Viaduct Harbour

This was our only other pre-booked a Previous Article dinner event of our Vacation Trip, although this time it was less about it being on the get-there-before-you-die list than it was about not wanting to be left with our hotel's bar (actually, not even sure it had a bar...) as our only NYE dining option.  It caught our attention because of the harbor views and the strongly seafooded menu.  I'm pretty much an anti-NYE celebrator, choosing to stay in and avoid the obnoxious revelers that are many in number, but when you're on the other side of the world and lined up to be one of the first to see 2012 there's the spectre of the wifedoom hanging around if you try stay in...

It's a big place, there's at least the restaurant we were in with probably well over 100 seats, a bistro next door (although they may call it something else), a bar that looked and sounded like a night club and some sort of private rooms according to the website that seat 50 or so that could conceivably be attached to any part.  Also, as we walked around the harbor earlier in the day we noticed another building with their logo proudly displayed on the side so there could be even more.

Once up the stairs from the street, and standing at the correct host stand, it's just a few paces past the kitchen (there were a lot of chefs and although I'm sure the chef was there, we've no idea if we got a glimpse of him (or her, of course!)) and into the restaurant.  There's no sit at and wait bar, but there are a couple of comfy chairs I suspect they would bring a drink to if there were people waiting.  There's two walls of mostly glass overlooking the harbor - we put in a request for a window, and got a small one on the street side of the place which we initially thought of as a bummer but once we figured out we wouldn't have seen the fireworks anyway turned out to give us some fun people watching we otherwise would have missed out on - there's only so much interest a harbor has to offer, right?  The room really is one big space (apart from two private themed rooms that we got a quick peek in as we left thanks to our sneaky Server - the one we saw into was pretty sweet, but you're probably paying a few extra bucks for the privilege of sitting amongst a fish pond and would need 8 or 10 people to use up the whole table) which is broken up mostly by the way the tables are arrange and some free standing lights (they're odd, reminding me a bit of tiki-torches, but effective, I guess). 

It's white tablecloths and chair covers with soft gentle music but as we got closer to midnight it perhaps got a bit more 'dancy' but thankfully, not a live playing anything to be found.  Not overly brightly lit, with ambient light doing most of the work.  It would be interesting to see the place on a non-NYE night to compare and contrast as it sort of had a more lively crowd (just talkative and happy / enthusiastic sounding, rather than get up and dance lively) than the atmosphere sort of presented as being what they were after as a crowd.  If bathrooms are your thing, your visit will take you to a very nicely presented room with real hand-towels for everyone.

Your Server does everything, mostly, with just a stray visit from one of the other Servers when she's tied up somewhere else.  We liked her, and we think she liked us - she was cleverly sneaky as we left which we really appreciate.  She was chatty, quite chatty if we allowed - which we did more of as the night wore on and any of our normal shyness was drank away...  From what we noticed, she didn't spend any time chatting to any of her other tables looking much more formal from our vantage point (over by the side window...).  We did need some help with the menu, not only in understanding what it was actually telling us, but also to match up some of the items on the plate with the menu description.  She helped us through this admirably indeed.

They only offered the set menu this night, which we knew going in and were completely ok with, but we panicked a little unnecessarily when our first course was on the table before we'd finished deciding on where the safest place for the camera was.  We deliberately booked as late as we were allowed (although at least one table sat about half an hour after us...) to make sure we'd be able to toast in the New Year here, rather than on the street and halfway home.  Ultimately this wasn't a problem as everything settled down into a flow just perfect enough to allow us our dessert before rushing outside to the prime firework viewing area suggested by our Server before returning to our table for a cocktail before heading off home at a 'sensible' hour and therefore missing the 12:05 rush.

Our meal went a little like this:

• 2011 Peacock Sky Rosé A Century Club Contribution - towards the drier end, and mostly refreshing.  A sort of sticky finish that was by no means a bad thing.  We got really nice wine glasses.  I'm sure we had a reason for selecting a Rosé but no matter what it was, we made a good choice.
• Awatea Cab / Merlot (and some other stuff) - sort of smokey to taste, quite sharp on the palette, all the way from sip to finish due mostly to the tannins that strongly suggest this wine would be happy tucked away for a while.  A new set of the nice wine glasses magically appeared...
• New Years Eve Menu -
  • Bubbles - a very spritzy Moet to get things started.
    • Cucumber Sorbet - may have struggled to get the Cucumber taste, but did enjoy the texture a lot with the bubbles.
  • Chamomile Infused Marlborough Salmon, young vegetables ala-grecque, salsa verde - wonderfully cooked piece, definitely got the tea flavors coming through and without masking the fish flavors.  If it was the only thing on the plate there'd be no complaints.
  • Seared Scallops, black pudding, crumbed duck yolk, mustard soubise, asparagus, tendril vinaigrette - did not (and still doesn't) sound like a collection of things that should be on a plate together.  Turns out, doesn't matter what it sounds like.  This was really yummy, and I think you got the best when you got a bit of everything on your fork.
  • Crispy Skinned Hauraki Gulf Snapper, courgette & crab beignet, court bouillon in its entirety - yes, crispy skin, but it was more about the fish.  Juicy and melt in your mouth and with the sweet sauce nothing but yummy.  The 'sides' were fun too, especially with the same sauce.
  • Iberico Bellota Jamón, grilled watermelon panzanella, walnut, crisp capers, crackling, almond - a great piece of meat, crispy where it should be, not where it shouldn't.  It just seemed right to leave the crackling until the end.  And, who knew you could crisp a caper?
  • Slow Cooked Leelnad Farm Lamb Rack, pea, fennel, Fiddlers Hill goats cheese, pearl drops, potato cream - the most spectacular looking dish and there should be no hesitation grabbing the bones and gnawing every last morsel.  The 'sides' probably best enjoyed on their own.
  • Chocolate Macaroon, vanilla ice cream, milk chocolate cream, caramelised yogurt sauce, frozen coconut caviar - it's desert.  We enjoyed it and would have eaten another had it been presented...
• Kahlua 
• Chocolate Martini - light on the chocolate, heavy on everything else.  Problem?  Nah...

It's not really a ranking of favorites type menu but we are unanimous in that the Snapper was our favorite of the evening.  Seeing we were such good friends with our Server we tried to coax a re-run of any left over Moet to finish up, but she happily reported that it was being saved for the staff to toast in the New Year.  We would have voted that it come to our table, but we're fine with her (and the others) getting a quick break after taking such great care of us.

A great night, if you discount the low clouds that masked some of the affect of the fireworks.  We were taken care of, we were relaxed, we ate well, we drank well, we made a friend (who we know we'll never see again...) of sorts, we got home safely (remember, we drank well...).  We're glad we found Kermadec, but we have to admit it's only marginally better than impossible that we'll get back - due to opportunity and certainly not due to experience.

Stay JOLLY!
D 

124 Victoria Street

We had no official say in where we dined this day other than to agree that whatever was chosen we'd have no reservations joining in.  It's a good thing, because had we been in charge of dining location African Taste would never have been on the list.  Now, that's not because we don't like / do African, but because this is a tiny neighborhood storefront place that unless you walked right by the front door would struggle to realize it exists.  Not the same, but sort of the same in that sense as a place right by our house A Previous Article which we missed out on for far too long by not opening our eyes properly.  Our friends are clearly more clever (and have wider eyes?) than us.

A husband and wife team.  It's the wife who greets you from behind her small dessert / coffee counter and then does everything else needed out the front, with the husband in the kitchen doing his thing (I would not be surprised to learn he was the only person back there) and popping out with a dish in his hand every now and again.  All smiles, clearly happy that you've chosen to come dine with them (and double happy that our friends were returning again) this is probably the closest I've felt to eating in someone's home while at a restaurant. 

It's a simple space with a couple of small tables outside (probably perfect for coffee, but not so much for dining) with neat and tidy tables and chairs set up to give options for different sized parties.  For lunch it was quite brightly lit due to the picture windows taking up all of the front and (I guess) depending on which way the wind blows a pleasant spicy aroma keeping us company.

Our Server (and everything else) was patient with us figuring out what we wanted and very helpful in explaining what we could expect from different dishes. We made good use of the explaining as everything was new to the two of us.  She (or they?) is perhaps a little defensive on how spicy hot to make things, which in general is for my palette a good thing.  Anything that has a bit of heat she confirmed how hot we would like it which I really appreciate, but the one dish that was asked for to be quite hot was described as hot, but not that hot.  She also allowed us to take our time deciding on, consuming and then resting for our dessert / coffee course.

