It’s a Secret Dinner!

Chicken and Black Pudding Moghrabbiyeh by Fouad

What is a secret dinner? I had a vague idea of amateurs running a popup restaurant, one night only at an undisclosed location much like a dance party only with less sweat and more eating. Though really I never had much of a reason to consider it though until my friend Fouad decided to host one. 

The thought of throwing a 5 course dinner party for 30 people is exciting at first even for one with no commercial experience. But soon enough the enormity of the task will have you breaking out in a cold sweat, freaking out at the mere mention of ‘dinner’ and increasingly find you curled in the feotal position, rocking backwards and forwards, as the date of impending doom draws near. Fortunately this didn’t happen to the mastermind of our operation, as he is skilled in the dark arts of organisation and delegation. Most everything would be pre-prepared on the day, leaving only a few items to be cooked for service. Trish was to take the first entree, Matt (whose restaurant we took over) would do the last main, and dessert was mine. Furthermore, we were to use local, organic and ethical ingredients were possible in order to support local food producers, to gather awareness of great local products, as well as to ensure that the food on the night tasted top notch. 

In all honesty I was more than a little worried about this night. I had never tasted Fouad’s food before, never even met Trish and I had invited food bloggers. What was I thinking?

I had taken a major back seat in the organisation of this evening, such a gargantuan task with the actuality of the meal still looming ominously on the horizon. Fouad did a wonderful job and the location of our secret dinner turned out to be tiny, underground and chic Element Bistro on King Street in the city. Not only did we have a complete kitchen to work in, but a fully set up dining room as well. This secret location affords me a great opportunity, a night back in the kitchen, flash backs galore, here.

But this wasn’t like a regular night in a commercial kitchen, no way. For starters, there was no head honcho barking commands and checking every detail, we were on our own there. Most of us pitched in helped doing whatever the owner of the dish required to get the food out on time. Oh, another thing that was different, timing. In my restaurant experience there was always rules about timing, how long a person should wait for the bread for instance, and the length of time between finishing entrees and receiving mains was a particularly important pre-defined interval. These rules were fluid, though, and tinkered with at the whim of the restaurant manager upon getting a feel for the diners. We were very lucky to have the lovely Lainy and Eddie being out waitresses for the evening, but they were just helping out carrying and clearing (though they did much more than that, thank you ladies!) and had very little front of house experience.

I was worried about the timing of the courses having never had to judge the hunger of a room from the kitchen before, but it turned out that the fluidity of the food coming from the kitchen helped to enhance the dinner party vibe, as opposed to a staid restaurant meal. 

Preparing the tomatoes with buffala mozarella di bufala and oregano for Trish’s entree.

After a heart-stopping and gut wrenching hour before service, exacerbated by unpreparedness, the night began, guests arrived and Trish’s entree was served. Showcasing cheeses of the mediterranean, my favourite was the pickled beetroot round topped with creamy Grampa’s Dairy labneh and crowned with a crunch of toasted walnut.

Young Organic Lamb Shish Barak by Fouad (photo courtesy of Fouad)

Then came Fouad’s duo of dishes, both modern takes on traditional Lebanese dishes. Dumplings never fail to delight, but these crisp parcels full of cinnamon infused lamb and pine nuts were lifted to new heights by an amazing goats yoghurt sauce. While I was in the kitchen stuffing my face like a cook (standing by the deep frier, eating with my fingers out of metal bowls), rumour has it that there was plate licking happening in the dining room. I am dreaming about these dumplings, still, but I’m more in love with that tangy, garlicy yoghurt sauce. This was by far my favourite dish of the evening.

The moghrabbiyeh dish drenched in its intensly flavoured sauce seemed to be a hit, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was plate licking involved with this one too. I was just excited to be finally tasting moghrabbiyeh after hearing about it and searching for it for so long. 

Matt Barnett’s (Element Bistro) Beef and Bone Marrow with Sauce Soubise and Potato and Thyme Croquette

This was one of the only dishes I was able to sit down and eat after helping to plate up (yep, see that sauce messiness, that was me, sorry). Tender, smooth, crisp, fried, meaty and mellow all at the same time. This dish was different to the rest because it really was a restaurant meal, polished and considered. This time I wanted to lick the sweet onion soubise smear right from the bowl.

Next up it was the usual relax, one more glass of wine, chat with someone new, break before dessert. My sweet dish had been built up all through the night (thanks guys), and I knew I had a lot to live up to (I had to top dumplings for christ sake, dumplings!). But I remained calm as I had done throughout the night. Not relaxed and chilled because I was sure I was going to nail it, but a studied sort of calm, one that comes from constantly reminding oneself that there is no point in worrying about what you cannot change. My dessert was all pre-prepared so there was nothing that I could do about the flavour or consistency or of any of it, best just to enjoy myself (and have another glass of wine).

Chocolate and Orange Tile with Orange Blossom Panna Cotta and Pine Nut Praline

I was pretty busy throughout the night, so didn’t manage to take many photos, unfortunately, so here is one I prepared earlier. Rich, dense cake scented with orange, topped with a orange blossom pannacotta with pine nut praline. Oh yeah. Stay tuned for the recipe here soon.

All in all, a wonderful dinner and a great experience. A crazy idea made successful by raw talent, delicious local ingredients, and solid organisation. Congratulations Fouad, you did a wonderful job. Big thanks to Matt from Element Bistro for letting us take over his space, sully his kitchen and help us with such grace.

Would I do it again? Yes, with some better organisation, and guess what? We are! As a part of the Sydney International Food Festival we are hosting another Secret Dinner. 

Where? Well, that’s a secret.
When? 24th October.
Cost? tbd.
Interested? Let me know and I will keep you posted.

Contributors:
Fouad Kassab: www.thefoodblog.com.au
Patricia Lathourakis: www.forque.com.au
Matt Barnett: Element Bistro

Secret Dinner 01 was held at Element Bistro on Saturday the 25th of July, 2009. There were 30 guests who paid a contribution of $50 each to help cover room hire and raw materials.

Producers:
Chicken – John Meredith, Thirlmere Poultry, Supplier Vic’s Meats
Lamb – Organic Lamb from Young NSW, Supplier Dulwich Hill Gourmet Butcher
Black Pudding – Eumundi Smokehouse, Dulwich Hill
Beef – Banksia Beef
Cream – Green Valley Dairy Picton, Eveleigh Markets
Oranges – Eveleigh Markets, locally grown
Wine for Chicken Sauce – 2007 Robert Stein Gewurztraminer Mudgee
Eggs – Egganic, Eveleigh Markets
Buffalo feta and Buffalo mozzarella – Vanella QLD
Labneh – Grampa’s Dairy
Trish’s Olive Oil: Rich Glen Olive VIC (to order, contact Trish on plathourakis(at)gmail.com)
Fouad’s Olive Oil: Kiewa Estate Traditionally Pressed Verdale, Eveleigh Markets