It’s been another beautiful week here in Sydney – and on Instagram for that matter! This late summer in Australia is really making us wonder if winter will ever come.
It certainly wasn’t like this in March 7 years ago though. Why 7 years ago, you ask. Well, we were married in March 2009, and on the day, it rained so hard the awning of our venue and where we were having our ceremony broke and shorted out the celebrant’s microphone! But more about that in a minute.
Here’s our latest Instagram Diary – An The anniversary, a rum masterclass and a night in quarantine.
Last week Mrs Romance and I were learning all about Aussie craft gin from Kathleen of Nip Of Courage fame. Tonight we’re excited to be getting to grips with some of the amazing rums made right here in Australia. Most people think of rum and immediately go to Bundaberg and its brain-rot.
But there’s a lot more to Australian rum than that. These six rums all taste completely different and all have amazing stories behind them – and not a polar bear in sight.
It’s interesting the way the craft trends have worked their way into our society so far. Craft beer is well and truly here to stay and craft gin is working its way in too. But there’s talk in the hospitality and distilling industries that craft rum is going to be the next big thing. And I can definitely see it.
Today is a very special day for Mrs Romance and me. Today is our 7th wedding anniversary! It’s gone so quickly – it doesn’t feel that long at all. As I mentioned earlier, it rained like mad at our wedding, which was a bit of a shame. We’d found the most amazing venue for our wedding with views out over Sydney Harbour and across to the city.
It was raining so hard though that the sky was completely whited out. You could barely see 10 metres. The funny thing is we have very little memory of the weather. I remember a couple of people having to move because the awning started leaking, and the celebrant had to finish the ceremony off without a mic because hers shorted out, but otherwise we were oblivious.
Everyone else who came remembers though!
We managed to get a few good shots. The venue – Gunners Barracks – is stunning and full of beautiful little spots, even when it’s soaking. Our photographer – Dean Bentick from Inlighten Photography is a genius and if you’re looking for a wedding photographer, this guy’s the best.
When Mrs Romance is having a bad day there’s nothing like a good cookie to get her back up and running. And even more so when you make her one in the shape of the first letter of her name!
These are gluten-free macadamia shortbread cookies and they’re bloody delicious. And they’re easy to make. I’ll be sharing the recipe later this week.
This afternoon, we’re in Centennial Park to check out one of Sydney’s last festivals before the summer ends. Taste of Sydney always does a great job and this year is the best so far.
The layout, the food and drink options, the staff and the fact that the organisers have given a lot of the stallholders free rein to decorate their kiosks as they wish has really made this Sydney’s best food festival.
To finish off a great week, we’re at Q Station in Manly to see what’s going on here. You’ll certainly be hearing more about our time here soon but here’s a quick run-down.
Q Station is Sydney’s old quarantine station out by the entrance to the harbour. It was in use until the mid-1980s but has been repurposed for the leisure industry.
It’s a hotel/retreat with restaurants bars and cafes, it’s a museum and – as you can see – it’s got a beach where you can kayak, snorkel, SUP or just swim!
It’s quite a unique spot. Not only are you in the middle of national park, your staying in heritage listed buildings. Everywhere at Q Station has been either left, restored or rebuilt so that it’s the same as it was when it was used to process new migrants since the 1800s.
To top off this fascinating part of Sydney, they’ve just appointed a new Executive Chef. Matt Kemp, who was the Ambassador Chef to the venue’s Boilerhouse until Tuesday, is keen to take the menus of all the places you can eat at Q Station to a different level.
This linguini, goats cheese and scallop dish is simple yet full of flavour and uses domestic produce. It’s exactly what Matt intends to do with the rest of the food here.
I think the Anzac Bridge is quite underrated. Everyone knows the Harbour Bridge, which is a lovely bridge of course, but you’ve got to admit this is a pretty good one too! We’re out and about enjoying Sydney today – in spite of the Sunday drivers!
Mrs Romance has given me free rein with dinner tonight. I’ve been looking forward to trying out these new extra soft brioche buns with my burgers, which are beef and bacon with dijon, cheese, pickles and siracha mayo. Thought I’d add a touch of truffle oil to the ensemble too. The chips have my own special blend of seasoning over them.
These plates were clean minutes after this shot was taken! Oh, and yes, that’s my negroni in the background. The perfect Sunday drink.
How has your week been? Did you get up to anything fun at the weekend? Did it rain on your wedding day? Tell us in the comments!
