delicious. Magazine and The Byron at Byron Resort and Spa are thrilled to announce that top chef Martin Boetz of Longrain Sydney and Melbourne will headline the first delicious. weekend away for 2012.

Boetz promises to bring energy and colour to Byron for the three day food and wine celebration, being held over the long weekend 8 – 11 June.

Born in Germany, his passion for cooking was nurtured by some of the world’s greatest Chefs, including David Thompson (who now owns London’s Michelin starred Nahm) at Darley Street Thai and Sailors Thai.

Martin joins Bangalow based pastry Chef extraordinaire Katrina Kanetani from hatted restaurant Town (formerly of The Pier and MG Garage Sydney, Asiate New York and Quo Vadis London), delicious. Food Director Valli Little and The Byron at Byron’s own Gavin Hughes (formerly of Aqua Luna, The Bathers Pavilion and Aqua Dining Sydney, Inverlochy Castle Hotel and 1 Devonshire GardensScotland).

“There are lots of passionate producers growing fabulous Thai ingredients in the Byron region” said Boetz, “including turmeric, galangal and betel leaves that we use at Longrain and will celebrate over the course of the weekend”.

The weekend includes a cooking class with the delicious. maestro herself Valli Little, lunch at award winning Newrybar restaurant Harvest, a visit to local farmers’ markets and a producers’ farm and a gala four course dinner at The Byron at Byron Restaurant.

Guests will stay in the luxe Byron at Byron Resort and Spa where they can unwind with yoga or spend time by the infinity pool.

Friday 8 June
Welcome party on the Byron at Byron Resort and Spa lawn featuring local producer stalls, canapés and wines from Tempus Two.

Two course dinner in the Byron at Byron Restaurant featuring local produce.

Saturday 9 June
Visit Bangalow Farmers’ Market and The Farm Gate Providore
Lunch at Harvest in Newrybar
Long Table Gala Four Course Dinner featuring Martin Boetz (Longrain), Katrina Kanetani (Town), Valli Little (delicious.), Gavin Hughes (The Byron at Byron) with wines by McGuigan, Nepenthe and Tempus Two.

Sunday 10 June
Yoga on the pool deck
Morning Cooking Class with Valli Little and Martin Boetz presented by Nestle Plaistowe
Long lunch featuring the cooking class menu at The Byron at Byron Restaurant

Cocktail hour canapé demonstration with sunset drinks

Monday 11 June
Poolside pop-up brunch by Byron café The Top Shop
Demonstration by local coffee roaster

Delicious Weekend package
$1119 per person twin share in a Standard Suite (upgrade to Deluxe Spa Suite $1179)
$1591 per person single share in a Standard Suite (upgrade to Deluxe Spa Suite $1648)

reservations@thebyronatbyron.com.au
1300 554 362 or +61 (0)2 6639 2000

Information night brings hope for Richmond Tweed.

An information night is being held on Thursday May 3rd to help local people understand how they may own a home of their own. On offer are the results of research into changing home needs and strategies that make ownership affordable and tailored to this region.  All are welcome.

Australian industry leaders have come together as the Future Housing Taskforce to bring back The Great Australian Dream of home ownership. The Taskforce set a new industry record for enquiries when they built an eco friendly affordable home in a warehouse to demonstrate how councils were so out of touch with the real needs of the Australian public. The Smarter Small Home was profiled on A Current Affair (smartersmallhome.com.au).

Future Housing Task Force founder Kevin Doodney, who will be the main speaker at the information night, has been working with 16 Councils to help bring home ownership closer to ordinary Australians.

“The Future Housing Taskforce is responding to a media story by Peter Weekes of January 24, which put Richmond Tweed as the highest land value in Australia” said Kevin Doodney. “This makes the region the most unaffordable in the whole nation, puttingmassive pressure on new families being able to live and work in the region without renting for life. On the night we are not there to just talk, we are there to deliver immediate solutions that are up to $130,000 cheaper than what is currently on offer. We are spending these weeks leading up to May 3rd focusing on ideas which end up in the delivery back to people of home ownership at various price points, instead of the current one size fits all scenario”.

The information night will show new approaches to housing that suit changing buyer needs from work at home to single households. Kevin will explain how different income levels can access home ownership and the types of homes to suit their budgets. He will also profile some flexible housing options including dual key and duplex.

“Kevin Doodney’s achievements and innovative concepts are world class.” High praise from Peter Sherrie, National President of the Urban Development Institute of Australia.
The event is proudly sponsored by Tallowood Ridge Estate in Mullumbimby, who are offering generous incentives with land from $195,000.

7:00pm Thursday 3rd May, Mullumbimby Civic Hall
MC (the divine) Mandy Nolan, food and coffee available from Cafe Xpress
$5 entry fee, which goes to Mullumbimby Youth Cottage. Kids free and welcome.
For more information about the night contact 6687 1492 or johnbennettcedar@gmail.com

Australia’s place in the world
Byron at Byron Presents George Negus

On May 17 The Byron at Byron Resort and Spa will host legendary Australian media personality George Negus who – among other things – will share his thoughts on Australia’s place in a monumentally changing world.

