best beef and best coffee in the world? australia

[Ken Gargett]

in an attempt to fire up the forum after the inactivity of late (the only topic of fun being a footy team's nickname), i post this. i am merely the messsenger.

come from a piece heston blumenthal did for the UK guardian. coming from a pom, and one of the world's top chefs, high praise.

Heston Blumenthal: five Australian food trends the UK should adopt

What I’d like to take back to Britain: decent coffee, the Tim Tam slam, great Asian, best beef, and family meals

Heston Blumenthal: Australia is five-up on Britain. Photograph: REX/Newspix

Coffee

I often have to explain to people that the best coffee you can get is in Australia. They can’t quite believe it. It’s starting to happen in the UK and there’s some great emerging coffee in Scandinavia, but they are not inspired by Italy, they are inspired by Australia.

The bar is being raised in London but people are truly obsessed by coffee in Australia.There’s a reason why you don’t really see many Starbucks here. There’s a quality and expertise to coffee. There’s knowledge around the process, such as the right beans, the milk temperature, the grinding techniques.

People are on autopilot in Australia when it comes to coffee. It’s so ingrained in the culture to drink it. And people will pretty much spit it out if it’s no good. Australians will pretty much spit their coffee out if it's no good. Photograph: Steve Cavalier/Alamy

Beef

Australia has the best beef in the world. You’ve got Wagyu in Japan of course, but that’s a very specific type of beef. In Australia, there’s a huge range of beef, grass-fed and corn-fed. There’s great beef from Tasmania and there are great people like David Blackmore.I’ve seen how good it is and it really ups the ante. There’s Angus and Hereford in the UK but Australia has really done a lot of work on the quality of its beef.

With steak, it’s all about how the animal is raised and slaughtered. At the end of the day, the chef just has to flip it onto the grill. The important bit is the process before that. Back at the Mandarin, we have to search and fight hard to get the best possible beef.

[Skyfall]

Beef

Australia has the best beef in the world. You’ve got Wagyu in Japan of course, but that’s a very specific type of beef. In Australia, there’s a huge range of beef, grass-fed and corn-fed. There’s great beef from Tasmania and there are great people like David Blackmore.I’ve seen how good it is and it really ups the ante. There’s Angus and Hereford in the UK but Australia has really done a lot of work on the quality of its beef.

With steak, it’s all about how the animal is raised and slaughtered. At the end of the day, the chef just has to flip it onto the grill. The important bit is the process before that. Back at the Mandarin, we have to search and fight hard to get the best possible beef.

The Hell you say!

Ken, did you put this under the wrong thread? Shouldn't this be under " Another contender of moron of the year"?

[Ken Gargett]

i'm just the messenger but if one off the world's great chefs says so, who am i to argue?

we look forward to you visiting so we can prove it.

[Fuzz]

The Hell you say!

Ken, did you put this under the wrong thread? Shouldn't this be under " Another contender of moron of the year"?

Granted, South America produces some very high quality beef too.

[Ken Gargett]

Granted, South America produces some very high quality beef too.

sure fuzz, high quality. but we are talking "the best"!!!

(still the messenger but enjoying it).

[Isotonic]

Like many of you here I have eaten on a few continents. IMO Australia destroys the rest of the world on coffee and beef. And whilst there may be other places in the world with quality product what tips it further in our favour is it's relatively affordable. Ever checked the prices of premium cuts in the UK and US? Would send a shiver up your spine.

Still remember seeing porterhouse in a Sainsbury in Clapham in 2005 for 40 quid a kilo. It was as grey as a summer's day in London

[Wil]

Had some relatives visit from the UK recently and they couldn't believe the quality of the beef.

I have limited experience in the US, so won't comment

As for coffee, no contest...

[El Presidente]

Having travelled somewhat....Coffee here is unrivalled...and by a long way. Not sure why..but it just is.

Beef....I prefer Argentinean grass fed and have had plenty of US Grass fed that cut's the mustard. the best of our Aussie beef is exported and I can still taste my last great steak in Honk Kong (Wagyu Restaurant) run by Aussies, Aussie rib eye on the bone that I cut with a spoon. Brilliant.

[ned]

the beef is, as long as you get it from a butcher. what coles and woolies sell is horrible. good thing there are an abundance of butchers here.

[Dimmers]

Like many of you here I have eaten on a few continents. IMO Australia destroys the rest of the world on coffee and beef.

X2

[Fuzz]

the beef is, as long as you get it from a butcher. what coles and woolies sell is horrible. good thing there are an abundance of butchers here.

