Celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal explaining how his Fat Duck restaurant is going to work in Melbourne
Heston Blumenthal is bringing his famous restaurant, The Fat Duck, to Melbourne in February next year. Source: Supplied
THOUSANDS of Heston Blumenthal fans are up in arms after missing out on a table at the Melbourne branch of his restaurant The Fat Duck, which opens in February.
Demand for a table at the restaurant was so high that potential diners were asked to enter an online ballot system last month. Successful applicants were then “indiscriminately selected” by an independent third party.
The celebrity chef said he was completely overwhelmed by the response from fans when he announced the restaurant was opening at Crown Resort, and that the only fair way to run reservations was to institute a ballot system.
Crown Melbourne told The Courier Mail it received 89,179 entries worldwide in the online ballot. On an average three person per table booking, that equates to a staggering 267,537 people. Only 14,000 diners were chosen to dine at at the restaurant when it opens on February 3.
The Fat Duck is a Michelin-starred restaurant which has enjoyed nine years on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Blumenthal is moving the UK-based restaurant to Melbourne for six months next year. The 15-course meal costs $525 (excluding drinks), and will feature Blumenthal’s iconic dishes such as Sound of the Sea, Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and Snail Porridge.
British celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal. Photo: Nicole Cleary. Source: News Corp Australia
Applicants were notified of the ballot results via email on Monday night.
Jason Pike was one of the unlucky ones who missed out.
“I think I was a little more disappointed than my wife,” he told news.com.au. “We live in Perth so it would have been pretty expensive. But we are lucky enough to have eaten at the The Fat Duck in Bray and Dinner in London [another Blumenthal restaurant] before.”
As a previous Heston Blumenthal customer, does he think the $525 price tag is worth it?
“Definitely. [The food] was amazing,” he said. His favourite dish? “The hot and cold tea. On one side it’s hot and on another it’s cold. The textures are unbelievable, unlike anything I’ve ever tried before.”
A Crown Resorts spokesman told The Courier Mail there is a huge wait list for the thousands of food lovers who had missed out.
“We are now contacting all entries to advise of results, confirming reservations and advising if unsuccessful and compiling a wait list,’’ a spokesman said.
Unsuccessful applicants took to Twitter to mourn their loss.
Those who did manage to nab a table were more than a little excited.
Jaymie Rowland, from Sydney, is a big Heston Blumenthal fan. Her partner’s request for a four-person table was successful.
“Going to The Fat Duck has always been on my wish list,” she said. “It really is a once in a lifetime experience. There was some dancing, Facebook and Instagram gloating,” she joked.
Other successful applicants also took to social media to gloat:
While many hardcore foodies are more than willing to part with hundreds of dollars for dinner, some Twitter users were laughing at Australia’s burgeoning “bourgeois” obsession with eating at the hottest new restaurant.
Long waits and queuing are becoming the ultimate mark of a trendy restaurant. Diners in many Aussie capital cities know that lining up or waiting up to four hours for a meal at popular restaurants such as Chin Chin in Melbourne or Buffalo Dining Club in Sydney - which don’t take bookings - is standard.
- with Peter Michael
What do you think of Australia’s ‘foodie’ obsession? Has it gone too far? Comment below or tweet us @newscomauhq | @beck_sullivan using the hashtag #thefatduckmelbourne
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