All posts tagged: Al Brown

The Cult of Foodies

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On Monday I went to Late at The Museum. It is the first in the series for this year and this month’s edition was The Cult of Food in conjunction with Auckland Restaurant Month. Located in Auckland Museum’s events centre on top of the museum, the space has 360° night views of the city and harbour. The night was hosted by Aucklander Jesse Mulligan who you might know from TV or radio or Metro magazine or his food blog which is generically cleverly named the Auckland Food Blog. Providing both comic relief and a relaxed tone for his guests and panelists: Professors Rod Jackson and Grant Schofield provided insightful academic banter while celebrity chefs Al Brown and Anne Thorp provided the foodie perspective. The panelists nominated 4 dishes to be voted on for New Zealand’s national dish. Each panelist gave their reasoning for their nomination. Nominations for New Zealand’s national dish: Al Brown: Fritters Grant Schofield: Lamb roast Anne Thorp: Fish and spuds Rod Jackson: Chicken and bread I found Rod Jackson’s reasoning very interesting. Of the meat …

11. Depot

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe. The atmosphere is… Heaving. A cosy but busy space for the average kiwi bloke in mind. Purposefully casual. A little bit of vintage. Very nostalgic. Come here for… For cheap cuts cooked well (mostly over charcoal or wood), fresh oysters and clams shucked to order, wine on tap. Honest (man) food designed to be shared. The most interesting thing on the menu… Fergus’ bone marrow (who is Fergus, and is he OK?) Southern fried skate wings Unexpectedly wonderful… Fish sliders Potato skins. I never thought I’d pay a man 10 bucks for potato skins. I would come back to try… Oysters and clams shucked to order Catering to… Boisterous and adventurous eaters. Meat and seafood lovers. Expect to spend… $30-$60 per person The service is… A bit cheeky, but good. Avoid if… You are a fussy eater or on a diet. Vegetarians need not apply most of their vegetable dishes include …

Two Year Giveaway

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It’s been 2 years since I started this blog and in that time I’ve made a number of wonderful friends through this blog both in New Zealand and overseas. There’s nothing like shared interests to cement a friendship and I thank everyone who has commented on this blog in the past 2 years. This blog has given me the excuse to be more adventurous and try new things. I love sharing a little slice of my New Zealand kitchen with the world. Sometime in the coming month, this blog will hit 100,000 visits and I’m celebrating with a new logo and giveaway. Some of you may remember my last giveaways when this blog reached 1,000 hits in October 2010 and then 10,000 hits in April 2011. One lucky winner will receive three of my favourite New Zealand products and three sets of my designs. In true NZ style, the producers all came to the party and have generously donated the following: Al Brown has donated a 1 litre cask of his Extra Virgin Olive Oil from The …

Cook Ribs

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Ribs The ribs at Al Brown’s new restaurant, Depot are incredible. Lamb ribs with harissa sauce sounded great and I liked the inclusion of roasted capsicum. Al’s recipe can be found on his restaurant website for those that live outside of Auckland or just want to be able to make the dish at home. What a giver! I also have a soft spot for Lonestar ribs. It’s the only thing we go to Lonestar for these days. Ribs shouldn’t be a special occasion food, so I figured that was time to attempt to cook ribs at home. I put together this recipe after reading a bunch of recipes online and also incorporating some flavours that would work well with pork. Roasted capsicum is easy to do. Just cut a capsicum into quarters, remove the seeds, smear with a little oil and bake at 180°C for 40 minutes. In hindsight, this sauce would be badass with a slow cooked hunk of pork. Think pulled pork with coleslaw, potato salad and fresh buns. Oh boy. Kaitaia Fire Kaitaia Fire is …

On the bandwagon at Depot

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This week, I convinced Miss A to try out Al Brown’s new restaurant at Sky City: Depot with me. It’s had great reviews and what I read about the food really appealed to me. If you haven’t read the reviews, this place is small. The are no real chairs, just stools that you perch at. This means your bags and coats may need to find a hook on the wall. It also means that you’re unlikely to get cosy enough to let your dining experience drag on. Smart. Third time’s a charm. We had failed to get a table twice the night before – at about 7pm (full) and then at about 10pm (kitchen closed). This time we were joined by Uncle and more determined to eat. It was lunch so the turnaround was faster and that means better odds for a table. They don’t take bookings here and they get busy. You have been warned. We took one end of a large table. If communal dining isn’t your thing, then you might want to say …