Make the Michelin Guide and pay double the rent plus other food and drink news

Charming art inspired from everyday food objects

The 'Michelin curse' comes to Hong Kong - Winning recognition in the annual Michelin Guide is one of the most sought-after honours in the restaurant business. But in Hong Kong, a city plagued by high rents, the accolade may bring unexpected challenges. Just ask the owner of Kai Kai Dessert, which specialises in classic Cantonese desserts like steamed egg pudding, red bean soup with lotus seed, and papaya and white fungus soup. Chiu Wai Yip, 58, told BBC News that just weeks after winning the Michelin honour in November, the shop's landlord more than doubled the rent from HK$100,000 ($12,900; £8,800) to HK$220,000 ($28,378; £19,400) a month. What's more, the landlord wanted to halve the amount of space the eatery currently occupies.

The great British curry crisis - The high-street staple is under threat. Can a new generation of entrepreneurs save the nation’s tandoori?

Campbell Soup Switches Sides In The GMO Labeling Fight - This week ... for perhaps the first time, a major combatant switched sides on one hotly contested question: whether the government should require labels on genetically modified ingredients in food. The Campbell Soup Co., after years of staunch opposition to mandatory labels, now says that it "will advocate for federal legislation that would require all foods and beverages regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to be clearly and simply labeled for GMOs."

Eat-in areas on the rise in Japan’s convenience stores and supermarkets - In the quest for next-level service, convenience stores and supermarkets are increasingly keen to experiment with “eat-in” lounge areas. Some are even setting up adjacent cafes where the same clerks who handle convenience store customers also serve coffee and cake. Eat-in areas allow customers to consume their purchases without leaving the premises. ... The Circle K group, for example, runs 13 K’s Cafe establishments, many of which are located next to their stores nationwide, [company spokesman] Shinozaki said. They aim to accommodate customers in a manner fundamentally different from eat-in areas, which cater primarily to customers in need of space for a quick meal. K’s Cafe, he said, offers a more leisurely break. The cafes sport elaborate interior designs featuring “Japanese-style modernity” in a bid to carve out a following among women in their 30s and 40s, he said.

Cheap Wine Sucks: A Manifesto

This is where you'll find the best food in Italy - The Michelin Guide for Italy 2016 has been released, awarding 334 Italian eateries a coveted star rating. And the best city to eat in Italy might surprise you... It's only the fourth largest urban economy in Italy, after Milan Rome and Turin. But as the birthplace of pizza, it perhaps shouldn't be too much of a surprise that to learn that Naples was the region awarded most Michelin stars in the 2016 Italy Michelin Guide.

The big wine lie and other food and drink news

The big wine lie - Behind the picturesque rows of grapevines at vineyards around the world, winemakers are bending the truth. It's not the sort of thing most wine drinkers would have noticed, because it's happening behind the scenes, before bottles are shipped out, and it's tough to tell by taste. But it's hard to imagine anyone would appreciate it. Many winemakers have been a little loose with the information shared on their labels. Not with the region, vineyard, year and varietal, which people — both expert and not — look to when buying wine, but with the alcohol content, which they have been misreporting on bottles for decades. The percentages reported on bottles aren't the precise measurements consumers likely believe them to be. A number of factors, including tastes, expectations, associations, rating systems and even international tax laws appear to be nudging winemakers to round the alcoholic kick of their respective wines up or down a notch on labels in ways that might make the bottles more attractive to prospective drinkers. And the problem is widespread.

A cast-iron teapot in Tokyo’s kitchenware district - About half way along Kappabashi-dori, in the heart of Tokyo’s kitchenware district, there’s a beautiful shop named Kama Asa that is devoted to the sale of cast ironware. It may come as a surprise to the Western kitchen-goods shopper because in many countries the production of cast iron is all but dead. Though you might find a few pieces in the odd shop, you certainly wouldn’t find a store devoted entirely to the craft. The use of cast-iron kitchen goods (despite its known qualities and health benefits) has almost evaporated in Europe, apart from the occasional casserole or frying pan. You would also struggle to find a factory still producing anything in cast iron in Europe, while in Japan — especially Iwate Prefecture — there are several. One obvious reason for the survival of cast-ironware here is the tea tradition and the enduring popularity of cast-iron teapots. But even so, it’s a measure of the strength of Japanese craft that Kama Asa — now more than a century old — not only exists, but appears to be doing well in a world of Nespresso convenience.

Red wine is bad for you, say experts - Government experts dismiss supposed health benefits of wine and are set to rewrite the rule book on alcohol consumption
They're thirsty for deals but millennials won't sacrifice taste or quality in their alcoholic beverages - Millennials are a key demographic for the alcoholic beverage market, both because of how big the group is as well as how much it may purchase going forward. And as a result, the battle within the alcoholic beverage industry has begun to win over this group’s hearts, minds and wallets. Tastes within the group, however, vary when it comes to alcoholic beverage preference. For example, Millennials 21-34 represent about one-fourth of adults 21 and over, but they account for 35% of U.S. beer consumption and 32% of spirit consumption. Comparatively, they represent only 20% of wine consumption.

New Dietary Guidelines Crack Down On Sugar. But Red Meat Gets A Pass

We don’t know what to eat - The government wants to have it both ways. On Thursday morning, federal officials released long-awaited dietary guidelines for the first time in five years. The recommendations are meant to inform Americans about what they should and shouldn't eat. But the message is pretty confusing. When they tell you what to eat, they speak directly, naming foods that are easy to identify. When they tell you what to avoid, they speak opaquely, referring to nutrients that are hard to grasp. In some places, they remove older warnings about certain foods. In others, they add new ones about the same foods. In other words, they still say not to eat them. All together, the guidelines risk leaving a public as unsure about what they should and shouldn't be eating as before.

