Nobby’s headland was bathed in the rays of sunset as guests arrived at Newcastle’s most iconic landmark for the Feast of the Seven Fishes. Over our champagne we farewelled the sun kissed sky, the lighthouse began to shine and the feast began to roll from the Lighthouse Keeper’s cottage. 

Gavin Forman from the Old George and Dragon in East Maitland is the son of the son of a fisherman’s son. His ancestors fished the Irish seas and he felt right at home as the breeze blew and the waves crashed against the break wall outside his ‘kitchen’ window. 

The Feast of the Seven Fishes celebrates Christmas eve in an Italian tradition where seven fishes are served at family gatherings. Seafood features regularly on the menu at the Old George and Dragon. Along with his jokes and frivolity, Gavin brought some old favourites and some new gems from The George’s menu. He couldn’t stop himself at just seven fishes, but stretched to include eight different types of seafood to serve to guests at his ‘home’ for the night.  

Our first four ‘fishes’ featured in canapés of smoked eel en croute with horseradish crème fraiche, prawn cocktail and salmon and crab cakes with tarragon aioli. They were savoured while we watched the beach below us empty of crowds and the lights begin to twinkle over the city. 

Never tiring of the view we were called to the table for dinner. A fabulous Irish soda bread with Hot and Sour prawn soup served in a glass topped with kaffir lime cream and having the appearance of a dark Irish ale! The warm soup slid through the cold cream and the flavours mixed into perfection. As if to punctuate this dish fireworks began to explode from the harbour, pulling everyone from their seats to capture the sight from a birds perspective. The White Rabbit couldn’t claim the credit for these, but everyone was glad to pretend they were for our private enjoyment. 

An enormous coal ship passed noiselessly by as our feast continued with a tasting plate of salted cod balls, cinnamon-grilled barramundi and french seafood sausage. Duck fat potato chips saluted an Aussie summer and a side of fennel and orange and a salad of pineapple, coriander, chilli and soft shell crab with caramel dressing were passed around the table like a Christmas dinner party. 

It was not just dinner that popped up in the cottage that night. Madeleine Kelman 11 pop up gallery presented the ‘Seven’ exhibition for the Feast. It featured award winning and established Novacastrian artists Michelle Brodie, Nicola Hensel, Jane Lander, Claire Martin, Gordon Snow, John Turier and Mazie Turner who are all represented in our regional collections and beyond. The artworks gave the bare walls of the cottage a more lived in feel and we were able to enjoy the works of local, living artists. All artwork was for sale and the pop up gallery remains open in a virtual capacity until the end of December. If any of the works are of interest contact Madeleine. 

Dessert was a tribute to the lemon flavours that typically enhance a seafood dish. A candied lemon panna cotta with macadamia nut brittle, kiwifruit sauce and red wine and cinnamon poached pear. It was fresh and light with a zing and a crunch all in one bite. 

A cottage that usually stands lonely by the beams of the lighthouse relived some memories that night. It became alive again as aroma’s wafted from the kitchen, drinks were poured, plates were shared and the views from its windows celebrated the sea, the city and the opportunity to dine in a piece of Newcastle’s history. 

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Who would have thought to put butter in a tube, soup into a ball, beetroot in an egg or garlic into fairy floss. Carl and Kelie Kenzler from Ritual Cuisine not only know food back to front, but inside out and in reverse as well. 

The walls of our secret venue, Watt Space gallery, were already brimming with talent from students featured in the Annual Student Art Prize exhibition “Australiana”. Ritual Cuisine’s own installations hung among these works and our dinner for the evening sat, rolled, hung or evolved within them. Each dish an adventure in itself.

Bags of red and green, hung from the ceiling on 100 hooks and were taken in at first glance around the room. The Virgin Mary they contained was sipped through a straw in the bag. The bite of the drink and crunch of its accompanying celery rice crackers a perfect kick start for the evening. 

We were offered hand made sourdough fruit buns by mini wooden “Lords” the red wine butter in a tiny tube. While padding barefoot in the grass around the “Pear Tree” guests picked pear slices from the tree their flavour infused with vanilla and spice. The partridge waited at the base of the tree in a jar, confit style, between layers of parsnip.  Like a child in a playground, you wondered where to start in a room filled with food as art. 

In a multiple play on ideas and ingredients, a room for Haiku took our tastebuds on a trip all of their own. Visiting combinations of our basic tastes: bittersweet, saltyfat, in the form of pork crackling and apple, along with bursts of umami and tangy sour tastes. Heather Catchpoles poetry led us along the way. 

