The Foodies’ Guide to Sydney 2011 Features The Food Blog!

“Fouad Kassab’s Lebanese heritage  means you get an articulate expert’s views of Middle Eastern food, from the etiquette of eating Lebanese bread to a recipe for muhmmara[sic], a roast capsicum dip. He explores the culture of food and offers the occasional restaurant review too.” The Foodies’ Guide to Sydney 2011

On Friday, I received one of the most wonderful of surprises: a message from Billy Law letting me know that The Food Blog has been featured in this year’s fantastic publication, The Foodies’ Guide to Sydney 2011. Today, I took Lainy and Sara for our first family trip to a shopping centre and managed to sneak away from the battering prams to get myself a shiny copy of the guide from the newsagents’. I glowed as I rustled through the pages to find the mention, delighting in reading every word. I was so proud I even showed the write-up to the check out girl, who was suitably impressed. The guide has highlighted five of Sydney’s food blogs and I am honestly speechless that mine was one of them. It certainly is something when a publication mentions you. I mean, someone has spent real money printing this book, and decided to commit some of that ink budget on me! I am also super pleased with the write-up itself; whoever wrote it really showed an understanding of the spirit of what The Food Blog is about. Here’s a big thank you to the good folk from The Foodies’ Guide to Sydney.

Truly, I’m over the moon. This blog has given me so much. Because of it, I’ve had the incredible opportunity to be a restaurant reviewer for the Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Food Guide 2010 and 2011, the Good Pub Food Guide 2011 and Cheap Eats 2011; I’ve hosted my own radio segment on SBS, I’ve been interviewed on ABC Radio and I’ve met some seriously, seriously cool foodists.

But as I reflect back on the 4 years this blog has been breathing for, I realise, I’ve only kept going because of your kind words. Dear reader, your comments and encouragement have always been the motivation for me to continue expressing myself, so that I share my culture and heritage with you. And so, I want to take this opportunity to thank you. For being there.

P.S. Congratulations to A Table for Two, Elegant Sufficiency, Grab Your Fork and Inside Cuisine on their mention. Sydney Food Blogs ROCK! (feeling uneasy about my generalisation) Go Sydney Food Blogs!

P.P.S The Foodies’ Guide to Sydney graphic has been adapted from the original on Kate Gibbs’ wonderful blog, The Kitchen Inc.