Above is a collage of photos from the dinner I planned and executed for Omani Tourism. We had the dinner at the beautiful Embers Mezze Bar in Darlinghurst. My main man was head chef Simon Zalloua – a brilliant Lebanese-Australian chef who trained at Rockpool and who brings much needed discipline, skill and technique to Sydney’s Middle-Eastern scene. I totally encourage you to go try out Simon’s food. It’s contemporary and clever without being pretentious. I included some of Simon’s dishes for the event and they worked perfectly with mine.
From top left:
- Baba Ghanouj with Green Chili Pistachio Relish and Pomegranates
- Puy Lentil Salad with Hazelnuts, Roast Pumpkin, Thyme and Isot Pepper
- Shanklish Sambousek with Preserved Lemon Salsa (Simon’s Recipe)
- Lentil Salad
- Scallops
- Scallop Moghrabieh with Chickpeas and Caraway Jus
- Spatchcocked Poussin with Shish Tawook Spices (Simon’s Recipe) & Muhammara (my recipe)
- Chef Simon dishing out the Slow-cooked Lamb Shoulder with Cardamom and Cinnamon Pilaf, topped with Crisp Onions, Barberries and Almonds
- Embers’ Trifle: Sumac Strawberries, Rose and Lychee Jelly with Peanut Brittle (Simon’s recipe and one hell of a dessert)
5 comments
Shanklish Sambousek = Genius! I am seriously salivating at the thought of that.
Yummmm, coming to Melbourne for more of the same???
Hehehe. Maybe one day Belle. Joseph Abboud from Rumi would be a good alternative though 🙂
Hey Christie. Yeah! Simon is a fantastic chef. You should really try Embers.
Fuoad, I wanted to love Rumi, I really did. But I must have hit them on a bad (really bad) night. Beautiful flavours, but kitchen was all over the shop, so had insanely long wait between our dishes (which we were all sharing) which ruined the meal. Have to admit it’s put me off from returning.