Benchmark Restaurant – Canberra – ACT – Australia – December 2016

Tags

ACT, Australia, Benchmark, canberra, Fine Dining, Wine Bar & Restauarant

Dinner at My Favourite Wine Bar and Restaurant

A couple of weeks before christmas my friend Jane said to me she wanted to try the dishes at the wine bar/restaurant where I held my birthday party last year.  She enjoyed the tapas served at my birthday so much that she wanted to try the main dishes.  I made a booking and with my other two good friends we went mid-week.

Benchmark Wine Bar & Restaurant is in the centre of Canberra city and I love it.  Not that many years ago, it was difficult to find a good wine bar in Canberra then along came Benchmark.  Yay…it’s great for a quality glass of wine and tapas or a three course dinner, or as I have experienced a large special event.

The owner Tass is so lovely and I came to know the bar well, as it was across the road from my old office, so my friends and I would visit often for a glass of wine before heading home on a Friday afternoon.  It has an extensive wine list so it was always difficult to choose but as Tass knew me and my friends so well, he would pour us a glass of wonderful Aussie or New Zealand Sav Blanc.  Great champagne too!!

On the occasion just before christmas, my friends ordered some of the home made ciabatta bread with cafe paris butter…bread was toasted and delicious.

I wasn’t that hungry so didn’t have any entree/starter but my friends ordered the fresh shucked oysters with finger lime and martin millers gin granita…

For our main courses I asked Tass if the chef could make me a salad as again still not that hungry; which the chef did and was lovely and light.

Jane ordered the twice cooked pork belly, scallops, cauliflower puree, morcilla sausage flakes with caramelised fennel…she said this was absolutely delicious!!

 

Ray ordered the market fish of the day [but I can’t recall what it was] but as you can see it came on a risotto base with greens and caramelised sweet onions and Natalie ordered the angel hair pasta with air dried tomatoes, basil, aged reggiano with white truffle oil.  Like Jane, both loved their dishes.

Of course the obligatory fries were ordered and eaten….these came with oregano and sea salt…

No dessert for any of us, as we were too full…another great night I must say and as I mentioned I do love this place and it’s lovely to go to a bar or restaurant where you are known…I think it’s a lovely feeling.

When I held my birthday here, I had about fifty of my friends come along and I ordered a birthday cake which was raspberry and white chocolate and cream frosting with lovely sugar flowers cascading from the top of the cake to the bottom.

What I didn’t know was that Tass had arranged for the chef to make me a wonderful (and delicious) croqueembouce…such a wonderful surprise along with a fabulous night!!