Good Food Guide turns national
The big news is that Fairfax Media’s Good Food Guide, otherwise known as http://www.goodfood.com.au, is now going national.
It’s all part of a 38-year tradition that started with The Age Good Food Guide which was launched in 1979.
That was followed by The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide five years later and The Brisbane Times Good Food Guide in 2012.
And so the 2018 edition coming out later this year will review 500 restaurants around Australia.
It will award hats to the best places from Darwin to Hobart, Melbourne to Perth, and Sydney to Brisbane. Totally national, compiled by respected critics and edited by Myffy Rigby and Roslyn Grundy.
As a result, the Vittoria Coffee Restaurant of the Year, Citi Chef of the Year and Citi Service Excellence awards will now be national. And The Josephine Pignolet Young Chef of the Year will be a national award. Some of Australia's best known chefs, including Mark Best, Dan Hong and Mitch Orr have taken out this award.
That means The Good Food Guide will be taking applications from across the country.
"Our defining strength, and the reason people trust the Good Food Guide, is the independence of our critics," co-editor Myffy Rigby told The Good Food Guide.
"Our reviewers arrive unannounced and pay for their own meals. We're stringent when it comes to judging. That means we look at service, ambience, X factor, and most importantly, food to award those all-important hats."
Hats are all part of the Good Food Guide’s tradition and are now recognised nationally. Getting a hat is regarded as the top achievement for any chef and restaurant. So much so that the term "hatted" is now part of the Australian lexicon.
"The marriage of The Age, Brisbane Times and Sydney Morning Herald Young Chef of the Year awards will give up-and-coming chefs a stronger platform to be heard and recognised," co-editor Roslyn Grundy told The Good Food Guide.
"A young George Calombaris was one of the very first winners of the coveted Age award, and we hope to see more names in bright lights in years to come."
by Leon Gettler, May 19th 2017