It's not a big menu, but there's plenty to choose from if you're new to the cuisine.  It seems most wine comes in BYO? - the Wine List was described to us and we actually got the last bottle of something.  Absolutely no drama with this approach!

Our meal went a little like this:

• Amiri Sauvignon Blanc - this is a sit in the sun type wine, which was just fine as we were sitting in the big open front window with the front door open beside us.
• Katega (an African bread, heavily seasoned with customary herbs, garlic and clarified butter) - really heavy on the spice crust the first bite is a bit confusing but it's ultimately really enjoyable.
• Crambpd Cauliflower (crumbed with herbs, egg and flour) - a fun appetizer, crisp and soft at the same time.  Not hard to see why it's listed as one of the most popular items.
• Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc - perhaps a little more nose than the other, but equally enjoyable with this meal.
• Traditional North African Seafood (prawns, fish, mint, coriander, chilli, saffron rice) - a bit paella like, but not paella.
• Tibes (lamb, onion, garlic, chilli, coriander) - a great lamb dish, mild flavors, but interesting flavors with a couple of spices in there too.
• Doro Tibes (chicken instead) - something different to the lamb, probably the spices changed a little?
• Injera (it's a bread that is offered with each main course or rice is the alternative) - soft and chewy it's a great vehicle for getting your meal to your mouth - no forks needed if you go with this option, and it makes your meal last a bit longer as you (well, certainly me) continually drop things back to your plate...
• Coffee - short, long, whatever you feel like
• Baklava - sweet enough that one per person is going to be too much, but not that evil too sweet you often get in cafés.

The final scheduled it-doesn't-matter-where-we-eat-as-long-as-it's-with-you A Collection of Articles event!  Each one special in its own way, this one was no less special, but certainly the most pleasantly surprisingly enjoyable.

If you're looking for a store front restaurant, run by a very friendly husband and wife team, perhaps only a few more than 20 seats, a wine list that is so short it's dictated to you, a menu that is focused in what it offers but diverse compared to what you're probably used to and the knowledge that it all tastes great.  Then this is probably is the place for you.

Stay JOLLY!
DHelen & Terry

30 Jacka Blvd

The short drive from our rendezvous point A Related Article gave us the opportunity for a quick bout of reminiscing as we wound our way out of Downtown Melbourne and through some of the Inner Suburbs, before arriving at the beach suburb of St.Kilda for the continuation of our evening.

Set right on the beach, the place actually doesn't look anything particularly fancy from the outside although it probably is rated as a nice appropriate building for the locale.  In fact, if we didn't have a useful guide with us the only reason we would have been able to find the place is because it's the only restaurant looking building in the general vicinity - and even then you could be forgiven for thinking it was some sort of yachting club place.

Our friends knew the drill, so inside and straight upstairs to the restaurant - I'm not even sure if there's any sort of downstairs option but I'd have to think the space was well used - maybe some private function type rooms?  Greeted by the host almost as you step off the stairs we were ushered past the quite large painting (of a style I have no idea, sorry) which is only memorable to me because it's also the design on the back of the menu.  I'm guessing there was another similar piece somewhere else because the dessert menu has a different, but similar styled cover.

It's one large room, various sized tables and a great view of the Bay.  I think it goes without saying that every reservation would include 'by the window, please"...  We didn't get one, but that's actually ok.  You still get to enjoy the view and as the sun goes down the other diners are mostly blocking the direct rays that are doing their thing.  Just as the sun hits the horizon, there's a pretty significant evacuation as people who don't have the window seats step out on to the deck for viewing and / or picture taking - yes, we were in on it...

It's not a loud place, but there's definitely restaurant noise through out, especially when we arrived as the place was full, or very close to it. By the time we were packing up much emptier and therefore less noise around, but I still don't recall hearing any specific music, if any at all.

Our Server took care of us, was patient with us as we dilly-dallied a bit making up our minds, had useful suggestions, was polite without being snooty, and took a really good picture of the 4 of us.  The place is at the fancy end of the scale, no doubt, and there's clearly some rules about how the staff interact with their tables, but she had a laugh with us when given the opportunity.  The Wine Dude (not sure what they call themselves here...) also took care of us, but due to the knowledge of our friends he didn't get to offer much in the way of suggestions, perhaps none at all.  It's a wine-off-the-table type place, but we were never left wanting a refill.

This was another meal A Collection of articles where we were way more excited to be with old (Hey!  Not grandpa & grandma old!) friends than to be paying close attention to our meal and to that end we had an awesome evening.  Awesome!  I know without doubt that we all enjoyed what we selected immensely and that there was oohing and aahing across the table at each others dishes, but we really do not have a clear (actually, it's so not clear it's not even close to foggy...) recollection of what we had.. 

Our meal may have gone like this...  Apologies to all concerned for any misremembering, omissions or errors!  They are all my own doing and I blame having too good a time catching up!

• Craiglee Shiraz - selected in tribute to the Sunbury region being the closest thing to a home base we had while on this trip.  But you don't need a reason like this to enjoy it.  Full, but not overpowering, a little bit of spiceyness and some tannins there.  I would have had no problems having a 2nd...
• Kingfish Ceviche, salted grapes, flying fish roe, sunflower seeds, zucchini, chardonnay vinaigrette 
• Seared Atlantic Scallops, ruby grapefruit, walnut & witlof salad, parsnip puree, chickpea cress  
• Brothers in Arms
• Blue Swimmer Crab & Bug Risotto, peas, basil, lemon mascarpone 
• Rolled Quail Saltimbocca, caramelised lemon, nasturtium, almonds, caper & cauliflower burnt butter 
• Western Plains Pork Loin, Belly & Cheek, baked apple, coleslaw, port wine sauce 
• Tuna a la Plancha, butter poached prawns, tomato escabeche, yoghurt, roe, green peppercorns 
• Dessert Wine 
• The Bombe, frozen white chocolate parfait with strawberry sorbet and toasted meringue 
• Soft Chocolate Torte, praline crunch, coffee sable, passionfruit sorbet 

We probably won't get back (not because we don't want to!) due to opportunity but we're certainly happy and better off for having spent an evening 'on the beach' with our dear (not old!) friends.

Stay JOLLY!
DMichael & Luise

Rialto 525 Collins Street

Most people would probably title this post Vue de monde, even though the Restaurant is a whole other space.  We're not like that...  We will get to Vue de monde as diners one day - and as it turns out, we even have a verbal commitment floating around - but not for awhile.

Up on the top (or thereabouts) of the Rialto, it doesn't really matter what the decor is (and it's kind of odd, to me anyway) because it's all about the view.  Back towards the city, out over the bay, way past the bridge, and much more...  On a slightly hazy day we didn't get the best view you could, but we certainly can't say we had a bad one.

Only here for a quick visit prior to dinner just down the road a bit, but we did have time to check out the bathrooms where someone(s) spent too much time trying to come up with a unique style - they did and they're not evil looking by any stretch of the imagination, but [on the men's side] I'd be more than a little uncomfortable in there doing my thing with someone else doing his.  Also, if you feel the urge, there's a small deck where you can get out in the wind - but no tables...

The cocktail list has enough to choose from, some snacks too if you're so inclined.  Set up with odd couches, stools and the like it's a bit of a maze for your Server to come visit, which might explain why he doesn't come by, but I'm also tending to think that they're used to most people coming up for just the one drink - which was us from the second we decided it was a good place to start the evening - so don't get too involved in hovering.

Our cocktails went a little like this:

• White Wine
• Kronenbourg 
• Little Creatures Pale Ale 
• White Rabbit Dark Ale - actually, not all that dark.

A fine place to start off the evening, especially if you want to look down on the world... But, it was just a stepping stone before heading off to Dinner A Related Article.  I guess we'll stop back prior to dinner when that commitment comes to fruition...

Stay JOLLY!
DMichael & Luise

1333 Mornington Flinders Road

We were just looking for a lazy(ish) lunch where we could get a glass of a wine with a view of the vineyards the wine came from.  We're ultimately ok that our first choice was obnoxiously* full and we were forced back into the car for the what turned out to be a 2½ minute search to find this place. 

