A sunny day drive to the countryside…We never know what we’ll find…

Posted by worldwide-admin on with 0 Comment
Green/spring onions were being processed for wholesale distribution.

While driving often throughout the countryside, we are often surprised by what we have found along the way. Whether its an exquisite view of the ocean, horses and colts in a field or a kilometer of roadside wild flowers, we often stop for a better look and to take a few photos.

We have rarely found a region as rich in diversity and landscapes as we have seen since arriving in Tasmania a month ago today. Not only are the views of the ocean, mountain and green hills breathtaking, but the people are some of the warmest and friendliest we’ve ever met in the world.

The farm, Dendra Market Gardens, seemed to be inaccessible to the public.

With 13 days remaining until we depart Penguin to head to the Huon Valley, a 45 minute drive from the capital of Hobart, we’re taking advantage of every opportunity to explore, especially on sunny days, treasured here in the summertime.

When we stumbled upon Dendra Market Gardens a few days before Christmas, we weren’t surprised we weren’t able to arrange a tour when the owner and his workers were obviously swamped preparing produce to be transported for the busy holiday season.

This particular farm cultivated a wide range of products.

We met the owner, chatting with him for a few moments as he approved of our photography and wandering on our own. Respectful of the busy holiday processing, we only spent a short time walking around the beautifully planted and arranged farm located in the small town of Cuprona, Tasmania.

And small town, it is indeed! With a population of 308 based on a 2011 survey, we have never seen a “city center” that could hardly be the case, for a city of this size. Instead, locals travel no more than 20 minutes to gain access to Burnie the closest larger city as shown in this map below:

Later, in researching online, we discovered the following information about Dendra Market Gardens from this site:

“Tasmanian Dennis Davis used to work in the shipping industry, and grew lettuces out-of-hours.

But somehow the leafy greens drew him away from shipping altogether and now he’s a full-time market gardener employing 30 workers.
He doesn’t grow lettuces anymore, but has parsley, snow peas, tomatoes, silverbeet, Asian greens, leeks, and radishes.  (And more since publication date of this online post).  Although he no longer grows lettuce, he has parsley, snow peas, tomatoes, beets, Asian vegetables, leeks and radishes.
It’s summer in that part of the world, which makes agriculture more common during the right season.
“They’re all niche crops that we’re growing,” he said.
“Some of them have happened primarily to keep people employed through the winter time so that we can maintain a stable, experienced workforce.”
And that experience is important because all the vegetables are hand planted and weeded.”
“We do a lot of hoeing.”
“We average probably 1.6 million plants in a year and they’re all planted by hand because it’s much more accurate and efficient.” Continued below.
Produce grown under a cover for protection from sun and rain.
In the 14 years Dennis has had Dendra Gardens at Cuprona in the north-west he’s seen a significant change in consumer tastes.
Asian vegetables are growing in popularity, and he now grows five varieties. “We’ve had a gradual increase in Asian migrants coming to live in Tasmania. But the general population seems to be being educated toward new kinds of food.”
Zucchini is a popular crop in Tasmania, which is referred to as cogent in many parts of the world.

So far, we’ve found many local businesses in Tasmania such as this farm to be less sophisticated in their use of the technology and the Internet for the promotion of their products. But, owners and staff are savvy and aggressive in their efforts to grow their businesses with integrity and passion for their products and services.

By coupling years of hard work, dedication and old country values seem to be working for each of those we’ve highlighted in our posts over this past month. It’s an amazing place, this Tasmania. We look forward to more discoveries over these remaining days on this special Australian island.

Soon, we’re taking off for a visit to Ulverstone and who knows what more awaits us! Happy day to all! 

Photo from one year ago today, January 3, 2016:

One year ago today, we posted favorite photos of our time in Pacific Harbour, Fiji as we prepared to leave. This photo of Tom was on the night of his birthday last year when we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at the Pearl Resort’s gourmet restaurant, Seduce, definitely deserving of a five star review. For more details, please click here.

Perpendicular Deli, Espresso Bar, Restaurant and shop… A “not-to-be-missed” stop for tourists and locals…

Posted by worldwide-admin on with 2 Comments
Talk about friendly people in Penguin!  Karen and Daniel, owners of Perpendicular are the epitome of Australian (and Penguin) warmth and kindness, making every patron walking through the door feeling as if this special spot could easily be a second home.

