Crown adds another tower to skyline

The Crown Casino in Melbourne, a hub for tourists and sightseers, intends to build a third hotel tower in the Southbank precinct. The idea is to capitalise on the construction of the $A1bn Melbourne Convention Centre, which will be built next door. This means that more conference attendees will want hotel rooms. Victoria is picking up more and more international tourists. Insiders think that the new hotel will have 20 levels and 650 rooms. It will cost around $A300m to build. The Age (Melbourne), February 27.

Law hams it up for Spanish pigs

The Spanish Government plans to tighten regulations for production of a type of ham that is a staple of the Spanish diet, and an increasingly popular export, to ensure it is made the traditional way—from free-range pigs fed on acorns and herbs. Ambiguous laws have meant that techniques used to produce the salt-cured ham known as jamon Iberico, or Iberian ham, do not always comply with the standards for the product to receive a certificate of quality, Spanish newspaper El Pais said. The Agriculture Ministry plans reforms so the title jamon Iberico will only be granted to ham from Iberian pigs that graze in open countryside on acorns and herbs such as rosemary and thyme, and not to ham from stable-bound pigs that are fed grain, as often happens now. Ham is serious business in Spain. The industry produces about five million legs of salt-cured ham a year, and the prized Iberian products can retail for more than E200 ($333) a leg. The Australian, February 27.

The spice road

There are places which have the power to change our lives for ever. For David Thompson, that place was Thailand, a country that ignited not only his love of the land and its people but also its cuisine. Thompson is now acknowledged as a master in Thai cuisine and is the owner of Nahm restaurant in London, the only Thai restaurant in Europe ever given a Michelin star. ''I first visited Thailand 25 years ago and was seduced by the place straight away,'' he says. Thompson moved there, and under the tutelage of the wife of a high-ranking bureaucrat, he was made privy to the cooking techniques and ingredients that bore little resemblance to his classical French training. While he spent several months with her ''pounding pastes with a mortar and pestle, sweating over woks and sneezing over curries'', he found himself fascinated by the richness and history of Thai cuisine and began to collect and study ''memorial books''. The Courier Mail (Brisbane), February 27.

Hard Rock to shut

Melbourne’s Hard Rock Cafe is to close after 12 years in the city. The cafe, part of the Hotel Windsor building at the top of Bourke St in the city, will shut when its lease expires in July. It is not yet known if the cafe will move elsewhere. Crown casino, Docklands and the soon-to-be-redeveloped St Kilda triangle are believed to be among possible sites. The Bourke St hamburger restaurant was launched in October 1995, with Boz Scaggs performing. The cafe will become the victim of the Hotel Windsor refurbishment in Spring St. The 124-year-old landmark was bought by property investor Adam Garrisson and the Halim family in October 2005. Mr Garrisson, who also co-owns the Jamie Oliver-inspired Fifteen restaurant in the city, yesterday said the Hard Rock Cafe space would be integrated into the hotel's food and functions operations. Herald Sun (Melbourne), February 27.

Pokies still king; Gambling revenues drive rush for pubs

The Yemplestowe Hotel has changed hands for a staggering $39m. Up and coming pokie king Sam Castello has bought the suburban beer barn in an off-market deal from the Marcocci family. The Marcocci family part-owns the University Meats company which distributes meat to restaurants. A caveat has just been placed on the Parker Rd, Lower Templestowe property by IATM, a company controlled by Mr Castello. Mr Castello already owns seven pubs as part of Castello's Hotel Group, including Berwick, Cranbourne, Kealba and Moonee Ponds. Herald Sun, February 27

Surge in demand for roo meat

South Australia's kangaroo population has fallen to historic lows—down more than 400,000—but world-wide demand for the bush meat continues to surge. Department of Environment and Heritage figures show South Australian roo numbers are at their lowest levels since monitoring began 28 years ago. Last year's aerial survey recorded red and western grey kangaroo numbers at 1.18m, a slight increase on 2005 but well below the 1.59m when surveying began in 1978. Australian roo meat is being processed, packed and shipped from SA into supermarkets and on to restaurant plates as far away as Russia as the world develops a palate for our national fauna. Australia Meats managing director Anton Martynenko said increased demand for the low-fat meat, a supply shortage because of drought and reduced harvest quotas had increased prices. ''Five years ago, the price per kilo of carcass was 60-65c, now it is around the $1 mark,'' he said. Sunday Mail (Adelaide), February 25.

Security guards for restaurants: Bid to keep Norton Street safe for families

Restaurateurs in Leichhardt have developed a plan for private security patrols to keep Norton St family friendly, claiming police are not doing enough to maintain order. The proposal, estimated to cost about $50,000 for a six-month trial, would result in security guards patrolling the popular Italian-themed dining strip. The aim is to control antisocial behaviour and deter hoons in hotted-up cars, whom many businesses fear are undermining the area's appeal. Leichhardt Chamber of Commerce President Lino Raiti attributed the problem to a shift in police strategy towards ''super stations'' over small, suburban ones. Police patrols had been a rarity on Norton St since Leichhardt police station closed in the 1990s, despite a series of intermittent campaigns targeting trouble-makers. The security guard plan was officially rejected by Leichhardt City Council this month, and branded unworkable by police, but the chamber intends to continue pressing for it if matters do not improve following the State election. Sunday Telegraph (Sydney), February 25.