weekend foraging at Hobart's Salamanca market, bottega rotolo and pigeon hole cafe

Saturday morning I visited the famous Salamanca market in Hobart in order to gather goodies for a special birthday dinner party I was to host that evening. Firstly I picked up a few bunches of one of my favourite flowers, tulips. I love the simplicity of tulips, the fact that you can just pop them in a simple jug or vase and they instantly look great... The menu was planned during the week. A good friend is responsible for the dessert and birthday cake, the Gateau Opera. Thank goodness! As I wouldn't have a clue how to make such a complicated layered cake. But this particular friend just so happens to have completed the "Tortes and Gateaux" masterclass at the Agrarian Kitchen cooking school. In this class she learned pastry tricks from Sweet Envy's Alistair Wise. Lucky gal!

At Salamanca market I also bought some fresh vegetables including rocket, garlic, pinkeye potatoes and green beans.

Look at the vibrant colour of these carrots!

Next stop was the recently opened Bottega Rotolo, located in Bathurst Street. It has its very own cheese room in which we bought some French cheese for the entree, twice cooked gruyere cheese souffle. They do not stock gruyere and we were supplied with comte cheese, the French equivalent instead. Sounds fine to me.

A bike at the entrance to Bottega Rotolo conjures images of Italian food markets and sunny days. Well, it does for me, anyway. Anyone else?

Look at the neat shelves! And at the range of yummy supplies. I spied bags of dried mixed forest mushrooms, perfect for winter soups as well as authentic Italian pasta, olive oils and sauces. And much more. We left with more than just cheese!

As it was nearing lunch time and we were after a guaranteed delicious meal, we headed to the Pigeon Hole next. We also bought some of Jay's now famous Pigeon Hole bread for dinner, to serve with the souffle. The fruit and seed sourdough is a special bread, it is only available on Tuesdays and Saturdays...I love it with a little bit of honey but is great with a nice cheese too.

Back home I started sorting the kitchen out to prepare for cooking. I found these vintage scoops at Salamanca market and was tempted to keep them for myself but I think they will make great pieces for prop hire available at The Drill Hall Emporium. I am drawn to their simple function and form.

The large soup tureen is French and I have only just unpacked it since its arrival in our latest shipment. It will keep my small French soupiere company on the bench. It is no secret that I am quite partial to white French porcelain.

Which is why I also bought this large French cake stand on my last buying trip. It has only just been unwrapped too! It goes perfectly with my French glass cloche that I already owned. On my next free day I will make some muffins or friands to place under the cloche.

I potted some hyacinth for the dinner table, an alternative to flowers and low enough not to block vision between diners across the table.

And a potted hyacinth for the birthday girl! In an antique French terracotta pot, of course...

in store...French antiques stacked up!

We are nearing the completion of setting up the shop after the arrival of our antiques shipment. And boy, has it been a big job! Probably the most challenging part of the set up is literally fitting most of the new pieces in. As you can see above we are having to stack up! We are still closed and will reopen on Sunday the 17th July at 10am. I am very excited with the thought of opening the doors for all to see. But if you live far away, don't worry I will be sure to post pictures of my favourite pieces and nooks in the store. Have a great weekend! I certainly hope too...

sneak peek of shipment goodies!

I managed to find loads of lovely French linens on the trip and I have been having fun sorting through them. There is a lot of antique monogrammed sheets which would be great reinvented as tablecloths. Heirlooms of the future. I bought a collection of child's shoe lasts that once belonged to a London cobbler. We have carefully waxed them. Each one is unique and has heaps of character.

Our mortar and pestle stocks have been replenished thanks to these lovely big examples. There is actually an even bigger one yet to be unwrapped.

French hand blown glass bottles. I can never have enough of these.

Views across the store. As you can see, we have a lot of sorting to do!

We will have quite a few sets of French skittles in store including these lovely chunky examples. These would be great fun for family days in the backyard over summer. Or they would just look great displayed on a shelf as they have a great shape and patina.

This basket is French and dates to around 1900. I love the flat weave design and the wooden branch like handle.

French shop scales with brass dishes. We also have a chic white enamel example again with the original brass dishes.

One of my favourite pieces is this French florist's jug with a brass label. We have never had anything quite like this. We are still currently closed at the moment sorting, cleaning and arranging. We will be reopen for trade on Sunday 17th July. I will update on progress late in the week with a few more pictures of how the store is taking shape.

arrived! antique shipment from overseas

Our shipment has finally arrived to our store and we are busy unpacking. As such, we are closed at the moment. We will re-open at 10am on Sunday the 17th July with all of our new goodies on display. I will post some sneak peak photos over the course of the next few weeks...