The Heart And Soul Behind Australian Food And Beverage Culture

http://www.prweb.com

Schweppes Australia Revolutionises National Bar And Restaurant Reviews As It Uncovers The Heart And Soul Behind Australian Food And Beverage Culture

Schweppes Australia is revolutionising the nation's bar and restaurant review scene through its one-on-one interviews with Australia's leading chefs, baristas, and restaurant entrepreneurs.

Vibrant personalities and intriguing stories are unearthed weekly as Schweppes delivers the nation's leading restaurant, bar and cafe reviews to an insatiable online community of food and beverage lovers. The new Schweppes website encourages visitors to interact with their favourite venues by downloading personalised invitations, posting questions, and requesting favourite recipes. www.schweppes.com.au

Melbourne, Victoria (PRWEB) January 29, 2009 -- With dynamic bar, cafe and restaurant reviews updated weekly, the Schweppes Australia website is revolutionising Australia's venue review scene with intriguing insights into the hearts and minds of the nation's leading chefs, baristas, and restaurant entrepreneurs.

In what has rapidly become a premiere destination for Australian food and beverage lovers, the success of the new Schweppes website is based on the simple observation that Australians like to research their dining and entertainment options online.

The popularity of online bar and restaurant reviews has been foregrounded by a number of directory-style sites including Eatability, Degroots Best Restaurants, Your Bars, and City Search.
However the clean non-commercial and sophisticated website design of the new Schweppes site makes it a whole new experience for today's growing number of 'online epicureans'.

By showcasing the inspiring journeys and gastronomic passions of Australia's top chefs, publicans and cocktail mixologists, Schweppes celebrates the heart and soul of Australian food and beverage culture, and keeps restaurant goers informed of the latest dining experiences and opportunities.

Interactive online communication options such as posting comments or questions and requesting recipes encourage visitors to correspond with their favourite venues while staying up to date on the latest specials and discount food and beverage offers.

Key features of the Schweppes bar and restaurant reviews include:

Intriguing insights into the hearts and minds behind Australia's leading chefs, baristas and restaurant entrepreneurs

Reviews on seasonal dishes, house specialties and discount offers

Online communication options with leading Australian venues

For more information on the new Schweppes Website visit www.schweppes.com.au

Coffee chain holds out against slowdown

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au
Bridget Carter January 29, 2009

PROPERTY expansion plans are under way for some cafe and bakery chains, which say they expect to be resilient to the weak economic conditions this year.

The Coffee Club says it is looking to add 24 cafes to its existing 220 in Australia and New Zealand this year after recently opening its first store inHobart.

Company director Emmanuel Drivas said in Colliers International's key retail indicators report that the Coffee Club would open its first store in Thailand early this year as part of its international expansion.

"The Coffee Club are continuing to source locations across Australia as the opportunities arise to meet the demands of both existing and new franchisees," he said.

"A carefully calculated development program will ensure the sustained long-term growth of the Coffee Club in 2009 and beyond."

Mr Drivas said that in the next year, about eight cafes were expected to open overseas, including four in New Zealand.

Mr Drivas also heads property company DKL, which owns several shopping centres where Coffee Club cafes are located.

It has six properties, including small shopping centres, most of which are in Queensland, and the offices where the Coffee Club's head office is based.

"We are very comfortable with the economy," he said. "There is a price point where anyone can afford a cup of coffee and a sandwich."

Meanwhile, Retail Food Group executive director Nigel Nixon said the group had expanded rapidly, largely through significant acquisitions of the Brumby's Bakeries' 324 outlets and Michel's Patisserie's 342 outlets franchise systems in the past 18 months.

Domestic organic growth of Donut King and bb's Cafe systems had also been strong.

"RFG is confident that this growth will continue into the second half of this financial year," Mr Nixon said.

RFG expects to open 55 new outlets in the 2009 financial year.

Electrolux to Partner in Hospitality Awards

http://www.current.com.au
By Amelia Ball

SYDNEY: Electrolux has come on board as the new naming rights partner for award-winning chef Luke Mangan’s hospitality awards program, Electrolux Appetite for Excellence.

The program is made up of three categories – Young Chef, Young Waiter, and new this year, Young Restaurateur.

Searching Australia for emerging talent within the restaurant and catering industry, Electrolux Appetite for Excellence aims to inspire, support and educate future industry leaders, providing unique career opportunities and enviable prizes.

As a specialist manufacturer of domestic and professional kitchen appliances, Electrolux has been a supporting partner of Appetite for Excellence since its inception in 2005 but has now joined the program in this larger naming rights capacity.

