MDC - melbourne dinner club

Dinner Club 06 July 2009 - Añada - Fitzroy

2009-08-03T10:59:00.032+10:00

The Best Posh Eat of 2009 in The Age Cheap Eats Guide.... budgetary concerns hmmm....(decides to take a gamble and plots)

May be Oliver & I, 'cause we can’t bring wine will split the vino separately....these are insights into the constant struggle between light+ perfection + order against the occult +surprise + risk!...(balance & build will you.....I’m...Brunswick...what the f#@k!)

Brunswick was the designated area but after ruffling through cafes that shut at 5 and restaurants that were shut on Mondays......I did the unthinkable....called our most accommodating Presidentress to grant me the option to look elsewhere.

Añada(pronounced Unyaada)is Spanish for new harvest, inspired by the Moorish Spanish cuisine, the stylish Gertrude allowed her to find her gastronomic rhythm!

5 of 6 met outside and enjoyed the projected light show across the road whilst Bethanie and Clair ogled....a sequenced silver singlet, it was :)

We entered into balanced crowd, amber tones, soft music and she had a strong sense of silence about her....like she would express but only through food!

The atmosphere was smooth and comfortable, the linear orientation, elegant neutrals, exposed brick, black + white chalk boards & art that was thoughtful yet I was poking for her personality, her character, as the way she looked she could be anything, what was so Spanish?

Renata's smiling arrival coincided with us taking the first sip of the La Goya Manzanilla Sherry and a phone call on a blackberry. Alvin had a brief and sparkling appearance that evening as he rushed to pay homage to a teacher's life in Dandenong, undoubtedly his was a very sparkling appearance too.

So 5 became 6 and 5 again....the sherry had set the mood.....Oliver and I negotiated, deal done....a bottle of vino....must be chosen....it was.....the Tempranillo (Merques de Velilla) !

Paul hosted us....charming & informed....they all were versed in the tightrope walk of a circus performer to look more relaxed than you are, warmth in their smiles only bettered by their never ending and seemingly intrinsic knowledge of the menu.

Smoked almonds + salted pistachios devoured....we curiously

greeted the shot glass size arrival of the Celeriac soup with black salt....it was a soothing green with a magnanimous froth and a rich....I mean seriously rich texture....taste....we couldn't wait for the tapas to truly start!

Culinary delights were punctured by a vote, a vote for the Gala.....Cuttler & Co...chosen there was a sense of pride in our Presidentress’ eye....she is presiding over arguably the most structured DC attempt! Super!

The winter scarves were out, Renata earthy and elegant in a stripped, Clair golden in a chequered burberry, Beth vivacious in a beautiful vermillion, Oliver retro in jean jacket me predictable in a waist coat....we talked about the thievery of the Tristar and other random events.

Fried aubergine with chilli, mint & labneh, Stuffed calamari with sumac, The pork belly was salty

and sweet, the food exquisite, there was cauliflower, pilav, lentils and some more seafood, in a potato cake.... I can remember the taste but some of the names elude me....the chorisos in dark chocolate devilish!

Food $150, Tempranillo $66, the look on DC-ites' faces priceless! A perfect $30 a head....high fives! the risk pays off...!

Perfection is always the aim - the evening, the food and her silence finally understood she didn't need to shout to be noticed she was a silent temptress and her culinary spells were cast over us!!!!

Culinaryly Yours

Ojas

Dinner Club 04 May 2009 - Old Rangoon - Hawthorn

2009-06-06T17:40:00.010+10:00

First a disclaimer – due to your author’s unfortunate talent for extreme procrastination the following post will suffer from necessary brevity. The finer details surrounding our May dinner have been digested and largely forgotten. I will endeavor to capture our general experience in a late but faithful attempt to uphold the DC constitution…

With the lovely Renata unable to attend, a depleted Melbourne DC assembled at Old Rangoon in Hawthorn on 4^th May 2009. Welcoming Alvin back from faraway lands we anticipated an equally exotic spread. We were not disappointed - there was warmth, bread, rice and flavor. Vegetable dishes were particularly enjoyed twice over and the soft bread was similarly consumed. A standout salad balanced the meal and all was served on pretty green crockery.

At this point a detail demanding reader is advised to refer to the disclaimer…

So moving quickly to conversation… The DCites collectively reflected on and mourned the loss of Cashmere Street. However we equally looked towards the creative development of our President and first husband’s (sorry Oliver!) future home... Where Alvin will entertain and inspire no doubt. We also explored possible mid and end of year gala settings, debating the delights of Hellenic and Spice Kitchens.

