Michael Bennett's Aussie Adventure on the plate

2007-08-03T08:06:00.000-07:00

Grab Some Gold With Aussie Attractions

Restaurants USA magazine's final issue was published in September 2002 but these archived articles remain available for our readers' convenience.

Restaurants USA, August 2000 -- Highlights of Article

The 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, this summer presents a perfect promotional opportunity.
By Suzanne Hall

Sydney, Australia, dazzled us when it welcomed the new millennium. The whole world will be watching again when the city hosts the Olympic Games from September 15 to October 1. There’s still time and good reason to take advantage of this event with special Australian promotions.

Down Under opportunities

Americans are intrigued by the Land Down Under. They love watching Crocodile Dundee, singing "Waltzing Matilda" and drinking Australian wines. Some 46 percent of them would like to visit Australia, according to a survey conducted for the Australian Trade Commission, based in Los Angeles. The Sydney 2000 Olympic Games will give everyone a chance to learn more about Australia and its culture.

Let Aussie wines be your centerpiece

Michael Bennett, executive chef of The Left Bank in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, didn't wait for the Olympics to begin to do an Australian wine dinner. For three evenings in late June, the Mediterranean restaurant was draped in heavy mosquito netting and decorated with plastic kangaroos, lizards and other animals native to Australia. The staff dressed in bush outfits — "khaki shorts and shirts, like you see in the movies," he says.

Bennett served the sell-out crowds a multicourse meal pairing each course with an appropriate Australian wine. For an appetizer, Bennett stuffed Maytag blue cheese mousseline inside a vol-au-vent placed on top of sun-dried cranberry relish. The dish was topped with slices of smoked duck breast and garnished with Belgian endive and frisee.

The main course paired Australian lamb chops, seasoned with a stone-ground mustard, rosemary and sage rub, with mango barbecued blue-water prawns. He sauced the dish with pan-roasted rosemary demi-glace studded with cherimoya. Garnished with fried, sliced lotus root to hold the prawns, garlic blossoms, rosemary sprigs and a deep-fried udon noodle, the dish was presented on a bed of "rocket"-flavored mashed potatoes. "In Australia, rocket is what we call dandelion greens. They grow wild and some people cultivate them to eat," says Bennett.

Chef Michael Bennett an Aussie adventure on the plate

Michael Bennett's Aussie Adventure on the plate