Meeting and Eating in Melbourne

September 1998

This week's column celebrates Melbourne as the meeting point of many food cultures. Market Week is on again, a celebration of Melbourne's produce markets starting next Sunday. Yesterday, Hotel Sofitel celebrated the glories of our Asian restaurants at the Asian Food Festival Awards Dinner and Caffe e Cucina, one of Melbourne's favourite Italian cafes started a week of 'Anniversario' celebrations. Today sees the opening of Kri Kri, Melbourne's first Mezethopoleion and possibly the first Greek eating place to infiltrate Chinatown's Little Bourke Street.

So should we start today with the excellent Grinders coffee which is offered free all this week at Caffe e Cucina and at Il Bacaro? Or try a selection of mezethes and Greek wines at 37 Little Bourke Street. (previously the Red Ochre)

Or, we could go to the Queen Victoria Market and learn about the nutrition value of what we are eating and how fresh foods can be as convenient as fast foods, no matter what the cuisine is. Dr Anne Sibbel, Department of Food Science, RMIT, will talk about food shopping for health in the food marquee set up on Queen Street from Sunday 27 September until Sunday 4 October. There will be tastings - pork and peaches are featured, fashion parades, jazz and daily cooking demonstrations. For more info about what's on at the Queen Victoria Market in Market Week, contact 9320 5822 and for details of Dandenong, Croydon and Preston Markets call 9701 3828 and for South Melbourne 9209 6295.

It's ten years since Caffe e Cucina started in Chapel St Prahran and it has spawned many imitators in Melbourne and interstate. Its cosy dark wood interior, the lights, menu style and attitude of the waiting staff have made it one of Melbourne's most recommended cafes. It's not yet three years since sister restaurant, Il Bacaro , was opened in the city but it quickly won lots of acclaim and loyal eaters. In celebration of Caffe e Cucina's 10th birthday, a Pranzo Espresso (express lunch) is being offered in the city restaurant of the 'Classic Cucina Dishes'. The dishes which can't be taken off the menu in South Yarra because of demand are available at Il Bacaro lunchtime only, two courses, a glass of wine and coffee $23.80. Then, for the birthday week, until Saturday, you can just go in for your free Anniversario coffee either in the city or South Yarra.

Kri Kri is Ron Harrison's fifth restaurant starting with his collaboration in Kuni's twenty years ago, then Kenzan, Kiss at 10 and currently Cafe K, which is conveniently next door to the new Greek venue. Along with his partner Steven Downes, he claims no particular expertise in Greek cuisine. The name, the style of the new restaurant and the cuisine are part of a long held dream of third partner, Georgia Dacakis, whose family come from the village of Ziros on Crete. Kri Kri is the name given on the island to a mountain goat which has been too popular at the table and is in danger of extinction. Needless to say, goat (of this protected variety) will not feature here but instead lots of vegetarian and seafood dishes. And they will all be served in small 'meze' portions. Dishes will be priced from $5-12 (some seafood dishes will cost more). The idea which Georgia and artist Kate Reeves developed is that you order a selection for the table, relax and talk and listen to music. It's the new style of eating in Greece, Georgia says, and is particularly popular among the young Greeks in Athens. The old part of that city holds many ouzeri, small bars where people come to drink and have a nibble. But the Mezethopoleion is something else again, this is a new word and means literally "the place for mezethes".

And as the former Red Ochre restaurant in Melbourne will now be serving Greek food in one of the world's largest Greek populated cities then Adelaide's former Red Ochre has recently been recreated as Charlick's Feed Store by one of Australia's best known cooks and writers, Maggie Beer. Culinary cycles just keep on going round. Old cuisines and civilisations never die, certainly in Melbourne, they just keep getting re-discovered.