We almost didn't stop because the Restaurant part of the sign was down the bottom and it took us a bit to take it all in and decide it was worth a look - we had to turn around and go back...  A small awkward parking lot, an obvious front door and an old and well used (we assume) tractor make up the street view.  Can I guess that this is the tractor it took 10 minutes to get somewhere?

Inside there's a small tasting area and cash register.  Keep going past this and you get to the Restaurant part which overlooks the vineyards on the slightly sloping hill - an area they're happy for you to wonder around in [our case] after your meal and we even found their herb garden with some artichokes in full bloom.  Out the other door is the Patio area where there's not much of a view, but you do get the fresh air.  We opted for outside, but I suspect that was really our only option as we were dressed for touristing, not fancyish dining.  Also, it looked pretty full so maybe dress mattered less than having a reservation?  If you include bathroom amenities in your Restaurant Selection process, these are pretty nice, even before you realized you get real towels for hand drying.

Typical outside, mostly, with lots of green things, some offering shade some not, but all doing a pretty good job of keeping the highway out.  Rustic looking tables of varying sizes (I wouldn't be surprised to learn that some of the bigger ones help strangers become friends subject to the demands of the day) and a few umbrellas whose usefulness clearly varies as the day progresses.  The not so typical thing was the chef station where one chef was kept pretty busy the whole time we were there - he has a much more consistent umbrella arrangement...

One Server to keep an eye on all 20 or so of us.  She was busy, but not crazy and although it took a little bit to see her the first time there was nothing to bother us for the rest of our time here.  She chatted a little when we asked questions, but she's not an expert on the menu.  She's good enough to offer opinions of what you might like, but not good enough to clarify what all (most, just not all) the different components of our dish are - good thing the chef was working just behind us.

A nice outdoors type menu of salads and platters, and all pretty good for sharing.  I guess I could have asked, but I suspect the inside diners get a different menu to what we got.  The wine list has their own wines front and center and on a day where a glass each with lunch was all we sensibly should have we were always going to select one of their own by the glass.  But, the full list has a really good range of local and not so local things to choose from - if you really want to, you could drop a car payment on a good selection of bottles.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Ten Minutes by Tractor Sauvignon Blanc - a little bit of sweetness, a little bit of acid, ultimately nicely balanced.
• Ten Minutes by Tractor Rosé - light and fruity like you'd expect from most Rosés but also at the drier end of the scale.
• Smoked Chicken Salad, bacon, potato, green beans - a gentle dressing brought it all together nicely.
• Charcuterie Platter - if you're just after a light lunch this could easily work out for 2 people.  It's not really about the condiments, obviously, but they were there to help out when the urge was felt.  Not even a crumb was left behind...
  
  • Rabbit & Pistachio Terrine - to be fair, if you didn't tell me it was rabbit I probably wouldn't have known, but it was yummy with just the right amount of nutty crunch.
  • Rare Roasted Sirloin - didn't expect to see this on our platter, but pretty happy that we did.  A beautiful piece of meat that did not need anything to keep it company - just cut off a bite and enjoy
  • Smoked Ham - off the bone we're assuming based on appearance.  The lightest of all the meats provided.
  • Salami - a few peppercorns along for the ride.
  • Wagyu Braciola - quite strong flavors from a relatively delicate piece of meat.
  • Pancetta - a little bit of salt going on, as you'd expect.

Not our plan when we departed on our travels a couple of hours earlier, but we really enjoyed our sit in the sun, our meal and our wine!  A very pleasant surprise find, and absolutely totally un-obnoxious at all levels.

Stay JOLLY!
D 

* - just to be clear, our failed place was not obnoxious, on the contrary we really do want to go back and give them a try (although, we're not holding our breathe because of the whole Antipodean thing we have going on) not just because of the recomendation that sent us towards it, but also what we saw go whizzing by with the Servers looked and smelled great.  It was the crowd this day that was quite obnoxious.

Corner Cook & Wood

We're perhaps not proud, but certainly pleased with the result, for having stalked the chef after learning that he was no longer associated with the restaurant where we 'met' him last time we were back home.  We had learned that he was setting up shop down in Flinders and was aiming to be open a little before Christmas.

As we had plans to be in the general vicinity with the goal of a fine dining experience this seemed like a worthy goal.  A difficult goal, ultimately as the opening date turned out to be quite fluid, but we thank my brother for his perseverance in nailing down the opening date and a reservation (for the record we were in on day 2...).  Technically, this was another A Collection of Articles it-doesn't-matter-where-we-eat get together, but we really, really wanted to dine with Chef Pierre.

As part of a quite significant remodel / upgrade of the Flinders Hotel (which isn't quite finished) you could easily miss that there's a 'fancy' restaurant as part of the complex when you see the Bistro / Bar area spilling out onto the deck (a good sized one, that's for sure) and the I've-just-come-off-the-beach evening wear that is predominantly predominant.  But, once you find it, you know you're somewhere else.  All very modern in style, quite brightly lit there's what seems to be just one room, plus a patio area (which had the heat lamps on this night casting a sort of eerie orange glow).  But, we learned later that there's some moveable walls to give the option of expanding the room, or leaving as is for a private dining area.  It's good to have options, I guess.  There was some sort of gentle jazz type music playing, but subject to how much fun we were having there were times when we couldn't hear / didn't notice it.

We knew they'd only been open a couple of days so we were pretty calm when the Server who greeted us wasn't able to locate our Reservation with out the intervention of the Maître d' (for the record I think our Reservation had been left in the Bistro section) who just took a second to seat us with no dramas - although it was on a table more suited for 6 people, and probably could take 8.  The Servers it seems are still learning and they haven't gotten to the cross training part yet - our Wine Dude got a little flustered when we asked for some more bread; but we did get our bread.  I'd say a little nervous (no chit chat at all), but conscientious so I'm sure by the time you are reading this they are rock'n the joint. 

By no stretch of the imagination are we friends with The Chef, but we did think it appropriate to buy him a beer as a small thank you after a great dinner and also for actually being open.  I guess he was curious who did this because he came out to see us, and actually was able to put 2 and 2 together as to how we had once crossed paths before. He gave us a tour of the place (the kitchen has some pretty swish gadgets), sat with us for awhile and shared his vision for the restaurant.  Thanks Chef Pierre!

The Menu is short and to the point, with a Degustation (although technically correct, I'd prefer Tasting for a less snooty sounding description - but it's not just here as everywhere we went on this trip who offered such a thing went with snooty sounding...) option available.  Had it just been the two of us we almost certainly would have went this route, but with 4 excellent sharers at the table we ordered a unique dish each and passed plates around our [extra large] table.  We're lead to believe the menu will be extended once they've been open a bit longer giving the Kitchen & Serving teams a chance to master Chef Pierre's 'philosophy' and I suspect to see what the customers go for.  We could have gone with everything, given suitable belly space!  Strongly influenced in Morrocan styles there's lots of fun, occasionally in your face, type spices to keep you amused with a good mix of game and seafood in amongst your more common meat type dishes.

Our meal went a little like this:

• 2008 Elgee Park Viognier A Century Club Contributor (family reserve) - we liked it enough to get a second bottle.
• Stuffed Quail, cinnamon & buttermilk gnocchi, dried grape juice - the gnocchi may have been the best part, thanks for boning out the little guy.
• Flinders Golden Beetroot Carpaccio, crab & apple salad, fig & preserved lemon dressing - so so refreshing, beetroot definitely the star, the salad not far behind.
• Ocean Trout Terrine, prawns and preserved lime guacamole - prawns a nice treat, but the terrine with just a touch of guacamole was the best.
• Marinated Yellow Fin Tuna, oyster croquette, eggplant, argan oil - a tartar where all the bits were perhaps a bit yummier on their own.  Oyster probably the most memorable.
• Zucchini Flower & Saffron Risotto, fried ricotta - great risotto, creamy and just a tiny bit of crunch left.  I think there's more than just saffron in there?
• Rabbit with Scampi & Foie Gras Dumpling - quite a lot going on including some unlisted spices, all tasty and mostly quite rich.
• Slow Roasted Rack of Lamb, green tea & almond crust tagine - great piece of lamb and you absolutely should chew every bit off the bones.
• Roasted Duck Breast & Leg Confit, cardamom honey, orange sauce - tasty confit, wonderfully rare breast, both a little better with a little bit of the honey (you can't miss the cardamom) and sauce.
• Roasted Heirloom Carrots, with honey & thyme - a fun side, quite sweet.
• Selection of Cheeses - a brie, a blue, and an aged cheddar (the standard cheese board starting point, it seems).  All fine, interesting condiments.  No idea where they came from.
• Dark Chocolate Fondant, Which Chocolate Mousse, butternut sorbet - a quite rich end.
• Vanilla Flavoured Rhubarb, nectarine compote, creme fraiche ice cream - a refreshing end...
• Kahlua 
• Amaretto 

Clearly some early teething problems, but that's the price we have to pay for stalking The Chef I guess.  We wish Chef Pierre and his team nothing but awesomeness and we absolutely will be back when the opportunity presents - to see everything running with tip top smoothness as well as for the wonderful (and expanded) menu.  We thank Chef Pierre for visiting with us after dinner and for a wonderful meal.  We also thank our dear friends who introduced him to us a couple of years ago - the same friends that found us another dining treat A Previous Article just last week where we'll probably be stalking the chef if he also chooses to relocate....

