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e-newsletter 11 | May 2010 |
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Unfortunately - it has taken a little while to ‘get back into work’, after my most recent adventures to Portugal and Spain, but before I get into that - as promised in the last Ideation, there would be more mention of Food and related travels - in this edition.And how timely that is, because over the last 8 days, South Australia was celebrating Tasting Australia with a wealth of wonderful offerings for all people already interested in food and eating, and all those who could be. There were just too many events to mention here in full but refer to www.tasting-australia.com.au I attended 3 excellent events - The Great Curry Debate at the Spice Kitchen - a great fun and food event; an AMCHAM lunch with Stephanie Alexander and K Dun Gifford from Oldways Preservation Trust, Boston, and also a Master Class with Philippe Clergues from Le Cordon Bleu (Paris), where I attended a course in 2008, and Simon Bryant at Regency TAFE. All wonderful and inspiring events where I learnt a lot…. I wish I could have attended more! On an international food theme however, I will refer to some of the ‘food-related highlights’ of my travels below, under Travelling the World Through Food. Fun.Food.Focus was also happy to support the Home Grown Gala Dinner held at the Hilton Hotel, in aid of the Kitchen Garden for the Adelaide Botanic Gardens Foundation during Tasting Australia, and a recent Adelaide Convention Bureau members night, by supplying cooking classes to auction participants. During my last few trips overseas, I have specifically planned to include a cooking class. This has worked very well in Paris, Ireland, NYC and in Portugal. I find that a love of food is a wonderful introduction to some of the more subtle layers of a country and its people. Through food - I have been taken on such wonderful adventures, met some fantastic local people I would not normally have had a chance to meet, got to visit their homes or businesses (often in unique locations) and also learnt about the history, religion, art and many other aspects of their culture - often all over preparing a great meal! Amongst all of this - Knowledge Management has not been forgotten, and some recent activities are outlined in the segment - AKN - Sharing Knowledge Around the World. We have just about finished updating our webpage, and the new, revised version will be on-line shortly. Stay tuned - and contact Helen if you would like further details info@thepaigegroup.com.au Until our next edition… Helen Paige Founder and Director - The Paige Group |
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As noted in our last e-zine the remarkable impact of TV food shows such as Network 10’s Masterchef, continues to stir and stimulate the ‘inner chef’ in people from all walks of life, and all age groups. We have always focused on the manner in which cooking allows our clients to improve many aspects of their daily business activities - such as leadership, time management, and creativity, and this focus continues.Since our last e-zine we have moved through Summer, into Autumn and are now feeling some of the winter cold creeping in… or is it just me? We commenced the year with a fantastic Chocolate Indulgence Class and since then have been presenting our monthly Pizza, Sushi and Exotic Thai classes. Guests at our January Chocolate Class were full of praise after their choclatey 2 hours of cooking and for one family group of grandmother, mother and child - it was. ‘Thanks Helen. It was a lovely night, and a great way for us girls to spend a fun night together. We might do it again down the track!’ All Fun.Food.Focus classes are open to individuals or groups. So why not bring some friends and enjoy an entertaining, interactive and innovative ‘hands on’ cooking experience that will stir your creative soul! A firm favourite with all age groups is our specialty pizza classes. Held on the second Saturday of every month with Chef and our new pizza guru Chris, it is the perfect way to spend an afternoon. Held at a near-city location - Bookings are now open for the next pizza making class on Saturday 12th June, 2010. For ALL 2010 dates please go to www.funfoodfocus.com.au Famous not only for his sushi prowess, Chef Fumi takes you on a voyage of discovery as he explores the essence of Japanese culture and cuisine. Come along and share some food magic with Chef Fumi (and he really does do magic tricks as well!) Our next class is scheduled for Saturday 19th June, 2010, so reserve your place now. The ever popular Exotic Thai cooking classes is now under the culinary guidance of Chef Jittiporn. Jittiporn is sharing her culinary expertise in the delights of traditional THAI cooking, and our clients are really enjoying her gentle, yet persuasive style. Contact Helen on 8271 1173 for further details and to register your interest.
