Dani Valent

Award-winning writer, eater, traveller & cook Dani Valent is a food journalist in Melbourne. My business card says ‘Writer. Eater. Traveller.

Cook.’ I do all these things with equal passion, which is why I’m sometimes sitting at my laptop with an apron on! I'm also happy to describe myself as a Thermomix freak! I love creating and sharing recipes, tips and tricks for my favourite kitchen machine. Sign up as a member at danivalent.com and you’ll get access to my awesome library of videos and recipes. It’s a place for inspiration, chefs’ secrets, practical tuition and happy creativity. If you like cooking and eating delicious food, easy food hacks, and basking in the compliments of family and friends, this site is for you.

28/09/2026

I know we're all talking a lot about another "Basque" restaurant in Melbourne at the moment, but did you know Aitor Jeronimo Orive is from the Basque country and he's putting up some amazing food at his Basque Txoko pop-up at Nobody’s Baby til the end of the year?

It's a nice spot, with a huge back yard, good drinks and music. Give it a try!

Love these upstanding Gildas.

Pan con tomate: compulsory, exemplary, even out of season.

Bacalao croquette oozing with bechamel.

Hello chorizo taco!

Snappy Basque chorizo little guy in a fluffy corn bao. Super delicious and fun.

Confit piquillo peppers, so silky and meaty and rich, a confident showcase of one ingredient - love stuff like this.

I have a PhD in Basque cheesecake and this is up there. Also highly recommend trying the version at La Colmena.

Looking forward to whatever comes next for Aitor Jeronimo Orive in Melbourne. Meantime, don't miss this food.

24/09/2026

How can specialty coffee suddenly be wholesaled at half the usual price?

As part of our new Dirty Linen Food Podcast series about the state of hospitality, Emma Sheahan from Lumen People asks how a coffee movement that prides itself on transparency and fairness at every part of the supply chain can incorporate steep discounts. Is someone getting squeezed?

20/09/2026

Recently on Dirty Linen Food Podcast.

Chef Josh Bosen was head chef at vegan restaurant Smith & Daughters when he was tapped for the job as chef de cuisine at 1 Hotel Melbourne, home of From Here By Mike, a hotel restaurant that uses produce from small local farms.

We talk about smart ways to reduce food waste, the reasons he's retained staff, and the boost he gets from watching guests in the dining room enjoy a dish.

Listen to Dirty Linen wherever you find podcasts 🎯

19/09/2026

Who wants to do a food tour in Oakleigh?

Planning now 🇬🇷

Thanks, Dean from Yitonia for showing.me round, and thanks Sweet Filosophy for always bringing the goodness.

13/09/2026

Where in Melbourne's Chinatown can you eat roast goose, a flaming tart, Indian flatbread, and so much more?

Chinatown. It's not just Chinese.

Sign up to my mailing list to hear about future food tours.

Produced in association with Melbourne Chinatown Business Association ⛩️

🎬 Rob Locke

10/09/2026

Such a buzz in Melbourne for the NFL & so happy to show Jack Mancuso a little of what we have to offer.

Finished our eating adventure at ASKAL • FILIPINO RESTAURANT MELBOURNE with a damn fine chori burger, fries with 7000 island dressing, then a rum-soaked leche flan.

Keep an eye on Jack's socials for the rest.

Melbourne, Australia ❤️

Go Niners???? 🤷‍♀️

09/09/2026

Where in Chinatown can you get the best dumplings?

Let's visit some new faves and old classics for perfect parcels of joy.

Sign up to my mailing list to hear about future food tours 🥰👣😋

Thanks Melbourne Chinatown Business Association 🥟🥢🤤🏮

🎥 Rob Locke

08/09/2026

Loved chatting to Dominique Crenn to write an exclusive Good Food story about her imminent arrival in Melbourne. Read all my Good Food stories via link in bio.

Crenn’s influence extends beyond the kitchen and dining room. “I want people to be more connected to the ecosystem,” she says. In California, she has her own organic farm. In Melbourne, she is getting to know farmers and artisans. “You have amazing produce,” she says, pointing to Jodi Clarke, vegetable grower Five Tales Farm, local oysters, and Samuel Gordon.

“It’s about working with the best ingredients, and from there I will do my little magic, celebrate their work,” she says. “My dad used to say, ‘You kill it once, you don’t want to kill it twice.’ I’ll embrace the gift so the farmer can be proud. It’s part of going deeper, understanding the ‘why’ behind it all.”

01/09/2026

Watching all the spring lambs being born from my farmer follows and remembered I had a spring lamb once. Sammy Lamby came to live with us because he was a rejected twin.

Mum and Dad's farmer friends Ian and Bev brought him over and we bottle fed him. I remember how hard Sammy sucked, pulling the bottle from our hands, making us laugh.

Our home became a messy menagerie. The dog started eating grass, the lamb's bleat turned into a labrador bark, it was one of the most memorable and fun periods of my childhood. Sammy went back to the farm as a fat sheep - to gambol his days away, I'm sure we thought.

Pictured here with my brother Ariel.

Address

165 Flinders Lane
Melbourne, VIC
3000

Website

http://www.danivalent.com/

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