Electrolux Home Products Australia managing director John Brown said they were thrilled to increase their involvement with the inspiring program to assist the next generation of leading chefs, waiters and restaurateurs in Australia.

“Electrolux shares the same philosophy as Appetite for Excellence, with global initiatives that aim to nurture the development of young professionals involved in our industry,” he said.

All state finalists win a five-day tour of one of Australia’s leading food and wine regions, while the grand prize package includes a chance to represent Australia in the S.Pellegrino Cooking Cup in Venice, a trip to both S.Pellegrino in the Italian Alps and Acqua Panna in Tuscany and one month’s work experience at a world-leading restaurant overseas.

In addition, winners will receive a two-day trip to Henschke in the Eden Valley, SA, $5000 cash to assist with travel and work experience expenses and a trophy.

The Electrolux Young Restaurateur prize package includes a trip to the S.Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants, $10,000 cash prize, mentoring and the opportunity to meet Australia’s leading chefs and restaurateurs.

Outbreak: A Food Professionals Worst Nightmare

http://www.information-overload.eu/outbreak-a-food-professionals-worst-nightmare/
by Malcolm J. Richmond

Running a restaurant is a challenging business, with managing menus, advertising, hiring and retaining help and teaching cooks the ins and outs of house specialty dishes. With all this to think about the importance of proper food hygiene can sometimes be overlooked, increasing the risks of food poisoning. In a town such as Melbourne, Australia where good food is part of the lifestyle, an outbreak of food poisoning could prove to be disastrous for any restaurant.

If you give your customers a great dining experience, you can bet that they will be back for more and that they will tell their friends, but if you mess up, word is certainly going to get around.

Every restaurant manager fears a food poisoning outbreak, but if you work in Melbourne, you may have more reason than most to be frightened of it.

At the very least a restaurant at the centre of a food poisoning outbreak will suffer a backlash of bad publicity. Citations, Fines are also a possibility and in the worst case, it may be shut down by the health inspectors. This is how important the prevention of an outbreak is to your restaurant.
Unfortunately the customers who are most likely to get sick from food poisoning are the elderly and the very young, and even if their parents or caretakers don’t get sick, they’ll steer their charges away from your establishment as a matter of course.

Several common causes of food poisoning are undercooked meats, spoiled dairy products, and food borne pathogens. Of these, food borne pathogens are perhaps the most dangerous. The two major culprits here are salmonella and e. coli. Salmonella is commonly found in poultry and eggs, and is killed by cooking them thoroughly; the problem is that anything that has had poultry or raw eggs on it can transmit it to another food item that you wouldn’t associate with the illness. E. coli occurs when food comes into contact with faeces, often as a result of poor hand washing.

There are many different ways to prevent a food poisoning outbreak. The first and most obvious thing that you need to think about is the fact that your staff need to be taught how to handle and prepare food. Strict regulations about hand washing and sanitation on the food preparation floor are things that you really need to drill home.

You will also find that good storage, where raw food is never permitted to come in contact with food that is ready to serve is something that all staff need to be aware of. It is important to establish routine to ensure that staff form good hygiene habits.

There are a number of potential causes for a food poisoning outbreak but most of these can be easily avoided. The majority of restaurateurs are knowledgeable when it comes to food safety but through consultation with an expert it is possible to further reduce the risks of an outbreak and help make certain that nothing is overlooked.

About the Author:
Author: Malcolm J. Richmond highlights the importance of effective food safety on his site where you can also read strategies to ensure that your staff are knowledgeable when it comes to food hygiene procedures.
www.agbsolutions.com.au

Baristas battle for titles on Gold Coast

Greg Stolz
February 01, 2009 11:00pm

BEAN there, won that.

The Australian Barista Championships were decided on the Gold Coast yesterday, with a Queenslander coming up trumps.

Tim Adams, of the Sunshine Coast Coffee Academy, out-brewed 12 rival baristas from around Australia to take the title.

The competition was literally a grind – entrants had to make 12 coffees in 30 minutes and impress a panel of seven judges.

Mr Adams narrowly beat the only female finalist, Zoe Delaney, from self-styled coffee capital Melbourne, to win a trip to the world barista championships in Atlanta, Georgia, in April.

But Melbourne and the girls got their revenge in the latte art section. Erin Sampson, 27, who owns a coffee shop in Melbourne, won the competition with a champion display of precision pouring.

"Latte art is basically the milk pattern on top of the coffee," Ms Sampson told The Courier-Mail yesterday. "If you put down a fantastic-looking coffee, it grabs the customer's attention straight away."

Ms Sampson will represent Australia in the world latte art championships in Germany.