Hosted by The Pourhouse at Maitland Regional Art Gallery on November 9, the three-course dinner will feature the best of Hunter Valley food, suppliers, beer and wine.

West (pictured) is originally from Murrurundi and trained as a chef. He met his partner Alicia while working at Melbourne's Vue de Monde restaurant and they moved to South Arm, a coastal town south-east of Hobart, to lead a more sustainable life on the land. Kirkegaard was named Australian Beer Writer of the Year in 2014 when he was awarded the inaugural Australian International Beer Awards Media Trophy. He is passionate about beer and educating others at tastings.

Tickets to Eat + Drink with Paul West and Matt Kirkegaard are $154 at eventbrite.com.au.

Don't forget, the 2019 Lake Mac Food and Wine festival is on this Saturday, October 19, at Speers Point Park. There will be food trucks, tastings, cooking demonstrations and more. It's a huge weekend on the lake and at Warners Bay, with the Superboat and Jet-Ski races, markets and entertainment.

Mr Rice has opened on Darby Street and the feedback to date has been overwhelmingly positive. Food & Wine will be checking this one out, and soon.

Food & Wine attended a wine event at McLeish Estate, Pokolbin, last year and it was a fun and friendly affair. Guests are invited to roam the picturesque grounds, are greeted warmly by staff at the cellar door and generally made to feel welcome. This year's Budburst Long Lunch promises to be equally memorable.

"This truly is a spectacular time of year," vigneron Jessica McLeish told Food & Wine. "As we move towards vintage the vines will flower, self-pollinate and then eventually the grapes will appear, before full ripeness is achieved and harvest is undertaken through late January and early February."

A four-course lunch will be served at the estate on October 26 paired with award-winning McLeish Estate wines. There will be live music as well as canapés and sparkling wine on arrival. Tickets are $170 per person and can be purchased on the winery's website, by emailing info@mcleishestatewines.com.au or by phoning 4998 7754. As an added bonus, this year you can leave the car at home. Bus transfers are available from Newcastle for $30 person return. Contact McLeish Wines to book.

Islas Canaries Cafe Tapas Bar at Belmont is well worth a visit any time, but even more so now that they have introduced a new dining deal: children (10 and under) eat free when mum and dad dine in. Bookings essential; phone 0481 994 875.

Another Burger Joint is opening at Westfield Kotara on November 2. The burger chain opened a restaurant at Lake Macquarie Fair, Mount Hutton, earlier this year.

Wallsend's Coffee on Carrington has launched Friday Family Fun Nights. From 5.30pm to 8.30pm there will be a jukebox, a dance floor, games and prizes as well as burgers, hot dogs, milkshakes and ice-creams.

Rick Stein's Spain is coming to Bannisters Port Stephens on October 27. Grab a ticket (be quick) and you can enjoy a classic tapas menu or the Chef's Choice tasting menu.

It's the time of year when Scotties at Newcastle East is the go-to place for friends, couples and families seeking to enjoy a laid-back dining experience with a sea breeze. Grab a picnic blanket and sample chef Joel Humphreys' creations while relaxing on the grass and soaking up the sun.

Cellarbrations at Valentine has wine and craft beer tastings booked in every Friday afternoon until December 21. This Friday, October 18, Angove Wines will be there from 3.30pm to 6.30pm.

This week is National Nutrition Week and Nutrition Australia say that fewer than 4 per cent of Australians consume the recommended five serves of vegetables a day. This year's "Tryfor5" theme is Embrace Your Veg Waste.

Nutrition Australia senior dietitian Amber Kelaart says we can try for five serves of vegetables a day by embracing vegetable "waste" and eating more parts of vegetables such as skins, stalks and leaves; using up ageing vegetables that would otherwise go in the bin; and choosing "ugly" and '"imperfect" vegetables to prevent them going to landfill.

It also helps to learn how to store them properly.

"Vegetable skins contain fibre, vitamins and minerals. Rinsing vegetables like carrots, potatoes and mushrooms, instead of peeling them, means you keep more of those important nutrients in your body and out of the bin," she said.

"And don't throw out things like broccoli stems or the leaves of leeks. You can chop the broccoli stems and use it in a stir-fry or soup. And chips, tart and stock made from the leaves of leek will add a unique new ingredient to your repertoire."

If your vegetables are getting a little wrinkly, have some go-to recipes up your sleeve.

"Give your ageing vegetables a second life by adding them to vegetable soups, egg frittatas or savoury muffins. Just add a few handfuls of chopped left-over vegetables to create delicious and colourful new meals or snacks. Plus they freeze well and can be added to the kids' lunchboxes or taken to work."

For more tips and information, go online to tryfor5.org.au.

Baltic, by Simon Bajada, showcases the food culture of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. It celebrates traditional dishes from each country and adapts them to create 70 recipes suitable for home kitchens the world over. Baltic cuisine is a mixture of Russian and German culinary influences with spices thrown in. The recipes combine traditional and contemporary Baltic cuisine - tasty, basic, hearty food and simple techniques. Think curd pancakes with sour cream and blackberry jam; black bread and Latvian hemp butter; or summer's milk soup.

Baltic is out now through Hardie Grant, RRP $50. Food & Wine has a copy to give away. To enter, send the word "Baltic" with your name, address and number to freelunch@theherald.com.au. Entries close on Monday at 9am.