Posts By: Michelle Symes

Bendigo is going to Hollywood!

by Michelle Symes • February 2, 2024

Some of our region’s best produce will have a starring role in this year’s G’Day USA Gala event, showcasing Bendigo and central Victoria as Australia’s first UNESCO Creative City and Region of Gastronomy.  The G’Day USA Gala includes a dinner for 460 guests, who will all receive a Bendigo Gastronomy VIP artisan gift bag featuring […]


Bendigo, A Place Full of Gastronomic History

by Michelle Symes • July 20, 2023

It is no surprise that Bendigo was designated Australia’s first UNESCO Creative City and Region of Gastronomy in 2019. Our gastronomy story is about growing, sourcing, cooking and sharing food. It is how our culture and heritage is represented and shared through what we eat, drink, the places we share meals, and the memories we […]


A School Putting Gastronomy Front and Centre

by Michelle Symes • March 7, 2023

As you walk through the doors of Kaliana, you are met with a quiet hive of activity. In particular, the canteen staff are hard at work in readiness for lunch service. The difference in this canteen is that it’s not volunteer parents preparing the food, instead, it’s the kids doing all the work. As is […]


Planting Seeds for New Beginnings

by Michelle Symes • August 16, 2022

It’s 9.00am, I walk through the doors and am welcomed by a security guard. This is the first time I have started my workday with a full body Xray, a duress alarm on my belt and a meander around a series of kitchen gardens with a slight feeling of apprehension. On this day however, the […]


Symposium of Gastronomy Day 4, The Future of Regenerative Food, the Importance of Food Relief & learning all Things Olive Oil.

by Michelle Symes • June 7, 2022

Some might think that four days of gastronomy related learnings, paired with eating and drinking is excessive, to them I say not true. Four days seemed like just enough. Our morning took place at The Old Church on the Hill a beautiful old property that supports more than 30 local communities. The Hazara community from […]


Symposium of Gastronomy – Day 3, Annie Smithers, First Nations Agriculture and all the Cheese

by Michelle Symes • May 31, 2022

Annie Smithers eased us into day three with visions of her farm Babbington Park on a cold crispy autumn morning “It’s hard to drag me out of the garden and into the kitchen on days like that”.  Annie reflected on her experience growing food on her small acreage in Lyonville. She discussed what it was […]


24th Symposium of Gastronomy

by Michelle Symes • May 30, 2022

For many, the concept of gastronomy is a new one. The Oxford Dictionary defines gastronomy as ‘The practice or art of choosing, cooking, and eating good food’. For one cohort of Australians, this term has been in their vernacular for more than 20 years. In recognition of Bendigo’s UNESCO City of Gastronomy designation, the 24th […]