Italian food – Melbourne – Victoria – Australia – May 2017

Tags

Australia, Italian food, Melbourne, Becco Restaurant, Victoria, Il Nostro Posto Restaurant

Italian Food in Melbourne

A few months ago my friend Jane and I went to Melbourne for a long weekend [I have previously posted on our visit to the theatre and a French restaurant] where we went to a lovely Italian restaurant I had previously been to.  Melbourne is known for its fabulous restaurants and Becco didn’t let us down.  The restaurant is located in one of Melbourne’s lovely cobblestone streets and its interior has dim lighting in the evening making it rather difficult to take photos on my phone.Jane ordered an entree of ceviche which was marinated in fresh lime juice with sliced onions and vegetables and a light cream and pesto sauce .  She said this was absolutely delicious.

I wasn’t that hungry so only ordered a main dish of rigatoni pasta with a rich tomato and basil sauce…it was very good, unlike my photos.Jane then had the veal dish which was topped with sauted spinach with a white wine reduction.One other Italian restaurant I have been to in Melbourne is Il Nostro Posto; a beautiful converted 19th century warehouse.  I went to this restaurant when I was working in our office in Melbourne and as our group was large we were seated in the cellar area downstairs – a reasonable size room with two large tables, wood panelling on the walls and one original stone wall – just lovely!

It’s a Sicilian themed restaurant whose speciality is seafood and most of my colleagues ordered a dish with some sort of seafood apart from one young girl I work with in Canberra who ordered a tomato based penne pasta.I wanted to eat and drink relatively healthy being a weeknight, so had my obligatory sparkling mineral water but no wine on this evening and an entree of mixed roasted vegetables in a napoli sauce with lightly toasted bread and olive oil.  The dish was delicious and I only ate one small piece of bread…a good evening for me health wise.Another signature dish of the restaurant is the seafood pie; guazzetto in crosta, linguine pasta tossed with fresh seafood and chilli then topped with a lid of pizza dough and baked in the oven.

Melbourne has so many wonderful restaurants; a great city to visit and being only an hour plane ride from Canberra I shall be visiting again next month.

 

 

 

 

 

Lazy-Su Restaurant – Braddon – Canberra – ACT – Australia – July 2017

Tags

ACT, Asian fusion food, Australia, canberra, dinner with friends, Lazy Su restaurant

One of twenty new restaurants in Canberra

My friend Jane’s husband has arrived back home from overseas so instead of the usual two of us, this time three of us went out to dinner a couple of weeks ago to this new restaurant in Canberra which has received great reviews.  The theme of the restaurant is Japan meets Korea and is great for casual dining.  It has a pretty big menu with several vegetarian and vegan options.

I walked into the city from my home which is just under an hour and was fortunate to see the sun setting; a lovely sight on this evening.

And then through the streets of Braddon which is now where all the new restaurants in the city are located.  It’s become a very trendy street also with cafes, trinket shops, bars and of course restaurants.I arrived at the restaurant and met Paul and Jane who were already seated with a glass of wine in hand and one ready for me – great friends!!  We were in a booth which unfortunately had very slim seats and the table was unmovable and did not allow much space between the seat and table.  A little uncomfortable!

But lots of positives, the restaurant is filled with contrasting quirks – from a traditional Japanese waves mural to the Harajuku-themed ladies bathroom, ’80s Japanese pop culture ads covering the bar fridges, and a mesmerising wall of lucky cats when you first walk in.The bar itself is also pretty impressive although my photos don’t really show how impressive – the lights have names of what spirits are on offer.And then there are the lucky cats…The restaurant has dishes that are meant to be shared; I think this is a trend with a lot of new restaurants now.  I ordered the miso & honey baked sweet potato with garlic kumara chips and blackbean with sesame and lime.  We all tasted this and each of us said it was exceptional.Jane and Paul ordered the Szechuan peper squid with salted black bean, lime, coriander and aioli.Followed by the pork and shrimp wontons with black vinegar…Also Mum’s chicken which is a boneless poached chicken, Singapore sauce, cabbage with sesame and soya sauce.

And last dish they ordered was the steamed fillets of barramundi fish topped with samba, pickles and crispy eschallot.  They enjoyed them all apart from one dish but now i can’t recall if that was the squid or the chicken…

I also ordered the kimchi fried rice with egg and sesame; wow this was huge and too much for me to eat; Jane and Paul took it home for their son Harry to have at school the next day.  But it was delicious; very tasty!

My other dish was the Tasty Tofu Bao which I thought was going to be very small but like the rice dish was quite large and way too much to eat.  It came with shitake salsa, coleslaw and a teriyaki and kimchi mayo.  Again very tasty I must say but just too big to finish.