Stay JOLLY!
DAndrew & Katrina

453 Centre Rd

So, this is not quite what we expected when we told Dad that we'd be with him for Christmas Day, that we'd like to take him out for dinner (because all the cooking that needed to be done was done the day before at the family gathering), and that he should make a reservation at a place close to home that he likes.  It, of course, doesn't matter because this was one more meal A Collection of Articles on our trip where the location was the least part of the getting together equation.  Admittedly, a lot of places he might have chosen were closed for the evening (or even the day) but we were not even vaguely thinking Chinese.  For the record, no harm done!

From the street it's not much, but only if you turned off the million or so blue lights that are ultimately sort of pretty.  Inside the host and the bar are right by a big tropical fish tank with a good selection of brightly colored fish & coral type things hanging out.  But, at the back of the room, by the kitchen, there's 6 or 8 more 'functional' tanks - but only one was occupied this night.  It's just one big room, with various sized tables spread throughout.  There's some quite large murals covering up most of the walls in the theme you'd expect of a Chinese Restaurant, quite brightly lit and I think the music was just the radio turned down so you can tell it's there, but not really what it is.

Can the Service team be too attentive?  When we arrived the place was pretty empty so there was some hovering going on, but not nagging.  As the place filled up (which kind of surprised us, seeing it was Christmas Day and the place was borderline deserted when we arrived at about 6:30), the hovering stopped, but the checking-in increased.  They certainly didn't press us to order, and I think as with most Chinese restaurants they are ok with you ordering things to share, although perhaps expecting all the sharing dishes to be ordered at the same time, the first time.  We never had more than two things going at once, but they didn't come out together, so I'm guessing that if you ordered a table full things dishes would come out as they were ready - which is absolutely totally fine when the plan is for sharing.

We've been here before, to do a Yum Cha lunch, but we really didn't need an all you can eat type meal tonight.  We chose (from a pretty extensive menu) a couple of small plates, 2 at a time, relaxed a bit and picked a big plate, relaxed a bit more and picked one more big plate.

Our meal went a little like this:

• 2010 Grandstand Pinot Noir (WA) - we had the urge for red, but didn't want to overpower what we thought we'd be ordering.  This worked out well.  Gentle, little bit of acid, probably from tannins being this could still be fun in a good few years.
• Cascade Light 
• Sesame Prawn Toast - crunchy, seeds going everywhere - the perfect start.
• Dim Sim - steamed up just right, definitely better with a little (just a little) soy.
• Chinese Sausage - no idea what's on the inside, but it's dark in color, and really quite rich.
• Satay Chicken - yep, it was peanuty.  Nice tender chicken.
• Steamed Pork Ribs, Black Bean Sauce - put down the chopsticks, get your fingers to work.   A little bit of work to get all the goodness, surprisingly good with or without the sauce.
• BBQ Honey Pork - probably want to pick the chopsticks up again...  Sticky and gooey in just the right way.
• Fruit Plate - a gift from the kitchen (for everyone, it seems) to finish everything up.  Thanks.

We'd go back without hesitation, but we'd probably prefer when our bellies were capable of making use of the Yum Cha experience.  It's a neighbor hood place and if we were living where Dad does, we could see this becoming a regular haunt.

Stay JOLLY!
DDad

91 Piper Street

It's a good thing we were up for another meal A Collection of Articles of it being more about friends than the place or the food...  This was their last service before shutting up for a couple of weeks as a Christmas break, and more than once we were told 'sorry, that's out', once we even saw the last serving on the table next to us, and once we couldn't get a second helping because we'd just finished the last serving.  We bear them no grudge, in case you were wondering!

From what I can tell, the restaurant used to be a normal everyday house on a corner block with a good sized garden.  What I can't tell is where the hotel part is...  Oh well.  On an awesome summer evening there was never any doubt we wanted to eat outside (so our friends dashed in around lunch time and reserved the finest table on the patio) and as we were greeted at the gate we didn't get to see much of inside, but it seems it would be a great place to 'hang out' during the winter with the open fireplace and fun spaces made up from the different rooms and it's possible that no two tables were the same.  Perhaps 25 or 30 seats?  There's a tiny bar, but it's not a go and hang for a drink type bar and although we couldn't see the chef doing his thing, we could smell what was going on. 

Outside there's only 3 or 4 tables on the patio (where we sat) and a couple more tucked around the corner on the veranda - perfect for a rainy summer evening, I would think (if the wind wasn't blowing at you...).  But no matter where you sit outside, you get to enjoy the very neat and tidy garden that someone clearly spends time in on a regular basis.  Technically, on the main road through town the traffic was so few and far between we barely noticed.

It wasn't a busy night by any stretch of the imagination so the one Server (we later learned she's the daughter of the chef and relatively new to the job) was more than enough.  A couple of times she may have been stretched, but in noway did it upset our dinner.  She knew the menu, she answered questions, she was nice to the little one, and she was not in the least bothered about our ordering process (more often than not when she came by, we hadn't quite made up our minds).

It's not a super big menu, but there's plenty to choose from and there's not a thing on it that we didn't at least consider ordering.  Most of the descriptions are fairly simple and straight to the point.  We probably could have gotten by without having to ask questions, but we did and the answers we got were helpful, but also made it a bit harder to make final selections.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Wicked Elf Pale Ale - not local. but certainly not foreign!  A fun name and ultimately a tasty brew
• Little Creatures Pale Ale - closer to local, perhaps more sweet than the other, but I could have either again, any day.
• Crowded House Sauvignon Blanc - in anticipation of heading over to NZ in a little over a week...  nah, not really, we just were in the mood for something 'out on the decky' and thought this would work.  It did.  Quite a bit of citrus without being too acidic.
• Garlic Prawns - garlicy and [big] prawny!
• Whole Oven Roasted Quail, prosciutto & sage - probably took longer to divide into 4 than it did to eat.  Yummy, couldn't stop once started...
• Saganaki, fig relish & pickles - a simple dish, built for sharing.  The relish may have been the best part.
• Egplant Chips, aioli - served like fat chips, these were so good you wanted the last one, but felt a bit guilty taking it from your friends.  Very sad when there was no second order to be had.
• Hand Cut Fries, oregano salt - fries might be the wrong word; fat chips is probably better.  Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside.  Great with the salt.  Maybe better the second time around (when we couldn't get the eggplant) with the aioli which we politely asked for as an upgrade.
• Slow Braised Lamb Shank, creamy mash - if it wasn't for the eggplant chips this would have been the best dish of the night.  Fall off the bone, rich and awesome mash for collecting the sauce.
• Moroccan Date, Almond & Chocolate Cake, vanilla icecream - we didn't really need dessert, but this was good and we're glad we talked ourselves into it.

We left with very happy bellies, with very relaxed bodies and very happy hearts for having spent a wonderful (and really quite laid back) evening with friends we don't get to see often enough - but that's our fault for living on the other side of the world!

Apparently the town has 'better' restaurants than Mrs Smith's.  Next time we're in town, someone is going to have to work very hard to talk us out of coming back here to find out if that's really true - even if it is the day before they're taking a break and parts of the menu are absent!

