Flying Fish and Chips

Flying Fish and Chips
Level G Café Court
The Star
80 Pyrmont St
Pyrmont
NSW 2009
Ph : (02) 9518 6166

The Star, previously known as Star City, has been rebadged, renovated etc etc and so forth. We all know what happened, we all know the new eateries, so let’s move onto one of them. An offshoot of Flying Fish, it is situated in a food court that feels quite separate from the gambling and entertainment part of the complex, making it easy to forget that you're at a casino.

An expansive space split into food and bar sections, the menu, which is not available online at Flying Fish, is divided into “classic”, “oven roasted”, “salads”, “burgers & rolls”, “ocean bar”, “stone bar” and “sushi + sashimi bar”, with 3-8 items in each section. The bar list features four champagne/ sparkling (glass or bottle), nine whites from around Australia, with a Farnese Pino Grigio from Italy, a rosé (Serafino Goose Island), four Australian reds and half a dozen beers.

At a fish and chippery, what else to order but a “classic fish and chips”? Priced at $14.90, it is described as being cooked in beer batter and served with tartare sauce and lemon.

November GTG

For the second year in a row, one of our group kindly opened up their house for a large GTG, so that we could bring in more watches than we'd normally do in a cafe or restaurant and, of course, have a dedicated watch viewing area.

The number of watches brought in by individuals varied between "what's on my wrist" and about two dozen.

Here is a photographic glance at our evening.

This foam box (as in the box itself) was quite exciting to some folks, who immediately wanted to know how they could obtain one.

What was in the box was pretty interesting too. Yes that's a gorgeous Jaeger LeCoultre Perpetual Calendar on the right.

One collector decided on a JLC and Rolex theme.

Selections from Antiquorum's NY December auction

With the end of 2011 nigh, Antiquorum's December "Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces" auction in New York will feature a mixed bag of 450 modern and vintage timepieces, and even some parts (see lots 323 to 327).

You can view the full catalogue at this link but here are a couple of interesting (and sometimes quirky) timepieces that grabbed my attention. I am partial to lots 158 and 188. Descriptions and photographs are from the catalogue:

Lot 139 – Jaeger LeCoultre for Hermès, retailed by the latter. Movement No. 2176671, case No. 1315945. Made in the 1970's. Fine and rare, 18K yellow gold wristwatch with large lugs. Two-body, horizontal rectangular, polished and brushed, inclined bezel, extended lugs, winding-crown at 6. Satine silver with applied steel baton indexes. Steel baton hands. M. Cal. 818/2, tonneau, rhodium-plated, fausses cotes decoration, 17 jewels, straight lever escapement, monometallic balance, shock-absorber to balance and escape wheels, self-compensating fl at balance spring. Dial and movement signed. Dim. 42 x 30 mm. Thickness 7 mm.

Estimate: 1,000 USD - 2,000 USD

Estimate: 900 CHF - 1,700 CHF

Estimate: 700 EUR - 1,500 EUR

Lot 157 – Scarab beetle. Unsigned, Swiss, circa 1870. Fine gold and enamel, diamond-set pendant form watch designed as a scarab-beetle. Accompanied by a fitted box and key. Three part, underside chased and engraved with legs and underbody, wing covers entirely decorated in translucent red enamel over engine-turning with black spots, main body with black enamel stripes, the thorax with a diamond-set collar, spring loaded wing covers hinged and opening from a button in the base to reveal the dial. White enamel with Roman numerals. Blued steel "spade" hands. Oval 7"' 1/2 gilt brass, bar calibre with going barrel, 8 jewels, cylinder escapement and plain three-arm balance, fl at balance spring with regulator. Total length 46 mm.

Estimate: 15,000 USD - 20,000 USD

Estimate: 13,000 CHF - 17,000 CHF

Estimate: 11,000 EUR - 14,000 EUR

Lot 158 – Vacheron & Constantin Ref. 7323 white gold. Genève, No. 616631, case No. 49845. Circa 1970. Very fine and unusual, thin, keyless 18K white gold oval shaped pocket watch. Two body, polished bezel with satin reverse, cabouchon set winding crown. Silvered with painted Roman numerals. Blued steel index hands. Calibre. 1003 within oval steel holder, rhodium plated with fausses cotes decoration, 17 jewels, Geneva seal, straight-line lever escapement, blued steel balance spring adjusted to heat, cold, isochronism and 5 positions, index regulator. Dim. 35 mm x 47 mm.

