Taste of Perth

Ilpasto Italian Trattoria
Inglewood, Perth
Well worth a visit. Upon entering the premises you are greeted by an old worldly charm interior accompanied by softly playing Italian background music.
We went with a group of ten and everyone enjoyed their meal. Whether you are after a good home style pasta dish, or you fancy something a little more on the meaty/​seafood side, you won’t leave the restaurant disappointed.
An overall pleasant experience which will have us return.

Nunzio’s restaurant. Beautiful food, fabulous service.

Just a taste …
First off I would like to thank Laura the Unilocal Community Manager and Unilocal themselves for our free entry tickets. An event is always that much more enticing when you don’t have to pay for entry!
Unfortunately the weather during my first foray into a Taste of Perth was quiet underwhelming. Fortunately the food and wine on offer did more than enough to keep our spirits lively and bellies full.
A special mention goes out to the Lurpak Butter cooking classes. Great fun and decent value considering you ate what you cooked in this case being lemon curd with bonus donuts and lamb cutlets with dukkah and greek yogurt and herbs dip (tastes way better than it sounds). The class was very informative, easy and the head chef was very encouraging.
We sampled dishes in descending order of preference: Fish Wings from Propeller Bar, Pork Belly from Nobu, Lamb Cutlets from Silks (and a $ 30 gift card thank you very much!), Chicken wings from El Publico and Lamb Ribs from El Publico.
All the food was flavorsome and delivered with enthusiasm. My only gripe being that was the theme last year being that there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of food handed over for how much money you exchange for it. Also as the weather was not very savory, the outdoor tables and chairs were rendered unusable.
Hopefully promoters of this event will look at the weather forecast next time before scheduling a food festival in Perth during such a bad weekend of weather. All in all though it was worth braving the weather for the experience and if you haven’t been its probably worth going to see for yourself.

Don’t get me wrong… I love Perth weather. I love the colourful autumn sunsets, rugging up in warm jackets and most of all the smell of rain, but… for this years Taste of Perth I wish the rain would of stopped just for the day. The weather was cold, wet and miserable but that didn’t stop us. We braved the weather to taste the creations from Perth’s leading chefs and restaurants as well as sample gourmet delights from Perth local producers.
Anthony and I opted for the platinum tickets $ 55ea. This gave us general admission and 30 crowns each. We thought this was a better option for us as we had to get crowns anyway and this way we saved a lil cash at the same time (1 crown = $ 1 if you purchased them once you get inside)
By the time Anthony and I got inside we were starrrrving so the first thing on our minds to was to check out the restaurants and grab something tasty to eat before we perused around all the gourmet food stalls.
El Publico — Pork Belly Taco, grilled belly served with pineapple, salsa picante and chicharon cost: 8 crowns. Perfect start to the Taste of Perth! My taco was delicious, the pork belly was tender and juicy and I loved the super crunchy bits of pork crackling sprinkled all over.
Lalla Rookah — Ricotta Gnocchi, sugo di carne: organic beef and pork ragu cost: 8 crowns. The gnocchi was definitely the highlight as it melted in your mouth but one thing we were disappointed in was the portion size. We walked away thinking it was a little overpriced for what we got.
Asado — Lomito, BBQ’d rump cap, loose leaf chimichurri, chipotle mayo, salsa criolla cost: 8 crowns. The BBQ meat was so juicy and tender and the chimichurri sauce was the bomb! Anthony loved this dish so much he went back for seconds!
Bib & Tucker — Rotisserie suckling pig slider with kimchi slaw, kewpie cost: 8 crowns. This slider went down well and was gobbled up in seconds! The shredded suckling pig was amazing! soft, tender and was a tasty match with the kimchi slaw.
Next Door at No.4 — Valhrona Chocolate Garden, salted caramel, peanut dacquoise, sandalwood rocks cost: 18 crowns. This dessert was deliciously decadent. Each spoonful gave a delectable rich, smooth chocolately caramel hit.
We had a great time at the Taste of Perth this year despite the weather. We didn’t end up spending the whole lunch service there as a couple of hours in we were so cold and drenched from the rain. I sympathise with the event organisers because you could see that there was so much effort and planning put in to make this a great event for Perthgoers but unfortunately we can’t plan the weather (I learnt that lesson on my wedding day. We had a beautiful vintage garden ceremony in late October and it rained most of the day!) If you love food and get a kick out of trying new flavours the Taste of Perth is definitely an event you shouldn’t miss. Cant wait for next years!