It was a lovely evening with my friends and I would return for the food but not for the small seats and tables.

Petite Feast – Buvette Restaurant – Canberra – ACT – Australia – June 2017

Tags

ACT, Australia, Buvette Restaurant, canberra, Friends, High Tea, Petite Feast

Another High Tea in Canberra

One of the hotels in Canberra advertises for a high tea every Saturday, so my friends Jenny, Jane and I decided to try it out.  Jane and I arrived a little early and this caused much confusion with the waitress who couldn’t understand why we were ten minutes early.  We finally got to seat down after agreeing we were early (!!) and wait for our friend Jenny.  I had decided to forgo breakfast as we were meeting at 1130 and wanted to enjoy the spoils of the High Tea.  When we arrived, the restaurant was empty but it filled up by the time we left.We all started off with a pot of tea each and waited for the High Tea to arrive.  It really is a little different to the usual High Teas I have been to.  Firstly warm fresh sourdough rolls with house-made butter were brought to the table and then a large plate of savoury items arrived – a plate each. Jenny had advised the restaurant I didn’t eat cheese so I had a plate of mini pumpkin sandwiches, salad, olives, mini quiches and sun dried tomatoes – all delicious except the olives which I don’t like.The girls each had a plate of chicken wraps, smoked salmon finger sandwiches, mini beef pies, sundried tomato quiches, duck liver pate, and a terrine. Then there was a Tasmanian double brie cheese, olives, fig, lavosh crackers, salami from Queensland and an oyster – a rather large plate of food!Jane sort of forgot the sweets were yet to come and was a bit full when they arrived but then again she does not have a sweet tooth so it didn’t matter to her; Jenny and I tried most of the desserts; probably more than needed.  At this point Jane and I ordered a glass of champagne; none for Jenny who attends a yoga class on a Saturday afternoon.On the large slate plate, beautifully displayed and carefully arranged were passionfruit profiteroles, macaroons, chocolate tarts with popcorn, a coconut curd with a cream and fruit topping and a mini pavlova topped with strawberries – all so lovely but some never made it off the plate – too full!!

Lovely couple of hours chatting and eating – well worth the reasonable cost.

Dumpling House – Dickson – Canberra – ACT – Australia – 2010 – 2017

Tags

Chinese food, Dickson Dumpling House, Dumplings, Eggplant, Yu xiang qiezi

My absolute favourite Chinese restaurant

There is a small Chinese restaurant in Canberra (Dickson Dumpling House) about a thirty minute walk from my home that I absolutely love!  I eat there at least once a fortnight and always take visitors there as for me it reminds me so much of the food in Beijing especially the dumplings; vegetable for me and pork for my friends who also order the xiao long bao (Shanghai dumplings containing soup).

Every friend I have taken there loves the authentic Chinese dishes and always asks to reserve a table when they return to visit me; I am actually going there this Sunday night with a friend who is visiting from Cambodia. We usually also order the chive pancakes to start with – a little bit oily but delicious with Chinese vinegar.

The dried green bean dish with chilli is fabulous as, I am told, is the kung pao chicken which is regularly ordered by my friends.

The decor is basic but the service is great.  I have made friends with one of the waiters [Peter] and I practice my Chinese with him and develops his English with me – he is pretty good anyway as he goes to uni here in Canberra.  He recently returned to his home town in Sichaun Province and brought me back some lovely tea.   A very sweet young man who has now invited me and my friend Jon to his home for eggplant as he says he makes it really well and knows I order it always..looking forward to that!

So on the subject of my most favourite dish –  yu xiang qiezi (fish fragrant eggplant).  Ordered every single visit without fail but without the pork on the top and without the fish sauce.  Even my brother has changed his mind about eggplant now because of this dish.

And there are desserts but it’s rare that we order them…but last time my Goddaughter and her partner came to visit we did…very big dishes and oh so sweet!!

So there you have it…my most favourite Chinese restaurant – no MSG either!!

Hobart – Tasmania – Australia – May 2017

Tags

Australia, city sights, Fisherman's Dock, H Jones & Co, Hobart, Jam Factory, Tasmania, waterfront

An early morning walk around Hobart, Tasmania’s capital

Whilst in Hobart for work, I stayed at a lovely heritage hotel in the city which was only a short walk to the water.  The hotel was originally built by convict labour in 1834 and is said to be one of the oldest boutique hotels in Australia. It was such a lovely and elegant hotel with period furniture and the rooms with high ceilings and an old fashioned bed and cupboards but with modern touches like wifi and coffee and tea making facilities.