Food, art and music became intertwined when Ritual, artist Miranda Earle and composer Justin Montefiore put their creative heads together. The flavour scene here was that of an English rose garden leading into a Turkish bazaar created through a dessert where you ate through white chocolate and rosewater mousse into suspended lychee and dense coffee mud cake. The music followed the dish and you ate listening to the music and viewing the inspiring artwork of Miranda Earle. Whether the sensory combinations influenced the taste of the food may not have been proven, but it stimulated our imaginations to deliberate, experiment, accept or deny.

The art table buzzed with a rotating crowd. Art teacher Ann Caddey had left brains working overtime to produce personal artworks from pastels and charcoal. 

In the Hoist room, a crowd constantly gathered around a silent staff member making Spicy Bubbles. She could magically make tom yum soup turn into balls! The preparation of the dish a performance in itself that built the anticipation of the flavour, the texture and the explosion on impact with your tongue. A craft, a skill, its food, its art! 

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The entrance was unassuming, just a shed - a roller door and small shop front, but there was a rabbit in the window, a sure sign it was the Underground Epicureans venue. 

The shop assistant offered a friendly welcome and surreptitiously indicated a lace shrouded door muffling the tinkle of piano and the hum of a crowd.

The room behind the veil was an awesome space of great proportions. A warehouse were its bare bones, with sawtooth ceiling, corrugated iron walls, exposed pipes and a cement floor stained in its own history. The ugly duckling had been transformed with the magic of The Wedding Designers’ touch. 

Their signature style had transformed the warehouse into a space of rustic charm fit for hidden speakeasy. Guests were welcomed at the bar with a 1920’s Bee’s Knees cocktail disguised in a jar or a teacup. The bar itself built from a collection of vintage dressers and cabinets. Two hatted and waistcoated bar tenders dubbed “Back as Bootleggers”, given the sad closure of their Bacchus workplace during the week, were serving up their handmade cocktails. 

As the live jazz wafted, the crowd, dressed in the height of 1920s fashion, mingled and relaxed in the lounge area of brightly coloured velour settees with antique timber boxes decorated with brown moonshine bottles to rest your jar on. 

Our chef, Tony Harrison from the Albion Hotel, had been given the challenge of preparing a beefsteak dinner. An event that traditionally involved eating as much meat and bread as you can using only your hands. We added a bit of Epicureans style, but cutlery was still optional. 

Our pre dinner canape’s were three delightful mouthfuls just to get us started. Based on the classic 1920’s prawn cocktail, beef wellington and stuffed tomatoes each had a fabulous modern twist. The prawn cocktail was served on a spoon, the roast beef en croute was rare with a bite of horseradish cream and the tiny cherry tomatoes elegantly filled with smoked eggplant and hatted with their own stems. 

In the era of prohibition, bars would serve a ‘free lunch counter’ offering salty and fatty foods to encourage people to drink more. Our own free lunch counter may have held the basic ingredients of the era but was a delicious board of one of Tony’s specialities - handmade charcuterie with pickled vegetables, baby peppers with hummus and melba toast. The thick slices of pressed pork edged with bacon could be loaded onto the toast with a slice of prosciutto and dollop of hummus with a pickle on the side. 

The tables were set with The Wedding Designers collection of silver candelabra’s and antique plates, each of them different and many of them bringing memories of grandma’s crockery cupboards. The main course arrived on large silver platters. A trio of beef, the sirloin carved thickly and perfectly rare, so tender it melted in your mouth, the short rib a spicy contrast of dark beer and BBQ flavours. Tony’s research into the era inspired the perfect accompaniment, a Cobb salad. Rows of tomato, cucumber, egg, onion and avocado with a blue cheese and red wine dressing. 

And then came the shin. Cooked for 15 hours on the bone. It came to the table standing 15cm high. Surrounded with pan jus, everyone pulled meat from the bone and soaked up the jus with soft white bread. Some even treated themselves to the marrow as well. 

As is expected at a Beefsteak, we had eaten our fill but we were yet to enjoy Tony’s modern version of the upside down cake. Individual pear tarte tartin with cream anglaise. It was a pleasure to have the tastebuds sweetened after our meat courses. The tart was delicate and subtle, the caramelised top gave it a burst of sweetness and the vanilla in the anglaise was a divine combination.

