Dirty Linen - A Food Podcast with Dani Valent

As Ramadan gives way to Eid, we chat to Zeeshan Ashraf, owner with his brother Usman of Khabbay, a Pakistani restaurant in Melbourne. Zeeshan talks about fasting and feasting as a Muslim and as a restaurant owner. He also shares his epic COVID story of heading to Pakistan for five days to get married, then finding the Australian borders shut behind him. http://khabbayrestaurant.com.au Follow Dirty...

It's only five weeks since Vinotto opened in Perth's Swanbourne and it's been swept up in suburban dining enthusiasm and West Australia's grappling with the Omicron wave. Chef Justin Wong fills us in. https://www.instagram.com/vinottobar/ Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtylinenpodcast Follow Dani Valent https://www.instagram.com/danivalent Follow Rob Locke (Executive P...

Wine maker Farhad Bandesh is soon to launch Bandesh Wine & Spirits, made in the Yarra Valley and infused with the spirit of Kurdistan. Farhad came to Australia in 2013 as a refugee after fearing for his life in Iran. He was cruelly imprisoned offshore and in Melbourne for 8 years. He asks the Australian government and the Australian people for justice. https://www.instagram.com/farhadbandesh/ Foll...

After a career in environmental management and finding more sustainable farming practises fourth generation farmer Lucy Dodd (Lowan Park Produce) returned to the farm in the Dodd family since the late 1920’s. Her passion to create and sustain regional communities through sustainable agriculture has seen her taking on the challenge of farming pasture-raised chickens with outstanding results. https:...

South Australian chef Alana Brabin is head chef at Lyndoch Hill in the Barossa Valley where she showcases local farmers. We talk women in hospitality, bad culture in kitchens, why she rethought the term "farmer's wife" and how she's planning to work with disabled cooks. Check out Alana's forum on Toxic Work Culture in Hospitality https://hawkecentre.cmail19.com/t/ViewEmail/t/1CBF6388674809CF2540EF...

Here's what's on my mind this Friday! I fill you in on where I've been eating and what it's made me ponder. I muse on the tendency for immigrant cuisine to be anchored in the time of migration and the fresh joy when it time travels. I talk about Cam Tay-Yap's Koi pop-up and the lift-me-up energy in the room. And I consider rule changes: masks and vax check-ins are gone but is it entirely good? Thi...

We continue exploring the huge variety of hospitality pathways with chef Petros Dellidis. As owner of catering company Adonis Kitchen, Petros looks after the food for sporting clubs Melbourne City and Carlton Football Club. As head chef of Epocha restaurant in Melbourne, he satisfies his ongoing passion for restaurants, fine dining and training the next generation. http://www.adoniscatering.com Fo...

We love chatting about hospitality pathways on Dirty Linen. Today's guest is Carla Montanaro from Naro Bakes, a Melbourne e-bakery forged in the uncertainty of lockdown but now settling and growing with confidence and flair. Carla talks about the twists and turns of a career in food, the joys of a spiral salami tart, and the pleasure and pain of puff pastry. https://narobakes.com.au Follow Dirty L...

Pastry chef, chocolatier and chocolate maker Deniz Karaca is so embedded in the world of chocolate that he sees it as part of him: it’s his identity and passion, it’s who he is. But chocolate has also pushed Deniz to question, explore and change, as he’s transitioned from creative patissier to craft producer. Cuvee Chocolate, his bean-to-bar operation on the outskirts of Melbourne, has ethics at i...

What if everyone did something and it added up to good food for all? That's the premise of Chefs' Manifesto, a community of chef advocates equipped with a simple set of actions to drive progress on the food issues that matter most. It's open to all and Paul Newnham drives it - we dig in... https://sdg2advocacyhub.org/chefs-manifesto Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtyli...

What if there was a way you could sort out dinner or tomorrow's school lunches, save money and reduce food waste all at the same time? Enter Natalie Sarau's Forkful, a new B-to-C platform that fills bellies, helps the planet and creates community connection. Natalie also shares a strawberry hack that turns sad punnets into happy berries. https://forkful.com.au Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https...

Today Dirty Linen heads to New York to chat to Australian chef Buddha Lo. Buddha is competing on Top Chef as well as running the show at Marky's Caviar and Huso. We talk about the kitchen culture Buddha trained up in and why elements of it need to change if hospitality is to be sustainable for all who devote themselves to it. https://www.chefbuddhalo.com Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www...