Taste of Perth 2015
«This event runs rain, hail or shine» the event small print said. Only one of those conditions applied — rain. And lots of it. Oh and did I mention the wind.
If you could pick weather for a day of outdoor eating — today would not have been the apotheosis.
And it’s a shame given the venue and how very well it had been setup. After meeting the indomitable Laura D at the gate we headed for the corporate tent for a few wines and a brief on how the event rolls. And it’s perfectly organised. You buy a Crown card and put credit on it then head for the tents of some of Perth’s best resto’s.
I decided to do it like a meal — entre, main, wine and desert. Just from different chefs and restaurants.
First stop was the Nobu tent for a miso soup. This was very good. Perfect, rich broth with shredded spring onions, silken tofu and sweet nori ($ 6).
For mains I decided on the Duck Parmentier from Bistro Guillame. Served in a small foil plate, the confit duck was shredded and seated under a Paris mash toasted brioche crumbs. Superb at $ 12.
After a quick stop at the Piper-​Heidsieck tent for a stunning NV Brut for $ 15 it was desert time.
And so much to choose from but Lalla Rookh took the mark with their Fried Custard with candied citrus and toasted almonds $ 6.
This is a great event but maybe May is not the time to present it. There would have been thousands here today but for the weather.

I went last year and wasn’t overly impressed. It was chaotic. This year I found it to be much better.
The event space itself is much larger this year so it didn’t seem as cramped. Many more stalls and more restaurants offering their food.
All the food I tried was delicious. I had the lamb ribs, nonnas meatballs and the salted caramel and strawberry macarons.
Loved that Bistro Guillaume this year offered two smaller macarons in a to go box.
Loved the Lurpak Cooking school again, I cooked the lamb and my friend did the lemon curd. Both were yum and they gave us doughnuts to put the lemom curd in. This year we also got a tub of Lurpak butter as a bonus too!
Another thing which was better about this event this year is you got any unused crowns (the currency used to pay for things) refunded. This didn’t happen last year.
I really wasn’t sure how to rate this event. I’ve only given it 3 stars purely because the entry fee is expensive if paying entry and you don’t really get anything for it.
Pretty much everything you have to pay for once inside. Sure some of the stalls have samples and the first session of the Lurpak cooking school is free but that’s really it. If you’re factoring in entry plus the food you buy it can work out quite costly.
If I was rating it purely on the great food it would have got four stars.
Rekorderlig Cider wasn’t there this year and that was disappointing but that’s just because it’s my favorite Cider.
I will still most likely attend next year if it’s back.

Taste of Perth is such a fun time if you love eating and getting a range of bites in one evening. I went down for the Friday lunch session and loved the plates I tried — wagyu carpaccio from Nobu, pork slider from Bib & Tucker, chicken wings from Mary’s, ceviche from Asado, lamb ribs and corn from El Publico… ah the list goes on and on! Notable mention — the giant sized macarons from Bistro Guillaume which were light, sweet and delicious. I may have also gotten a take away donut from Mary’s! YUM

Taste of Perth is great value with four selections each from 14 restaurants. Heaps of choices. Great value. Highly recommend lamb cutlet from silks, beef from next door at no. 4 and pork belly from nobu.
Lots of local vendors selling chutneys, spices, oils, and cheese. Yum.

This is THE foodie event for those who love premium food and drinks. Taste of Perth is a boutique and better version of the Good Food and Wine Show.
It features Perth’s top restaurants including Nobu, Modo Mio, Print Hall, Lallah Rook, No 4, Silks, Asado and Bib and Tucker. Each restaurant serves 4 grazing dishes with at least one $ 6 dish and one icon dish (a more premium price).
I bought tickets for the Friday lunchtime session and I am so glad I did. It wasn’t busy and had a very relaxed atmosphere. This meant I could browse the food stalls, distributor stalls (various food and drink suppliers) and wine and beer tastings at leisure. So leisurely, I didn’t get to visit all of them even though the festival site isn’t too big. The intimate size of this festival is a plus, in my opinion.
Highlights of my day included:
— A wine tasting session at the Grape and Grain tent
— Beers from Holgate Brewery (one of my favourite brewers) which is located at the Grape and Grain tent. Recommend checking them out and try the chocolate porter!
— Ceviche from Asado with avocado, coriander, lime, chilli, cherry tomatoes and tortilla chips.
— Pork Belly Taco from El Publico. It had a really good spicy kick to it and crunchy crackling. Yum.
— Tiramisu from Modo Mio. One word — incredible.
— Valhrona Chocolate Garden (icon dish for $ 18) from No4 Blake Street. A delicious, rich dessert served in a flower pot. Listen to the tip from staff to «dig deep». Push your spoon in past the chocolate crumbs on top and an amazing, gooey peanut dacquiose appears.
At each stall we were greeted by passionate and enthusiastic staff and I think this really helped make the day. The only downside is that I felt like I had to pay for everything ie we paid an entry fee and then had to pay for all food, any tastings etc. I would usually expect that the tastings are free once inside. On the upside, I did think that all of the produce and beverages on offer were of a high standard. If this means we have to pay to ensure this higher level remains, then so be it. I think it’s worth it.
I was in luck with it being a balmy 27C Autumn day, however it will be interesting to see the reviews coming in for the rest of the weekend with a storm due to hit. Hopefully it doesn’t ruin the rest of the festival as I thought it was such a great day out!

