Elenka and I walked the streets of Sydney for seven hours and saw not one kangaroo. The following morning we got up at the crack of dawn and hiked to the train station, eyes peeled, where we caught the train to Melbourne. Still no kangaroos. Eleven hours later, cold and suffering painful dessert withdrawal, we disembarked in Melbourne. Still zero on the kangaroo chart.






We came to Melbourne to visit with Pierre and Michelle. Michelle is a Melburnian who lived in Toronto some years back. She and I played trivia on the same team. Pierre is a pastry chef who, along with 32 other culinary artists, once spent a year-and-a-half in Bahrain churning out pastries and desserts for the Crown Prince and his family of five. Now he creates his personal gems for sellout crowds, Thursday evenings only, at the Cafe Rosamond in Melbourne.






Elenka, Michelle and I had a table waiting for us when we arrived. The first offering was Pierre's Pistachio Macaron. The bottom layer is pistachio jelly, followed by pistachio macaron, then pistachio gel. It's served in a tube. You set the tube in hot water for 2 seconds then draw on the tube. The bottom layer of jelly acts as the propulsion unit – like a blasting cap. Suddenly, your senses come alive, as you realize you're tasting something familiar in an unfamiliar way. The next offering was called “Three Colours”, followed by “The One-in-the-Middle.” The evening was topped off with “Two Koala's Pashing in the Garden of Eden.” (See the photos with ingredients listed)






Recently, Pierre created a heavenly signature ice cream for the Connoisseur Gourmet Ice Cream folks which is now available at your local supermarket (Australia only). Just for the drool of it check out his website at www.pierreroelofs.com






Elenka and I did a lengthy Melbourne walkabout. Melbourne is a very artsy city with alleyway cafes and a super-modern town square surrounded by old city charm. The following day Pierre and Michelle took us to the Black Spur forest where we witnessed first-hand, the elusive Crimson Rosella … well maybe not so elusive. The bloody birds started following us around looking for dessert. Next stop, Perth.