Dirty Linen - A Food Podcast with Dani Valent

We often think of food as art but what about art that is food? Elizabeth Willing is a Brisbane-based visual artist whose sculptures, installations, prints and paintings often explore food. She also presents concept dinners and collaborative performances around the dining table. See Elizabeth's latest show at Tolarno Galleries in Melbourne. https://private.tolarnogalleries.com/room/elizabeth-willin...

When hospo workers are depleted after two tough years, but everyone is understaffed, what can be done to keep people happy, healthy and engaged, both physically and mentally? We chat to Sandra Seah, sous chef at Riso Diner, a vegetarian Italian wine bar in Melbourne. As well as her job, Sandra has launched Six-Eyed Scorpion, a killer condiment business. https://www.sixeyedscorpion.com Follow Dirty...

Looking to find a better way to do things, Tim Eyes (The Food Farm) and his wife Hannah started to look at the world of farming differently. They devised a plan to lease a series of properties to move cattle and chickens around constantly to ensure a regenerative farming method and a real connection with the community in the region too. https://thefoodfarm.com.au Follow The Producers on Instagram...

Bar owner and cocktail creator Luke Whearty has just been to vibrant London for a Like Minded Creatures drinks party. He's now back in Melbourne working on the winter menu at Byrdi, the CBD bar he runs with Aki Nishikura. We talk about drinks that connect with place and season, the interplay of bar culture and family life, and the importance of technology in creating efficiencies and spurring crea...

It's Friday and this is what's on my mind! I've just written a feature on food waste and I was shocked to learn that Australians each waste 312KG of food a year. Who's doing what to change this, starting with me and my chicken soup. I ponder the new Australian government and what it means for climate change - does the turfed out opposition realise that many farmers are climate change activists? I...

Let's celebrate dishies! Nishchal Niraula washes dishes at Vue de monde. Without him, the celebrated fine dining restaurant restaurant would quite simply cease to operate. We chat to Nishchal about his work, his journey from Nepal and his plans for the future. https://vuedemonde.com.au Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtylinenpodcast Follow Dani Valent https://www.instag...

We head to Hong Kong to find out what Mark Catchpole is up to. The English chef spent four years at Attica and is now sous chef at Simon Rogan's Roganic in Hong Kong. We talk about the importance of a respectful culture in restaurants and find out what's it like in Hong Kong with the city still more or less closed to visitors. https://www.instagram.com/markcatchpolechef/?hl=en Follow Dirty Linen o...

Anne Coote runs a small cattle station near Moree in northern New South Wales. The way she sees it, she’s farming soil and dung beetles as much as she’s farming cattle. Focusing on the soil and the carbon cycle that supports it is a necessary rethink, an essential mindset for our farming - and eating - future. https://www.facebook.com/anne.coote.75 Follow The Producers on Instagram https://www.ins...

What makes a bar guy join up with some mates to open a restaurant...and then another...and some more? Simon Blacher's Commune Group has just launched Moonhouse, its sixth Melbourne restaurant. We dig into the endless puzzle of hospitality: the successes, the tough learning experiences and the joys of giving people what they didn't even know they wanted. https://communegroup.com.au Follow Dirty Lin...

How do you build a life in wine? Luke Campbell grew up stomping grapes in the Hunter Valley, had an a-ha moment with some Valpolicella and has gone on to found Vinified, a wine advisory service. We talk about creating wine collections at home and in restaurants - anywhere, in fact, but the sun room. https://vinified.com.au Listen to Over a Glass, our wine podcast with Shanteh Wale https://linktr.e...

We're talking mental health in hospitality with chef Alan Tompkins, the Melbourne ambassador for the UK-based Burnt Chef Project. Alan has had mental health challenges most of his life but it was a pandemic-prompted breakdown that saw him change his trajectory. He's now working to shift the stigma around opening up, speaking out and prioritising wellbeing. https://de.theburntchefproject.com/austra...

After growing up on a sheep and cattle property Jacki Hinchey (Blue Dog Farm) headed to the city to build a career. But the strong connection to the land drew her back and now she supplies salad leaves to the community and some of Queensland’s best chefs too. https://www.bluedogfarm.com.au Follow The Producers on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/producerspodcast/ Host Anthony Huckstep https://w...

We return to the topic of wild-caught Australian seafood in this discussion with John Anastos. John's family has been devastated twice over by government decisions to close Port Phillip Bay fisheries, firstly with the ban on scallop fishing and next with the sardine net fishing ban. The uncertainty makes it hard to invest in a business that provides healthy, sustainable seafood to local eaters. ht...