I'd disagree somewhat with that (and not because I used to work for Woolies). Granted the quality is not uniform across all stores (Id' rather buy meat from my local Coles than my local Woolies), but some stores do get some very high quality meat. Same as some butchers have very average quality meat.

It comes down to knowing what you want, where to get it, and whether you're willing to pay for it.

[Ken Gargett]

fuzz, you'd know better than i but is it true that certain stores are "targeted" to have good produce in certain areas.. always a feeling that the indooroopilly woollies was top notch for fruit/veg, others not so good. assume similar with meat/fish etc etc?

[hanhan]

If we're talking about the best of the best and not average, on beef I'd have to side with El prez. With an admittedly small sample size, the best beef I've had is Argentinian, with Australia 2nd. Coffee no doubt, Melbourne in particular hits it out of the park. By far.

However when it comes to cooking the meat, that is a whole different question.

[potpest]

I don't have any first hand knowledge on Australian produce, however I love to cook and watch a travel program with a New York chef and writer called Anthony Bourdain regularly. Not sure if anyone else has heard of it but It's an amazing show.

His episode on Sydney still sticks in my mind because of a butcher called Victor Churchill who's shop and ethos blew me away. It's the only time I've ever wanted to fly 10000 miles just to sample the meat from a shop.

Heston is a bit of a hero of mine and he gets a lot of coverage here in the UK.

If it's about food and he said it, it's probably correct. He usually is.

[Ken Gargett]

enjoy his books and his shows and mates who know him speak highly. never had the chance to eat his food but love to.

there are several posts on this forum you'll find on bourdain. been discussed at some length.

[srbbones]

Interesting

Any recommendations of online Australian coffee vendors?

[NJP]

I give nothing to the kiwis but the only place I have been that will keep the best Melbourne Barista honest was Auckland. All this said its the self roaters in Melbourne the rule the roost. Those that change the blend frequently with variation of beans much as a Cuban blender are out of this world in Melbourne. They are also starting to get serious about the milk they use.

[Optic101]

Beef:

[Optic101]

Beef:

Black Bulls Frankfurt, Dry Aged Prime

Coffee:

Blue Bottle San Francisco Ferry Building

[Fuzz]

fuzz, you'd know better than i but is it true that certain stores are "targeted" to have good produce in certain areas.. always a feeling that the indooroopilly woollies was top notch for fruit/veg, others not so good. assume similar with meat/fish etc etc?

Damn straight some areas get the better quality stuff. All comes down to demographics. You don't put your top quality, high priced item in stores that have mainly low income families as customers. Stores with a larger beef buying customer base will get better quality beef, as opposed to one the sells more produce (which may get better quality produce). I've spoken with some of the allocators in our Meat DCs, and they do often reserve the better quality meats for certain stores. And yes, it is not just meat, but also produce/groceries/general merch.

Yes, it's not democratic, but stores are there to make money.

[Fuzz]

Interesting

Any recommendations of online Australian coffee vendors?

I buy my coffee from Pine Tea & Coffee , my favourite beans are the "zBlast from the Dark" and "Hong Kong High Roast", both double roasted blends.

[Steens]

Best beef Canada, Best Lamb NZ , Best Coffee NZ, Best Rugby NZ, Best rugby coaches NZ oops sorry Ken got carried away

[Wil]

Best beef Canada, Best Lamb NZ , Best Coffee NZ, Best Rugby NZ, Best rugby coaches NZ oops sorry Ken got carried away

Haha.

The Welsh would have something to say about the lamb.

Interestingly, a few of the good coffee places here in melb are run by NZers.

And NZ wine...

[fozzie]

I'm not a great fan of Heston but I would have thought you can trust him to be objective and impartial about the quality of food/ingredients. Or has he fallen for his own tricks?

How much of it has to do with the setting and atmosphere in which you sample a foodstuff? Heston himself is renowned for using props and products to alter and/or enhance the flavour (or perception of a flavour) of his food. A case in point from his restaurant, The Fat Duck, is being given an ipod with the sounds of waves lapping on a shingle beach and the faint calls of shitehawks seagulls to make his fish and chips taste more, well........fishy!

And I'm sure the same coffee would taste a lot better sat on the sunny terrace of a sophisticated coffee emporium in Oz than it would in a dingy greasy spoon café in Grimsby..................

[Ken Gargett]

Best beef Canada, Best Lamb NZ , Best Coffee NZ, Best Rugby NZ, Best rugby coaches NZ oops sorry Ken got carried away

yachting?

don't know if nz has the best lamb but they certainly have the most terrified.