Notices by Deb Ong (she/her)翁诗美 (nihilistnomya@aus.social)

We just celebrated surviving 2 years as a business yesterday, and honestly, the turnout really made me emotional.

It was a 38 degree day. It was warm. Yet, so many people came out and braved the heat to celebrate with us.

We also raised just over 3 grand (!!) for FoodBank, which will go a long way to helping some families over Christmas 💜

Laksa Auntie was definitely not something I had envisioned for 40yr old Deb.

I guess the laksa (thug) life chose me 🤣

The shop we bought in my 2nd year of doing a PhD is now turning 2 years old. 😱

We're holding a community dinner to celebrate and to raise funds for foodbank this holiday season.

Please come by for some curry and conversation if you're in the area!

More info here:
https://support.foodbankvictoria.org.au/fundraisers/debong

In other news.

Our laksa got listed by delicious. as one of Melbourne's best.

So. That's pretty cool.

https://www.delicious.com.au/eat-out/cheap-eats/gallery/best-laksa-melbourne/jovwrl6m

I mean.

They also called us "Singaporean expats" in the little background write-up... which made me have... *feelings* 🙄

Another chef got called an expat in the same article, so I've come to the conclusion that the writer has absolutely no idea what 'expat' means.

They probably think it's a nicer word for 'migrant' without realising the baggage the word holds for SEAsians who come from former colonies 🙃

@rainynight65 thanks for asking :)

So the term 'expats' comes from 'to expatriate'. It was originally used for representatives of colonial rule that were sent to the colonies.

The implication was that they would eventually return to the motherland or be 'expatriated' home. This meant they were temporary migrants and had loose ties to the countries they were sent to.

This term is now used mostly by MNCs when they send employees overseas to work in a foreign office. So expats can be from anywhere, technically. Singapore expats in UK.. Indian expats in Canada etc.

In SEA, because of our history as ex-colonies, Europeans or Caucasians in general are usually assumed to be expats by the locals.
This isn't always true (which is a whole other thing), but expats usually make little effort to be part of the local community or forge meaningful ties with local residents.
Of course there are exceptions, but this is just a general overview. :)

This year's Australian chef of the year is Thi Le, owner/operator of Anchovy and CaCom in Richmond.

And I cannot think of a person more deserving.

Am currently working with a local old-school sign-writer to replace our shitty logo that I designed on PowerPoint and printed for 20 bucks on vistaprint 🤣

It's all very exciting and I can't wait to see what he does with it.

He designs and hand paints everything.
It's a dying art, and I'm so glad we get to support his work!
He's also local and a fellow SEA migrant 😁

I've been invited to be on a food writers panel at a local writers festival and it really humbles me to know that people appreciate my perspective and want to hear what I have to say.

We have an absolutely fabulous barista who not only makes the best coffee, but also comes up with really fun (plant-based) drink specials.

This one is apple and pandan with a whipped matcha 'cream'. Garnished with freeze-dried strawberries.

We have a lot of fun collaborating between kitchen and bar, because that's the way it should be 🤷

People wax lyrical about Singapore Chilli Crab, but honestly, Black Pepper Crab is where it's at.

There's something about the sweet, musky and floral notes in the toasted peppercorns that marry so well with burnt butter, chilli and curry leaves.

I was pretty excited to share this weekend's special with our regular punters 🤸♀️

Black pepper squid with house-made Spätzle (a German style pasta), daun kesum (vietnamese mint), spring onions and a lemon pangrattato.

So after a couple of days of snooping around and butting into conversations, I guess it's #introduction time 😁

I'm originally from Singapore, but moved to Naarm (Melbourne, Australia) in 2004.

I have been in the hospitality industry for 18 years.
The last 12 of which have been spent in the kitchen as a chef. I post about #food a lot 😏

I also have a background in #Anthropology, #SocialTheory and #HumanNutrition.

Am currently in the middle of a #PhD in #Education - researching community #foodpedagogies as well as food education in #PublicHealth.

I am passionate about #SocialJustice, #FoodSecurity, #Decolonisation and dismantling systems that perpetuate division and inequity.

I am a #dancer, #SciFi geek, a novice gardener and have a regular #yoga practice.

Open to meet anyone and everyone. Excited to be here and looking forward to many amazing conversations and friendships! 💜

#Introductions #Newbie #TwitterMigration

Quintessential Aussie humour embodied in a lovely bee-keeping gay man with the most fabulous mo (moustache).

We have enjoyed micro-dosing local conservatives with fig and homo honey muffins.

One thing that young chefs often don't realise is that speed is pointless without precision.

The goal is always to maximise the quality of output with efficiency of movement. 🧵