DANTE'S ARM

THE BEST RESTAURANT IN SYDNEY

As part of my tradition, every time that I am in Sydney I like to have lunch at Machiavelli’s on Clarence Street. Greetings are a lengthy affair. Giovanna and her daughter Caterina, are the owners of the restaurant and no matter how busy they are, they always sit me at my usual table in the main room. Ricki, the waiter who has been working there since the day they opened, places a glass of Greco di Tufo in front of me and then magically a row of four deep-fried zucchini flowers filled with ricotta cheese, appear on a plate. Lunch at Machiavelli it's not just a meal, it's a grand experience that it's followed by a walk down to Circular Quay and the Opera House. A view that I like to bring back with me to Los Angeles.





I forgot to add a couple of photos to the list below. They are part of Peter's garden. The first is the flower of a South African apple tree. The second is one of the surprises that you can find in an Australian garden. I hope you will enjoy it!

A TRIP TO AUSTRALIA

I recently travel to Australia. Usually I would stay in Sydney, but this time I was fortunate enough to travel North, where my friend Peter has a beautiful hilltop house, overlooking the river and the ocean. After picking me up from the airport we stopped for tea and cakes at an old butter factory, turned into a coffee shop. Discussing the various breads and cakes with the waitress, she recommended a place to buy Macadamia nut bread in a bakery in the middle of the bush. We took off on a mission to find this extraordinary bread. We found it, but unfortunately the bread was made only on Thursdays. We were a day too early. Driving home we stopped at the beach.






I forgot how much I missed the Aussie beaches where the sand is untouched, unspoiled, it's so perfect it looks like velvet, yet full of surprises as we came across holes made by the smallest crabs. By digging out the sand they create elaborate designs like the one you see here. It looks like a seagull.






As we arrive at the house I am welcomed by Skippy, the bush kangaroo. But he hopped away before I could take a picture. He was back in the morning for breakfast with his entire family. Look in the middle of the picture to see them. Together with the spectacular views from the house it was a sweet Australian awakening

Annie and Dietlinde Birthday Party

Over the summer Annie an Dietlinde had birthdays, a day apart. Since they couldn't agree on who was going to host the party, I happily took over the responsibility.


Parnell slaved on the grill for hours. We served grilled vegetables, Copper River salmon, wild rice with cranberries and toasted pumpkin seeds. Braised endive with orange and triple Sec, designer salad and much, much more. Wine and champagne flowed trough out the evening.



Cakes and sweets were provided by Mona and Annie. We sang them a happy birthday in four languages and completely out of tune. Dietlinde for the occasion wore a necklace worthy of a queen.



There was a small army of French people.


The evening went downhill from there on.


It was a fun evening, packed with laughter and we wish them to have many more happy birthdays and hope to share each and everyone of them for years to come.

A Trip To Italia

I recently went to Italy to visit my family. I had great food and wine & amazing salad every day from my parents garden. I brought back seeds to try some of the varieties myself. Here also are pictures of my niece Valentina, my Parents and their super sweetie dog Mirka.

Orchids

This year my orchid did very well, here are a few samples

Crabs

Last August my sister Maria was visiting from Italy. I had told her that in Hollywood everything was double the normal size. She had dreamed of eating large crabs, I managed to find a few giant crab legs for her.