We arrived very late in the evening after a day working in Melbourne so I went straight to bed but the next morning I got up quite early and head out towards the water to Fisherman’s Dock.  This took about ten minutes and on the way I saw some lovely historic buildings which are very typical Hobart.

At Fisherman’s Dock, it was lovely to see boats surrounded by old buildings and views out to sea.

Really lovely views so early in the morning! I walked past two big warehouses on the waterfront referred to as the Jam Factories…so I decided to do a bit of research to find out about their history…

Summary from Wikepedia:

Henry Jones IXL was a company primarily known as a manufacturer of jams, conserves and sauces in Australia, established by Henry Jones in 1891. The brand is now owned and manufactured by SPC Ardmona, which has itself been owned by Coca-Cola Amatil since February 2005.    The IXL brand – ‘I excel in everything I do’ was Henry Jones’s personal motto.

The building is now a dedicated art hotel after it was abandoned and languishing in neglect, until in 2004 architects revived the site which is now a five-star hotel.

I then walked around the dock for about forty-minutes taking in the views of the mountains with fog below, following which I returned to my hotel to get ready for my meetings in Hobart; walking past churches and more buildings. A capital city I really must come back to – so much to do and see!!

 

 

 

Madame Shanghai Restaurant – Sydney – New South Wales – Australia – June 2017

Tags

Australia, Chinese fine dining, Madame Shanghai Restaurant, NSW, Sydney

A work function followed by dinner with friends

A new Chinese restaurant has opened near Hyde Park in Sydney and as I had to travel to Sydney (with my friend/colleague Jane) for a work function, I decided to catch up with two other friends for a late dinner at Madame Shanghai restaurant.  Well what a fabulous find!!

We walked in and had a drink at the cocktail area overlooking Hyde Park which is said to be reminiscent of a Shanghai garden with lush greenery.  It is also decorated with beautiful lamps and really lovely ceiling fans.

The whole area is stylishly decorated in blues and pinks emulating 1930’s Shanghai.  It’s actually pretty spectacular.

We then moved to the dining area.  The whole restaurant is dimly lit in a sophisticated way and initially we were seated at a round table near the door and with the door open it was too noisy, so we asked to be moved and were accommodated straight away.  Our table had a little lamp to allow us to read the menu and the table setting was lovely.

 

My friends Paul and Kay started off with a cocktail each and Jane and I ordered our usual white wine and a bottle of sparkling mineral water.  Paul ordered the Spontaneous Combustion which is made with rum, Gunpowder gin, fassionola, guava, citrus and  beachcomber bitters – along with lots of ice – so delicious, he had another, but I forget what Kay ordered.

The menu is extensive and meant to be shared and has several vegetarian options.

My friends decided to share their meals and I ordered my own vegetarian dishes.  The dishes I ordered were the open top dumplings (four to a serve) and the pumpkin and brocolini dish with hazelnuts and tamari as well as some cauliflower with chilli and balsamic sauce – absolutely delicious!!

My friends started off with the scallop and snow pea dumplings and the duck pancakes with hoisin sauce.

They then ordered the beef short ribs with fish sauce, chilli and fresh herbs which comes with a large bone on the plate which is more decorative rather than edible.

The next dish they tried was the soft shell crab with tomato chilli sauce and grilled milk bread.  I used one finger of the milk bread to mop up some of my chilli and balsamic sauce.  The colours in this dish were so vibrant.

The restaurant also has an outdoors area for dining but too cold on this particular night.  It’s covered with bamboo trees and soft lighting throughout and on the way to the bathrooms you can see fabulous prints of Shanghai women adorning the walls.  I have some of these at my home in Canberra as when I departed Beijing, my lovely language teacher gave me six as a gift which I then had framed.

The chef is Shanghai born and emigrated to Australia in 1996 and it is said his passion for food is inspired by his grandmother’s home cooking and uses the  ‘less is more’ approach.  I like this style.

Final dish ordered by my friends was the octopus with chilli and heirloom sauce and at that time Kay was ready to have one more cocktail – same as before with the dried apple on the top.

Then it was time for dessert; those who know me know I very rarely eat dessert during the week and this time was no different even though they looked and sounded incredible.  Jane is not a big dessert eater but indulged a little this evening.

There are three desserts on the menu and all three were ordered. The first was the white miso cheesecake with passionfruit and cassis – beautifully displayed.

Second was a mango pudding with mango (of course), milk foam and finger lime decorated beautifully with little edible flowers.

And finally Madame’s Gold – a gold glazed chocolate mousse with peanut ganache and rum caramel which is designed to look like a gold bullion.

