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The years have passed, and Blummenthal
has moved from oddity to accepted and
inspirational. He has also spread his wings
beyond The Fat Duck, and opened a new
restaurant with a new concept in central
London in 2011: Dinner by Heston.
Dinner, while different to The Fat Duck,
also possess an unusual and bold concept.
All dishes are inspired by or based on
historical British recipes from as early as
the 13th century, with the originals given
the Blummenthal magic touch to become
something extraordinary. The dish that
captured the front pages of food magazines
was the ‘meat fruit’. What appears to be a
mandarin is actually chicken liver parfait
with mandarin jelly. This dish was inspired
by a centuries-old British recipe, and at the
height of the meat fruit hysteria, almost
1,000 were being munched each week! It
didn’t take long for Dinner to pick up a
coveted Michelin star, and the restaurant
is currently ranked 7th best restaurant in
the world
G’day mate
For Asia-based foodies, reading about the
creations of Blummenthal was always the
closest they could get to tasting them, until
now. Dinner by Heston has opened a second
branch in Australia, bringing the quirky
creations of the masterchef within reach. The
restaurant opened in Melbourne in October
2015 on the site where Blummenthal ran a
‘pop-up’ version of The Fat Duck while the
latter was being refurbished in the United
Kingdom. Unlike The Fat Duck Melbourne,
Dinner by Heston Melbourne is here to stay,
so there is time to wait for those sought-after
reservations.
The menu has been given an update,
with Australian produce and recipes being
added to the British-inspired line up to
create a selection unlike anything that can
be ordered anywhere else in the world. For
example, the Rice and Flesh dish will use
kangaroo tail in Melbourne (beef is used
in London), while the popular Australian
cake Lamington gets a Blummenthal make
over. The ‘meat fruit’ is on there too, plus a
tempting dish called ‘frumenty’ that replaces
the historical dolphin with grilled octopus.
As one expects with the chef-cum-
magician, there is much more to a meal at
Dinner than the menu – how do you fancy
your ice cream churned fresh at the table
or your steak cooked on a pulley-operated
spit roast? Be prepared to pay generously
for the experience, but then, can you put a
price on magic?
The Lamington Cake is
a new take on a popular
Australia treat
Blummenthal’s iconic
‘meat fruit’ (credit
Ashley Palmer-Watts)
The Rice and Flesh dish
features kangaroo when
cooked Down Under
Tipsy Cake is based on an
18th century recipe (credit
Ashley Palmer-Watts)