Who are you?
Multi-choice question:
a) Do you enjoy food?
b) Do you enjoy wine?
c) Do you enjoy people?
d) All of the above?
If you answered yes to one or more of these questions then you may enjoy a Tuesday Night Dinner.
Add your name and email to the form on the right and you will receive the Tuesday Night Dinner invitation every week.
See you soon
-Mike
Who am I?
Hi, I’m Mike Eastwood.
I enjoy cooking… I think it evolved because I enjoy eating - it seemed a logical progression to learn how to cook.
When I mentioned that I’m being flown to Melbourne to cook on TV my mum laughed and said it all started with a “Crazy Cake” – one of Alison Holst’s cake recipes which is made without eggs, butter or milk.
Mum is an amazing cook and taught me from an early age, while we helped making dinner, with the baking, brewing ginger beer, pre-cleaning the baking apparatus (lick the cake batter of the beaters), etc.. Dad also enjoys cooking he’s always adventurous, especially during his Chinese cooking phase, which brings back memories of three brothers laughing at the brother who had to do dishes after dad cooked – everything sticky and every dish in the house used.
At school we were bussed down to another school where we were taught metalwork, sewing and cooking which further strengthened my desire to eat, and cook. Although mum was too smart to be tricked by the recipe that used 6 eggs, the other kids got to lob the surplus eggs out the bus window as we drove back from “Manual Training”. I still make the Baked Tartare Fish I learnt when I was 11 years old.
The real cooking adventures started after leaving home. Ken Hom’s cook book in one hand, dried chillis in the other, I read “heat the oil until almost smoking, add the dried chillis…” moments later, with smoke billowing from the Wok, the kitchen filled quickly with tear gas. I remembered the lesson – there’s a clear passage way along the floor and I crawled to turn of the gas, tears streaming down my face, before crawling out of the house to inhale clear air.
It wasn’t until Tuesday Night Dinners started until I really learned how to cook well. When you’re cooking for chefs and they ask “why are you doing it that way?” or, if you know any chefs they really say “what the **** ***** *** are you ****** **** you **** ****!”. Over the years I’ve been lucky enough to have dozens of chefs turn up in my kitchen, after a day in their kitchen, to share things they can’t make for the general public (sometimes for a good reason).
Some of my favourite food experiences have been tasting recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation. It’s such a pleasure to learn the origins of the dish and to hear the stories that surround those memories of eating together.
Over the years generous people have shared the most exquisite wines, beers, spirits and liquors with me. I’ve been lucky enough to drink things that are rare, expensive or unusual (sometime all three). And, with that I have learnt a great deal about what I like, and what others enjoy.
I’ve had the privilege of some amazing people putting some incredible things in my mouth – with a smile – I thank you. And thank you everyone that has taught me about food, wine or cooking – your knowledge has enriched my life and has been shared exponentially!
Cheers
-Mike
In the real world Mike Eastwood is a web geek who runs Webalite: a web design and development company. When he’s not cooking, eating, drinking and
telling stories he’s probably still doing dishes with a smile on his face.