Estimate: 2,800 USD - 4,300 USD

Estimate: 2,500 CHF - 3,800 CHF

Estimate: 2,000 EUR - 3,000 EUR

Lot 188 - Patek Philippe Telequartz. No. 842067. Circa 1975. Fine and rare, 220v., radio-controlled Module LS 0 electronic Master Clock. C. Rectangular, stepped, steel, black control panel with LCD display and buttons for setting. D. Electronic LCD digital display. M. Electronic, based on quartz oscillator, integral receiver Module AD 10SN, Serie 2384 receiver box. Dim. 24 x 33 x 7 cm.

Estimate: 1,500 USD - 3,000 USD

Estimate: 1,300 CHF - 2,600 CHF

Estimate: 1,000 EUR - 2,000 EUR

Lot 441 - Yellow gold top winder Vacheron & Constantin, Genève, No. 370816, case No. 262383. Made in the early 1930's. Very fine and rare, 18K yellow gold wristwatch. C. Three-body, solid, polished, concave lugs, winding crown at 12, domed crystal. D. Black with applied yellow gold Arabic numerals and baton indexes, outer minute divisions, subsidiary seconds dial. Yellow gold epée hands. M. Cal. 10 1/2''', gilt brass, 15 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, cut bimetallic compensation balance, blued steel fl at balance spring. Dial, case and movement signed. Diam. 30 mm. Thickness 8 mm.

Estimate: 4,300 USD - 7,000 USD

Estimate: 3,800 CHF - 6,000 CHF

Estimate: 3,000 EUR - 5,000 EUR

One of the stars of this auction, and the cover watch, is the Parmigiani Bugatti  Type 370. This piece unique, with a 10-day power reserve, is in a stunning curved rectangular shape, its movement shaped like an automotive engine set inside an oval-shaped cylinder. The watch is wound and set via the underside, and comes with a “starter key”, in the manner of a car. The key is inserted into the winding hole to wind the watch, the “key’s” reverse is used to set the time. It also has 28 baguette diamonds.

Lot 180 – Parmigiani Fleurier “Bugatti” 18-carat white gold and diamonds. "Bugatti - Type 370," Piece Unique, case No. 23706. Made in 2007, sold January 27th, 2008. Accompanied by the original fitted box, travel box, certificate of origin, instructions and automatic winding pen. Extremely fine, rare and unusual, rectangular curved, movement constructed in the shape of an automotive engine encased in an oval-shaped cylinder, 18K white gold and diamonds driver's wristwatch with 10-day autonomy (displayed on a graduated drum) and an 18K white gold Parmigiani double deployant clasp. Accompanied by the original fitted box, travel box, certificate of origin, instructions and automatic winding pen.

Eight-body, solid, polished, transparent top, sides and back to view the movement, bezel set with 28 tapered baguette diamonds (approx. carat weight 3.1), case back with 4 screws, sapphire crystals. White gold with oeil-de-perdrix decoration, applied white gold EB (Ettore Bugatti) logo, luminous white gold baton indexes on a matte black outer reserve. Luminous white gold alpha hands. M. Cal. PF 370 oval mounted on silent blocks, rhodium-plated, 37 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, monometallic balance, shock absorber, self-compensating fl at balance spring, double-barrel. Dial, case and movement signed. Dim. 32 x 50 mm. Thickness 19 mm.

Estimate: 100,000 USD - 150,000 USD

Estimate: 90,000 CHF - 130,000 CHF

Estimate: 70,000 EUR - 105,000 EUR

Happy bidding!

[AP]

A day (or four) at the beach with a Bronzo

In a nutshell, bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the other ingredient, though the balance varies, thus rendering the term ‘bronze’ a bit difficult to pin down exactly. It’s a favoured medium for artwork, especially sculptures, for boat/ ship fittings, and of course there was the Bronze Age.

In the last year or so, it has become one of the most talked-about materials for watches, and one of the most talked-about bronze watches has been the LE (1,000 pieces) Panerai PAM 382, otherwise known as the Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Automatic, or “Bronzo”. The bronze chosen by OP for the case of the PAM 382 is CuSn8.

Bronze develops a darker brown patina, over time, because of the effects of oxidation. Panerai’s use of untreated bronze means these surface changes will start occurring relatively early in the watch’s use. Once the surface layer of the bronze has oxidised (eventually becoming copper carbonate), it will form a protective layer for the rest of the watch.

Fittingly, with bronze having a superior resistance to corrosion and salt water compared to steel, one Bronzo owner often takes his to the beach. In this case, the beach at Hamilton Island during Paneristi.com’s 10th P-Day.

Here are some ‘before’ and ‘after’ shots of a Bronzo after a day at the beach. 

