The hybrid deli taking Dunsborough’s dining up another notch

Just in time for summer, veteran chef and hospo entrepreneur, Michael Forde will have a liquor licence for his Dunn Bay Continental deli at the South Camp development in Dunsborough.

Forde’s hybrid café, coffee shop, fruit and veg store is the Boatshed of the South West. A bit of background: we’ve always enjoyed Forde’s cooking when he was a young chef with ambitions and opened his first venue in Mount Lawley, Cantina 663. It quickly became a destination with delightful dishes and great service when it started in 2006.

Dunn Bay Continental in the South Camp hub in Dunsborough. Credit: Rob Broadfield

He went on to start the Mary Street Bakery chain and then El Publico, Cantina, Tiny’s and Ace Pizza restaurants in Perth. At Dunn Bay Continental, rotisserie chickens are turned on the fire twice a day and they’ll sell a range of 40-50 cheeses, a similar amount of charcuterie and cold cuts, fresh flowers, and there’s even a homeware department.

As soon as their licence is granted in mid-November, they will open their liquor store specialising in low intervention, and natural wines. It will include a 40-seat dining room, and while Forde is no longer on the tools, we can expect some of his masterful cooking.

The great news for foodies is that Dunn Bay Continental will use Manjimup farmer Dean Ryan’s extraordinary Jersey beef. Ryan’s herd of Jerseys are dairy cows but he was an early adopter of the trend toward older milk cows for beef production.

Dunn Bay Continental owner Michael Forde.Credit: Rob Broadfield

Every right-on chef in the country is now serving dairy cow. We’ve tasted Ryan’s Lake Janice brand beef at Rockpool and at his farm and it is truly remarkable. Forde says he will have about 4000 lines at the South Camp shop.

You can order online and have it delivered to your holiday home or boat. They’ve bought a tender, which they will use to ferry your orders out to your vessel. Very cool.

Currently they do five revolving salads every day, whole chickens, mac and cheese, gratins, chips and dips and desserts like tiramisu, panna cottas, chocolate mousse and fruit crumbles. You can dine in or take it away.

A rogue with heart

Le Rebelle chef/owner Liam Atkinson has this week launched his “Yeah Rogue” menus at his moody Bar Rogue in Mount Lawley.

“It’s been a tough year for hospo. No one’s making a lot of money right now. Customers are tightening their belts and the money’s just not there,” Atkinson told Broadbrush.

“There’s no use fighting it. I think we have to lighten the mood a bit and just roll with it.”

Yeah Rogue was born of the idea of giving back to customers and community with special inexpensive menus serving food that people recognise and are comfortable with. Rotisserie chicken with a salad, chips and a glass of wine for $20 is one of the offers and on Sundays, Bar Rogue will do a Sunday Sundowner with light cocktails and $2 snacks.

“We’ve even lightened the mood in the bar with new paint finishes and décor.”

“It’s not a money-maker for us,” Atkinson said.

“It’s about getting our customers out of the house and into the bar for good times and a bit of fun.

“When people are worried about the mortgage or money generally, it’s sometimes hard to see the lighter, fun side of life, so we made the decision to be here for locals and our Bar Rogue friends.

“We’ll be running the special menus until the end of the year and possibly into 2024.”

Huge props for team Atkinson.

Rooftop Pop

Heritage restaurant on St Georges Terrace is a mild-mannered, well-heeled restaurant with an extraordinary wine list, not the sort of restaurant to do pop-ups and consumer events. Or so you might have thought.

Heritage is staging a consumer event called Rooftop Pop. We didn’t even know they had a rooftop. But apparently the top of their heritage-listed building has room for carousing and drinking.

Rooftop Pop is on November 17 and is all about champagne and sparkling wine. It will feature 35-plus titles from 20 producers from, as the Heritage people tell us, “some of Perth’s best wine distributors.”

Wines will be served with caviar and oysters by the lads at Fins Seafood. There are two sessions: 5pm-6.30pm and 7pm-8.30pm. It’s a showcase of the best of the world of bubbles just ahead of Christmas. Tickets are $30. Big discounts if you place an order at the event.

Latin Eats and beats

We have a few special food and drink deals for you this week, kicking off with Market Grounds’ Mercado Nights every Thursday from an amazeballs $15 per person. You can chow down on empanadas, ceviche and salchipapa to the throbbing sound of Latin beats and $15 cocktail specials featuring pisco sour, margaritas and mojitos. Mercado Nights kicks off at 7pm.

On hump day (Wednesday) Market Grounds present their bottomless bao evening from 5pm. How about sticky tempura eggplant bao with bang bang sauce, chicken karaage bao with katsu sauce and crisp cabbage and char sui pork belly bao with chipotle slaw and pickled daikon? $35.

Chicken at The Aviary

The Aviary bar in the city has a Wednesday special called Cluckin’ Good Wednesdays. It’s all about tangy, spicy buffalo chicken and good drinks from $12. Perfect.

Global drinks ‘n’ eats in the city

And to round out your week, Tuesday’s deal at The Globe must be the gold medal-winner of the city’s mid-week specials, with $10 Tommy’s Margaritas and $15 loaded tacos. Best thing, the special is available all day Tuesday.

Getting loose at Lucy Luu

Get your lunch on at Mount Hawthorne’s Lucy Luu on Thursday and Friday and you can enjoy a $30 bento box special.

Dishes in the box include popcorn chicken (or chilli pepper corn ribs for the vegos), truffle fried rice, dumplings and a side of slaw.

And on Tuesday nights play Double or Dumplings. Lucy will give you an extra serve of dumplings when you purchase any pan-fried pork, crispy prawn or lamb dumplings. Go the lamb, they’re our favourites.

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