After two years of “yes, no, maybe... damn it, we’re in lockdown again,” Crown Melbourne kicks off a new chef showcase this coming weekend, and first on the roster is Noosa’s Peter Kuruvita (by way of London and Colombo) and Melbourne’s Alejandro Saravia, originally from Peru.
These internationally renowned chefs will set up residence at Crown’s Evergreen function space, the stunning 100-seat dining room that was Dinner by Heston until February 2020.
Kuruvita is up first, with four consecutive dinners from Thursday, 10 to Sunday 13 February. He’s briefly stepping away from his month-old restaurant, Alba, in Noosa Heads, to bring Melburnians seven “very modern” courses inspired by his Sri Lankan childhood. Think wild-caught Mooloolaba prawns in black pepper and curry leaf, butter-poached crab with curried sabayon (inspired by his grandmother’s favourite egg curry).
Kuruvita will also host an afternoon high tea on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 of February. “This is a high tea to show you that you don’t just have to drink tea, the tea can also be infused into food,” he says. The chef is teaming up with his long-time friends at Dilmah for 11 sweet and savoury morsels, including duck and pineapple hand rolls, earl grey-infused chocolate truffles, and wattalapaan, which Kuruvita says is “Sri Lanka’s answer to crème brûlée, but all coconut — no cream or milk.”
Saravia will keep things closer to home with a 100 percent Victorian menu, which will runs for three nights from Thursday, 17 through to Saturday 19 March. While Saravia’s CBD eatery Farmer’s Daughters has a Gippsland focus, this completely new offering runs further afield, with abalone from Apollo Bay, Holy Goat cheese, Sher wagyu from Ballan and sea urchin from Mallacoota. Every dish will be matched to a Victorian wine, with a Maidenii vermouth cocktail on arrival.
“We want to give people a reminder of how amazing and diverse Victoria is, not only as a place to spend a weekend or a week, but how rich it is in diversity in terms of ingredients,” Saravia says.
Tickets for the Evergreen Chef Series can be purchased via the Crown Melbourne website.