Hosting a dinner party? Find fresh food in Camberwell

Like any great dinner party guest list, to be a success, dinner party food needs to tick several boxes.

Fruit and vegetables should be fresh and harvested at just the right time for optimum taste and crunch; meat dishes should be lean and the precise cut; and every dish should have at least one ingredient that is unusual, intriguing and highly memorable.

Camberwell, long known as the home of some of Melbourne’s most fastidious foodies, is also where Melbourne chefs and weekend warriors come to find the very best produce the city has to offer.

Here’s where you can find fresh food in Camberwell to host the ultimate dinner party at home:

Fresh fruit and vegetables

Is this mango the right shade of orange? How firm should a tomato be? Forget all those ‘tricks’, when it comes to finding fresh fruit and vegetables there’s just one rule of thumb: the shorter the time from paddock to plate, the fresher the produce.

The fresh food at the Camberwell Fresh Food Market comes straight from the wholesale markets – and it doesn’t get quicker than that!

If you want your dinner party to be right on trend, stop in and chat with the greengrocers at Coltivare. They know exactly what the ‘it’ ingredient of the foodie season is, and they stock it.

Forgotten that ingredient, or simply need more? Camberwell’s major supermarkets, including Aldi, Coles and Woolworths, offer a wide range of fresh food and are open late most nights.

Meat and seafood

The real test of any dinner party is the quality of the meats and seafood – if you’re cooking meat, it had better be excellent quality and ultra-fresh.

Camberwell has a wide selection of butchers and seafood specialists known for exceptional quality. Camberwell Market Seafood and Fish Pier are names that those in the know regularly drop.

Boasting about your ethical food choices makes for interesting dinner table conversation, so buy your fresh poultry cuts and eggs from Camberwell Market Poultry, which stocks a wide range of free range, organic, chemical and hormone free produce.

If you’re looking to serve something unique to your dinner guests, opt for pheasant, guinea fowl and Jurassic quail, plus rabbit and hare from Golden Rooster.

Speciality ingredients

Every recipe has ingredients that you only need one or two of. Cut down on waste and expense, by purchasing the exact amount of those extras, like nuts and spices, at The Source Bulk Foods in Camberwell.

If your dinner party has an oriental flavour, you’ll find everything you need for cuisines all across Asia at BIN – The Asian Store.

Or if you’re planning a European feast, you’ll find specialty pastries, cakes and breads at the bakeries around Camberwell, including Laurent Patisserie and Provence Artisan Bakery.

Bon Appétit!

This article was also published on The Annual Camberwell Dinner Party website.