We Salute You... Ottolenghi

Unless you had been living under a rock for the last decade or so, it would be impossible not to have noticed the rise of "the chef" in popular culture. The recent extraordinary impact of Master Chef may mark the most recent zenith of "the chef's" ascent (or may just be a reflection of how bad most everything else is on commercial TV at the moment).

As ubiquitous as the chef has become, so too has then... "the cookbook". And here at Turner and Lane we see a lot of cookbooks. Generally the quality of them is very high - succulent photography, inspiring recipes and often asides that offer an insight to the rituals and culture that shape the meals presented. Amongst these quality offerings it is then very difficult for one cookbook to rise above this high benchmark... but it does happen.

...and Ottolenghi has done it. Why?

Firstly, and it's an unusual compliment for a cookbook, Ottolenghi comes across as... well, so damn polite. The book begins with a section touching onto the underlying cooking philosophy and some of the book's lesser known ingredients that is so unintimidating and conversational that you can't help feeling what lovely young men those two Ottolenghi boys must be (thank their mum).

Secondly the food is flat out "top notch". There is an emphasis on the inherent flavours of the ingredients... and the results are stellar. T&L just cooked a chicken recipe from the book. No fussy preparation and yet the mix of scents and tastes reached a level far beyond our natural cooking talents could hope to achieve due to our own cunning and wits alone.

Thirdly, as the previous mention of "unfussyness" suggests, there is a very low ratio of "pot cleaning" to "great flavour". T&L has now cooked regularly from Ottolenghi's pages and every time we blink in disbelief when we look at our kitchen and see no more than a baking tray and a pot to clean - a clean-up job completely disproportionate to the meal we just ate.

So here's cheers to the Ottolenghi boys and their mum and mint and za'atar and orange blossom and greasing-and-lining tips and the whole book from cover to cover.

We love it.

T&L

A Tale of Two Blogs (Introducing Alex Monroe)

We stumbled across a mention of our store on another blog - i think people call it vanity searching. That blog belongs to a UK jewellery designer called Alex Monroe who was excited to announce that we would be stocking some of his pieces. We will be telling you all about that new development closer to the date that Mr Monroe's pieces arrive.

What caught our eye though was not the mention of the little Turner and Lane store but the picture of Sienna Miller adorned by his items appearing on the Letterman show. Celebrity gazing aside the blog is here and she is looking typically gorgeous.

We don't think of ourselves as finger-on-the-pulse fashionistas but it is a nice to have such a glowing endorsemenet of one of our new ranges.

We will keep you posted on when the Alex Monroe products land in store.

Take care - T&L

New Online Galleries

As Turner & Lane comes kicking and screaming into the 21st Century (we are still coming to terms with the fact that the 90s are over... how come Bruce Willis isn't in any films anymore?) we are adding more usability to our website - albeit bit by micro bit.

The next small step has been the addition of some galleries so that new comers to Turner & Lane can click around and see some of what is on the floor.

We are really going to try and ensure that this is up to date-ish and would love to start to get some commmentary attached to the pretty pictures to reveal more of the stories behind some of the things that line our shelves.

For the time being though you can check out these latest developments at the site otherwise in the immortal words of Axle Rose (still can't let go of those 90s) you "just need a little patience".

T&L

It's Beginning To Feel A Bit Like Christmas...

Things are starting to turn a little bit... well... merry at Turner & Lane.

We are beggining to get the decorations up. So if you are looking for something a bit special to hang on the tree this year make sure you stop by... unless you are too busy... then you can just check the gallery here.

But we would prefer it if you stopped by, staring at a computer screen just doesn't really say Christmas.

T&L

Prettiest Street In Melbourne?

A quick question...

A recent walk around Fitzroy North revealed a street in full bloom - Woodhead St just near Edinburgh Gardens. The pic to the left is of one of the stunning irises reaching to the skies.

Is it the prettiest little street in Melbourne?

The flowers have gone now but its still very pretty. So next time you find yourself a bit north take a walk around the streets that radiate off the gardens and stumble upon some of Melbournes treasures.

Sorry for the Getaway moment.

T&L

The Songs Of Sapa - Vietnamese Dining

Turner & Lane were delighted when Luke Nguyen's new book The Songs of Sapa arrived in our store. It also led us to reflect upon the ever evolving relationship between the Vietnam and Australia.

It seems that the Jetstar age is upon us and there are few Aussies now who haven't spent a week or two in Vietnam after picking up a a bargain return flight. This reduction in travelling hurdles has brought about a new appreciation for all things Vietnamese . To the extent now that Luke's choice of cover - a peeling paint wall fronted by the ubiquitous Vietnamese mini-setting - brings back fond memories for many Aussies of sensational dishes (often accompanied by a 5 cent beer) and even a sense of familiarity.

Your author will admit to being one of the above referred to Aussie Vietnaphiles and so it was on a Sunday afternoon relaxing in front of an episode of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations, seeing the lanky man pulling up his knees at a mini-table for a bowl of pho soup, that the irresistible urge to return overcame us.

And return we did... all the way to Victoria Street Richmond. It was all there, the footpaths crammed with fresh produce, the lazy sound of thongs dragged on the street and the pho (unfortunately without the mini-setting or 5 cent beer).

We dined at Pho Dzung Tan Dinh (208 Victoria St) and it was great. The shimmering of fatty oils on the stock's surface, the exotic mix of herbs and greens, the chili sauce that can be added to one's taste - can food get much better?

For a further discussion of the Phos of Melbourne go to a great forum here. For the book... come down to our shop http://www.turnerlane.com.au/.

T&L

Our New Christmas Hampers

Its getting close to Christmas (OK it's only November, but our retail rule of thumb is - after the Spring Racing you had better start at least thinking about Christmas) so we are launching our new range of hampers to make your life a little easier.

You can order from our catalogue or have something specially put together.

Find out more at http://www.turnerlane.com.au/hampers.html