Melbourne loves to combine food and art, and there’s an event on this year’s Now or Never festival program we can’t wait for. Beloved cook and author Julia Busuttil Nishimura (who rose to prominence thanks to her website Ostro), will be dishing up Mediterranean plates beneath Einder, a storm-like installation by Dutch artist Boris Acket.

Dubbed Ostro x Einder, it all takes place at a long communal table inside Melbourne Town Hall, with Acket’s immersive artwork adding dramatic lighting and a stormy soundscape to the evening.

The best part? Broadsheet Access is giving our members free double passes to attend. The dinner was originally one-seating-only, but it’s been met with such enthusiasm that an extra session has been added. (Which means even more seats for Access members.)

Ahead of the event, Busuttil Nishimura spoke to Broadsheet about art, food and her favourite season to cook.

Ostro x Einder sits at a fascinating intersection between art and food. What inspired you to host this imaginative dining experience?

I’m so inspired by the seasons, and that’s what [Acket’s] art is all about – capturing these moments in time. The Now or Never team put us together, and it’s the only dining experience in the whole festival. Because I’m not a restaurant chef, it’s a really nice opportunity for people to experience my cooking in that setting. As someone who’s a home cook, it was a good challenge for me to come up with a menu that compliments the art.

We know the menu will incorporate your signature Mediterranean, family-style cooking. Can you give any more hints to what will be served?

The artwork is all about this chaotic storm, so [for appetizers] I thought about the beginning of a storm, when you can smell the dampness in the earth. We’re doing a really slow roasted pumpkin with marinated buffalo mozzarella, black olives and fennel oil. So it’s really vibrant and herbaceous, with lots of bread for dipping. The main is really family-style – I wanted to focus on that wintery feeling of settling in for the night. We’ve got marinated lamb, fish wrapped in vine leaves and a radicchio salad. It’s all sculptural and beautiful – I wanted to let the produce speak for itself.

What do you think are the key elements of a successful dinner party?

It’s all about good food and good drinks. And that feeling of generosity. Dinner parties are very communal – you’re serving food to people at all points of their life, and day. It’s a moment in time where you’re bringing people together. Which is what this event will be, and it’s so exciting to do it in the Town Hall.

Chaos and beauty seem to be the foundations of Ostro x Einder. How do you balance chaos and beauty in your cooking and life?

It is a balance, and I don’t know if I have it. [Laughs.] I have two kids, and I’m always doing different projects. I’m writing a book at the moment. But it’s about trying to be as present as possible, which for me is cooking, and I find I’m really grounded by the seasons. So it’s just finding pockets of those moments.

Throughout your impressive career, you’ve encouraged cooking in sync with the seasons. What are you dishing up at home right now, as Melbourne reaches peak winter?

I’ve been loving gnudi, which is a spinach and ricotta dumpling with sage and brown butter. I’ve been loving rice pudding – I serve it with rhubarb. And I’ve been loving celery. I’m putting celery in everything and making a lot of soups.

It might be hard to pick, but do you have a favourite Australian season for cooking?

I feel like every season is amazing. It’s not a season, but I love when the end of summer crosses over with autumn. You have the last of the tomatoes, new season figs, apples. I love the little micro-seasons. Same with the end of winter, when you still have fennel and these beautiful spring vegetables coming in.

What do you hope guests will take away from Ostro x Einder?

I hope they walk away feeling like that was something they’ve never experienced, and won’t experience again. I want them to be satisfied, with full bellies, having been in that moment. And feeling full in general – from art and food.

Ostro x Einder has its first seating at 5.30pm, and second seating at 8.30pm, on Friday August 22 at Melbourne Town Hall

Join Access today and score a free seat for you and a plus one at Nishimura’s table. You’ll get your money’s worth – annual membership is only $12 a month.

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