Posts from 2011

Posted on Tue, 02/08/2011

The current cookschool series is well underway, and so for the next few weeks I will eat the dishes for lunch with the rest of the attendees, becos after the class we all sit down for lunch around a table in the restaurant,...>>>

Posted on Tue, 02/08/2011

My photography classes started back today, and for the next 8 weeks I'll be delving into how cameras operate in probably more detail than my brain will be able to handle, but will nonetheless enjoy the challenge very much....>>>

Posted on Tue, 02/08/2011

Via the Chocolate and Zuchini monthly newsletter I got to see this food video that I thought was especially clever - no people straining selfconsiously in front of the camera and detracting from the subject matter. Rather...>>>

Posted on Fri, 05/08/2011

My respect for this man is boundless. He is to me a real chef, and a great one.  We bought his 2 original classical books, La Methode and La Technique years ago, and they are timeless  in the good sense that they...>>>

Posted on Fri, 05/08/2011

The last few years have been a challenging time to be in business, and I know becos of the wide range of business people that I get to talk too in a week, that our experiences are not unique. We have been thru a number of...>>>

Posted on Sat, 06/08/2011

There was a note waiting for me when I got to the restaurant last nite, from Rhonda, wanting me to order some more wasabi, which I've just done. We used this NZ grown wasabi a few years back in a cookschool and became immediately...>>>

Posted on Tue, 16/08/2011

I'm not going to go over to the restaurant tonite, becos the polar blast that has blanketed the country is meaning that we're having an exceedingly quiet nite, so will stay at my desk sorting some stuff here. The Bay of...>>>

Posted on Mon, 22/08/2011

Why is it, that human beings, who are capable of so much sordid horribleness, can also produce something this exquisite? How do we cover that wide a spectrum?...>>>

Posted on Tue, 23/08/2011

I am half way thru Level 3 of the Introduction to Photography classes that I started at the beginning of this year. Along the way I've been learning how to compose a photo, the many different facets of light, and currently...>>>

Posted on Thu, 25/08/2011

 Our focus as a food business is to provide food that tastes good to customers in a pleasant environment with service that aims to make them feel at home. We want them to enjoy the experience enough, that they are going...>>>

Posted on Thu, 25/08/2011

The Road Cycling website has just contacted Courteney asking for her thoughts on how her international racing year has gone. For those interested, a link to the article......>>>

Posted on Fri, 26/08/2011

We had the last cookschool in the current series today, and I've been pottering since I came back over to the house, waiting for the rather rich lunch to settle before I head out on a walk. I'm loving the fact that we are...>>>

Posted on Sat, 27/08/2011

Courteney is home at the moment on mid term break, and she and Rick went out today for a 4 hour bike ride, as you do. I stayed home working on some photography homework, and trying to get the dogs to run for me down below...>>>

Posted on Mon, 29/08/2011

We're just  in from an impromptu decision to eat out at Tay St tonite. We'd got home from the Coromandel to an empty fridge, and a lack of enthusiasm to get busy in the kitchen, so a quick and easy meal out felt more...>>>

Posted on Tue, 30/08/2011

 A lovely article I thought, on what it is like being married to a professional chef. Some of it I nodded my head in agreement with, and some of it is not my experience, but there is no doubt they are a different breed,...>>>