Stay JOLLY!
DLisa, Glen & Tom

98 Parker Street

The Royal Mail was on our radar after seeing it on our favorite food show with Anthony Bourdain going nuts over it.  It's not in a super convenient location when compared to the other places we would want to get to when we make the trip back home so we added it to the To-Do List the List... not expecting the opportunity to arise for awhile, if ever.  We modified our level of wanting to get here much higher after hearing about it somewhere else, reading about it in a random article and then doing some more research.  Bottom line, when this recent trip was in its infancy in terms of negotiating time with family and friends the Royal Mail was always in consideration for best way to make it all work.  We made it work!*  It was also the first of only two meals we had 100% planned and signed up for before getting on the plane.

I suspect most people would say that the Royal Mail is in the middle of nowhere, but that's not really fair, not at all.  It is a tiny town, that's for sure, and you do need to spend some time in the car to get here (I guess there could be a bus?) but it's right on the edge of the Grampians where even casual walkers can have a great time.  It's barely an hour and a half from Ballarat and the Coast and lots of other fun things in between and not far away.  It's definitely a destination event if you're planning on dining and although I suspect they would take a walk-in, that's not really the way they do it.  But middle of nowhere?  Not really.

The building (which includes a good number of hotel rooms in close proximity) is modern looking so I'm pretty sure when they decided to set up shop they started from the beginning.  Inside, there's big open windows giving a view of sorts of the Grampians and on the other side big thick windows give you a nice view of the highway (not much activity once the sun goes down...) through the town without the noise.  There's not really any hard delineations, but there's clearly 3 sections - the fancy (set, 10 course menu or nothing) section for couples (10 tables, perhaps?), the fancy section for groups (probably room for 25 or 30 depending on table sizes?) and the not so fancy section (but still pretty swish) where there's a more bistro type menu available.  Not a lot of artwork on the walls, but interesting things on tables and counters and they use the wine glasses (more about them later) as a fun sort of display.  There is an open pass area into the kitchen you're able to take a peek in at, but we were not sat in a place where we could get a constant look at - no noise at all coming out of it that we noticed.

Everything is very prim and proper, tables all lined up just right, chairs the same and I think the tablecloths were ironed on the tables.  Service areas with everything in it's place, and mostly hidden until needed.  There's no host stand as such, but the boss is upon you pretty quickly when you enter.  He sat us, made some pretty standard small talk about our suntansburns and took off to grab us some menus.  Not a lot to consider because we were reserved for the 10 course deal, but you do get the choice of 'all things considered' v 'vegetarian'.  We briefly considered getting 1 of each so as to get a few extra dishes on the table, but ultimately didn't for fear of getting a small awesome taste of something we couldn't (or wouldn't want to) share - don't worry, we had more than enough as it was.  There's also a pretty big and pretty fancy wine list.  We just gave it a cursory look because we knew we wanted to put our trust in the wine pairings.

You don't get a Server.  It's quite formal, and I'd tend to lean towards too formal but that's just me.  On the floor we had the F&B Manager, the Sommelier and 3 Servers.  From what we could tell, the Servers have almost no autonomy, with almost all their 'chores' being directed from the Manager and occasionally the Sommelier.  There was no chatting going on unless you instigated it and clearly the 'bosses' preferred to be the chatty ones. 

When reading the menu you're always going to get what it says, but rarely how you expect it.  They take the menu away from you and give you a to-go copy as you leave so when each course comes (and you get one Server each and the rule, it seems, is that both plates must be placed at exactly the same time) one of your Servers stays and fills you in on what you got. In most cases when it was a Server you got not much more than a repeat of what was written down, but if you got the boss you'd get some useful pointing of what was what (we really needed this for the eel dish!) and more about how the dish was made.  Fortunately we figured this out after a couple of courses (which were mostly self explanatory) so we nearly always (politely) called the boss over for some further explanation.

We understand they have their own vegetable garden and orchard (not obviously in sight of the place from what we could tell from a brief walk around the property after breakfast the next morning) and work with mostly local providers.  Assuming that's true, the gardener(s) need a hardy 'thank you' because all the non-meat stuff looked and tasted amazing and the other providers should get one too.

The wine guy knows his wine.  He did seem to change his spiel a bit from table to table and I'm going to guess that's based on the early feedback / questions he gets from the table.  We asked questions and he answered them in a way that we could follow along with, which we appreciate.  We didn't have any problems with the pairings and we liked that they kept it local when not selecting out of Europe.  But having said that, I think all the pairings were at the safe end of the scale all within the range of things I could probably come up with given their cellar and google to play with.  All technically good wines, absolutely, but we've enjoyed a couple of other meals like this where the pairings were more towards the other end of the scale.  I'm not complaining!  Just observing and postulating!  We super duper appreciate the range of glassware used - if nothing else, it's fun.  It's clear that they subscribe to the theory that different wines shine in different shaped glasses because I think we only had one repeat.  As an aside, he must be kept pretty fit because the cellar required him to head outside and down the street, perhaps even across the road...

Our meal went exactly like this:

• house-made sourdough wheat or rye - we tried both and as good as they were they had nothing on the house-made smoked butter which came with some salt flakes
• chicken crisps; pork sandwich; globe artichoke & mayonnaise - the chicken crisp was our first (non-bread) bite of the evening and was almost certainly the best single component of any dish to follow.  I don't know how they do it, but it's an awesome piece of skin.  Fun sandwich, and pleasant artichoke to also get us started.
  • nv demarne-frison 'goustan' (Champagne) - very bubbly, quite dry and a bit yeasty.
• heirloom carrots, garlic, soy cream, sorrel seeds - amazing selection of carrots (inlcuding a couple of tiny, almost needle like, ones), all pleasantly sweet, all a little bit different.  Fine on their own, but adding a bit of everything else is the way to go.
  
  • 2009 domaine de bellivière Teffraie' (Coteaux du Loir) - kind of sweet, ok with the carrots, a sort of oily mouth feel
• egg yolk, rye, legumes, yeast - if you don't like your poached egg runny, you may struggle to get the full yummy-ness of this dish.  Again, all fine bites, but get a bit of everything together, including the yeast. 
  • 2007 bannockburn 'srh' chardonnay (Geelong) - quite a bit of wood, but very balanced; smooth even.
• prawn and asparagus, quinoa, kohlrabi and chive - not the way I cook my quinoa - it was crunchy and I was sad there's wasn't more of this pleasant surprise...  Wasn't expecting prawn sashimi (if that's a fair comparison), but that's ok because I also wasn't expecting a crispy prawn head.  I think I preferred this dish more eating everything separately, even the vegetable I've never heard of before and the white with green striped asparagus.
  
  • 2009 gerard boulay 'chavignol' (Sancerre) - nothing much to the nose, a bit of acid and fruity.
• sand flathead, mustard, nori, sugar snap peas - a great piece of fish, very snappy peas, not your standard nori, best altogether.
  
  • 2009 crawford river riesling (Henty) - quite a simple wine, but worked well with the dish. A little drier than not, a little fruit and no overt nose.
• eel and bone marrow, eggplant, pickled vegetables - they do something to the eel that stops it looking like an eel, but it sure tastes like one.  Marrow just right and especially moorish, fun selection of vegetables just lightly pickled.
  • 2010 best's 'old clone' pinot noir (Grampians) - rich, but not overpowering; kind of spicy and earthy. I kind of would have liked to try it with the flathead course, but no complaints having it with this one.
• duck and cucumber, coastal plants, calamari cream - the plants were the most interesting component (is it fair to describe them as cactus like, but without the prickles?), but the duck was done just right and was so so juicy.  Plants on their own and enjoy the popping and juice squirting (in your mouth, please), but get some calamari cream with the duck.
  
  • 1993 château pontet canet (Pauillac Bordeaux) - a great wine, nice long finish, still some tannins (but probably not for much longer), earthy to the nose and fruity but not overpowering in any way.  Good luck getting a hold of some, but if you do you'll be very very very happy.  Decanted a good hour before poured for us, my joke about it being the only decanted bottle because someone broke a cork didn't go down so well...  I'm quite sure it would not have been the same wine had it been opened and poured immediately..
• fallen fruit; apple, almond, caramel - a great dessert, a whole (and I mean whole as in stem, seeds, core, skin) apple sort of dried and baked.  Think of the best apple pie you've ever had and multiply by about 50.
  
