At some point I lost my spark.

It felt like my creativity, and more so, my desire to write just left me.

Looking back, my last post was July 2021: Let’s put that into context. It was 4 years, 4 months and 22 days since I last posted.

To be fair, a lot was going on in 2021. Hong Kong was in the thick of Covid restrictions, and at that specific point in my life, I had more pressing concerns than being creative. My business had been shut down for the second time, and my wife and I were legitimately concerned that our fitness business would never re-open. All pretty heavy stuff when you’re living in another country.

As is invariably the case, things did improve (although it took a few years to see the light at the end of the tunnel) and by that point, I was coming out of a big depression and the last thing I wanted to do was write about food. Actually, to be honest, it really felt like the creative spark had been snuffed out permanently.

Oh, I tried to write a few time in the intervening years; I have scores of attempted posts on some frankly, incredible restaurants. But they just never saw the light of day (I hope to get some of these out with my Flashback Series).

Something else has changed quite significantly over the last half decade – the advent and proliferation of video content, both long-form, and increasingly short-form. I started to believe that the time of the written blog had passed (at least that’s the narrative I’d constructed in my head) and nobody had the attention span, time or inclination to spend the time reading about honest restaurant experiences.

Then, my 10 years in Hong Kong came to an abrupt end, and the Girl and I moved back to Brisbane. Ten years away is a long time, and a lot had changed. But interestingly, a lot had stayed the same. Some of my old favourite restaurants had closed, others had stayed open and a plethora of new restaurants had opened.

I guess the circle of life is exemplified in the cycle of restaurants.

But a funny thing happened. Being away from easy access to Michelin Starred restaurants, being back home in Brisbane and getting out and checking out old favourites, and discovering new and sometimes exciting dining spots; well, it’s done something to me, and all of a sudden, I feel like writing again.

If you’re seeing this, it means that my spark has returned and an old itch long suppressed (but always ever present) is being scratched. How long it lasts? Well, who knows, I didn’t write for a long time, so I hope that I can keep it up…

I guess if people read this, and want more, then more I will write.