Originally a culinary journey through the best (and sometimes not the best) eateries in Melbourne interstate and international. This site is a free guide. Your comments are very welcome and any contributions will be added to the site. Feel free to email us reviews, anytime and anywhere.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Celebration Brunch Fairmont Springs Hotel (Banff) 12/2010
We've been to smorgasbords galore and we've been to brunches galore and we've been to countless buffets but this X'mas Day buffet brunch was beyond imagination. With only 780 guests to feed, on Mother's Day they catered for 1400, sittings began at 09.30 and continued until 2.00pm. The very large room, this shows a tiny section of it, was filled with about a dozen tables each holding up to 20 or more different offerings with very little repetition.We came at 11.00 so many trays and platters were not at their full glory, though they were continually replaced as they emptied. There is an ice carved greeting on the first table and another further down the room. Some tables had signs indicating the foods on them. Others had cards at their base and of course breads and fruit are self evident. At the far end of the room three chefs made omelets on request, on induction cook tops on the left of the room whilst two more carved beef on the right. Before reaching them and the chef carving turkey, there were platters of cold cuts including four different sorts of salmon that is hot and cold smoked, gravilax and pate, a variety of vegetable salads, including white and green asparagus, potato salads leaf salads, tomato and more. Hot dishes included fried fish, chicken legs, Indian butter chicken, Basmati rice, a mushroom vol au vent, several casseroles including beef stroganof, whatever that is. (When we queried what Stroganoff really is there were over 170 replies on Chowhound!) Of course there were also large silver drums over heat containing various sausages, bacon, scrambled eggs, eggs Benedick, macaroni cheese, a venison pie and much more. A few more chefs carved turkey and beef around the room.There were broad tables covered with a variety of breads and pastries on one side with fruit on the other. Another table with a chocolate fountain was equipped with small two prong forks to pick up the surrounding marshmallows, cakes and a variety of fruit with a table of cakes nearby. Close by was a substantial tray of cheeses. At the far end of the room, through an archway two more chefs were making a sort of light toffee to pour over fruit and were also serving ice cream. Opposite this was a huge table stacked with dozens of varieties of cakes and desserts. This was not a meal to write about the taste of this that or the other thing. Rather it was a display of enormous hospitality, of how to celebrate, with a glorious display of boundless variety which could not fail to delight. No X'mas can ever pass without us remembering this overwhelming event. Congratulations to the Fairmont and their staff for a superlative performance.
This is a joint venture, to which you are welcome to join. Sandra, a perpetual student, has a doctorate in Psychology and now completed a Masters in gastronomy at Adelaide University.. She is an excellent cook and has a very good palate. We share interests in travel arts and literature and especially food. I am an aging bonviveur, workaholic gourmet slowly losing a battle with obesity. We love all good things.
We've been to smorgasbords galore and we've been to brunches galore and we've been to countless buffets but this X'mas Day buffet brunch was beyond imagination. With only 780 guests to feed, on Mother's Day they catered for 1400, sittings began at 09.30 and continued until 2.00pm. The very large room, this shows a tiny section of it,
was filled with about a dozen tables each holding up to 20 or more different offerings with very little repetition.We came at 11.00 so many trays and platters were not at their full glory, though they were continually replaced as they emptied. There is an ice carved greeting on the first table
and another further down the room. 
Some tables had signs
indicating the foods on them. Others had cards at their base and of course breads 
and fruit 
are self evident. At the far end of the room three chefs made omelets on request, 
on induction cook tops on the left of the room whilst two more carved beef on the right. 
Before reaching them and the chef carving turkey, 
there were platters of cold cuts including four different sorts of salmon 
that is hot and cold smoked, gravilax and pate, a variety of vegetable salads, including white and green asparagus, potato salads leaf salads, tomato 
and more. Hot dishes included fried fish, chicken legs, Indian butter chicken, Basmati rice, a mushroom vol au vent, several casseroles including beef stroganof, whatever that is. (When we queried what Stroganoff really is there were over 170 replies on Chowhound!) Of course there were also large silver drums over heat containing various sausages, bacon, scrambled eggs, eggs Benedick, macaroni cheese, a venison pie and much more. A few more chefs carved turkey and beef around the room.There were broad tables covered with a variety of breads and pastries on one side with fruit on the other. Another table with a chocolate fountain 
was equipped with small two prong forks to pick up the surrounding marshmallows, cakes and a variety of fruit with a table of cakes nearby.
Close by was a substantial tray of cheeses. 
At the far end of the room, through an archway two more chefs were making a sort of light toffee to pour over fruit and were also serving ice cream. Opposite this was a huge table stacked with dozens of varieties of cakes and desserts. This was not a meal to write about the taste of this that or the other thing. Rather it was a display of enormous hospitality, of how to celebrate, with a glorious display of boundless variety which could not fail to delight. No X'mas can ever pass without us remembering this overwhelming event. Congratulations to the Fairmont and their staff for a superlative performance.
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