The crowd lingered afterwards enjoying the atmosphere and the joys of the fashion, the food, the cocktails, the style and swagger of prohibition. What an era! What a night!

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Anticipation was in the air as guests arrived on Newcastle’s Famous Tram. The festoon lights welcomed everyone with the sparkle of an opening night billboard and the White Rabbit finally revealed the mystery of the venue.

The Regal Cinema in Birmingham Gardens offered Epicureans an adventure that was more than just food. For many it was a place where where cinematic history and fond memories were shrouded in the thick red velvet that draped the stage and graced the chairs. For all it was a place where thoughts of food turn to hot dogs, pop corn and choc tops.

Beautifully restored to its former glory, The Regal welcomed guests with its freshly painted foyer, polished timber floors and plush red velvet chairs filling the front of the hall. The footlights spread a luxuriant warmth from the stage curtains throughout the room. 1940‘s lamps and furniture took you back in time and a fabulous retro mirror set off the centre table. In the rear half of the room, three long tables were set for 50 guests with rose filled vintage vases and fanned napkins.

Served from a timber vending tray, a Candy Bar Dog was a fun start to the night. This dish born from the combined minds from our two chefs. Hunter Valley chef, Harry Callinan’s, hand made chipolatas were wrapped in tiny sour dough brioche rolls baked by our special guest, Dean Gibson, one of Australia’s best pastry chefs. The sweetness of the roll and the caramelised onion was perfect with the strong flavours of the ‘dog’ within. 

Of course, a trip to the Regal wouldn’t be complete without also indulging in a film. The evening began with two short, sweet films. “Pop’s Dream” was written and produced by our two most dedicated Epicureans, Christopher Saunders and Vanessa Bates. The second, the runner up in this year’s Tropfest, “Better than Sinatra”, by Jefferson Grainger. The screeings provoked smiles and laughter and everyone fell in love with Sydney pensioner, Raymond, who was the star of the second film. 

A popcorn topped cup of sweet corn chowder, arrived during interval. It was smooth and thick, perfect for sipping during the second film. The basil butter popcorn adding a cinematic crunch. 

Harry had scoured his own vegetable garden and his Hunter Valley connections for the freshest and best to lay on our table. Shared dishes of warm roasted beets, jerusalem artichoke, organic Lovedale rocket, Binnore goats cheese croquettes and kipflers tossed with chermoula and fresh lemon began to fill the tables. As we took our seats and anticipated the accompanying main dish of the meal, Rolf de Heer’s silent film, Dr Plonk, rolled in the background. 

The Main Feature of our meal began to spill from the kitchen. A large portion of free range Bangalow pork belly so moist and tender it almost melted away beneath its crispy skin. A generous smear of carrot puree and a drizzle of wattle seed caramel with apple walnut slaw made for a deliciously warming supper for a winter’s evening. 

Like all good films the climax was yet to come. The Golden Ticket! Dean Gibson’s Gobsmacking, Scrumdidlyumcious Chocolate Bar. He had brought the candy bar from the foyer to our plates. Like children in a chocolate factory, we experienced our dessert. Each mouthful a delicious surprise. The bar contained layers of silky smooth mousse like textures flavoured with chocolate and jaffa and crowned with a salted caramel popcorn macaroon. Handmade honey comb and popping candy Maltesers exploded in our mouths as we tasted our way down the strawberry jelly ‘red carpet’ to a solid slice of gold dusted Valrhona chocolate. 

Dean Gibson had promised us something, not seen before in this fair city. There was no doubt about that, and along with a sensational meal by Harry Callinan and a fantastic venue we had a night of regal proportions. 

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Last Saturday, a beer garden emerged among the furniture of a warehouse recently habited by Empire Furniture in Hudson Street, Hamilton. 

The secret was out by midday and from 7.30pm people gathered to enjoy dinner from Pegs Cafe matched with world class Belgian beer from The International Beer Collector. 

Pegs had created four courses that used ingredients in the making of beer or, matched the flavour profiles that can be achieved in beer, and using contrasting elements to mix it up a bit. 

To make it a little more interesting Shane used ingredients associated with the country where our beers were sourced, and added an earthy feel to reflect the scents of the countryside many of the brewers call home.  

Beautifully crafted along the Pegs & Kegs theme, Shane’s passion was evident in the quality of the food and the details of each dish. His ability to allow the beer to draw flavours from the food was amazing. Or was it the food drawing flavours from the beer - it was hard to tell which was leading the palate. 