Brand Events’ Taste of Perth, leaves a sour taste…
I see a number of highly rated reviews for the Taste of Perth. If I was purely rating it on the produce and array of fantastic vendors, then I would be certainly giving the «Taste of Perth» 5 out of 5. Unfortunately the unabashed grab for cash, sinks the rating to a 2 out of 5.
I have tried to provide a full account, Good and Bad, so that hopefully punters and vendors attending future Taste of Perth events are fore warned and fore armed
How did we actually end up spending $ 556 (yes, really $ 556) with very little to show for it and without having eaten anything that could be considered a real meal.
Let’s retrace my steps for the Saturday night visit to the Taste of Perth, which I attended with my lovely wife. The event and venue had sooooooooooo much to offer and we were genuinely excited to be going to such a premier Perth Foodie Event.
Two weeks before the Taste of Perth, my wife orders VIP tickets online via Ticketek ($ 115p/​p), the didn’t arrive until three days after the Taste of Perth. No major issues, we can collect copies from the venue.
We taxi it in. ($ 64). Good so far.
The weather is cool but fine, great temperature for an autumn outdoor event.
Queuing was bad, 30 minutes to collect our replacement tickets. There is no segregation from the people buying tickets on the night, and those who have pre-​ordered. It did give me time to study the venue guide and plan the direction my taste buds would take me.
Our VIP tickets ($ 115/​person) gave us:
* Entry into the venue. ($ 69 after subtracting drink vouchers and starter Crowns);
* A VIP line to enter the venue, (though it was no faster);
* Access to the VIP tent,; live music, 2 complimentary drink vouchers/​person, @ $ 8/​drink; and
* $ 30 worth of crowns (see below about crowns).
What are Crowns I hear you ask. Crowns are a virtual currency which is required to buy drinks and meals consumed within the venue. Products that you take home can be bought with real money. Crowns are exchanged for a 1 Crown for 1 $AU, and are stored on Taste of Perth proprietary swipe cards. Crowns are non-​refundable and the loss of the cards or unused Crowns remain the property of the event operators.
If like myself at the end of the night you have a small dollar amount left on your card you are forced into three options:
1. Not use the credits and forfeit them to the event managers;
2. Try to find a cheap product (good luck with that); or
3. Add more credits to your Crown card and buy a more expensive item that you really don’t need.
Below is a brief outline of the rest of the night.
Tickets in hand, we make a beeline for the two places we wanted to start our culinary journey. My wife heads off to get us pork sliders, while I join the line at El Publico (my fav Mexican restaurant) for the house speciality the crickets with tequila ($ 30).
There are long lines for everything. When I finally reach the counter, I ask for the House Specialty, the crickets. «. They are sold out. The place has only been open for ½ an hour. I am offered a lamb taco in lieu, so I vote with my feet and leave.
For $ 10/​per slider you got a 8 cm bun with a little pork and coleslaw. It was smaller than a McDonald’s cheese burger. As for a culinary delight, it rated no better than the averaged roast pork roll you will get at your local lunch bar. Cost wise the local lunch bar is miles ahead.
Trying to keep a positive outlook we topped up our crowns by $ 200 and pushed on.
Alcohol at most of the vendors was reasonably priced and quick to get, food at the restaurant vendors had very long lines and the quantity of what you got did not reflect the price you paid for the quantity.
Free samples were available, but difficult to access if they were popular as you had to squeeze your way to the front to be able to try them. There were heaps of excellent products, some I purchased to take home.
We taxi home ($ 62)
In conclusion, the Taste of Perth in my opinion was a unscrupulous way for the event organiser Brand Events to gouge money from the vendors and public alike.
* The vendors paid a premium to be invited to show their wares;
* The public then had to pay a premium to enter the venue;
* The prices for food, products, etc. were excessive;
* The Crowns were a rort, as the event management took a % of all sales made in crowns;
* The Crowns remained the property of the event management company in the event that they were lost or unused;
* You couldn’t bypass the Crowns if you wished to eat or drink anything within the event, you had to use Crowns; and
* The price for the food from the restaurant vendors was a rip off for the price V’s quantity.
* El P –If you have a specialty advertised. YOU BETTER HAVE IT!!!
Fantastic products aside, after you counted how much money you had spent, you ended up with a very bad taste in your mouth.
Brand Events, you will not see my wife and I again.