Pastry chef, Tiffany Jones describes the dessert:

 “Madame’s Gold is symbolic of Madame’s love of the high life and indulgence of the finer things in life…she’s an independent woman who uses her gold bullion to sustain her lavish lifestyle”.

 

 

Otis Dining Hall – Kingston – Canberra – ACT – Australia – June 2017

Tags

ACT, Australia, canberra, Kingston, Otis Dining Hall Restaurant

‘Another’ new restaurant in Canberra

For several years Canberra had a Belgium Beer Cafe which was a good place to go for a drink on a Sunday afternoon and then one day it was gone; not sure why as it was always full of people but some months ago, in its place was a new restaurant called Otis Dining Hall..which certainly is not a hall in the true sense of the word but a fabulous restaurant.(source: http://www.thisisotis.com.au)

I booked a table (for me and my friend Jane) one Saturday evening in June.

When I dine out if I see a dish with cheese in it, I always ask can the cheese be removed as I do not eat cheese containing animal rennet and this time was no different as the dish I liked the look of was the pumpkin ravioli dish.  I wasn’t sure if there would be a shaving of parmesan so I asked the [very] young waiter if this could be done and he immediately told me it couldn’t.  I was surprised as the cheese was not inside the ravioli nor part of the dish, so I asked him if he was sure and he said he was and that cheese on a dish could not be removed.  I was rather [very] frustrated and asked him if he could ask the chef (who actually makes the meal!!) which he reluctantly did…and surprise surprise the chef said ‘yes’ the dish could be made without the shaving of cheese.  grr!!

So after this ordeal, I did order the pumpkin ravioli with  sage burnt butter, a hen’s egg and amaretto…and it was definitely worth it – absolutely delicious..

Jane, who apologied to me first (because I am completely vegetarian and and lover of all animals) ordered the salted wallaby tartare with pickled vine leaf, macadamia nut floss and burnt onions.  The wallaby is a small Aussie animal and I think just a smaller version of the kangaroo and I really didn’t think it was an animal we ate, but I guess all animals can be eaten. Jane said it was good but next time would probably order seafood [her favourite].

It was at this time I asked for an ice bucket for our wine as it hadn’t arrived with our bottle, well I asked twice really [again to our young and inexperienced waiter] and in the end Jane had to insist on one…it was a little frustrating but not the biggest issue in the world…

For main course I ordered the forest mushroom gnocchi with pickled chestnut mushrooms, pine nuts and taleggio cheese (I asked for the cheese to be removed and funnily enough this time it was ok).  So delicious!!Jane ordered the Otis pepper steak with  silk-wood brandy jus and a side of french fries – it was funny though as that was exactly what it was…steak on a plate with nothing else…I suppose I think there could be some greens somewhere on the plate – but no!!I ate the fries as Jane is not a big eater of chips!! (lucky me).  No dessert for either of us as we were very full but this is what we can expect…(source: http://www.agfg.com.au)

Other friends of mine have eaten at this restaurant and actually asked me about the service; like me they found it wanting – maybe it’s because it’s new and the staff are young but the food is definitely worth a return visit.

 

 

 

 

 

Agostinis Restaurant – Canberra – Australian Capital Territory – Australia – May 2017

Tags

ACT, Agostinis Restaurant, Australia, canberra, Italian food

Dinner with a friend from London

A friend of mine has a posting to London and recently returned to Canberra for a short visit.  I wanted to catch up with her so we decided to go out to dinner (of course with my other friend Jane) at a restaurant that is attached to one of the lovely hotels.

This Italian restaurant has a casual and comfortable feel with a predominantly pink palette throughout.  It’s good for families and larger groups rather than intimate dining.  On the evening we went there was a large group next to us so it was a little difficult to hear our conversation.

It has a pretty extensive menu and everything is made in-house, from the ice cream to the the pizza dough which is great.

And then there’s the pizza oven – the largest in Canberra. It fits fourteen pizzas at a time and even rotates to make the best use of the heat.  

(source: http://www.goodfood.com.au)

The kitchen is open, meaning both the pizza oven and the chefs preparing the evening’s meals are on full display which I do like to see.

I ordered the Cavolo salad which is an Italian coleslaw dish with finely shredded green cabbage and a garlic, lemon and mint vinaigrette.  It was really nice – refreshing really and as I was having a very healthy night I didn’t order anything else and ordered a bottle of sparkling water to enjoy whilst my friends shared a bottle of white wine.Jane ordered the parmesan and thyme crusted veal cutlet which was served served with a fennel and cabbage salad.  She loved it!My London friend ordered a pizza with a topping of prawns, cherry tomatoes, chilli, parsley, mozzarella and lemon.  She loved it too – nice and fresh with a good base.The restaurant does have a very good selection of wines and a specialty behind the bar is the range of Italian-made wines on tap.  Might need to try one next time. 