The beers were smooth, complex and so drinkable. Jason talked us through the subtleties and told stories of the brewers. We enjoyed them like a fine wine alongside each course, the food refining the complexities of both.  

The furniture added a touch of style to our beer garden and filled the enormous space with ambience, temptation, and a bit of fun. I hope it was enjoyed. See the photos. 

Our next dinner is planned for around the end of June. I can’t tell you much about it without giving away some secrets. For now I’ll just say you should expect the unexpected! 

Eating local is something we all like to do, as Locavores, we don’t like to venture too far for our groceries or our favourite restaurant. At our March event local will take on a new meaning.  

Head Chef at Bacchus, Tim Montgomery will bring ingredients he’s collected himself from the shores of our beaches, produce from nearby paddocks and vegetables from the restaurant’s garden in the grounds of the cathedral. 

This is food that is grown to be eaten and enjoyed, not just sold. Because of the distance from paddock to plate it can be picked riper, eaten sooner and taste so much more delicious.

The menu is inspired by Tim’s interest in local indigenous communities and Newcastle’s industrial history and will feature his classic european influence and distinctive Australian style which has held Bacchus its hat for the past xx years.

Along with the food, our venue celebrates the symbols of our city. The views will compete for your attention, and the outdoor scrabble will cause you to compete with each other as we while away the afternoon with friends and perfect strangers.

See photos of the event. 

The city’s sky scape will look down upon us and us onto it. We will soak up the twilight of a summer evening under the stars as recently hatted chef Chris Thornton delivers his elegant simplicity to our tables. 

Chris likes to keep it simple when in the kitchen saying that “people would prefer to eat spaghetti bolognaise rather than selecting a dish from a menu of unknown ingredients”. While the ingredients on Chris’ menu may be familiar, his ability to turn them into a dish that blows the hat off a food critic has earned him the coveted award in the inaugural year of his co owned establishment, Restaurant Mason.

For our February dinner I have challenged him with some ordinary ingredients – the top 10 aphrodisiac foods – and asked he take you on a french inspired aphrodisiac adventure that will tide you over at least until Valentines Day. 

No herb or witches potion has been proven to actually hold aphrodisiac qualities, but why take the fun out of trying. 

See photos of the event. 

The White Rabbit is preparing a Spanish Fiesta for this month’s hidden dinner. The night will celebrate the food, dance and costume of the culture in a very secret venue in Newcastle CBD.

Andrew Cavanagh, from Barrio 2304 will be preparing a six course tapas menu. The dishes are designed to be shared as a way of enjoying the company of friends you know and others you are yet to meet. Some of Barrio's customers' favourite dishes will be on the menu along with some creative new ideas that Andrew has invented just for you. 

If the urge to Tango overcomes you at any stage, feel free to break out a routine or two. If you need a little inspiration, our Spanish dancers will entertain you with a few numbers. They will encourage you to join them and after a little instruction we'll all be able to swing a few moves slightly better than we could before!

Just as the Spanish indulge their love of colour in their extravagant clothes, I’d love you to add your own flamboyancy to the spirit of the night. Think of flowing skirts, ruffled sleeves, boleros, bright colours, polka dots and florals. Or simply add a shawl, flower, hair comb, or hat. The costume part of the night is up to you - as little or as much as you wish. The White Rabbit will lead the procession so you won't be alone!

See photos of the event. 

The food of our childhood is a memory that can bring tears or fear to our hearts. My mum’s apricot chicken is still being served, although thankfully, she has learned that vegetables don’t take long to cook and salad doesn’t have to be dressed with sugar and vinegar.

Like everything in life, food moves on. But has it really? Isn’t it more like fashion - returning in a modern version of the old styles?

The chef for our first hidden dinner is Ben Armstrong, owner of III Bean Espresso in Hamilton. Ben will share his autobiography with us. It’s a story of food delivered one dish at a time. His childhood food memories and mantras will be revisited and renewed as a modern adaption of dishes he was served as a child growing up in the 70’s.

As you would expect at the III Bean, your meal will be an amazing mix of ingredients from specially selected producers. Each dish thoughtfully created as an expression of Ben's epicurism. Constructed under the challenging and limited facilities available at the venue, their delivery will be a great achievement.

Artist Kristine Ballard will record memories of the evening in sketches. Audience participation is voluntary, but you may be surprised at just what talents she can bring out in you. Please, no need to be nervous. The White Rabbit is a shy creature, she won’t ruin your reputation!

See photos of the event.