Producers 'Go Clubbing' - at the Campbelltown Catholic Club

Sydney's Good Food Month comes to a close. But before the festive month of food ends, Campbelltown Catholic Club brought Good Food Month to the Macarthur area. Macarthur 'Foodies' celebrated and dined alongside with some of Australia's top food and beverage producers at an event called Producers "Go Clubbing".

David Lowe of Lowe Wines

Dan of Young Henry's

Matt from Brasserie Bread

John Susman and Mr Pepe Saya himself Pierre Issa

Anthony from Vic's Meats

Merna Taouk of DesserMakers and Pierre Issa

It was a night of celebration, recognition and education. Food lovers and producers gathered to celebrate food and the achievements of the producers that attended. Producers such as Brasserie Bread, Pepe Saya Butter, Country Valley Milk, Fishtales, Vic's Meats, Young Henry's, Dessertmakers, and Lowe Wines were amongst the guests of honour. Their passion and dedication can be seen in their top quality products.

Executive Chef Paul Rifkin

Top quality produce requires a chef of high calibre to utilise the best elements these products have to offer. This is where Executive Chef Paul Rifkin (Campbelltown Catholic Club’s Executive Chef) comes in. He took the food and beverage products and transformed them into a world-class 8 course degustation. Throughout the night, the producers educated us with the magical background and process that the products went through. I say magical as the produce and dishes were mind blowing.

 

Pepe Saya salted butter

Brasserie Bread sourdough bakers round

Brasserie Bread's sourdough bakers round and Pepe Saya's salted butter.

Brasserie Bread sourdough bread and Pepe Saya's salted butter is a match made in heaven. I could have this combo all day and all night. The finest amongst top grade bread and butter. Pepe Saya butter is made with Country Valley creme fraiche.

The 8 course degustation started with a Yarra Valley hand milked salmon caviar with Pepe Saya cultured creme fraiche, Fraser Isle spanner crab custard shooter with dill.

Lowe 2013 organic headstone rose

Port Lincoln Kinakawooka mussels with mild chilli, lemongrass and corriander

It was then followed with Port Lincoln Kinakawooka mussels with mild chilli, lemongrass and corriander. Mussels were cooked well in a reduced white wine broth.

Ranger's Calley 300 day grain fed black angus eye of rump tartare

Pane Crocante by Brasserie Bread

The Ranger's Valley 300 day grain fed Black Angus eye of rump tartare was exceptional! Rump cut was used to give the tartare extra flavour and nice texture. It was accompanied with Brasserie Bread's crispy Pane Crocante to give the dish a wonderful contrast.

Young Henry's real ale

Young Henry's Real Ale is the real deal. Dan of Young Henry's instructs us to sniff the beer before drinking it. Aromas of mango and passionfruit engulfed my sense of smell and the beer itself was smooth to drink with a light bitter after taste. Once you've tasted craft beer like that, it's hard to have any other beer.

 

Culture buttermilk (from Pepe Saya) sorbet

Chef Paul did an amazing job by using Pepe Saya's cultured buttermilk into a sorbet. It had a light sour creamy and zesty taste with a hint of tang. It was a nice and very refreshing break for the taste buds.

Chef Paul got us to crush fresh Lemon myrtle leaves to crush rub on our fingers and inhale to awaken the senses.

 

Glacier 51 tooth fish with celeriac, pickled cucumber ribbons, with lemon myrtle salt

The Glacier 51 tooth fish fillet from Fishtales was cooked to perfection. It had milky taste and a slightly moist silky texture. The sweet and creamy celeriac along with the pickled cucumber ribbons and lemon myrtle salt were nice accompaniments to the fish.

Tinja 2010 Mudgee organic shiraz

New season rack of lamb, white polenta, pistachio dukkha, beetroot relish, and butternit pumpkin pureé

The New Season Riverina rack of lamb was cooked perfectly and was very flavoursome. The white polenta almost had the consistency of a tofu but with creamy innards.  The pisctachio dukkha went well with the sensational creamy butternut pumpkin pureé. The beetroot relish was a nice touch to bring balance to the dish.

Dessert tasting plate

The dessert tasting plate was nothing short of excellent. It had DessertMakers brioche bread and butter pudding, fig and ginger pudding, Pepe Saya mascarpone and Panna Cotta with lime and passionfruit jelly. Every component on this plate was exquisite and luscious.