In 'Heirloom Harvest,' Old-School Portraits Of Vegetable Treasures

Finding a little bratophobia at your restaurant and other news and views

Food Culture Gives Rise To New 'Eatymology' - Our food-obsessed media landscape has proven fertile ground for wordplay. There are now new words to describe every food niche or gastronomical preference. Can't stand little kids running amok in your favorite Korean fusion restaurant? You might have bratophobia.And you could be a gastrosexual if you use your cooking prowess to attract that new special someone. In his new book, Eatymology, humorist and food writer Josh Friedland has collected many of these neologisms in a 21st century food dictionary.

SBS food channel a deep-fried disaster - Joy at the launch of the SBS Food Channel last year has turned to despair as the multicultural broadcaster pushes out a prime-time celebration of grotesquely unhealthy American junk food.

Around the country, organic farmers are pushing for ‘GE-free’ zones - Jackson County, Oregon, has just joined the small but growing ranks of “GE-free zones” in the U.S., which prohibit the cultivation of genetically engineered (GE) crops. It’s at least the eighth county in the country to create such an ordinance, and efforts are springing up to pass similar measures in other places.

A Theory About Cinnamon and Recipes - Economist Brad de Long writes:

It strikes me that most of the standard recipes come from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when the relative price of cinnamon was much higher than it is today. Thus it seems likely that most such inherited recipes economize on cinnamon to what is now an undue degree.
Proposal: triple the cinnamon in everything I cook for the next three months.
I will report back.

Magpie geese coming to a restaurant near you and other food and drink news

NT hunters crying foul over Territory Government decision to trap magpie geese on a commercial scale - The Northern Territory Government's decision to allow thousands of magpie geese to be caught and sold to restaurants this hunting season has shooters crying foul, after their bag limit was reduced.

Will France's new wine regions threaten Champagne tradition? A mini-liberalisation of the French wine sector is raising fears among some traditional growers that their protected vintages will be lost in a sea of homogenised plonk. ... As of 1 January, the rules on planting new vines in the EU are changing in a fundamental way. Up till now - in order to protect existing growers - the basic premise was that all new vineyards were prohibited, and special dispensation was required in order to plant. Now the reverse applies. Now vine-planting is assumed to be legal - unless a good reason can be found to stop it. In France the change is accompanied by an agreement that any increase in the number of vines will be limited to 1% a year - that is around 8,000 hectares. But, significantly, these new vines can be anywhere in the country. And they can be for the production of a new wine "appellation" or label - to be called VSIG (Vins sans Indication Geographique: Wines without Geographic Indication).

My Adventures in Soviet Cuisine - Getting hold of food during the Soviet era required patience, ingenuity, and luck.

Put calorie counts on alcoholic drinks, LGA says - Makers of alcoholic drinks should display the calorie count on bottles and cans, the Local Government Association says. The LGA believes companies should be forced to warn people that drinking alcohol can contribute to weight gain. The association, which represents nearly 400 councils, says the effect of hidden calories is contributing to an obesity crisis.

Project Wine, boutique growers to satisfy on Asia’s thirst - The wine group backed by former BRL Hardy chief executive Stephen Millar is poised to make its second investment in an embattled Barossa Valley producer in six months as more cash-strapped boutique winemakers look for ways to keep their companies afloat to take advantage of improving conditions in the local industry. Project Wine, a South Australian wine company backed by Mr Millar and shareholders that include former federal minister Amanda Vanstone and two Chinese businessmen, has taken a 25 per cent stake in establishment Barossa producer Gomersal Wines, which has roots back to 1887.

These 4 Foods Will Be All the Rage in 2016 - Crickets, hemp. moringa and seaweed

Vegetables Likely To Take More Of Your Plate in 2016 - What used to go in the compost heap is now fermented, roasted or smoked and used in other dishes. The stem-to-leaf approach follows the example of nose-to-tail eating.

Templo

Hobart TAS 7000 Contemporary

Restaurant	Templo
Street address	98 Patrick Street
Suburb	Hobart
State	TAS
Postcode	7000
Phone	03 6234 7659
Website	templo.com.au
Style	Contemporary
Awards Fairfax Good Food Guides
Awards Gourmet Guide
The Australian Top 50
Restaurant & Catering Awards
Other Awards
Reviews & Notes	"... a petite nugget of humble talent shining quietly in the Hobart backstreets."
Reviewer	John Lethlean - The Australian 5/12/15 4 maps
Reviews & Notes
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Reviews & Notes
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Owner's note

The Shorehouse

Swanbourne WA 6010 Contemporary

Restaurant	The Shorehouse
Street address	278 Marine Parade
Suburb	Swanbourne
State	WA
Postcode	6010
Phone	08 9286 4050
Website	shorehouse.com.au
Style	Contemporary
Awards Fairfax Good Food Guides
Awards Gourmet Guide
The Australian Top 50
Restaurant & Catering Awards
Other Awards
Reviews & Notes	"Oliver Gould’s food, with its relaxed Mediterranean feel, that sits so very comfortably with the beach shack brief ... The score might seem a little conservative; dessert lets things down and I suspect service is more a matter of who you draw in Waiter Lotto than strong across the board. But I’d be back for dinner or lunch at Shorehouse in a flash. It reminds me of somewhere I miss."
Reviewer	John Lethlean, The Australian 12/12/15 3.5 maps
Reviews & Notes
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Restaurant List for NT