  • chamomile iced tea - served as a palette cleanser it did it's job, but my least favorite beverage of the evening.  But, I appreciate the thought and reasoning behind it.
• berries and fig leaf, white chocolate and rose - a fun dessert, gone a little too quickly...
  • 2008 marenco 'pineto' brachetto d'aqui (Piedmont) - spritzy, sweet, big fruity nose, almost porty in richness.  A perfect match with the dish.
• pistachio, hazlenut, honeycomb, chocolate - just eat it!  But make sure you mix it up and get a bit of everything together.
  • sanchez romate cream sherry (Jerez) - something new to us, sort of figgy in taste, very rich.  I prefered it solo after the dish was done.
• plums - a (late?) addition to the menu, we're told they were picked that day from their own Orchard and never refrigerated.  Now that's how a plum should taste!  If they told us the variety, I forgot, sorry.

We've done it, and we're extremely happy for having been able to do so.  We thank Mr Bourdain because without his interest we may have missed the other things that really solidified our interest in the place.  We got to try some fun dishes, some amazing wines, and enjoy an awesome environment in and around the place, but it's a treat, and a very very special treat for us, that we're only realistically able to do once - and not just because it's the antipodes (more or less) of where we live.  Of course, if some nice benefactor wants to shout us...

Stay JOLLY!
D 

* - no family or friends' feelings were hurt, nor was anyone inconvenienced by us partaking in this dinner!

403 Wendouree Parade

This was another meal A Collection of Articles that was much less about the venue and what the menu had to offer than it was about catching up with an old friend.  It was definitely a bonus to be sitting outside at this very picturesque site with tasty treats coming our way - and just a little too much sun and not enough hats and / or sunscreen.

Apparently well known for doing weddings and other important parties (it's across the road from the Botanical Gardens and on the shore of the lake) they've figured out that there's a few people who like to sit by the lake for their lunch, although on this day which was kind of breezy (I think that's why we got tricked by the sun) inside was jamm'n and we had our pick of half a dozen tables outside.  It's an interesting building that certainly has character, and probably has some age to it but you'll need someone cleverer than me to tell you what style it's in.  It suits it's spot, if nothing else, but really there's more to it with lots of iron works and red brick.  But having said that, I've got no recollection of the inside as we just walked straight through to the deck.

You don't get a Server as it's order at the counter when you're ready so you're left to figure out the menu on your own (which is not hard with very clear descriptions) and if you have questions save them for when you get up to order which of course means you may have to make quick fire adjustments based on the answers.  I don't think we had any issues in getting the orders in, but the way they take the orders and then share them with the kitchen meant that our meals came out at odd times.  Not the end of the world, but not quite right. 

I'm not sure what the official policy, but our friend told us she thought this place would suit as we'd be allowed to take our time and even lounge around a bit after we were done with the eating part.  She was right.  Because it's order at the counter there was no overt pressure to get us to order, and when we were done they cleaned our table up but never suggested we had to pack up and leave.  Perfect for our catching up goal of the meal!

The menu has a good selection of small and big plates to choose from, but they also offer a limited selection of big plates to choose from at a set price which did appeal to us in principal.  However, they were also offering a glass of wine with all big plates which seemed to suit us better...  There's a short but at a quick glance (we did the deal, remember) appears to be useful Wine List and a list of beers to amuse too.  Oh, and a help yourself water station.  

Our meal went a little like this:

• Sauvignon Blanc - House variety, not really bothered but hoping it's regional.  Crisp enough to be out on the deck with us and with enough acid to be ok with all our dishes too.
• Sourdough with Meredith Feta and Marinated Olives - without doubt the best feta we've ever had, yummy bread and fun selection of olives. I think we were told Meredith is just down the road.
• Chips with Garlic Aioli - great chips, double great dipping sauce.
• Pork Schnitzels, fresh breadcrumbs, parmesan and parsley, creamy mash, broccolini, apple compote and jus - perhaps a little too big for lunch, but too yummy to stop. Everything great on it's own, but a little bit of everything on a bite way way better.
• Barramundi Fillets, beer battered, garden salad, chips, lemon and tartare sauce - not the first fish you'd think to 'fish & chip' but it's a great piece of fish and was definitely treated a bit more gently than your average flake.
• Chicken and Mushroom Gnocchi, bacon, spinach, creamy sauce with basil, pesto and parmesan - looked good across the table, all consumed.

We enjoyed our lunch, we enjoyed the view but we enjoyed being with our friend a whole lot more.  If we're in the area again (unlikely anytime soon, but never say never, right?) and in need of a very laid back lunch we'd certainly have Pipers close to the top of the list of possibilities.

Stay JOLLY!
DKaren

214 Little Bourke Street

Not our normal dining out experience today - we had 3 of the nieces and nephews in tow as part of 'take them for lunch and a show day' in our attempt to maintain bestest Aunt & Uncle status.  Our goal for the eating part of the day was to get them in to a 'real' restaurant and hopefully have them try something new. Goal achieved - although the tried and true favorites still are.

Our decision to enter this place as opposed to the other 287 (or thereabouts) choices China Town has to offer was based on a couple of simple criteria.  Chinese.  Menu in window looked child friendly (without actually being a kids menu).  Not too prim and proper looking.  And most importantly, no panicking from the Host when we opened the front door with 3 kids under 10 charging by.  Check x 4!

Inside there's a lot of pictures!  Yep, of Deng Xiao Ping.  I've got no idea how his leadership of China worked out, but these guys seem to think he did a good job.  There's also a bunch of pictures of random important Australians (I might argue not so much...) up too.  There's a number of fish tanks up and running, but not for being pretty.  Only one had lunch options in it, but I expect that changes based on anticipated demand.

Our Server got our order right and was patient with the kids, but that's about it.  It seems they assume that you know what everything is and that you know what you're doing - that would be a negative on both counts for our group.  Certainly no polite chatting, just give me your order and I'm off, and if you really struggled to figure out the menu you might also struggle with the English being used.  We ordered a bunch of stuff, and one repeat a little later on, but it doesn't really matter when or how you order because the food just comes out when it's ready so if you weren't planning on sharing someone(s) is going to have to wait a bit.

The menu is pretty extensive, and if you like your fried rice there's a full page (of a fairly large menu) dedicated to the options.  Quite a few duck options scattered through out all sections.  Lots of seafood to choose from, which is consistent with the fish tanks.  We skipped over a lot of what was to offer as we negotiated with the kids and looked for a couple of things we thought we could have them try.  There's also a Yum Cha menu offered but we weren't in a position to try it and we actually didn't see any evidence of anyone else doing it either so not quite sure how it works.    No matter what you order, it can be shared - which is our favorite, but also works well with kids.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Water - yeah, we kept it simple for the kids (we got them hopped up a bit later on in the day with ice cream and soda...)
• Prawn Crackers - a hit with the kids (and non-kids) with their crackle and melt on your toungue tingling.  Complimentary and they just keep coming.
• Prawn Dumplings - as you would expect if you're not <10 years old.  Kids tend to like their prawns to look like prawns it seems...  
• Scallop Dumplings - as for the Prawn version, except more Scallopy tasting...
• Spring Rolls - crispy and yummy and more were required.
• Wonton Soup - did you know that you can use Prawn Crackers as an edible scoop?  You learn this sort of stuff when you dine with kids and not their parents...
• Special Fried Rice - a little bit of everything in it, all consumed.

Considering the average age of our group was way lower than normal, this worked out really well. The kid were extremely well behaved (as were we!) and the Servers still let them be kids - the table was just a little bit messy (mostly in front of the kids!) when all was said and done.... 

If you're out on a date, you probably don't want to stop here, but if you've the need for a quick lunch you'll be just fine.  We had the kids, but the bulk of the lunch crowd appeared to be office people dashing out for lunch.

It's unlikely circumstance will get us back, but we'd certainly be up for trying more of the menu if we did.

Stay JOLLY!
DTabitha, Scarlett, Sebastian

PS.  If you ask the kids what their most memorable part of the day was we'd hope it was the show, but they'll probably tell you about how I got us all on the wrong train going home.

55a NewQuay Prom Docklands

On an early evening when it wasn't so much about having a meal, but doing something that would smash Mr Jet Lag in the chops, we had the opportunity to do some long overdue catching up with old friends and their family.  We could have done both these things just about anywhere and been happy, but we got to be double happy with this find - no plan, just a wander through the general vicinity until something shiny caught everyone's eye.  So, the first A Collection of Articles of a few where the friend part was more important than the restaurant part.  I do confess to not having considered Middle Eastern to be the answer...

