I know I go on about Instagram a lot, slating it for its invasive effect on our social lives while simultaneously scrolling through my feed like a blue-screen obsessive. In the food world, Instagram has become a kind of showcase for what-we-ate and a means to follow those rock-star chefs we can't get enough of. As if posting a couple of pictures a day was not enough, I wrote a story about it, too, in my Sunday Style column Fine Foodie. You can read the story in its entirety here...

THOSE disks of vegetables, the dots of oil on an apparently fragrant broth, little twigs of samphire and sprigs of baby leaves… it was as if Monet himself had created the masterpiece. The dish was definitely ready for its close-up.

First, food took over Instagram. But now, alarmingly, Instagram is taking over food. Some dishes are so ornate, so elaborate and played-with, they turn up cold at our tables after mass preening just for the perfect shot. Food should not leave you asking: am I supposed to eat this or take its picture? But it’s no wonder; there’s a growing trend of Instagrammers who will eat at a restaurant just to get a photo of a particular dish – an Instagram trophy dish. The yabby jaffle at Monster in Canberra has Instagrammers shuttling into our capital on weekends, we’re posting any ice-cream concoction from Gelato Messina – but especially scoops decked with popcorn from the dessert bar (hands in shot for extra likes) – and, of course, Zumbo’s macarons.

There’s the duck waffle from Cumulus Up, in Melbourne, while an oozing burger, shot side on, from a choice of The Burger Project, Chur Burger or Mary’s always does well. The prawn toast from Sydney’s Ms. G’s, the steamed pork buns from Momofuku and bowls of ramen leave followers reeling for tonkotsu – the more unctuous the better – but a halved soy egg in the soup secures bonus likes.

Even condiments (the Rooster sriracha, click click) appear on our feeds, and a slab of Pepe Saya butter on sourdough, preferably from Sydney bakery Iggy’s, is a like-guarantee.

A chef recently told me he regularly gets bloggers coming in who order one dish, take a photo of it, have a lacklustre nibble around the edges and then leave. “What a waste of time,” he says.

Breakfast is the most Instagrammed meal of the day, partly because of the meteoric rise of avocado on toast, and partly because breakfast has better lighting. Read the full story.