Our BYRON BAY FOOD TOURS and COOKING CLASSES were born from the simple philosophy that,
“SLOW FOOD …….. JUST TASTES BETTER!!”
Byron Bay is fast gaining a reputation within Australia and globally as a fully fledged food destination. With many people arguing that Byron now rivals Tasmania, in terms of the quality and abundance of locally grown and produced food ………… yeah I know controversial!
meet local Macadamia Farmer Bruno on our Friday Organic Farm Food Tours
So why does Byron Bay and The Northern Rivers Food region have the ability to offer such a diverse and stunning food bowl? Lots of reasons really BUT here are just a few for you to consider. Byron Bay and the surrounding areas are blessed with rich and fertile volcanic soil, and of course who could forget those pristine waters that we all know and love! To this enviable mix from nature, add a good healthy annual rain fall, some traditionally mild winters AND the world’s largest subtropical rainforest. Of course any one of these elements is exciting and intriguing on their own BUT add them all together and you have a truly unique location for producing stunning food! The strength and depth of the Byron Bay food culture hasn’t happened over night by any means, it has taken decades of hard work and dedication by countless advocates of Slow Food. AND long before organic and free range were considered sexy!
Why have we chosen to call the Fig Tree Restaurant property home base for our Taste Byron Bay Food Tours and Cooking Classes? My aunty Heather and uncle Charly purchased the property back in 1978, in 1981 they opening the Fig Tree Restaurant, along with their four sons building it into the much loved institution it is today. I was also lucky enough to spend many of our family holidays up in Byron, hanging out at the Fig Tree and enjoying countless long family lunches out on the balcony. My cousin Che now runs the Fig Tree, which has given me the opportunity to come full circle after years of training as a chef and travelling, to return to Byron and to team up with Che is well ………… a dream come true really! I am actually still pinching myself ….
harvesting our own fresh seasonal ingredients straight from the Fig Tree Garden is one of our favourite things to do!
To further take full advantage of our idyllic location. Before each of our classes we will walk around The Fig Tree’s award-winning garden enjoying the opportunity to handpick many of the fresh vegetables and herbs for the days cooking class. Essentially giving some of our produce a carbon footprint of 100 meters!
So be sure you pack your gumboots and appetite, so you can join the daily garden harvest!!
We believe GREAT PRODUCE IS CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION! And as such, have intentionally designed each of our cooking classes to include a relaxed sit down lunch, with a chance to enjoy a glass of wine or locally handcrafted beer.
We’d like to invite you to discover another side of Byron Bay, as part of our FOOD TOURS and COOKING CLASSES and sample first hand why “SLOW FOOD ……. JUST TASTES BETTER!!”
I’m looking forward to welcoming you to Byron Bay and giving you our inside guide to the BEST OF BYRON BAY!
Terase xxx