Dirty Linen Food Podcast with Dani Valent

Hosted ByDani Valent

Dirty Linen is a food podcast hosted by Australian journalist Dani Valent. A respected restaurant critic and food industry reporter in her home town of Melbourne, Dani is a keen, compassionate observer of restaurants and the people who bring them into being. Whether it’s owners, waiters, dishwashers, chefs or members of ancillary trades from tech to pottery, Dani interviews with compassion, humour and courage. Dirty Linen goes deep, both in conversations with individuals and in investigating pressing issues.
Dirty Linen is an Australian food podcast produced by the Deep in the Weeds Podcast Network.

Dirty Linen is a food podcast with Dani Valent that goes behind the scenes in restaurants, cafes and bars. Your host is food journalist Dani Valent. For 20 years, Dani has been writing about restaurants and the people who give them life. But she’s an outsider, a critic, a tourist, a fan. Despite hearing the stories and writing the tales, she’s never really understood what happens behind the scenes. Now it’s time to get stuck in, with compassion, humour and fearlessness. Dirty Linen goes deep, both in conversations with individuals and in pressing topics. Dirty Linen is an Australian food podcast produced by the Deep in the Weeds Podcast Network.

All Episodes

Suchint Dhillon (Suzie’s Restaurant, Assagao, Goa) – the equalising nature of the pandemic

Dirty Linen is spending the week talking India, where a devastating COVID wave is sweeping through the country. We start in Goa, where Suchint ‘Suzie’ Kaur Dhillon runs Suzie’s...

Robin Murray (Centennial Vineyards Restaurant) – nose to tail respect

We head to Bowral to talk skills, training, staff shortages and nose-to-tail respect with Centennial Vineyards owner-chef Robin Murray. Wondering how to slip haggis onto a menu? Robin sheds...

Lucy Whitlow (Osteria Ilaria) – cheese, lots of cheese

Pastry chef Lucy Whitlow made the most of lockdown, creating food-related art and exhibiting it in her home. For herself. While wearing a fur jacket. We talk vulnerability and...

Zac Sykes (Boom Boom Room) – cleaning up

On the surface, chef Zac Sykes seemed to be riding high with a string of head chef jobs at prominent Sydney restaurants including Coogee Pavilion and North Bondi Fish....

Stefano de Pieri (Stefano’s, Mildura) – The time to change things is now

We head to Mildura to chat to chef, restaurateur, politician, TV host and brilliant, passionate raconteur Stefano De Pieri. Stefano’s new show Australia’s Food Bowl premieres on SBS later...

Alla Wolf-Tasker (Lake House, Dayleford) – autumn bounty, tough decisions and gleaming leaves.

Dirty Linen celebrates 200 episodes by going back to the legend who kicked off episode 1 in June 2020. Alla Wolf-Tasker is owner and founder of Lake House, the...

John Rivera (Kariton Sorbetes) – happy, balanced and optimistic

What kind of chef can you become when you put ego aside? John Rivera was powering to success as a fine dining chef when a lower than expected Good...

John Reid (Redbeard Bakery, Trentham) – optimism, support & gratitude

In February, sourdough pioneer John Reid from Trentham’s RedBeard Historic Bakery, was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. We talk about optimism, collegiality, cuddles, support, gratitude and the pleasures of...

Jo Barrett (Future Food System) – what if everything could be different

Melbourne chef Jo Barrett is currently living at Future Food System, a closed-loop house that grows its own food, deals with its own waste and is currently installed at...

Don Macdonald (Big Don’s Smoked Meats) – low n slow

With Perth emerging from a three-day lockdown, we chat to Don Macdonald from Big Don’s Smoked Meats. Don quit supermarket middle management to go big on brisket and the...