Young Henry's limited edition bacon and truffle beer

Country Valley Milk cheese plate of caerphilly, Stefan blue, and washed rind cheese

Apricot and date loaf from Brasserie Bread

A Country Valley Milk cheese plate of caerphilly, Stefan blue and washed rind cheese with charred apricot and date loaf from Brasserie Bread was an awesome way of ending the night. This was also paired with Young Henry's limited edition bacon and truffle beer. The beer was infused with smoked bacon and black truffle.

Ramen Raff dined at the Producers "Go Clubbing" event as a guest of Brasserie Bread and Campbelltown Catholic Club.

The Burgers of Melbourne: Huxtaburger II, Mr. Burger, Rockwell and Sons

As most of y'all know, I'm not just a ramen nerd. I am also a burger geek and addict. I feel adrenalin rush through my veins whenever I see a hamburger with soft bun, glistening juicy beef pattie, and a provocative melted cheese. Can I get a witness?!!

Anyway, I heard that the lovely city of Melbourne has amazing burgers of such to offer. So, I carefully mapped out my game plan and picked three places to visit. Namely: Huxtaburger, Mr Burger, and Rockwell & Sons Co.

Huxtaburger II

If the "Huxta" part of the name sounds familiar to you, then you must've watched or have heard of the  "The Huxtables" whilst growing up. They are the renowned family of the sitcom "The Bill Cosby show". Even their burgers are named after some of the family members. Such as Theo or Denise "the hot one" (a huxtaburger with chillies). The first shop of Huxtaburger is located on Smith St in Collingwood. Then a few months ago, Huxtaburger II opened in the CBD. It is located in a laneaway (like most amazing eats in Melbourne) called Fullham Place. It had a diner type feel theme that is very fitting to the burgers they serve.

Huxtaburger

My huxtaburger ($8.50) came out and the burger geek in me got super mega excited. The burger was somewhere borderline gourmet and dirty American burger in style. The melted cheese stared at me as if it was seducing me. The housemade bun was sweet and very soft. The bun was also buttered and slightly toasted that handled the whole burger well. The meat was perfectly flavoured. It also had lettuce, tomato, mayo, mustard, tomato sauce and pickles. This burger was so awesome that I had to order another one for takeaway and I went to their Collingwood shop two days later for another hit.

Huxtaburger II

Shop 11 Fullham Pl

Melbourne CBD

www.huxtaburger.com.au

Trading hours:

Monday to Saturday 10am-10pm

Mr Burger

Mr Burger started as a hamburger food truck that would normally park in a warehouse near the Queen Victoria Markets.

Mr. Burger with added bacon (takeaway)

Mr Burger ($10) is a standard burger with beef pattie, cheese, tomato, lettuce, pickles, onion, tomato sauce, mustard and mayo. I requested for bacon as an optional extra. The sweet bun that handles all the ingredients is soft and tasty. The beef pattie is well seasoned.

Mr. Meat Burger (takeaway)

I preferred the Mr Meat burger ($11) to the standard burger. The barbecue sauce, bacon and caramelised onions gave this burger more punch with its smoky, salty and sweet flavours. It also contains beef, cheese, lettuce, pickles and mayo.

Mr Burger

428 Little Bourke St

Melbourne CBD

www.mrburger.com.au

Trading hours:

Monday to Wednesday 11am - 3pm

Thursday and Friday 11am - 8pm

Saturday 12pm - 8pm

Rockwell and Sons

Another Collingwood joint that serves burgers goes by name of Rockwell and Sons. This American dude food and bar place is a smash hit amongst locals and visitors. It is run by North Carolinian chef, Casey Wall and Kiwi chef, Manu Potoi. The place has a contemporary industrial small bar look. The service was fast and the staff were very friendly.

French Fries with malt vinegar aioli

Double Smash Patty Burger

I'm here for one reason only and that is to get my hands on the double patty smash burger ($10). It's called double patty smash as somewhere in the cooking process, the beef patties are flip and smashed in a way that it keeps some bits rare and some bits charred. Two patties are then placed in a super fluffy and buttery seeded brioche bun. The whole burger is kept simple with alluring melted Kraft cheese and a special sauce. It is simple yet perfect and extremely flavoursome.

Rockwell and Sons

288 Smith St, Collingwood, VIC, Australia, 3066

Phone: 8415 0700

www.rockwellandsons.com.au

Trading hours:

Wednesday 6pm-10pm

Thursday 6pm-10pm

Friday 12pm-3pm and 6pm-11pm

Saturday 11am-4pm and 6pm-11pm

Sunday 11am-4pm and 6pm-10pm

Monday 12pm-3pm and 6pm-10pm

Melbourne is full of burger epicness that would more than satisfy any burger aficionado. This is only a glimpse of what this city has to offer.