(Photo credit : Gaz)

 (Photo credit : Volker)

Over the course of the four days, the case’s colour and ‘mottling’ changed every single day. Even if you’re not a fan of bronze watches, or of green dials (or you can’t wear a 47mm watch, for that matter), is still fascinating, and it means that every Bronzo ends up having a highly personalised character, perhaps making it harder to part with ...?

SPECIFICATIONS

Movement: Automatic mechanical, Panerai P.9000 caliber, executed entirely by Panerai, 13¾ lignes, 7.9 mm thick, 28 jewels, Glucydur balance, 28,800vph. Incabloc anti-shock device. Power reserve 3 days, two barrels. 197 components.

Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds, date, calculation of immersion time.

Case: Diameter 47 mm, brushed bronze. Brushed bronze bezel with anti-clockwise unidirectional rotating bezel with graduated scale for calculating the time of immersion, ratchet click at minute intervals.

Dial: Green with luminous hour markers. Date at 3 o’clock, small seconds at 9 o’clock.

Crystal: Sapphire, made from corundum, 4 mm thick. Anti-reflective coating.

Water-resistance: 30 bar (300 meters).

[AP]

Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève 2011 : results

The 2011 Aiguille d'Or Grand Prix has just been awarded to De Bethune for its DB28 at the 11th Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix (GPHG) on Saturday 19 November.

The Grand Prix was founded in 2001 by the Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix Foundation and the Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild to celebrate and recognise horological excellence.

You can read about the nominated watches, which included Australia's own Eva Leube, here.

This year’s winners are :

“Aiguille d’Or” Grand Prix: De Bethune DB28

“Petite Aiguille” Prize (for models under CHF 5’000): Montblanc, Star Worldtime GMT Automatic

Best Ladies’ Watch Prize: Boucheron, Crazy Jungle Hathi

Best Men’s Watch Prize: Hermès, Arceau Le Temps Suspendu

Best Design Watch Prize: Urwerk, UR-110

Best Jewellery and Artistic Crafts Watch Prize: Van Cleef & Arpels, Lady Arpels Polar Landscape

Best Complicated Watch Prize: Zenith, Academy Christophe Colomb Equation of Time

Best Sports Watch Prize: TAG Heuer, Mikrotimer Flying 1000 Chronograph

Best Watchmaker Prize: Vianney Halter

Special Jury Prize: Patek Philippe Museum

The public prize, awarded by visitors to the exhibition and voters on the World Tempus and GPHG, went to Audemars Piguet’s Millenary 4101.

All the prize winners and nominated watches will be exhibited at the Salon International de l’Horlogerie de Prestige Belles Montres at the Carrousel du Louvre from November 24th to 27th.

Available in four iterations (reference DB28TIS8 with the titanium case, black dial, and titanium floating lugs is 87'000 CHF), more information about this year’s winner can be found here.

[AP]

flour and stone

flour and stone
53 Riley St
Woolloomooloo
NSW 2011
Ph : (02) 8068 8818
Hours : Mon-Fri 7am to 4pm. Saturday 8am to 2pm.

For fans of Nadine Ingram's Cookie Couture gingerbread (made, for years, by her husband Jonathan, chef at Verandah), the news that she was about to open flour and stone in the old Sweet Infinity space was eagerly anticipated. 

When we visited at lunchtime on their first day, there was clearly a lot of baking going on in the kitchen. Cookie Couture’s wares are now being made in Woolloomooloo, so if you buy your gingerbread there, it’s not only likely to be incredibly fresh, but you’ll be able to buy them in single portions, which is now impossible to do at their retailers, who seem to only stock gift packs. As well, there are giant gingerbread designs available, for those days when you really need a giant piece of gingerbread.

Chinta Ria…Mood for Love

Chinta Ria…Mood for Love
Shop 6006, Level 6
Westfield CBD
188 Pitt St
Sydney NSW 2000
Ph: (02) 8072 8888

Two weeks after it opened, I was invited by a friend to Chinta Ria...Mood for Love, a much anticipated venture by the ebullient and engaging Simon Goh (whose Sassy’s Red is on the level below), with chef John Poh (below) formerly of Kuali, at the cooking helm. 

The name of the restaurant is an obvious nod to Wong Kar-Wai's "In the Mood for Love", and a short film, commissioned by Simon, screens continuously in the main body of this small jewel of a restaurant, which is split between an intimate curtained-off space which can be used for a small group, and the larger area in which most diners sit.

What first struck me about MFL was the cleverness of the design. The traditionally styled entrance gives no pointers as to what is inside. I had been expecting a medium to large sized restaurant, and not the ambience that Simon and his designers have achieved.