We are really excited to have the opportunity to showcase on our blog young local couple Angie Simms and Stuart Quinn who are the creators of local Island business Stradbroke Island Photography. I say creators because their business is just that a creative visual experience of Island life, identities and guests enjoying our wonderland. Angie & Stuart have recently taken the leap into the Straddie property market buying their first Island home in Amity.
Launching their first book “Eat Drink and be Straddie” Straddie Sales Rentals would like to offer them every success and say how very proud we are of their talent, drive and commitment to their Island community. So here is a little bit more about Angie & Stuart:
How we ended up on Straddie
Angie: I came to the island over ten years ago for a quick over night visit to see my sister Emma, it didn’t take long for me to fall head over heels in love with the place and I ended up staying two and a half years. After moving away and going travelling again, it was an on an off love affair, until about three and a half years ago when we moved over to the island (in the same week that we were married here) full time to make a serious go of our photography business.
Stuart: All it took was, once I had actually set foot on this ‘paradise island’ Angie had spoken about so many times, and sipping a couple of beers and watching the sunset while sitting on Cylinder Headland and the questions really was “What do we have to do to get to live in this place?” And then going about putting everything into place. It ment working towards both resigning from our jobs as newspaper photographers in Brisbane, and building up our island based wedding photography business, but we have been here full time for a couple of years now and we absolutely could not be happier.
Favourite moments working on the book
Angie: For me, it was getting an insight into the lives of the local producers, where things that are an everyday occurrence for them are new and exciting for me. As Stu says, it’s like looking through a window into someone else’s life. I was even stung six times while visiting with beekeepers but the three weeks it took to recover were totally worth it.
The whole experience actually left me in awe of the skill, passion and vision of the producers who take such care to bring food to our tables. I mean, when I look out to sea, it’s just the ocean, but the mullet fishermen we spent time with can look at it and read the movement of the fish, so they know just when to cast their nets in. Ditto for the oyster farmer and prawn trawlerman who generously opened their lives to us. I don’t think people realise how much care – and sometimes danger – can go into delivering food to their plate, so that’s something I really hope people take away from this book.
Stuart: Definitely spending the night at sea on a prawn trawler, 12km off Main Beach. Getting to see the crew in action and then eating prawns straight from the boiler, fresh from the ocean, was an unforgettable experience.
Favourite recipe from the book
Angie: Hmmm, tough one. I use recipes such as the chunky guacamole and Napoli sauce all the time, and the mango and macadamia toasted muesli is my breakfast staple. I have also had dreams about the pipi chowder, and if I want to show off a bit to guests with a bit of improptu catering I make them Moreton Bay bug pies. When they’re in season, I really can’t go past a cumquat caipirinha,
Stuart: Definitely the papaya salad. It’s so easy to prepare and reminds me of trips to South East Asia, with the bonus of using locally sourced, fresh ingredients. It’s the perfect combination of flavours and textures. Also, Ann’s mullet curry is a standout because it’s so simple to create, but tastes amazing.
Favourite hidden gem on the island
Angie: The Basin. To get there I step out the front gate of my Amity home, walk for 10 minutes, past koalas, kangaroos and maybe even an echidna, go through some bushland and hidden mangrove tracks and then have the beach all to myself. Well, myself and the soldier crabs, stingrays, dolphins, turtles, and more.
Stuart: Probably the abundance of life under the surface and in the waters around Straddie. There’s always something to see, whether it’s turtles hatching on the beaches, soldier crabs on the mudflats, dolphins and whales off the headland or diving sites such as Manta Bommie, which is considered one of the top 10 dive sites in Australia, with an incredibly diversity of marine life, from bull rays and leopard sharks to octopuses, nudibranchs and even the odd whale shark.
You can get a hold of the book by online ordering at www.eatdrinkstraddie.com or picking a copy up from the Point Lookout Markets.
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Or Instagram; @eatdrinkandbestraddie