News from Australia and New Zealand

In Brisbane, delicious magazine’s month out continues throughout May with Otto Osteria offering a $65 2-course sharing menu of char-grilled tiger prawns and a classic pasta (cacio e pepe, ravioli, or rigatoni amatriciana) plus a glass of wine, all with views over Brisbane River. If you’re after that view but with a Japanese bent, pop into Tokyo-izakaya-style Yoko Dining between 5 and 6pm Monday-Thursday for a bowl of their seafood ramen (with local king prawns and aburi Hokkaido scallop) and a glass of their house beer, yuzu highball cocktail or sake for just $30.

If you’re in Melbourne and love great spicy food and craft beer, you’ll want to get along to Chin Chin’s Good Beer Week dinner next Tuesday (18 May). The Chin Chin crew is joining forces with Moon Dog Brewery for some great Thai food and special beers including an exclusive Chin Chin x Moondog Tropical Hazy Pale Ale created especially for the event.
Feast on barramundi rice noodles, barbecued quail with smoked eggplant, school prawns with nahm prik gapi and more, all paired with Moon Dog classics and tropical-themed beer cocktails. Other Good Beer Week events include a 4-course lunch at Henry Sugar paired with non-alcoholic beers (15 May); Miss Katie’s southern-style crab feast matched to brews from Two Birds Brewing (15 and 16 May); and a vegan feast at The Corner Hotel with Mountain Goat’s vegan-friendly beers (16 May). Good Beer Week, now in its 10th year, is the biggest beer week in the southern hemisphere; details here.

Autumn is the perfect time to gather friends and family around the barbie or firepit! Get some southern USA, wood-fired inspiration from Derek Wolf’s gorgeous new book Food x Fire. There’s lots of sound advice on how to work with fire alongside important cooking tips (regardless of the cooking medium) such as always resting your meat. Then into delicious recipes from classic brick-pressed chicken, skirt steak with chimichurri, and adobo chicken wings; to oysters on the half shell with herb butter, great huevos rancheros and a whole section on smoky vegetables.

Ria Pizza + Wine, the latest Sydney restaurant from Bentley boys Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt, is mixing things up each month with a guest chef pizza party. This Sunday (16 May) Dan Hong, of Merivale’s Ms. G’s and Mr Wong, brings his playful mod-Asian spin to a night of pizza unlike any other. Keep an open mind when contemplating pizza with kimchi, blue cheese and miso ranch dressing and (the one I know I’ll love) pork with the spicy Sichuan classic ‘strange flavour’ sauce. Dessert of layered chocolate and strawberry cake should end the evening on a high.

Book your tickets now for MOULD, the festival celebrating all things cheesey at Sydney’s Carriageworks on May 21 and 22.

Roberta’s blog Food Wine Travel with Roberta is indexed on EYB. You can also follow her on Instagram.