Spicers Tamarind Retreat and the Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival are giving foodies the perfect reason to make a weekend escape to the country, for Saturday 5 August.
There will be a spicy blend of four of the region’s most iconic Asian restaurants in a deeply nourishing afternoon of live music, chilled drinks, market stalls and masterclasses, served on Spicers Tamarind Retreat’s verdant 18-acre property, just outside Maleny.
Visitors will be able to savour unique, street-food style dishes from the iconic Spirit House restaurant, as well as local favourites Sum Yung Guys and Rice Boi, and the Retreat’s own Tamarind Restaurant, led by Sunshine Coast native and acclaimed executive chef, Daniel Jarrett.
Dan welcomes putting on a feast of local produce for a happy crowd.
“For all of these chefs, it’s an opportunity to put a spotlight on the amazing produce we get to use every day, and show off our skills for more people in an afternoon than we’d usually see in a week,” Dan said.
Return buses will be run to Spicers Tamarind Retreat from Brisbane, Noosa, Caloundra and Mooloolaba, delivering guests 15 minutes before the Festival opens at 1pm, and departing from Spicers Tamarind Retreat at 5pm to the respective locations.
So, leave the car at home, bring a picnic blanket, relax in the sunshine with your friends and family, and savour the amazing tastes of Asia at Spicers Tamarind Retreat on Saturday 5 August.
As director of Maleny Food Co. gourmet gelato and sorbet, Norman Scott explains that they’ve been working with Spicers Tamarind Retreat for the past few years on a unique Asian-flavoured frozen treat for each Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival.
Norman says, “We source our milk from a local dairy farm here up on the Blackall Range, and wherever possible we use local produce, like macadamias, ginger and fruits, and we’re putting an Asian spin on those kind of flavours for the Festival.”
To match the sensational food on offer, an epic round of the Sunshine Coast’s own beverage producers will be pouring the drinks.
There will be craft beer from Moffat Beach Brewing Co, inspired cocktails from Sunshine and Sons Cocktail Bar, Brockenchack Wines (locally owned Barossa Valley winery), as well as prestige Champagne by the glass and bottle from the prestige House of Taittinger.
Sunny Coast Water will have the most delicious way to stay cool and hydrated through the day, with a thirst-quenching range of non-alcoholic beverages, including kombucha.
“The people who come to the festival, just love it,” says Norman, “there’s a little bit of music, they can have heaps of great food, a couple of drinks, and relax in the gardens.”
Tom Hitchcock, head chef of Spirit House in Yandina, has had the Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival on his hit-list since it began.
“Asian cuisine has a big part of my background, and I want to showcase our local produce in Spirit House style ….. and it will be interesting to see what all these chefs, who specialize in different Asian cuisines, come up with.”
Chef Tom and his team will be offering a prawn roll made with Mooloolaba king prawn meat in BBQ-toasted Taiwanese milk buns, covered with a slaw of cabbage, kaffir lime, shallots, spring onion, Vietnamese mint and Thai basil, with a green nam jim dressing of local Green Valley finger lime, mayonnaise and chervil.
He explains that the dish is inspired by his time in Thailand.
“I would walk down the road, from where I was staying, in the afternoon, to get a milk bun shaped like a hot dog roll with various toppings and fillings,” Tom says. “So, for this dish I kept the traditional combination of prawns and green nahm, which is traditionally used as a seafood dipping sauce.”
Sum Yung Guys in Noosaville has built a strong following for their individual take on classic Asian street-food, and the guys in question, chefs and co-owners Michael ‘Moe’ Rickard, Jeremiah Jones and Matt Sinclair, are showcasing a version of the much-loved dish of Hainanese chicken, made with steamed chicken thigh, spring onion, ginger relish, chilli sauce and garlic rice.
They recommend a cold beverage that will let the dish’s robust flavours take the foreground, like a white wine or lager.
The Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival is part of The Curated Plate – Culinary Festival 2023, a 10-day celebration of the region’s produce, producers and chefs, supported by Tourism and Events Queensland, the Sunshine Coast Council and Visit Sunshine Coast.
The Official 2023 Curated Plate program offers more than 100 events across the region from 28 July to 6 August 2023, showcasing over 300 local producers and suppliers.
FESTIVAL TICKETS and TRAVEL:
Event: The Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival
Where: Spicers Tamarind Retreat, 88 Obi Lane South, Maleny QLD
When: Saturday 5 August 2023 from 1pm to 6pm (guests can enter from 12:00pm)
Bus Travel: Buses will depart 11am Brisbane, 11.30am Noosa, 12noon Caloundra and Mooloolaba. ETA at Spicers Tamarind Retreat is 12:45pm. Tickets are $30pp from Brisbane, $20pp from the other locations.
Noosa Heads: Bus departs Noosa Junction Bus Station, 26 Sunshine Beach Road, at 11:30am; departs Noosa Heads Bus Station at 11:35am.
Tickets: Available through Humantix or Spicers Tamarind Retreat Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival at spicersretreats.com/sunshine-coast-asian-food-festival-2023/
