Exciting news for food-lovers. This latest addition to the Sydney food scene - part Aladdin's Cave, part provedore - now means that the world's finest high-end foods and spices once attainable only by top chefs are now available to the public. The opening of retail store Gourmet Life in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs sees products used by such names as Quay's Peter Gilmore, Est.'s Peter Doyle and Aria's Matt Moran in the grasp of every lover of fine food. Brainchild of importer Josh Rea, Gourmet Life is a treasure trove of culinary and gourmet delights set to change the scope of the city's food scene.

On entering, if you've timed your visit right, you will be met by a haze of truffle fumes, black and white! In the glass display counter, the first thing to catch your eye is wild French asparagus, delicate, green, lavender-shaped. So rare and esoteric it sets the tone for the rest of the room's offerings, hand-picked and personally sourced by owner Josh Rea from hidden places around the world.

Josh has unearthed more than 1000 unique products to grace his store, from Rome's oldest coffee (enjoy a cup as you browse) to Europe's most sought-after fresh almonds and hazelnuts that burst with genuine flavour. But his piece de resistance is his range of the world's finest black caviar, truffles and wild mushrooms - each the largest of any in Australia and available only through this newly opened outlet. Indeed, nowhere else in the country can such an extraordinary range of produce be found.

Over the past decade Josh became renowned through Sydney's leading restaurants as the supplier of rare, high quality products starting with vanilla and saffron. His dedication to excellence saw him succeed where others had failed: for instance he was the first to bring fresh porcini mushrooms - the king of their kind - into Australia and he remains the country's sole importer of the delicate morsels. "We nailed the quality aspect of importing fresh porcini and it went gangbusters with all the leading restaurants," Josh recalls.

But the price of this success meant Josh's home-based business took over his life. "We couldn't fit all the hazelnuts in the hallway of my house anymore", he says. "We had Mediterranean sea salt stacked to the roof. There was no restaurant we weren't supplying." The only way forward was to find a willing retailer to taking on his highly delicate produce, but when this proved impossible, Josh took matters into his own hands and Gourmet Life was born.

It is little wonder that Josh's dedication has seen him become Sydney's newest and best fine food purveyor.  Only at Gourmet Life can customers buy such delicacies as the world's only sustainable caviar, Mottra of Latvia, which is gently milked from the sturgeon before the fish is returned to the water. The store's hazelnuts are the world's most sought-after, hand-picked and sorted by an Italian mother and daughter team using methods passed down through generations. Gourmet Life also sells rare wild French asparagus from the Pyrenees Mountains, harvested straight after its month-long growing period, as well as chocolate deemed the finest in the world. Josh has just become the sole purveyor of leading French foie gras brand Castaing, a favourite with Michelin star chefs. Gourmet Life is also the only supplier of beluga caviar in Australia.

Some of the products available at Gourmet Life include:

• Rome's oldest coffee label, Sant'Eustachio
• Jams crafted by 2 Michelin star Chef Moreno Cedroni presented in hand-made stackable Venetian glass jars. Varieties include strawberry lemon thyme, and tangerine and organic fig with violets.
• French spice range Terre Exotique and its unique varieties including Bordeaux Cabernet salt, Yuzu zest and Espelette chilli.
• A L'Olivier olive oils, chutneys, pastas, mustards and vinegars.
• The globe's sexiest bottles of olive oil from Spanish producer Pepa Olivar, winner of the best flavoured olive oil in Spain 2012.
• Hazelnuts from Nocciole d'Etite, Europe's most renowned producer of the variety. As testament to their greatness, the owner of Ferrero Rocher - who owns 90 per cent of the world's hazelnuts stores - chooses to buy from this producer for private customers over and above his own
• Homewares from Galateo and Friends, suppliers of furnishings to the Armani and Versace branded hotels. Galateo and Friends olive oil is also used exclusively by Alain Ducasse in each of his 3 star Michelin restaurants.
• Chocolates by Catalonian artisan chocolatier Xavier Mor.
• Spanish almonds from a supplier of six generations experience.

Gourmet Life is far more than just a shopping or browsing experience. Each brand has a story and staff can take customers on a sample tasting through the store, explaining the background of each so buyers fully appreciate products' unique qualities. Prices are affordable, too, ranging from well under $10. Black caviar costs from $4.50 a gram.

Gourmet Life is located at 52-60 New South Head Rd, Edgecliff, NSW 2027 

Hours: 8am-5pm daily.           Phone: 02 9363 0775

COMING SOON! a cafe section, and more fresh produce, the best Josh can source - of course!

ABOUT JOSH REA: Inspired by fishing with his father and helping his mother cultivate their edible garden, Josh has been exploring the food world from a young age. His dominance in the wholesale market spurred his desire to search the globe for delicious, unique products of the utmost quality. The result has been the discovery of everything from the world's best caviar and vanilla to olive oil and spices. Josh has always brought the most exciting flavours home with him, delivering them to Australia's leading chefs - and now to the public. He is undoubtedly a food visionary and his extensive industry expertise has cemented his place as a leading player in the food scene with this latest venture set to become a Sydney institution and national destination.