ATTENTION: Lovers of good food and drink!
The Taste of Perth is where you need to be ASAP. It has a mixture of well known restaurants such as: Print Hall, Bib & Tucker, Greenhouse, El Publico, Co Op Dining, No4 Blake Street, Silks, Nobu, Bistro Guillaume and Lalla Rookh.
However it wasn’t all dominated by big restaurants, there was other smaller stands such as Marie Antoinette Café Glacier, New Norcia Bread, Morish Nuts, Simon Johnson, Karvan Coffee and Fudge-​a-​licious. There was also plenty to drink with some of the big wineries: Cape Mentelle and Voyager Estate as well as smaller vineyards like Grace Farm, breweries and cocktail bars.
My friend scored free tickets, however I would of been happy to pay because the quality of the produce and products available and overall event was extremely well planned and executed. Sponsored by the Crown, the currency is crowns coins ($ 1 =1 crown) which is a prepaid debt card that you can top up at the event. At first I wasn’t too fond of this idea, but it does make the queues quicker and your pockets lighter.
Tip: If you want to avoid the crowd and enjoy the sunshine as well as providing excellent lighting for all you instagram foodies, the lunch sessions between 12−4pm are great. It went to the Friday lunch session and it truly was the perfect way to end a long week especially with a cool Rekorderlig in hand.
It was lovely to see foodies unite over their common love and I can’t wait to experience it all again next year.

This was such a good event! So glad I went. I went on Saturday and got there about 12:30 (doors opened at 12) the line was insanely long but only took about 10 minutes to get through.
I loved that they had people walking around selling crowns and you were able to use eftpos.
There were heaps of restaurants that I would not normally have the chance to go to like Nobu and Silks so it was really great for them to be there and been able to sample their food.
There was so much going on the whole day. They had cocktail making classes, bands, tasters, EVERYTHING!
They had heaps of stalls and so much free tasters as well. With all varieties of food.
I really liked the sit down areas they had around the place and the Rekorderlig tent.
Well organised event, I loved it!

Great event
I debated whether to go to this event. Finally I bought tickets. I settled on silver tickets which included $ 30 of crowns. Knowing that events get busy if arrived before opening and queued. As the queue was moving, I decided to get more crowns. In was in that discussion I found out I had to go to the box office and get my $ 30 of crowns before I enter the event. If I realised that when I bought the tickets, I would not have got the crowns as it was easy to spot the team in pink who quickly topped up your card. This left me a bit deflated to begin with but a glass of wine soon helped!
The food was really nice. It was great brig able to try so many different flavours and restaurants all in one spot. I tried the crickets and was pleasantly surprised. I would actually order these going forward. It was also great to see restaurants pushing the envelope with meals like this.
Next year I would definitely go back. By the time I left, queues were long (10 – 20 people) so get in early.

My husband and I were very pleasantly surprised on the Friday night to find that Taste of Perth was so much more than it seemed from the marketing leading up to the event. Advertising had made it seem like the whole event would be dominated by the Crown and Print Hall mobs, but that wasn’t the case at all.
Instead we were greeted by an array of produce vendors (wine and cheese and meat, oh my!), and a nice little selection of fine restaurants plying their wares. The venue looked gorgeous and was well laid out. It felt like a little garden party in the city.
Vendor booths were beautifully dressed, and they had put their all into showcasing their food. There was a great selection of samples to be had as well, and we picked up a selection of beautiful local meats, cheeses and wines.
I have deducted one star for price. While drinks were reasonably priced, hungry people looking to make a meal of a selection of tastes would have lightened their wallets considerably. Especially if they wanted to sample a few wines along the way as well (most wine tastings cost a few crowns). I think I would have had a much less enjoyable evening if I had been trying to stick to any kind of budget. I definitely recommend saving your pennies for next year!

Very enjoyable evening. Had some outstanding dishes & can’t wait to go back next year. The stand out dishes for me were the Cuttlefish Tostada at El Publico & the Tortello at Lalla Rookh. My highlight was to see Shane Osborn from St Betty, Hong Kong and he’s awfully nice to talk to! I thought the queues for the tickets were a little slow in moving but I’m sure they be better next year.

My first experience if Perth was of dread seeing the queues on Saturday night, however the staff were able to process everyone quickly and in no time we were in.
The event was extremely well organised, having lots of great Perth restaurants offering some if their most unique and interesting dishes; there was a good selection of local beer and wines on offer too.
The festival arranged for plenty of seating and bins to dispose of the rubbish. And the entertainment was well thought out.
I for one am looking to see what is on offer next year!

Had a pretty good time here but it was quite hot so I would suggest going later even though I’m sure the night session would be chilly.
My stand out favourite was the edible garden from No.4 Blake Street, had everything a dessert should have multiple suprise layers– brownie, salted caramel, macadamias, mousse etc. was quite rich but very yummy so we shared one. Be prepared for strangers to ask you about it if you try it.
Many different restaurants had stalls, tastings and demonstrations. Bring exact change for loading on crown cards unless you already have money loaded, as they only accept exact amounts.