Tony Tan has been a pioneer of Asian cuisine in Australia. Photo: Mark Roper.
Australian culinary icon Tony Tan is coming to Canberra for a special one-off collaboration with local restaurant Miss Van’s to launch his latest book, Tony Tan’s Asian Cooking Class.
From his start in the hospitality scene in Sydney and Melbourne in the 1980s to a stint on SBS TV’s The Food Lovers’ Guide to Australia in the 90s, Tony Tan has been a much-respected voice championing Asian cuisine in Australia. He’s run restaurants and cafes, appeared on television, written cookbooks and now runs cooking classes from his home in Trentham, Victoria.
His latest book, Tony Tan’s Asian Cooking Class, is a one-stop guide to Asian cuisine aimed at home cooks.
Miss Van’s owner Andrew Duong has been a fan of Tony’s for a long time.
“As an Asian hospitality worker and then restaurant owner, I really look up to those within the industry that pushed the boundaries and pushed the narrative of Asian food in Australia,” he told Region.
“I remember seeing him on TV when I was younger … he’s the kind of industry figurehead I gravitate towards.”
Braised pork belly with soy sauce is a recipe in the book that may appear at lunchtime. Photo: Mark Roper.
Andrew got the chance to meet his culinary inspiration after realising his partner’s godparents were personal friends of Tony’s from his time in Hong Kong. A few months ago he participated in a class at Tony’s cooking school and the pair got talking.
“He runs this lovely cooking school in his beautiful kitchen with up to 12 guests, and he’s really a one-man army. He does all the preparation, the admin, the cooking, the cleaning … I got dobbed in as having hospitality experience, so I ended up helping out on the day!”
After chatting about Miss Van’s and the hospitality industry in general, Tony asked if Andrew would be interested in hosting an event in Canberra as part of his book tour.
“My answer was totally yes! 100%! As long as we could make the dates align for the venue.”
Tony Tan’s new cookbook launch will be held in Canberra on 26 October. Photo: Mark Roper.
The result is a one-off long lunch on 26 October featuring a four-course menu of dishes from Tony’s book, cooked and served by the team at Miss Van’s.
“We’ll work collaboratively with Tony on the menu, and he’ll be there earlier to go over the recipes, so everything will get his tick of approval.”
During the four-course meal, Tony will explain the history behind the dishes and offer some insights into his decades-long career in the industry. Guests will also receive a signed copy of the new book.
The Tony Tan book launch and long lunch is on 26 October 26. Select this date at 12 pm to book via Miss Van’s. Follow Tony Tan and Miss Van’s on Instagram.
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