Missing in action

A conspicuous absentee from the Good Food Guide's annual hatting ceremony last month was lauded chef Aaron Turner, whose acclaimed Bellarine Peninsula restaurant, Loam, closed in June.

Espresso found him in the US, biding time in Nashville, Tennessee, where he is enjoying having a ''food adventure just for me''.

Saying Nashville is a great city and declaring a love of fried chicken and catfish, Turner wouldn't set a date for returning to Australia or comment on suggestions he'd tried the local moonshine.