melbourne melting pot of the famous Lygon Street in Carlton, Lygon Street is a well-researched, insightful and in-depth historical study of the multicultural history of the street and the businesses and eateries contained there. Lygon Street is both an interesting read from a cultural point of view and a culinary delight with recipes often passed from generation to generation or by an establishment was best known for. The reader is shown a diverse array of businesses as well as individual personal stories interviews from those who grew up in the area. As a reference tool, used more for background reading and insight into the influence of our migrant heritage Lygon Street makes for fascinating reading and leaves the reader with a desire to walk the length of the street, sampling the plethora of foods available. Although no actual reviews are given, prices nor current standing of the businesses this book is a delight for foodies wishing to know the history of the multicultural background in relation to food as is found along famous Lygon Street. At 359-pages this is quite a sizable book complete with bibliography for further reading and an index at the back referencing all businesses and individuals mentioned through its pages as well as all recipes shown in bolt text. The content lists chapter headings with food related titles as the book flows from the street's earliest history through to current day. Filled with historic photographs, portraits and lush colour pages of food. Found in a library's cookery section (641.5099451 HARD) Lygon Street is more a biography than a cooking book, a biography of a street best known for its multicultural background and with it the eateries contained there to. J.S.
Top 5 the best of Melbourne
Atkinson, F (ed.) 2008, Top 5 the best of Melbourne, Fairfax Books, Pyrmont, NSW.
Top 5 the best of Melbourne from the The Age's A2 Top Five column contains, not surprisingly, the top five recommendations in over seventy-five categories ranging from healing foods, breads, hot chocolates, doughnuts, creperies, kid-friendly cafes through to butchers, greengrocers, bookish bites and bookshop cafes. More importantly other top five lists included cover Middle Eastern suger hits, tastes of Africa, Korean specialists, sushi bars, Thai dishes, tapas stops and native Australian bush foods, giving a selection of the multicultural cuisines available in and around Melbourne. The contents pages lists all categories and each category is spread over two pages. Each category contains the reviewer's name, a colour photograph best illustrating the cuisine and a brief review of the top five for that category. Each listing contains the name of the eatery, address and phone number. The reviews are brief and may only refer to one individual dish as ordered by the reviewer. As each category has been compiled by a different reviewer, the feel and style of the reviews vary from category to category but still give an overview of the cuisine and venue being reviewed. It is recommened to use this guide in combination with another source, such as the urbanspoon website or phone applications, to gain greater details such as pricing, variety of menu and service as these are lacking from Top 5 as although the reviews certainly identify quality multicultural cuisines available in Melbourne their overall suitability for being budget friendly is not indicated. The Age's weekend A2 Top 5 column is seen as an authoritive and independent source for food related reviews with contributors to the column including Matt Preston of MasterChef fame, although none of the entries contained in Top 5 the best of Melbourne are by this celebrated reviewer. J.S.
Top 5 the best of Melbourne from the The Age's A2 Top Five column contains, not surprisingly, the top five recommendations in over seventy-five categories ranging from healing foods, breads, hot chocolates, doughnuts, creperies, kid-friendly cafes through to butchers, greengrocers, bookish bites and bookshop cafes. More importantly other top five lists included cover Middle Eastern suger hits, tastes of Africa, Korean specialists, sushi bars, Thai dishes, tapas stops and native Australian bush foods, giving a selection of the multicultural cuisines available in and around Melbourne. The contents pages lists all categories and each category is spread over two pages. Each category contains the reviewer's name, a colour photograph best illustrating the cuisine and a brief review of the top five for that category. Each listing contains the name of the eatery, address and phone number. The reviews are brief and may only refer to one individual dish as ordered by the reviewer. As each category has been compiled by a different reviewer, the feel and style of the reviews vary from category to category but still give an overview of the cuisine and venue being reviewed. It is recommened to use this guide in combination with another source, such as the urbanspoon website or phone applications, to gain greater details such as pricing, variety of menu and service as these are lacking from Top 5 as although the reviews certainly identify quality multicultural cuisines available in Melbourne their overall suitability for being budget friendly is not indicated. The Age's weekend A2 Top 5 column is seen as an authoritive and independent source for food related reviews with contributors to the column including Matt Preston of MasterChef fame, although none of the entries contained in Top 5 the best of Melbourne are by this celebrated reviewer. J.S.Saturday, 14 May 2011
The Age Good Food Guide
Apelgren, J. (ed.) 2010, The Age good food guide 2011, Penguin books, Melbourne.
The Age good food guide contains the best selection of restaurants, cafes, bars and wineries in Victoria and interstate which are organised by location and alphabetical order in each section. There is also a features and awards section, five of the best for six categories, an index and maps.