We're talking Australian mushrooms with Martin Martini (Belly of the World). Whether it's spotting wild mushrooms while driving at 100kmh, collecting mysterious mushrooms in his hat or dreaming about the mushroom that he ends up finding the next day, Martin is all about mycology, mycelium and the magic of mushies. https://linktr.ee/bellyoftheworldmushrooms Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://w...

Perth chef and restaurateur Paul Bentley moved overseas in 1999 and had no plans to return to Australia before the pandemic shut everything down. Now at Si Paradiso and Casa in Perth, he's using everything learnt in a career spanning Europe, New York and Mexico in his menus and approach to training and team-building. https://www.instagram.com/paulieb76/?hl=en Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https:...

Nick Holliday runs Belvedere Farm on Jinibara country in the Sunshine Coast hinterland in Queensland. Nick was a lawyer and union organiser before buying a property he originally thought would be a fun weekender...but then he got more serious. Working alongside his wife Brydie, their approach goes beyond regenerative farming to agro-ecological principles with building community at its heart. It’s...

Dwayne Bannon-Harrison runs Mirritya Mundya, a culinary enterprise on Yuin country in southern New South Wales. He and wife Amelia use native ingredients to create grazing boxes and pop-up dinners. Australian Indigenous cuisine is the oldest food culture in the world - how can Second Nations people deepen their understanding, respect and appreciation for First Nations culinary practices. https://m...

Friday On My Mind is my end-of-week musing about what I've been eating, drinking, pondering and wondering. Today I chat about foodie trips to Central Vic and the New South Wales South Coast, the rocketing return of events, and some places I've been enjoying recently including Serai, Sorsi e Morsi and White Rabbit Record Bar. Join me at Worksmith Community Talks: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/wor...

Melbourne wouldn't be the same without Tracey Lester, the serial hospitality entrepreneur who owns The Gertrude Hotel, The Carlton Club and The Windsor Castle. The artist-turned-publican creates design-driven businesses that provoke joy and wonder. She's also big on balance and talks about the importance of staying well to ensure a longterm career in hospitality. https://www.instagram.com/yelzayel...

Pastry chef Carina La Delfa runs the kitchen at The Hamptons Bakery and caterer Tommy Collins in Melbourne's Hampton. She is passionate about kitchen culture and the place of women in hospitality. We talk about toxic workplace behaviour and her efforts to turn her own kitchen into a place of empathy, fun and passionate learning. https://www.instagram.com/car_in_a_/ Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram...

After a long career in the city Lee Towle (Longview Garlic) had a yearning for an off-grid lifestyle. Lee and her husband set the GPS for the Southern Tablelands and not only built a sustainable off gird farm, but now produce some of the best garlic in the country too. https://www.longviewgarlic.com.au Follow The Producers on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/producerspodcast/ Host Anthony Hucks...

We head to Tasmania to speak to Adam James, the fermentation expert behind Rough Rice condiments and food pop-ups. We learn about Adam's first experiment in fermented contraband, and he shares key moments in his fermenting journey, including visits to an Italian loft, a Korean monastery and a Japanese pickle club. He also clues us in on this year's big project: Mission to Mars. https://www.instagr...

Psychologist and publican Jay Marinis is co-owner of The Scenic Hotel in the Adelaide Hills and one of the drivers of Topsoil Garden, a therapeutic horticultural project. His proposition is radical and obvious at the same time: society is broken. Jay wants to reshape it with the true spirit of hospitality as its golden, gifting thread. topsoilgarden.org care@topsoilgarden.org Follow Dirty Linen on...

The Lismore floods are off the front page but the region is still in crisis. Brad Rickard owns three businesses in town: Bank Cafe, The Loft fine dining restaurant and Piggy Bank takeaway. None of them have power, the rebuild hasn't even started and the only certain thing about the future is that there will be another flood. Brad talks it through... https://theloftrestaurant.com.au Follow Dirty Li...

Georgie Rogers raises White Suffolk sheep on the edge of the Barossa Valley in South Australia. As a solo newbie hogget farmer, the four-year journey has been challenging but rewarding despite - and even because - she occasionally has her arm up to the elbow inside a pregnant ewe. https://www.rogersfarmbarossa.com Follow The Producers on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/producerspodcast/ Host A...