When Terry, our new friend, and landlord told us about Perpendicular Deli, Espresso Bar, Restaurant and shop, located off Main Street, only a short walk from our vacation home in Penguin, Tasmania, we couldn’t resist making a visit.

Karen and Daniel, both Australians, the thoughtful, creative, and friendly owners were quick to share their story of dreaming of owning a business in this quaint oceanfront town. 
Perpendicular Deli, Espresso Bar, Restaurant and Shop is located off Main Street in Penguin, Tasmania at 7 Arnold Street (behind the big bargain bottle shop). Note the penguin on the roof!  Easy parking is available in the lot as shown and on the street.

During this past year, they’ve made their dreams a reality with hard work and dedication, a customer-friendly design, easy to access location and the finest of food products and amenities. 

In the process, a casual, French-inspired café, barista, and restaurant was born to further the dining needs of the residents of Penguin who’ve had few dining establishments in this small town of a population of approximately 4000.
Casual dining area in Perpendicular!  Breakfast is served from 6:30 am to 10 am and dinner  is served from 5:30 pm six days a week.  Perpendicular is closed on Wednesdays.  Call with questions:  0416 462 162 or (03) 6437 2659 or email Daniel at daniel@danielmarks.com.au
Penguin attracts tourists from all over the world for its beautiful beaches, water sports, quaint persona and habitat for the small Fairy Penguins.  When tourists arrive in a community, having a variety of dining establishments becomes a must.
Travelers staying in holiday homes with cooking facilities usually have little interest in preparing complicated time-consuming meals.  Those staying in hotels often seek a local and inviting venue that enables them to dress casually, enjoy delicious meals in a relaxed environment and be on their way to sightsee and engage in water sports and other activities. 
A comprehensive display of oils and condiments befitting cooks of all experience.

Perpendicular totally fulfils that objective when either local residents or tourists are seeking quality foods to enjoy onsite or to takeaway for a fast and convenient meal, delicious with the finest of ingredients Perpendicular has readily available.

After days of cloudy skies, this morning we stopped at Perpendicular to take an additional outdoor photo.  When we’d previously visited Karen and Daniel before Christmas the day was dark and cloudy. 
The deli case includes a variety of meats, cheeses, olives, and more. On the top shelf of the refrigerated case noticed the huge chunks of homemade nougat candy.  That was tempting!  The shelf above the refrigerated case contains an array of sweet treats and other gourmet items.  Prices are very reasonable for the quality products.

This morning, rushing to return to complete this post, we drove as opposed to walking to Perpendicular. Once Tom parked the car so I could take the outdoor photo we’ve included today, I decided to pop in to say hello and to purchase the olive oil-based feta cheese Daniel had mentioned on our prior visit.

Terry explained that Perpendicular carries the exact same Caraway Cheddar we’d purchased by mail from the Pyengana cheese factory. Almost a month ago we stopped at the cheese factory on our road trip from Hobart to Penguin purchasing one block of this cheese. Once we were settled we called Pyengana to order a 10 block supply by mail. Now that we know Perpendicular carries this brand, we can purchase it locally at Perpendicular.
Today for our main meal, I’m making myself a jumbo prawn salad with chopped hardboiled eggs, olives, tomatoes and cheese. Of course,  I knew the perfect cheese for such a salad would definitely be quality feta.
After we returned home, I opened the package of feta cheese for a taste and my taste buds soared with delight.  I can’t wait for mealtime! Tom, not a big fan of salads with meat (except taco salad), will have grilled steak with prawns, a side salad and veggies.
A superb barista section prepares a wide array of coffee-based beverages for the most finicky of espresso aficionados.

We’re excited to have found Perpendicular Deli, Espresso Bar and Providore and look forward to stopping by a few more times for meats and cheeses during our remaining two weeks in this amazing town of Penguin.

 Happy New Year’s Day to our friends on the opposite side of the International Dateline! For us, the holidays are over and it’s another “wonderful day in the neighborhood.”  

Photo from one year ago today, January 2, 2016:

The pool at the vacation home in Pacific Harbour, Fiji was pristine being cleaning three times a week. We spent many days during the one month stay on the island of Viti Levu (the main island of Fiji) lounging outdoors. For more details please click here.