Set right on the water there's lots of big windows to give as many people as possible a view out.  Not a lot happening out there this evening (if you don't count the kids sort of kind of freaking out their parents by playing just a little too close to the edge...) but being by the water, any water, is always soothing, if nothing else.  I guess it's a new building because it's all crisp and shiny, lots of wood and you'd see an odd sort of patterned ceiling if you happen to be staring straight up.  There's a small pass area into the kitchen by the host stand (I don't think there was a host, just the nearest Server at the time we arrived) so you can't really watch the chefs doing their thing, but you can wave at them on the way out - we did.  Fortunately, the pass area is big enough that you get to enjoy all the wonderful smells associated with what they are doing back there, mostly when you walk in, but at other times throughout your dinner.

Really quiet when we arrived marginally before official dinner time, but there were a couple of tables well established and having a grand time.  I'd call it medium busy by the time we packed up, which is probably ok for the Monday before Christmas in most cases.

We had two Servers.  Not because they share, but because we came in just before shift change.  Both took care of us, extra care of the kids in allowing them their own table, knew the menu, answered questions and let us take all the time we needed.  We were far more interested in chatting to our friends, so not sure if they'd have been up for a chat or not.

The menu is set out nice and straight forward, but we needed a little help from our 'serving team' to understand exactly what we were looking at, and had we been looking more towards the big dishes than the smaller ones that suited everyone's mood and needs this evening, we probably would have needed a lot more help.  I doubt there's anything we'd turn our noses up at once we knew what it was, but there's a lot of things that were completely new to us, and others we sort of kind of knew what they were but would need confirmation.  It's fun...

Our meal went a little like this:

• Bubbles - house brand, more was ordered...
• Corona
• James Boag
• Soda 
• Bread & Dips - great bread (Turkish?), sort of like a fat Pita, but better. We needed more!
  
  • Hummus
  • Beetroot - not sure what else is in it, but it's very bright...
  • Yogurt
• Moroccan Spiced Calamari - comes with a yogurty / cucumber dipping sauce that is fine, but you could do without too.
• Chermoula Crumbed Local Mussels - first time we've had them this way, and we'd do it again.
• Turkish Lamb Kofte Pizza, spicy tomato sauce & labne (Middle East yogurt) - awesome crust sort of folded into a bowl - apparently a traditional shape.
• Ice Cream - not your regulation choices... You get to pick 3.
  • Turkish Delight
  • Strawberry
  • Fig

A great evening of friends (a bit of a lightning visit which we hope we can extend next time around), food, no stress and almost best of all there was no falling asleep at the table (or on the train home). We should go back and give more of the menu ago, but alas the opportunities to do so will rarely present...

Stay JOLLY!
DDavid & Camille, Mimi, Coco

1475 W Balmoral Ave

Party of the First Part: "Hey, what do you feel like for dinner?"

Party of the Second Part: "I dunno...  What do you feel like?"

PFP: "Ummm... Ahhh... Ummmm.  How about mussels?"

PSP: "Oh great idea, but where?"

PFP: "How about Vincent?  Maybe we can eat all 5 styles?"

PSP: "OK!"

So, off we went to see if we could eat all 5 styles of Mussels - and lets get it out of the way right now, can't be done. Nope, can't be done by an average everyday couple. 

The reason we know there are 5 styles is because we were there about this time last year A Previous Article.  We were rounded up by a good group of friends, had a lot of fun, a great meal, and were taken great care of and therefore had no reason to expect anything different being just the two of us - apart from the part about us not needing a menu.

We arrived without a reservation and were told we could 'squeeze' in if we promised to be done by a certain time which we agreed to seeing they were up front about it and we figured the hardest part of our evening would be figuring out which mussels to start with.  The time turned out to be fluid in that we were able to stay a bit longer without any nagging or harassment (and we couldn't see any obvious group of people loitering with a scowl on their face) which took us to about the length of stay we normally would have expected to be there.  Win win!

Our Server was a bit busy to start but once the rest of his team arrived he settled down into a good flow for us.  He could be very chatty if you allowed him when he wasn't running from table to table he did a good job of describing the specials - which we listened to just in case but really were committed to a bunch of mussels -  and from what we could politely(!) overhear he was good at questions too

It's BYO and they do open your bottle(s) up and provide ice buckets if you want - I rarely do as I don't expect the wine to be around long enough to get too warm (and often you get a pleasant surprise from it as it changes temperature)...  I was prepared to open our bottle and when the Owner (I'm pretty certain the Host is the Owner) or Host or whoever he is offered we told him that we arrived by bus and it would not be unreasonable for it to have been a bit agitated by the experience.  Before we had finished joking about the reparations required if there was some significant spillage the cork was launched quite rapidly into the ceiling getting the attention of just about everyone in the place.  It came down equally as quick and if you discount the votive candle that is no more, no harm was done in that somehow not a drop left the bottle before the pouring stage.  Worth the laugh...

The menu is easy enough to navigate with lots of things with a strong Dutch influence - some are almost certainly Dutch and nothing else.  We're not exactly sure, but the menu seemed a bit shorter this time around?  But it didn't matter, we had mussels on the brain.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Kentucky Bourbon Special Cocktail (it had more in it) - it all worked nicely together, I'd have it again.  The cinnamon swizzle stick was a nice touch - I actually kept the glass to enjoy the now cinnamon ice as it melted
• Gin & Rosemary Cocktail (it had a clever name, garnished with a rose petal) - enjoyed and consumed quite quickly.  Big sprig of Rosemary as a swizzle stick.
• Chandon California Brut - it's Chandon, dry but not too much; fruity but not too much.  And as it turns out, the same bottle we enjoyed last time we were here.
• Tarragon Mussels - we like our mussels, but we really get a kick out of the broth and dipping something into it once the mussels have gone away.  This was probably our favorite of the 3 varieties we got through (but not by much) and you definitely know the tarragon is there.
  
  • Frites - great!  Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside.  They come with a dipping mayonnaise of some sort which in most cases would be wonderful, but you're far better off for dipping (or drowning) them in the Mussel Sauce.
• Mushroom Mussels - not sure which brand of mushroom, but it's a pleasant change to get a whole something in the broth, but we still did some serious dipping.
  
  • Frites - same as above, and if you're thinking I'll just have a couple this time you'll be thinking wrongly...
• Amsterdam Mussels (cooked in beer) - a favorite from last time and works out really really well with the Frites.
  
  • Frites - still can't resist...

Dinner was great.  Exactly what we felt the urge for, taken care of as expected and the wax that was spilled didn't spill on us.  We'll be back!

Stay JOLLY!
D

2045 N. Damen Ave

We did it again.  We went to a show that was in an itty bitty venue, was a lot of fun, great value and we leave still not understanding why we don't do it more often.  We'll keep trying, perhaps it will become a habit one day...  And, just like last time A Previous Article, we really needed to eat something before the show.  So looking for something close to the Temple of Boobs - yes you read that right - took us through our To-Do List the List... and a pretty easy choice of Coast.

We parked by the Show so had a couple of blocks to walk to the restaurant, which was totally fine on a cool, but not cold evening.  When we got to Coast we were [pleasantly] surprised how busy it was due to the half dozen or so places we had walked by that were actually empty or very close to empty - hopefully they pick up as the night wears on!  Although not brightly lit, the place was easy enough to find with the big elegant sign over the place.

Once in the door there's a quite large waiting area with the host stand just a little further on.  They must be busy more often than not because this is the biggest waiting area we've seen in a long long time, one that was well used this night and we assume each night.  They were taking walk-ins who were being told a 30 minute wait, but we had a reservation.  It didn't get us right to the front of the line, but we were a little early and did sit pretty much at the time we had reserved so the reservation system seems to work.  Once out of the waiting area there's two restaurant areas of perhaps 60 seats each, the first has the sushi bar with 6 sushi chefs keeping very busy every time we looked over, and the second lit a little less brightly and set up with a banquette on each long wall probably allowing easier dealing with big groups, as compared to the 'normal' 2s and 4s in the first.

Once seated (we were in the 2nd section), we straight away noticed how loud it was.  Just people talking to their friends noise, not kitchen, busser or music noises.  I don't think it bothered us other than to recognize that it was there, as we still were able to chat amongst ourselves and with our Server without any troubles.  We're kind of curious as to what caused this and if it's the norm here because it sure didn't look like a loud place from outside and we didn't notice it while waiting.  Oh well...