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| I decided that the best way, in limited space, to describe some fabulous food experiences was to do it this way - France 2009 Highlight Dinner at the Hotel et Restaurant Regis et Jacque Marcon www.regismarcon.fr and Review www.dininginfrance.com  (a Grand Chef Relaise & Chateaux) where Jacque Marcon presides over the restaurant. Although I was not able to retain a menu, a couple of highlights from a brilliant dinner were - green puy lentils in a tiny cone of very fine pastry served Chinese style; froi gras with raw fish sandwiched in the middle; orange with trout mousse; baby root vegetables served in a tiny jar… the dishes kept coming, but I must stop hereOther great ‘food’ experiences in Paris: 
Cooking course with Chef Diogo at his home. Shopping in the local supermarket first where there was an amazing array of goods including one corner specifically devoted to different legs of jamon. The menu I chose was quite simple, a selection of local cheeses and jamon; soft cheese and strawberries with a basil sauce to start; duck with thyme and asparagus, potatoes and mushrooms and fantastic local wine. Usually the Portugese have cakes for dessert - but we did not on this occasion. Most buy them as the range of sweets is just amazing… Spain 2010 Highlight Dinner at Hardy - www.lhardy.com a restaurant and bakery which has been operating since 1839. A menu representative of the local cuisine - fish of all kinds, white beans, tortilla, paella, lentil stew, chickpea stew with cod… (Unfortunately there are no pictures from Portugal or Spain as I had my camera stolen on the day before we came home!) |
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 Fun.Food.Focus has also been at work providing team building and ‘hands on’ cooking for the corporate sector. We continue to feel privileged to work with some great South Australia companies and their people.The Unley Council team of 15 people had a great day out cooking Exotic Thai at a market venue in the Adelaide Hills; while a major South Australia energy supplier and their team of  30, undertook ‘hands on’ Sushi making, in a near city location. Helen also recently did a cooking demonstration for a work group at Santos as part of their Health and Fitness program. We were also pleased to work with medium-sized businesses as well, and the ‘fun’ girls from Ferrier Fashion Fabrics really ‘cooked up a storm’ with their French Experience menu which included Chive pancakes with red onion confit; Goats curd and bacon parcels, Pissaladiere, Coq au vin; Potatoes sautéed with garlic and herbs; Zucchini creole; green salad with Roquefort, pear and hazelnuts and fresh fruit Clafoutis. ‘It was really good fun – a great team event I had a fabulous time. Well done…full marks!’ Conference Market  We were also pleased to host a national financial group, a customer of an interstate conference organizer to a ‘hands on crepe making’ session at a Southern winery. Not only did the group make their crepe batter in groups, but then cooked their crepes, under the watchful eye of David the ‘Crepe Maker Extraordinaire’. Although it may look simple, some of the group found that there was a little more to crepe making than they thought!After all this busy cooking, the guests filled their crepes with a range of fillings including strawberries, bananas, mixed berries, whipped cream, chocolate sauce,lemon juice, sugar or maple syrup. There were a lot of contented murmurs as the guests enjoyed their  crepes -including these two young cooks.
‘Everyone was happy. It was a great day.’ ‘Thanks – it would be great to work with you again!’ ‘Many thanks –I lovedyour session – absolutely fun and engaging – now to trial it …’ Fun.Food.Focus is an experienced provider for the conference and events sector. For those seeking a memorable experience for delegates, partners or clients please contact us for more information and specific marketing collateral for this sector. E-mail us at ask@funfoodfocus.com.au
Corporate Events with Fun Food Focus Fun Food Focus offers ‘hands-on’ cooking classes that can be expertly tailored to meet strategic business objectives such as team building and motivation, change management or purely as a staff reward. We offer a range of culinary experiences matched with a variety of venue options for a unique and unforgettable corporate event suited to your individual requirements. Hear more from our satisfied clients and view our video now at www.funfoodfocus.com.au |
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Lisbon, Portugal - March 2010 At the end of March I was invited to facilitate a World Knowledge Café at the 2nd European Conference on Intellectual Capital at the Lisbon University Institute, Lisbon. The conference was truly an international affair with every major country represented and many smaller ones. The Topic for the World Knowledge Café was ‘What progress has been made in the last decade in raising awareness, and developing robust measurement and reporting methods in IC?’ Although not strictly a KM topic, there is an inevitable link between Intellectual Capital and KM - as was mentioned by many at the Conference. As there were a number of streams, it was not possible to hear all of the presentations, but I have a handbook of all proceedings, which I am sure that I will find a valuable reference over time. Some key points arising from this discussion were:
  As is the nature of Conferences, one of the very positive benefits is the capacity to meet new and interesting people. Amongst others, I had the pleasure of connecting with Geoff Turner from the University of Nicosia, Cyprus (and it turns out that Geoff was a former South Australian who worked at the University of South Australia); Ken Dovey from the University of Technology, Sydney, Annie Brooking, a visiting Professor at the School of Computing Science at the University of Newcastle, UK; Mark Koole from TiasNimbas Business School, The Netherlands, and Professor Leif Edvinssen, a leading expert on IC from Sweden. I will be keeping in touch with all the contacts made and following up many of the ideas promoted at the Conference. Knowledge Cafe, Adelaide Our Knowledge Café meets every month on a Wednesday in either the morning or the evening. As the Convenor of the above café, Ian, (our webmaster) and the rest of the group, are always pleased to see new members. If you would like to find out more particulars, please see www.frysystems.com.au/km and follow the links. Next meeting: Wednesday 19th May at 6pm Venue: APA: 30 Currie Street, Adelaide - Meet in Foyer Topic: ‘Moving from Learning Management to Knowledge Management with Moodle’ Practical presentation by Pru Mitchell, Senior Education Officer, Education Services Australia Join our Linked-In Group. |
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The Paige Group - www.thepaigegroup.com.au - (08) 8271 1173 / 0403 374 183 - info@thepaigegroup.com.au