Have you heard of B Corps? Max Shatkhin's Little Sky Gelato is Australia's first B-Corp-certified gelato store and one of only 400 or so Australian businesses to have the B Corp stamp of approval. Proving his Melbourne business's environmental and social impact credentials has been a lengthy and satisfying process, aligning with Max's values and ensuring he's scooping with the planet in mind. http...

Inspired by the farmers’ markets while working as scientists in the US, Stan Robert (Fat Carrot Farm, Tasmania) started forming a greater connection to the food that fuelled their bodies. It led to a yearning to grow their own, and now they have an organic vegetable farm that supplies some of Hobart’s best restaurants. https://www.instagram.com/fatcarrotfarm/?hl=en Follow The Producers on Instagra...

We're talking sustainability issues and solutions on Dirty Linen this week, starting with Sydney bartender and changemaker Matt Whiley. His bar Re is made from recycled materials and uses surplus and discarded produce in its creative no-waste cocktails and dishes. With one-third of all food wasted, where does the balance lie between showcasing possibility and creating real change? https://wearere....

We wrap this week's cultural celebrations with Mousa Khayat's rundown on Ramadan. Mousa is from Palestine and he makes sweet cheese pastries just like in the old country at his shop Knafeh Nabulseyeh in Melbourne's Hughesdale. We talk fasting and feasting and the importance of sweets. https://www.instagram.com/knafehnabulsyeh/?hl=en Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtyli...

This week on Dirty Linen we're talking religious festivals because there are lots happening! The Hindu festival of Ram Navami (April 10 this year) celebrates the birthday of Lord Rama. Chef Harry Mangat returns to Dirty Linen to share memories of a celebration that isn't part of his Sikh culture but that he happily enjoys because the food traditions are so good! https://www.instagram.com/harry.man...

This week on Dirty Linen we're talking cultural and religious festivals because there's a crush of them happening in April. First up, baker Maaryasha Werdiger clues us into food traditions around the Jewish festival of Passover, which begins on April 15. Bring on the matzo! https://www.zeldabakery.com.au Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtylinenpodcast Follow Dani Valent...

After growing up - and running wild - on a dairy farm, Sallie Jones founded Gippsland Jersey in 2016. She ensures farmers are paid a fair price for milk, promotes mental health and wellbeing in rural communities and approaches every business situation with kindness foremost in mind. It's been a complex and challenging journey fortified by community at every step of the way. https://gippslandjersey...

After eight conversations showcasing a variety of views on Port Phillip Bay seafood, we attempt to wrap the topic and tie it up with a neat bow. Our interlocutor is longtime seafood expert John Susman, host of our sibling Fishtales podcast. I start by expressing a certain hazy disgruntled disappointment... https://linktr.ee/FishtalesPodcast Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com...

In our penultimate interview about Port Phillip Bay seafood (for now, anyway), we're chatting to Hazel head chef Oliver Edwards. A longtime advocate for local, sustainable seafood, Oliver has been fighting for years to retain the sardine fishery on Melbourne's doorstep. He prizes a resilient local food supply and laments the lack of access to an ecologically sound, affordable and healthy food sour...

We continue to delve into the huge topic of Port Phillip Bay seafood in today's interview with longtime fish wholesaler and retailer George Kaparos. As co-founder and director of Clamms Seafood, George has seen 30 years of flux in the industry. How is he feeling about recent changes? https://clamms.com.au Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtylinenpodcast Follow Dani Valen...

Are we still gnashing and thrashing the topic of Port Phillip Bay? You bet! Today's guest is Sascha Rust, chef and conservationist, now working as a food systems architect and supplying traceable seafood to restaurants with a little help from the blockchain. https://www.instagram.com/sascharust/?hl=en Follow Dirty Linen on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dirtylinenpodcast Follow Dani Valent ht...

We're still splashing around in Port Phillip Bay talking seafood. Our guest today is Travis Dowling, the CEO of the Victorian Fisheries Authority. The VFA rolls out policy on behalf of the government, managing the sometimes competing interests of recreational fishers and commercial fishers, who catch fish on behalf of all Victorians. We attempt to get behind the bureaucratese to talk about the iss...

We continue our Port Phillip Bay series with chef Michael Bacash. Michael grew up fishing on the bay, cooking his catch over a burner in his family's Mt Martha boatshed. As a specialist seafood chef, he's loved cooking the same fish for his restaurant customers. How does he feel about reduced availability of prized bay species and a complete lack of access to fresh, local sardines? https://bacash....