All was watched over by this wrinkled woman – she didn’t need to step out for her cigarette…

Sadly, on this third dinner in the third year of the Melbourne dinner club there was no third third… There were starters, an extended main… but no dessert. This was possibly for the very best as all were experiencing the slightly overstuffed limits of contentment (surely the result of the aforementioned bread).

Satisfied by warm curries (the pumpkin being a late remembered standout) the DCites dispersed into the night, anticipating Brunswick, Collingwood etc happy etc…

Clair

2009-05-24T21:36:00.010+10:00

Dinner Club 20 April 2009 - AANGAN West Footscray

With the first dinner club of the season safely digested, all that lay ahead of us was the question in the back of everyone's mind.... would this third innings in 09 live up to the successes of the first two dinner club seasons?

Typically, I spent far too much time agonising over the choice of venue for April, but settled on Indian cuisine and rang to make a booking the week prior (we are polite sorts after all, and like to check on availability and any other idiosyncrasies etc etc. The very polite young woman who answered the phone asked "would we would like a table in the beer garden?" Beer garden I wondered to myself, a) have I called the right restaurant....and b) in this unseasonably early winter we are all enjoying so much, why would anyone besides Alvin want to sit outside??? I was reassured by our host, so sent the requisite sms on the day containing the address and a reminder to wear a warm coat.

Given our aforementioned friend's short turn around the Himalayas during April, the remaining five dc members were shown down a side alley next to the restaurant, and low and behold, we were seated in a marquee that could only have been conceived by the artistic director love child of Benny Lava and Andre R.

Talk about delighted - we were surrounded by families from the subcontinent and had an uninterrupted view of the wide screen on which Bollywood music clips ran continuously - Ojas once again proving his encyclopaedic knowledge of every aspect of the performances.

I must confess to a little trepidation at this point - what would this tremendous dedication to the decor and ambiance mean for the quality of the kitchen??? This is a dinner club after all, and Chiba had been such an outstanding start to the year.... Suffice to say, our luck held out, and we were so involved in the meal, very few photos were taken. Perhaps the photo of the adorable little buckets of rice sitting in the middle of a very messy tablecloth say enough - it was quite a meal, and we went at it with gusto!

Ojas and I are still daydreaming about the Kashmiri naan with nuts and dried fruit weeks later....but really, everything was exceptionally delicious, and according to those who should know, very well executed. Anyone looking for a brilliant night out in this part of melbourne should put Aangan on the short list. Aangan means courtyard, in case you were wondering, not that the word courtyard does the marquee any justice at all. Special mention to the superb and professional wait staff, who coped with our idiosyncrasies as much as we revelled in Aangan's.

Good naan is a serious business!

Cheerio!
Beth

Dinner Club 2 March 2009 - CHIBA

2009-03-12T16:37:00.000+11:00

The first DC event of 2009 kicked off @ Chiba in the fine laneways of Moonee Ponds.

After a late arrival, and the changing of the baton of the suspect package to the next DC host, all things settled to a zen sumo of cordial discussion of many things - including that of the fine aromas wafting from Renata's new bag. It was not the double smoked roasted venison we had hoped (yes, even in a sushi place), but to the known delight of Renata, it was the sexy insence of the leather bag she had picked up at Target that weekend.

She was happy that her bag got all the attention in the opening stanza's of DC 2009!

Renata's blissfull existence lasted momentarily though - the blizzards of Mt Fuji made there way to Hall st eventually forcing Renata to switch places with Ojas. Not before the food sailed in and docked itself handsomely on the ocean of that fine japanese table!

Entrees got lost in the black hole of Imagery as i had forgotten my duties of host and of reporting the events of the evening. Only because of the stern voice of Past President Ojas that i flipped open my Crackberry to take notes and pictorial representations of the evening.

Bethanie spoke of Personal Training. We all gasped.

Oliver spoke of Spice Temple for the mid year gala in Sydney. We all agreed and jumped with glee and a twinkle of Joy for the migration of all our bank balances into Neil's. Presidentress Bethanie vowed to confirm dates and get the ball rolling in fullfillment of her Presidential duties.

At that time Renata was still cold and Clair was as content as a Geisha on Grey St (St Kilda) negotiating japanese tofu with her chopsticks.

Ojas was really keen. He loved that octopuss. He spoke of cricket. We tuned out.

After a few Asahi's and some raw fish and a dribble of red bean and green tea ice cream, the first DC of 2009 was complete and almost on budget.

