Laneway festivals in Sydney and Melbourne are getting an extra special treat on top of their music bills this year — the organisers have somehow wrangled renowned Australian chef David Moyle (Longsong, Franklin) into curating the festival's food and cocktail offering, with each pairing priced at $25. Dubbed 'Royal Moyle', the lineup sees some of the country's best chefs come together to give festival-goers a gourmet foodie experience.
Moyle will head a stand in both cities, with Melbourne's selection also including food by chefs Dave Verheul (Embla), Shannon Martinez (Smith & Daughters), Josh Murphy and Rory Coucher (Harley & Rose); and Sydney's offering up dishes by Restaurant Hubert's Daniel Pepperell and 10 William St's Enrico Tomelleri. Each dish has been paired with a specialty cocktail by expert mixologist and gin guru Shaun Byrne (Gin Palace).
At both, Moyle will be cooking up coal-grilled aged beef with saltbush and horseradish, paired with Byrne's ginger tea spritz. The Melbourne menu includes Smith & Daughters' meaty vegan cheeseburger paired with a pickleback, Harley & Rose's hot sauce-topped margarita pizza paired with something called a Laneway Juice and Embla's 'chickpeazza' — a combo of an Italian chickpea pancake and a spicy nduja pizza — paired with a Moroccan style gin and tonic.
In Sydney, 10 William Street is turning out a particularly tasty-sounding local squid bruschetta, which has been cooked over coals and flavoured with fermented chilies, capers, oregano and anchovy powder. It's all served on tomato water-dipped and -charred bread, and paired with Byrne's Martini Mary mashup. Not to be outdone, Hubert's chicken roti is topped with a complex Cafe de Paris butter sauce and paired with an alcoholic coconut mango lassi.
Considering food prices at festivals are always hiked up, it's an especially sweet deal to get a high-end, 'chef-ified' dish with a legit cocktail for what normally gets you a warm beer and sub-par burger. Oh you fancy, huh Laneway?
Check out the full Royal Moyle menus on the Sydney and Melbourne Laneway Festival sites.