Winter wonders - MCV - Melbourne Community Voice for Gay and Lesbian Readers

Written by Dark Lord

Thursday, 08 May 2008 00:56 -

A good soup salves the spirit, says S.M. King.

Soup, as certain ignorami have it, is a sham meal best supplied through a straw to toothless
retirees. While it’s true that no food serves the needs of the invalid quite so well, the lure and
power of soup can be understood long before your move into supported accommodation.

Chic soup without a trace of nanna can be had at top nosheries. Shannon Bennett fuses posh
and provincial like no one else with his five minute bouillabaisse at Vue de Monde. I’ve not
enjoyed this aromatic theatre myself, but have noted the faces of diners as waiters glide about
with Bunsen burners for its production.

As glamorous as is Bennett’s Cinq Minutes, it produces the same look of reassurance that
humbler soups might. It’s the instantly calming power of good soup that has had me in its thrall
for years.

Back in the 90s, I spent an entire winter living in a St. Kilda garage. It was unlined, had a
concrete floor and a tin roof. I slept in a beanie every night to stay warm. I’d had a spat with my
partner and refused to move back into the house. It was cold, but I would survive. I was
stubborn.

A crucial part of my survival plan was the soup I procured almost daily from the long-gone
Barkly Street Takeaway. A version of Tom Kha Gai bore little resemblance to its Thai
namesake. Julienne carrots and beanshoots were interlopers, but they worked. The

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Winter wonders - MCV - Melbourne Community Voice for Gay and Lesbian Readers

Written by Dark Lord

Thursday, 08 May 2008 00:56 -

consistency was goopy, more like a good Sichuan hot-and-sour than a coconut broth. But it
worked. It was the bastard child of irresponsible parents and I loved it. I lived on it. During that
winter it was my saviour; my enabler of obstinacy.

Every culture has its culinary cure-all. More often than not, it’s soup. Matzo balls, phở, beet
borscht or the aforementioned Tom Kha Gai are all reputed to have restorative powers in their
countries of origin. Wherever you are when winter bites, soup is a means to fend off and tame
lurgies. Tinned soup and takeaway might be the only things manageable when illness strikes.
With a bit of planning and freezer space, however, some homemade soups can become the
backbone of your defence.

Forget your bisques and veloutes and other soups involving cream. Dairy is no good for
sluggish lungs.

The novice cook can add three or four easy soups to their repertoire. As with many of life’s
pleasures, soup begins with a hearty bone.

Do not discard your leftover roast bones. Or buy bones for next to nothing and roast them with
a mirepoix. (That’s onions, carrot and celery to you, my take-away sloths.) Then, whack the
whole lot on a slow simmer.

Pea and ham soup almost makes itself. Take a ham bone, some green split peas and, if
desired, a truckload of garlic. Then, boil the bejeezus out of it. I’m very proud of my chilli, bean
and leek soup. In short: fry leeks, chilli and garlic in olive oil. Add a tin of crushed tomatoes, a
tin of good beans, and a tin’s worth of water. Partner, who is tolerable at best when ill, always
perks up upon receipt of this soup, as it’s vegan, high fibre and low fat. Which means I do not
have to endure the inevitable “but I haven’t been to the gym in days” complaints.

A quick caveat: pumpkin soup is verboten. Leave it written in the annals of share house
culinary horrors along with shiftless vegetable curries and pizza toast.

SPOTLIGHT

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Winter wonders - MCV - Melbourne Community Voice for Gay and Lesbian Readers

Written by Dark Lord

Thursday, 08 May 2008 00:56 -

Mother’s Day

It’s that day of the year you want to spoil your mother and shower her with gifts in return for
her nurturing you and pampering you during your formative years. While there are numerous
options available to you, the choice of where to take mum on her special day is often
overwhelming. Why not try one of these fine establishments?

Mirka at Tolarno Hotel

42 Fitzroy St, St Kilda

Take mother to the mother of all Melbourne’s artists restaurant.

Set Menu $85 per person with a choice of four artful entrees, four masterful mains and four
delicious designer desserts.   

Highlights include Pork rib eye with baked apples and Calvados sauce, and the Eye fillet with
Foi gras, Truffles and Madeira.

Bookings: 9525 3088

Prahran Hotel
82 High Street, Prahran

Comfort and style are blended together for mummy dearest in High Street.

The beautifully refurbished Art Deco Prahran Hotel has a wonderful Mother’s Day menu
crafted by chef Kris Sharples, which has been matched to Piper Hiedseck’s Rose
Sauvage. The Prahran Hotel is doing both a lunch and dinner seating for $35 per person that
includes two courses and, of course, the bubbles.

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Winter wonders - MCV - Melbourne Community Voice for Gay and Lesbian Readers

Written by Dark Lord

Thursday, 08 May 2008 00:56 -

Bookings: 9529 8577

Cafe Provincial
299 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy

It’s the little touches that make the difference...

The award-winning Cafe Provincial in Brunswick St is well known for its service, but for
Mother’s Day they’re going that little bit further with flowers and chocolates for every mum. The
Prov’s ala carte menu will be available over two levels on Mother’s Day, so you can choose
between dining in either the Salon or the Cafe.

Bookings: 9810 0042

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