In Search of Regional Produce

February 6th, 2010 tanner

Eighteen Chefs got out of their kitchen and onto a Chef’s Tour of the Tablelands in search of local  produce.  This tour in December 2009 was the first in a series of four tours to get more regional food on menus of the restaurants of Tropical North Queensland.

The chefs were amazed at the diversity of produce that ranges from tropical to subtropical fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, dairy, meat and indigenous roducts.

The Chefs were from Salsa and Zinc from Port Douglas, Sebel Reef House and Nu Nu’s from Palm Cove, Ochre, Oliver’s fine food, Salthouse, Tjapukai, Tha Fish, TAFE, from Cairns and Eden House and Nicks from Yungaburra.

They visited a herb farm in Kuranda, fruit and vegetable farms and Skybury Coffee Plantation in Paddy’s Green, Morganbury Meats and Mt Uncle Distillery at Walkamin, Gallo’s Dairyland in Malanda, Happy Beef/Pork at Lake Eacham and Emerald Creek Ice-creamery at Mareeba.  At lunch at Eden House in Yungaburra other products of the region were displayed – Rainforest Bounty, Wondaree Macadamias and Sunset Ridge Fingerlimes.