Well I thought it hadn't been done, but apparently it has. Admittedly it's in an analogue system (of cause) that the authors refer to as a "toy model". But none-the-less I'm impressed. A direct measurement, even in an analogue system, of Hawking radiation, demonstrates that the semi-classical approach to quantum gravity can produce genuinely interesting and physically relevant results.
I've always found Hawking's original paper a little light on the details and have been dissatisfied with explanations I've found elsewhere. I don't know what it is (perhaps overly sensitive mathematician sensibilities) but I get this uncomfortable feeling, as if there is something going on which no one is telling me.
But to measure it! Puts me in my place really. More so since I'm only noticing this now.