iatebrisbane.com

In this blog I’ve tried to remain a happy-go-lucky little bluebird of light and happiness, which I think is a great way to be most of the time, but recently I’ve been getting rather frustrated with food. And it seems a number of other people have been as well. On the front page of the Courier-Mail today was an article by Sarah Vogler stating that under new Brisbane City Council rule restaurants and eateries will have to display a food hygiene and safety rating in their windows. A rating of two plates the worst, and 5 plates to be the best rating.

This idea sits really well with me.  I’m definitely an advocate for transparency within business, especially when it comes to food. Naming and shaming – as stated in the article, is a little inaccurate, it’s simply a matter keeping the bastards honest. Often when you order food from an eatery or restaurant you really don’t know what you’re going to get. The kitchen is in the back, a smiley teenager takes your order and then you’re presented with something that could have been dropped on the floor, sneezed upon, then quickly stuffed back into the burger. This new regulation won’t fix it all, but at least people will have some assistance with making decisions on the safety of their food.

And safety is what this all boils down to. I’ve had a number of friends who have had severe food poisoning from eating at fast food restaurants – to the point where they were hospitalized with a drip in their arm. And the places are still in business! I’ve been served up a side salad where the cucumber was so old it was falling apart, pies out of a heater that were room temperature inside, sandwiches that were obviously made the day before.  And you simply don’t know these things until you have them in your hands and sometimes only after you’ve swallowed.  (I used to live in Papua New Guinea – I now have an iron stomach – no hospitalisation for me yet!) Possibly what will happen with this new rule is people may begin to have their own personal ‘rules’. Maybe they “simply won’t go to anything less than a 4 plate restaurant.” This, my friends, is the start of something good.

I personally have a pretty strict boycotting rule. If I eat bad food at a place once, I won’t go back. If I get something pretty mediocre (but not obviously unsafe) I may try it once more. Unfortunately, it’s getting to a point in my surrounding suburbs that I’ve boycotted a hefty amount of places. Don’t get me wrong, Brisbane has some absolutely amazing food, with very talented chefs. But I’m not talking about the high-end stuff. We can’t all eat that everyday. I’m talking about the suburban bakeries, the fish and chip shops, the food-court eateries at shopping malls. There is a lot of food being made and sold in Brisbane that is sub-standard. I just wish the cooks and chefs in these places would be a little more passionate about the food they are creating. Yes, maybe we need to pay a little more for that meat-pie, but if it’s a bloody good meat pie then it’s worth it.  Honestly, if people start to boycott these places, they will have to change the way they do business.

My hope is that this rule will create more awareness in the community of what good food really is, and that people will decide not to frequent businesses that are not delivering high quality goods.  It doesn’t have to be  beautiful or fancy. It simply has to be delicious, and most importantly safe.