The first in the Byron at Byron Presents dinner series for 2012, the event follows last years’ sell-out dinners with Bettina Arndt, Joanna Savill and David Clark.

George’s most recent book The World From Down Under is a compilation of interviews with  international “movers and shakers” for SBS Dateline that reveal George’s passion to put significant world events into perspective for Australians.

“The world is in turmoil and sometimes we Australians tend to overestimate our own problems,” says George. “I wouldn’t go so far as to call us the lucky country, but we are definitely a fortunate country. Less than 25-million people out of 7-billion world-wide, we need to think about that and get it into a realistic perspective. We need to see Australia in relation to the world – not the world in relation to Australia.

“There are people in other parts of the world facing hardship and difficulty we can’t imagine, yet our own politics has become so spiteful, small minded and uninspired. There’s a leadership crisis in this country that goes right across the ideological spectrum. A lack of maturity and sophistication in our politics means we find ourselves complaining at a time when we should be thankful.

“I’ve seen third world countries handle the up-and-down nature of their affairs in a more dignified way. I’m disappointed that we can’t get our heads out of our own sandy beaches”.

Be it Syria, coal-seam gas in the Byron hinterland, caring for The Kimberleys versus the Amazon River or Byron’s coast, the Greek economic collapse versus Australian real estate development and debt, George will discuss “What is our place, as Australians, in the global scheme of things? Why should we care for more than their own backyards?”

Negus began his career as a Queensland teacher, before moving into journalism and working  behind the scenes in Canberra. He burst onto our TV screens during the heady days of 60 Minutes (1979-86), then spent several years as founding presenter on ABCs Foreign Correspondent (1992-99). His many other forays into our lounge rooms include Nine’s Today Show, ABC’s This Day Tonight and programs tagged with his own name such as ABCs George Negus Tonight and Ten’s 6:30 with George Negus.

His exceptional list of interviewees spans politics (Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair, Al Gore, Gaddafi, Mikhail Gorbachev, an entire last generation of Australian Prime Ministers), music (Bob Marley, Annie Lennox, Bob Dylan), religion (His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Richard Dawkins), Hollywood legends (Robert Redford, Steven Spielberg) and thinkers including Richard Branson, Geoffrey Robertson QC, Dr David Suzuki, Sir Bob Geldof and Fatima Bhutto.

George’s most recent book The World From Down Under follows his two earlier bestsellers The World from Islam and The World From Italy.

Byron at Byron Presents George Negus “Australia’s Place in the World”
7:00pm Thursday May 17, The Byron at Byron Resort and Spa
$70 for two courses from Head Chef Gavin Hughes, a glass of wine and George. Stay the night from $285 for two people.

Bookings essential. 02 6639 2105 or reservations@thebyronatbyron.com.au

Mullumbimby’s new community at Tallowood Ridge is the very first site in the Northern Rivers to be connected to the Federal Government’s National Broadband Network. The estate, just next to the Mullumbimby Hospital, saw the final “haul in” of the fibre-optic trunk main cable earlier this week, and is now fully connected to the network.

“It’s great news for our residents” said Christopher Dean, Chair of Tallowood’s Management Committee. “They’re on the edge of town, surrounded by rolling green hills, yet connected to the whole world better than people in major cities”.

Tallowood Ridge and Armidale are the only places on the entire North Coast to be connected to the network.

NBN coverage represents superfast broadband speed (up to 100 MBs per second), the ability to access all channels, including those previously only on pay TV, quality and high resolution in picture to an exceptional standard, the ability to have large numbers of phone lines into your home and all of this through one place, rather than dealing with a multitude of service providers.

Business and marketing consultant Roe Ritchie is perhaps best known as Producer of the wildly successful childrens’ fairytale The Grimstones. Roe has recently purchased at Tallowood Ridge with her partner Trace. “I work remotely, as a lot of my business occurs in Melbourne and Brisbane” said Roe. “So to have access to really fast internet is invaluable. The NBN coverage makes it possible for us to live in the most beautiful part of Australia and be connected in a fast efficient way to the rest of the world”.

The massive $35 billion initiative, which will take ten years to roll out across Australia, is based upon utilising fibre optic cables that will last forever, unlike the current copper cables encased in plastic which degrade and suffer from signal loss. The new cables are made from a bundle of strands of glass, which don’t degrade in the presence of air, salt spray or moisture.

“Fibre optic is the quantum leap in communication, it’s wonderful that it is first happening here, in Mullumbimby and at Tallowood” said Christopher Dean.
Tallowood Ridge is the most affordable new land release in the Byron Shire and the last major land release in Mullumbimby. Land is priced from $195,000 to $294,000, with house and land packages from $384,000.
Tuckeroo Road, off Left Bank Road, Mullumbimby
tallowoodridge.com