The
Good Life
The Channon Tavern
All you need is LOVE chocolate ‘It began with a dream and a love for the sweet things in life’, says Alison Campbell, founder of Love Byron Bay Crêperie & Chocolate Boutique. Alison, looking back on the challenges, achievements and the many contributors over the decade that made Love Byron what it is today, says, ‘The journey began in December 2014 when our doors to a dream opened for the very first time with equal measure of trepidation and excitement and began with a cacao ceremony to acknowledge and invite the cocoa gods into our little boutique. Over a decade I’ve been privileged to witness thousands of loyal locals and visitors return to Love, hundreds of team members trained in the art of crepe making and retailing, and each and everyone of us who participated and contributed to something unique in this town we love.’ Like any small business owner, Alison has weathered floods, staff shortages, cost increases and survived the covid lockdowns; she recalls just prior the biggest chocolate event of the year, Easter 2020, covid arrived. With the boutique stocked high with Easter eggs and rabbits, Alison pivoted online and turned into the Easter Bunny herself – delivering Easter to the Shire with the help of aligned businesses, local media and her GPS. ‘Love Byron Bay has been both a challenge and a joy. Our boutique has brought pleasure to chocoholics and dessert champions. Delighting in the all-over body pleasure cacao delivers, investing in their own self-confessed addiction, our customers expanded their taste vocabulary by frequenting our boutique, our tasting events and our online shop, while lovers of French crepes have been drawn to enjoy fresh crepes being flipped and hot chocolates poured. Our little boutique is where excited, smiling eyes have
The Channon Tavern is a quaint country pub in the heart of The Channon – a historic town at the foothills of some of the best rainforest walks and waterfalls in the Northern Rivers. The Channon village, including the pub, was hit very hard by the floods in February–March 2022, but since its reopening in January 2023, the tavern has come back to life with new energy and management, including a high-quality Japanese restaurant. The new team has created an inclusive and welcoming atmosphere whilst maintaining the old country pub feel. Whether it be a Japanese curry next to the fireplace on a cold night, or sashimi by the creek on a sunny day, The Channon Tavern has you covered. They also have a large array of classic and craft beverages to quench your thirst. There is plenty to do for the whole family, including a kids playground, free pool tables, pool comps, table tennis, darts, trivia, raffles, live music and more. Q 51 Terania Street, The Channon 02 6688 6522 www.thechannontavern.com.au @thechannontav
Grumpy Grandma’s Olives
Alison Campbell, founder of Love Byron Bay Crêperie & Chocolate Boutique.
met for the first time and new love affairs ignited.’ 2024 marks the tenth and final year of trading for Love Byron Bay at its Lawson St address, owing to its tenancy being forcibly terminated and a new tenant offered the space. Love Byron Bay will close its doors in its current location at the end of January. Says Alison, ‘We all must face life’s endings but one thing I do know is every ending brings with it a new beginning. As we get ready to close our doors I’d like to invite everyone to sample our unique taste of Love one last time. And I would like to thank all those who have supported the journey of my little chocolate boutique and crêperie that was Byron’s number one dessert destination.’ Q More info: love-byronbay.com
Tim Stone of Grumpy Grandma’s
Victoria Cosford Over the coming months, it’s all about entertaining, summer days and outdoor living – and those big olive pots you see at the Grumpy Grandma’s stall are ideal. Fat manzanillas, mixed, wood-smoked, green, these hinterland-harvested olives need only to be tumbled out on to a platter. Want something a little different? If you haven’t done so already, try the semi-dried olives, which are offered in an assortment of spicy herby flavourings: Thai, Moroccan, Tuscan – and soon to come – Tim Stone tells me – Aussie bush flavours. That’s the first bit of news he has for me as we stand chatting. The second bit is even more exciting. ‘We’ve been listening to our customers’, Tim says, ‘and for the last couple of months have been getting ready to move into glass.’ Gone, then, will be most of their plastic, although they will retain some takeaway containers for their bulk olives. As it is, Tim says, most of his customers reuse these containers anyway. Both these developments – the new dried olives; the glass www.echo.net.au
– will happen soon. Of course, the next stage of the olives is the actual oil, and it’s wonderful to see customers arrive with containers for the glorious cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil Tim sells in bulk. Given the monstrous cost of olive oil in supermarkets, it makes perfect sense to shop instead at his stall, where it’s $18 a litre, and local. Aside from the regular extra virgin olive oil, there’s a chilliinfused one, a wood-smoked one and a lemon myrtle. The latter, we agree, is wonderful in a salad dressing, and already I’m planning to drizzle it over briskly blanched asparagus – or blend it with lemon juice, chopped garlic, ground cumin and a pinch of paprika to pour over a salad of Coopers Shoot tomatoes and cucumbers. Q Grumpy Grandma’s Olives are at New Brighton Farmers Market every Tuesday from 8–11am, and at Mullumbimby Farmers Market every Friday from 7–11am.
`ëŕƖëſƷ Ǩǧǽ ǩǧǩǫ The Byron Shire Echo 17