The staying power of good food

FOR any hospitality business – local, or otherwise – four years of trade can feel like a long time.

(Trust me, I know about this one).

Although I can’t begin to imagine what it feels like to multiply that number by 10 and still be in the same business at 40 years.

The same can probably be said about any business for that matter, let alone for a sometimes fickle industry like hospitality.

This June marks the milestone birthday for Sam’s Cafe, a Geelong institution found towards the hill-end of Moorabool Street.

This small Lebanese eatery is famous for its shawarmas and falafel, having fed countless hungry locals these over the past four decades at highly affordable prices.

It has become a favourite lunchtime spot (the cafe is closed for dinner) for many an office worker, tradie or casual shopper.

Showing genuine respect for the Geelong community, Sam’s Cafe refers to its loyal diners as family (rather than customers) and is an honest example of how success can be achieved when you remain humble to those who choose to support your business.

 

And, no doubt also, because of that killer shawarma. You can even enjoy one before work if you miss breakfast. (Trust me on this one too).

It got me thinking though: what other Geelong hospitality businesses can claim to have been around as long (or longer) as Sam’s?

I can think of only a few: the Empire Grill and Fisherman’s Pier both spring to mind (who are both well over the 40-year mark) and if it were still trading today, Le Parisen would have turned 50 this year.

Obviously, the many hotels across the CBD would also make the list, each having undergone refresh after refresh over the years.

And a special mention from that category should probably go to another fine Moorabool Street address, found this time over the hill towards the stadium: the George and Dragan Hotel (at 310 Moorabool Street).

The hotel was originally built in the 1850s, but housed two of Geelong’s most important dining destinations in the 70s, 80s and 90s in The Source and Tousson.

Today, the site serves traditional German beer as Das Bierhaus. How times have changed…

Fast-forwarding forty years to the present day, and the Tastes of Greater Geelong program officially launches today.

As part of the opening festivities, the Geelong City Market is hosting a nightly-edition tonight (Friday 19 June) from 4pm.

 

Its regular Little Malop Street address will be transformed into a hawker-style eating zone, with many local restaurants (eg Man Bo, Rebecchi’s Hotdogs and Pholklore) setting up stalls for the night, alongside roving entertainment and musicians.

The full month-long program for the festival is available online, but an event worth mentioning straight up – to whet your appetite – would be Darren Purchase and Cath Claringbold’s Farm My School Nourish Workshop.

Darren and Cath are the ambassadors for the Tastes festival this year (ie with this workshop being named one of the program’s flagship events) and they’ve chosen to partner with Farm My School, located on the Bellarine.

Known as one of the country’s best pastry chefs, Darren has been a Masterchef and Great Australian Bake Off judge, as well as owning his own dessert business.

The hands-on session will allow participants to discover how fresh, seasonal produce can become something indulgent and still good for you.

Expect nutrient-rich desserts that celebrate local and seasonal produce.

If wine is more your thing, there are many events relating to this subject matter that feature in this year’s program too.

Thanks to the community’s strong connection to our local wineries, I counted nearly two dozen different dinners, tastings and awards that fit into this category.

 

One particular dinner though appeals to me for its diversity: it showcases three quite distinctive wineries, each of which offers its own insight into the wines of our Geelong region.

Held at the Sawyers Arms Tavern, the collaboration dinner will bring together Oakdene, Provenance and Mazzini Wines, pairing a variety of wines from each producer to some lovely local seafood, meat and cheese.

I like how Oakdene will be able to cover off on all things Bellarine-wine related, while Provenance can do the same in the way of the Moorabool Valley and Surf Coast.

Mazzini can take an entirely different approach again, explaining how being a négociant (one who doesn’t own any vineyards, but rather purchases parcels of fruit from others) offers the freedom to explore any region they see fit: for example they make some great pinot gris from Henty, near Portland.

Winemakers from each of the three labels are set to be on hand to share stories and answer any of your vinous-related questions.

There’s obviously heaps more events from the program you need to be told about, so I’ll cover these off in greater detail in next week’s column.