Move Over Jamie!

When Jamie Oliver opened his restaurant, Fifteen, in London eight years ago, little did he realise how quickly the concept would spread. Since then, three further restaurants which offer young people with tough backgrounds an opportunity to be trained in hospitality have opened in Amsterdam, Cornwall (south west England) and Melbourne. “The Fifteen Foundation exists to inspire disadvantaged young people – homeless, unemployed, overcoming drug or alcohol problems – to believe that they can create for themselves great careers in the restaurant industry,” says Jamie. While not exclusive to him (I’ve visited KOTO – Know One, Teach One – in Hanoi, and  FRIENDS in Phnom Penh, both of which operate according to a similar philosophy), he’s managed to create a buzz around Fifteen, thanks to his celebrity and fame. Last week, while in Melbourne, I visited Charcoal Lane, a restaurant set up by Mission Australia and the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service to offer hospitality and culinary training to Aboriginal and disadvantaged young people, and to give them the chance to shine in traineeships and apprenticeships in a fine restaurant setting. Set up 18 months ago, this stylish modern restaurant in the funky suburb of Fitzroy, offers an enticing menu which features many bush tucker dishes. Talented chef Damien Styles takes his inspiration from classical recipes and techniques and infuses them with native Australian ingredients. I was most impressed with a Wallaby Tartare entrée which was stunningly presented and perfectly seasoned. My main course of slow cooked wildfire spiced salmon served with fennel, asparagus and sorrel was also good, and the dessert platter was outstanding – it included a heavenly rice pudding infused with cinnamon myrtle and strawberry gum, a baked lemon aspen tart, a mandarin parfait with native mint and a very rich dark chocolate tart with wattleseed ice cream. Move over Jamie! A stroll along Gertrude Street after the meal was a real eye-opener.  There are trendy cafes interspersed by retro barber shops, fashion boutiques and dark cocktail bars, not to mention large unattractive blocks of housing commission flats. Near the Smith Street end, you’ll find “Books for Cooks” (a great resource for new and old books), the Italian-style Gertrude St Enoteca, Fatto a Mano Organic Bakery, and Birdman Eating, an eclectic café where chef Sue Hay serves dishes such as baked eggs with patatas bravas chorizo and smoked paprika (or with cinnamon-infused spag bol), black rice pudding with yoghurt and mango, slow-braised lamb shoulder with celery heart leaves, fetta and lemon and roast cauliflower with wild oregano, lemon and labne.  Her food is tasty and delicious – and you can sit outside on the footpath and watch the Gertrude Street crowd pass by. I also noticed a community vegetable garden near the housing commission blocks. How sensible is this. Not only does it offer inner city tenants  the possibility of eating fresh vegetables and herbs, it also gives idle hands something to do. Melbourne offers much in the way of community-inspired projects – next time you visit, make sure to pay a visit to the Collingwood Children’s Farm, (situated on even hectares of land by the Yarra, it provides a unique, educational and fun country experience for city folk) or to Ceres, an award winning, not-for-profit, environment and education centre and urban farm located by the Merri Creek in East Brunswick, Melbourne.