Bites

Gusto’s foodie spies tell us that David Barber has sold his Highgate café, Soto Espresso, which brought great coffee to the strip when it opened in 2003. Alongside its reputation for coffee, Soto has made a name for itself as place to view artworks, with local artists showing off their wares on the walls of the groovy cafe. At this stage, Gusto is unsure who the new owners are and whether they intend to keep art as part of the culture of Soto.

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Margaret River winery, Clairault, has scored a coup by gaining entry to shelves of a new premium wine concept by UK retailing heavyweight Marks & Spencer. The upmarket department store and food chain is extending its wine knowledge outside of its private label wines to incorporate more premium wines from geographic regions throughout the world. Clairault is believed to be one of two Western Australian wines on their list.

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The Perth chapter of global gastronomic society La Chaîne des Rôtisseurs welcomed new members to its invite-only association this week at a special ceremony.

New members include Friends Restaurant’s Clyde Bevan and French chef, Frederic Verschoore, who moved to Perth this year and owns and operates Fremantle’s Great Mellie restaurant. The food society has its origins from 13th century France.