Each restaurant listing is organised in a similar fashion and follows a standard format with a photo of the venue, a brief description, rating and typical prices for entre, main and dessert, opening hours and capacity just to mention a few. There is a small selection of reasonably affordable restaurants but it being a ‘good food’ guide the book seems tends to cater more for the mid to high end diner.
I found it to be an informative and comprehensive book and it seems to cover most of the well- known restaurants in Melbourne and after having a flick through it, I would like to visit some of the places. The book is overall nicely setup and easy to read. S.S.
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Flavours of Melbourne: a culinary biography
O’Brien, C 2008, Flavours of Melbourne: a culinary biography, Wakefield Press, South Australia.
In her culinary biography book of Melbourne Charmaine O'Brien, a passionate food writer, explores how diverse significant events in the city’s history have influenced the changing eating habits of Melburnians. The author leads the reader through different gastronomic epochs of Melbourne’s past, beginning with a natural diet of indigenous people before white settlement - passing through Gold rush, the Great Depression, two World Wars, Melbourne Olympic games, the changing immigration policy - and finishing with a modern culinary assortment. Each chapter contains relevant recipes of a particular time period. The book includes recommendations on some close to city restaurants and cafes with reviews on their historical connections or as examples of good quality food. V.O.Top Art and Food: Melbourne : art & eatery guide
De Chesne, B 2005, Top art & food : Melbourne : art & eatery guide, Bois de Chesne Design, Melbourne.
This is a unique title that marries peoples interest in viewing art with that of eating fine food in nearby restaurants. The book is separated into art galleries around Melbourne and corresponding restaurants. There are many beautiful photographs of art. Information about the restaurants is concise and includes contact information and typical dish prices range from $12-30 or so dollars for the selected restaurants. So it may not be suitable for people on a budget of less than $20 or it more realistic for meals to be around $30 or so. There is a usually a picture of a signature dish and also a complimentary recipe that accompanies the write up of the restaurant. This book was published in 2005 so is a little out of date, although all the restaurants that are featured in the book are all still operating. I enjoyed the concept of enjoying art and food alongside each other. The books focus is stronger on the art than the food, so it seems the food is to be complimentary and enjoyed after the main course of the art.
The content of the book was inspiring to me and I am looking forward to taking in some art and afterwards trying out some of the restaurants the book recommends. I think the book it a good touch stone to create awareness of different art galleries and restaurants, although some online research would be necessary to see what is currently featuring at the art galleries and checking if the prices at the restaurants are not too inflated for your price range, since the book was last published over six year ago. T.N.
This is a unique title that marries peoples interest in viewing art with that of eating fine food in nearby restaurants. The book is separated into art galleries around Melbourne and corresponding restaurants. There are many beautiful photographs of art. Information about the restaurants is concise and includes contact information and typical dish prices range from $12-30 or so dollars for the selected restaurants. So it may not be suitable for people on a budget of less than $20 or it more realistic for meals to be around $30 or so. There is a usually a picture of a signature dish and also a complimentary recipe that accompanies the write up of the restaurant. This book was published in 2005 so is a little out of date, although all the restaurants that are featured in the book are all still operating. I enjoyed the concept of enjoying art and food alongside each other. The books focus is stronger on the art than the food, so it seems the food is to be complimentary and enjoyed after the main course of the art.
The content of the book was inspiring to me and I am looking forward to taking in some art and afterwards trying out some of the restaurants the book recommends. I think the book it a good touch stone to create awareness of different art galleries and restaurants, although some online research would be necessary to see what is currently featuring at the art galleries and checking if the prices at the restaurants are not too inflated for your price range, since the book was last published over six year ago. T.N.
Monday, 9 May 2011
Dine out: Melburnian's own restaurant and winery guide 12th edition
Maloney, A (ed.) 2003, Dine out : Melburnians' own restaurant and winery guide, 12th edn, Dine Out Melbourne, Port Melbourne.
While this guide has not seen yearly updates like the more popular The Age Good Food guide, it still presents itself as a reliable and relevant guide to eating out in Melbourne. While the first half of its contents is dedicated to descriptions of eateries in Melbourne, organised by cuisine, the second half delves into the wealth of country Victoria's wine producing regions. The descriptions of establishments reviewed in this book while concise, are very informative, indicating the price range of meals, contact information as well as suitability for large group gatherings.
It might be a sign of the times, but a savvy foodie these days would prefer to get information on the best places to eat out on the internet. But even then, Dine Out would still earn a place on our bookshelf, if only for its nostalgic and historic value. W.V.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)