Happy Days.

what a great find

CHIBA

19 Hall St

Moonee Ponds

Ph: 9326 0248

Alvin

ps: i know this was a bit late. i didnt make the 7 day report deadline. i did exceed the 50 word limit. but i hope the pics made up for it. excuse me Presidentress Bethanie and Past President Ojas.

Drafting of the third constitution - Dinner Club - for 09

2008-12-15T12:03:00.000+11:00

March 2 kick off - thus we will complete cycle in August....to make things more exciting I suggest a half year gala after the first 3 turns in June and then October will be the Gala
the Age Cheap Eats guide will be in action again
It will be first Mondays of Month Club again
the budget will remain $30 p/p
the radius of exploration will be 12 kms as the crow flys
the 09 twist is - a hat full of areas (suburbs) - to be prepared by 09 President...will be presented by the president to the DC-ite whose turn is upcoming (following alphabetical order of first names) and the area picked is where the DC-ite will narrow their search
A blog will be written (50 words) by the DC-ite with a single image - within the week after the Monday turn - a collection of these will be a cherished foreward to the great Foodie Novel of our times that will be published on the 10th anniversary of DC - the blog address is http://dc-abcoor .blogspot.com
Guests - the DC-ite will request by sms, phone or email to the host ad the host decides
Half year Gala - suggestions will be submitted to President no later than March 2 for the half year Gala and it will be complied and presented by President to DC-ites on April 6 for a decesion....this gives 2 months to plan and book - budget $50 p/p
Year end Gala - suggestions will be submitted to President no later than July 6 for the year end Gala and it will be complied and presented by President to DC-ites on August 3 for a decesion....this gives 2 months to plan and book - budget $80 p/p

Drafting of the first constitution - Dinner Club - 9/3/7 - for 07

2008-12-15T12:01:00.000+11:00

Ninjas and monkeys alike..read and print this..

Excuse the delays...snowed under in matters of 'red'

so i took the time of googling this and that..chopped, pasted, removed, rinsed and then finally laid bare on fine silk cloth one or two proposals

and this should be fun i know, but without some rigidity and scaffolding we may open a can of Lumbricus terrestris and be totally up s..it creek

1. mission statement: 2 enjoy yummy food within a 20km radius of melb cbd for a price for all courses of under $40pp (drinks including) of which there must be a vegan option.

2. participants: - founding members: b1, b2, clair, ojas, alvin, Renata (welcome)

it was agreed a maximum of 8 per session

3. when - to meet on the first thursday of every month at around 7-7.30pm on location. hence forth:

5 April, 3 May, 7 June, 5 July, 2 Aug, 6 Sept, 4 Oct, 1 Nov

4. how - each month in turn we will have a host in order of alphabeticals persuant to first name. As b1 started, next is me, then Ben, Clair, Ojas. U get the idea. but if u didnt, then Renata.

The host is responsible: for assuring the venue complies with the guidelines; to send out reminder emails to the posse 7 days before; and for US (yes YOU and ME not our branch in the states) members to respond or decline at most 3 days before the date to allow adequate booking time and accuracy. The host must also check particulars on payment: ie: cash only, do they split the bill blah blah blah u get the driftwood.

Ideally the venue will be a place in which the host has munched before in paying due respect to the previous Thurday Dinner Club venue. Your balls are on the line.

Venue for location to be smsed to members (okay 2 sms one member of a couple on the assumption that they are not squabbling that day and will inform them) by 5pm on the day of FEAST and no earlier than 3pm. we keep it real and underground (Renata we need ur phone number). I recommend smspup.com for all your free sms needs. yes they do pay me. If people are all happy with the email medium then we can do that also but responsibility will then be put onto to the member to check their email at the required times.

It is NOT compulsory to attend, but as a founding member you should duly show respect to good food and all gastronomique deites and abandon all other commitments to attend. (not to mention all the f***king time i spent writing this - HOPE THE BOSS DOESNT SEE ME)

U can replace yourselves with like minded junkies, who, at your salivating discretion, will slot right in with the palates of the crew. It will be curteous and necessary to liase with the host for that month on such matters.

As this is a maximum 8 baboon freakshow, the host will have first preference for inviting guests, with other members able to put their 2 cents in for submission and consideration well in advance. if a guest is coming, it is up to the inviting member to inform the guest of the venue.

Other Notes:

it was discussed at the end of the year to go all out and dine smartly. I recommend the max be $150pp. But this can be discussed as a matter for the forum.

Please help me out here, im struggling to come up with anything else...

this is a bain marie in motion, but it would be nice to have something in a decent order before the shit starts to set

anything else?

for those of u lucky to be in the afternoon mix series, ill speak to u then

thank you and cum again