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The Foodies' Guide to Melbourne 2009
The Foodies' Guide to Melbourne 2009, our annual compilation of the finest food stores in Melbourne and regional Victoria.

Our task is to walk every high street and shopping strip, to poke around in food stores, bakeries, delis, fishmongers, Asian grocers and the like, to direct readers towards the establishments we consider to be the best places to shop for produce and ingredients.

We have no doubts whatsoever that Melbourne retains its crown as the culinary capital of Australia. Every day, across the city, food stores, greengrocers, butchers and produce merchants open their doors to eager customers. Bakers stock their shelves with warm breads and sweet treats, fresh seasonal fruit and vegetables are trucked into our produce markets in huge quantities, while butchers prepare sausages, slice steaks and debone legs of lamb for the home barbecue.

Chocolatiers fill display cabinets with cocoa-dusted truffles, raspberry-filled shells and chocolate bars studded with roasted hazelnuts. Fishmongers fillet and trim fresh fish ready for the pan, open oysters and display the sea's bounty for seafood lovers. Then there are bustling Middle Eastern, Italian and Spanish food stores, plus the hundreds of cafes, bistros and restaurants presenting meals for keen customers. All this combines to make Melbourne one of the world’s great food cities.

Recently we have seen an amazing boom in the rise of quality food providores - the new kids on the block. These are intrepid souls who have decided to open the door on a new venture to see what local food lovers make of it. Arno Backes has established a delicious store called Ganache Chocolate in South Yarra and Port Melbourne residents are enjoying their wonderful deli/cafe called Eurodore.

There have also been some serious renovations at Melbourne's fresh produce markets. Queen Victoria Market now has a state-of-the-art fish and meat hall, while South Melbourne Market boasts a brand new food shopping aisle, which rivals the best food halls.

We also note a terrific resurgence in the French food scene around town. It's never been better with wonderful places such as Filou's, Le Croissant, La Tropezienne and Le Petit Gateau for stunning patisserie, La Parisienne Pates for smallgoods and Monsieur Truffe for wonderful chocolate bars and flavoured truffles.

We hope you enjoy exploring this wonderful food obsessed city - with a copy of The Foodies' Guide to Melbourne 2009 firmly in hand!

In store now - published by Hardie Grant Books RRP $29.95.

Damien Pike Foodies' Awards 2009
Each year we carefully choose retailers who we believe are worthy of extra recognition for a Foodies' Award. This year we have highlighted a mix of people who have been in the food game for many years alongside some exciting newcomers. They are passionate food lovers who day after day open their stores and help make Melbourne the wonderful foodie capital that it is. Here are our award winners for 2009.

Damian Pike, Wild Mushroom Specialist
For over two decades Damien Pike has been providing his Prahran Market customers with the very best in specialist ingredients, including everything from baby Roma tomatoes to stunning asparagus and baby beans, not forgetting the wild mushrooms every autumn.

Hausfrau
Lucky Yarraville residents get to enjoy Hausfrau as their local bakery. From the mini lemon cheesecakes to the iced gingerbread hearts, this place is style and quality all the way. If only all suburbs could be blessed with a bakery as gorgeous as this one.

John Cester Poultry & Game
Gelati at Il Dolce Freddo When you want to choose from the best range of poultry and game in Melbourne, make a beeline for John Cester. It's all on offer here from the corn-fed drumettes and wings to the wild boar, emu, wild hare, rabbit and turkey.

Il Dolce Freddo
The gelati here are the real McCoy, fresh seasonal fruit is churned with great skill into two dozen or so daily flavours. Rich styles such as rocher, chocolate and Snickers sit alongside fruit mango, passionfruit and coconut. What a decision to have to make!

Le Petit Gateau
This very glamorous addition to the CBD has so many good things on offer it's almost impossible to decide. Will it be the vanilla mille-feuille or the brownie and passionfruit chocolate gateau? Either way we can guarantee it'll be delicious.

Tartine
Jan Maskiell and her team still rule the roost of take-home food stores with beautifully prepared and presented dishes. It could be a Moroccan chicken tagine, Catalan chicken or a summer lasagne layered with mushrooms, mint, spinach and feta cheese. Yum! Ganache Chocolate

Ganache Chocolate
Ganache is a chocolate store and cafe all rolled into one delicious mouthful. Display cabinets are packed with oriental spice chocolates, peppermint-filled mint leaves and impressive patisserie. It's a terrific addition to the chocolate stores of Melbourne.

OUT OF TOWN - Annie's Provedore
This place is enough to make anyone want a sea change with a relaxed beach vibe and terrific coffee and cakes. The range of food-to-go is extraordinary, perfect for those of us who may have had a hard day in the surf and need some help with dinner.

This is our 'official' definition of what it means to be a foodie

foodie /'fu;di/,foody (plural -ies) n. Informal
1. sb who takes an enthusiastic interest in the preparation or consumption of good food.
2. sb who typically plans dinner while eating breakfast and/or lunch.
3. food lover.
4. person always searching for the newest and best food shops, restaurants, takeaways and ingredients.
5. sb with an insatiable craving for good food and wine.
6. one who plans holidays around food festivals, winery walkabouts or regional cuisines.
7. a person dedicated to the pleasures of the table.
8. a person who thinks that blue is a type of cheese.
9. habitat; in and around Melbourne and country Victoria; survival dependant on having the latest Foodies' Guide and proximity to good food and/or wine; cannot go for more than three hours for a fix.
10. See also glutton for pleasure, gourmet, epicurean and connoisseur.
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