A nice evening with friends but I think I might try a few of the other restaurants in town before I return.

 

 

Sanya Bar – Braddon – Canberra – ACT – Australia – April 2017

Tags

ACT, Australia, Braddon, canberra, Chinese cuisine, Sanya Bar

New bar/restaurant in the inner city

My friend Jane’s husband is currently working overseas so during his absence Jane and I regularly try new restaurants mostly in Canberra but also in Sydney and Melbourne.  Last last month she told me about a new  bar/restaurant in the inner city called Sanya Bar so we decided to try it out.

We went there on the week of its soft opening and arrived when it opened as couldn’t make a reservation either through the website or after Jane physically went to the bar.  Which meant we got good seats when we arrived.  The cuisine is Beijing fusion.  So what is Beijing fusion you might ask [as I asked the same question), well it’s just a different take on northern Chinese food.  The restaurant’s menu is a mix of traditional dishes including the renowned Peking Duck pancakes but then it also has other interesting dishes.  For example crispy banana chicken wings and blue cheese, pear and walnut wontons and deserts like fried cheesecake with toasted coconut. Interesting!!

The restaurant is so lovely; intimate and dark with several tables near the bar and a few more smaller tables down a long corridor whose wall has many framed Chinese black and white prints.  We sat next to the bar (in the best seats I say) which has gold grout between the tiles [never seen gold grout before] and enjoyed some champagne whilst catching up on our lives.

The owner, JJ Chen was a public servant in Canberra for some time and then moved to Beijing and the head cook is her mum who has been a cook at Parliament House and the Hyatt Hotel in Canberra. I also did some research and found out that the head chef’s  grandfather was a cook in China’s Imperial Palace and he had passed down his recipes and taught his granddaughter how to cook.

The name of the restaurant is the same as a beautiful beach on Hainan Island in China and the menus, which are pretty cool, have pictures of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army troupes being entertained by Marilyn Monroe and a caricature like cartoon of people in Tian’anmen Square, [certainly not a picture you could have on a menu in China).  Both are by renowned Chinese-Australian artist Guo Jian, who is a friend of the owner.

There are also great murals on the walls which match the menus.

When Jane and I finally stopped talking [we hadn’t caught up for a while] we decided to order dumplings; mine vegetarian and Jane’s meat filled.  They arrived all wrapped up nicely and matched with a spicy sauce.  The sauce was delicious but Jane and I found the top of the dumplings a little dry; guess it was the soft opening so will make allowances.  But the contents were good.

We also ordered a plate of  vegetarian wontons which I found were pretty much the same as the dumplings but a different shape.  Looked great in the dish but still a tiny bit dry on the top.

The official opening was a couple of weeks after we dined and I have heard the owner is going to make the entrance to the restaurant more like a Beijing Hutong so I will have to go back to check it out and give those dumplings just one more try.

 

 

 

Mount Wellington – Hobart – Tasmania – May 2017

Tags

Hobart, Mount Wellington, Tasmania

Lovely views from atop the mountain

A couple of weeks ago I travelled to Hobart, the capital of Tasmania which is an isolated state off the south coast of Australia.  Unfortunately, there are no direct flights from Canberra so I had to fly to Melbourne (Victoria) first then over the Tasman Sea to reach Hobart.

(source: http://www.worldatlas.com)

Hobart sits on the Derwent River and is such a beautiful city; one of my favourites actually as I love the climate there.    Hobart experiences four distinct seasons which is similar to Canberra.  It’s a pretty cold capital city [again like Canberra] with the average temperatures range from 11.5 – 21°C in summer…but not as warm as Canberra as during our summers our average temperatures range from 12.6 – 27°C but our temperatures in summer do reach 40°C with little humidity which is great.

Whilst there, I had a couple of hours to spare so my colleagues kindly drove me up to Mount Wellington which is the summit of the Wellington Range.

The mountain rises to around 1200 metres above sea level and is frequently covered by snow, sometimes even in summer and as we were leaving we saw little pockets of snow on the ground.

We arrived at the top of the mountain after a trip where I had a little motion sickness but it was worth it to get out of the car as there was an enclosed look-out and wooden pathway which provided spectacular views of the city and the Derwent river.

I couldn’t go out on the enclosed look-out as I have such a fear of heights and it was just too close to the edge but the walkway provided great views too.  We were up so high that I also had great views of the clouds sitting around the top of the mountains…lovely sight with the sun shining through the clouds.

I also went for a walk around Hobart before work that morning but I will cover that in another post…