It's BYO (Remember? A Previous Article  I don't subscribe to BYOB as the description.) so with our bottle on the table the first thing our Server did was to provide some glasses and get it open.  She went pretty quickly through the couple of Specials and one did catch our attention but at ordering time we had to get her to repeat so we could confirm what we heard the first time.  She was around when we wanted, certainly not nagging us to order out next treats, and answered our couple of simple questions, but didn't offer anything else up.

I don't think we're embarrassed to admit that we started eating at Sushi places due to a TV Review A Previous Article.  What caught our attention was the Dragon and Caterpillar Maki and the like, that, well, look like Dragons and Caterpillars.  We've since learned that there are lots of less dramatic looking but equally tasty delights to be had.  However, we do take a good look at the 'Special' Maki section and more often than not select a couple because they look fun and more often than not mix non-traditional maki things together.  For all the yummy stuff we ate this evening, the Special Maki didn't really grab us - not a deal breaker, because we still enjoyed everything that came our way this evening.

Our meal went a little like this:

• 2010 ranga ranga Sauvignon Blanc A Century Project Participant - crisp, a little bit of acidity.  We were confident in bringing this with us in that it would work out with Sushi.  We were right.
• Hamachi Crudo with Jalapeno - I personally could skip the jalapeno part, but once pushed to the side I found the Hamachi a nice gently refreshing way to get started
• Sesame Crusted Scallop with Balsamic Vinaigrette - cooked just right with a crust of Sesame that made a fun crunch.  An interesting match of the rich Balsamic and delicate Scallops.
• Exotic Tempura (taro, lotus root, shiso leaf, squash, asparagus, shitake) - it's probable we've had all this fun stuff as tempura before and not known what was inside.  The leaf is fun, the lotus root oddly pretty to look at, everything in a nicely browned light and almost fluffy tempura.
• Nigiri
  • Hirame (flounder) - we now know it's an option...
  • Saba (mackerel) 
  • Suzuki (sea bass) 
• Maki
  • Salmon Skin - a kind of maki we'll one day have a go at making ourselves, but tonight we enjoyed Coast's
  • Spider (soft shell crab, avocado, cucumber, black tobiko) - a little awkward to eat, but tasty to the last bite
  • Sunrise (ginger seared tuna, mint, mango) - looks pretty, the mint really stands out, not a bad way to finish up.

We enjoyed our meal and it fit in perfectly with our dining needs and wants for an evening with a Show.  We have no reason not to go back, but due to location we'd probably need a friend to invite us to get us to make the trek.

Stay JOLLY!
D

1952 N. Damen

Our To-Do List the List... includes a number of places we classify as 'save for a special occasion' and since we had an occasion that was special we had a readily accessible (and slightly longer than short) list to work with.  Although, we got to reduce the list pretty quick because we left too short a lead time for booking and therefore excluded ourselves from a couple - oh well...  We then decided we were in the mood for a Tasting Menu of some type, and had heard good things about Takashi's.  Off we went...

Not much from the outside, we almost walked right by it - but we didn't.  As I think is common for the neighborhood, it used to be a house and now it's not, but the building interior is the same because they still need walls to hold the roof up.  Therefore, inside you don't get one big space, but rather a number of fun shaped spaces.  It's not really that big with the host stand right in the door, the stairs up (to where we dined) right there too.  There's a small bar under the stairs and the kitchen is a little bit open in the back.  Upstairs there's a part where you're in the roof, so if you get the banquette side, watch your head if you jump up.  Decor throughout is simple, neat and tidy with low lighting and the music is there, but very understated, but also sort of soothing if you listened hard for it.

As part of our deciding where to go process we had peeked at the Tasting Menu on-line and the same one was offered this night so we didn't give the menu much more than a summarily once over.  It would not be hard to find a number of dishes to create a satisfying meal, and probably enough for multiple visits with no duplicates.  Seafood is clearly the focus, but there's lots of other fun things to amuse you with including (but not limited to) rabbit, pork belly and duck.

Our Server wasn't all that talkative and was perhaps a bit distracted / busy when we first sat down but he took care of us and he clearly knows the menu.  Also, he's either smart enough or well trained enough to understand the flow of the menu.  I note this because our cocktails arrived at about the same time we were telling him that the tasting with wine pairings was our choice.  Without hesitation he let us know that he wouldn't start the tasting until we had finished our cocktails so as not to get everything mixed up with the pairings.  We appreciate that he knew to do this!  We didn't have questions, but he was clear and sensible in his description of each dish as it arrived and he made sure our wines arrived at the same time, to which he also gave a quick description.

We did wine pairings with the tasting menu, so didn't spend much time with the Wine List either, but I did note, and enjoy the change, that the wines are classified by their oomph - Big Boys, Bubbles, Exotic & Aromatic...  It's a short compact list, and with the fun classifications it shouldn't be hard to get yourself pointed in the right direction.  I'm pretty certain your Server can get you to the 'right' bottle from within each grouping, as ours showed understanding of the wines we were being treated to as he delivered them which we would have to assume carries across the whole list.

Our meal went exactly like this:

• Honey Lavender Martini - tasty, not too strong, a change to have a gin martini.
• Whiskey Martini - it was yummy, and had more than Whiskey in there, but alas don't recall what. Sort of refreshing, certainly easy to enjoy.
• OMAKASE - the chef's tasting menu... Although we're not sure 'the' chef was out back... but we're hoping he was.
  
  • amuse bouche - tofu, of the soft squishy kind.  In general, not our favorite thing to see on a plate, but this was ok, especially with the rich sauce that came with it.
    • Avinyo Cava Brut NV - And, it's a full pour intended for the first course too, so don't get carried away...  A crisp, sort of appley thing going on.  Not to dry, worked well with both this and the crudo, but actually didn't need the food to be a comforting drink.
  • crudo of hamachi-yellowtail (Green Grapes, Fennel, Endive, Malden Sea Salt, Verjus) - eat the fish and nothing else and you'll be happy.  Get a little bit of everything on one bite and you'll be extra happy and a little bit excited about what is still to come.
    
    • Avinyo Cava Brut NV - did you get carried away and have nothing left for your crudo?
  • spicy octopus salad (Enoki Mushrooms, Garlic Chives, Frisee and Endive, Chili-Shansho Pepper Vinaigrette) - cooked just right, not too spicy.  Octopus clearly the star, but the Enoki are not far behind.  
    • Dopff Riesling 2007 - a great match, out of Alsace it's at the drier end of the Riesling scale.
  • sautéed maine scallops and soba gnocchi (Trumpet Royale, Celery Root-Parmesan Foam) - great scallops, but perhaps better gnocchi, certainly an awesome pair.  It ended too soon...
    
    • Champalou Vouvray 2009 - a nice and gentle acidity that worked really well with the dish.
  • soy-ginger caramel pork belly (Pickled Daikon Salad, Steamed Buns) - bring your fingers as you're encouraged to make an open sandwich...  Simple looking on the plate, but a lot going on in your mouth.  The best bite was the one with a little bit of everything, but if you gave me the pork belly or the salad all on their own I'd be happy.
    
    • Domaine Jean Parent Bourgogne 2008 - a Pinot Noir that I would have been equally happy sharing the scallops with, worked well at cutting through the caramel sweetness of the pork with a sort of earthiness you might expect in 'bigger' wines..
  • roasted indiana duck breast (Duck Rillette Roll, Baby Turnips, Green Bean Salad) - the roll may have been the best part, but not by much.  A nicely balanced dish overall, the Salad probably could have gone equally well with the pork (if it wasn't a sandwich...).
    • Vina Magana Dignus 2005 - a Tempranillo that played nicely with the duck.  A pleasant drinking wine, let the food still be the star of what was going on.
  • the egg (Milk Chocolate Crème Brulee, Caramel Custard Foam, Strawberry Macaroon) - a fun dish, both in presentation and in just general yummy-ness.  Sweet for dessert, but not overly so and wonderfully smooth in the mouth.
    
    • Vigneau-Chevreau, Vouvray Petillant Demi-Sec NV - if nothing else fun to get to try two different Vouvray styles as part of the same meal.  But, there was something else; sweet, but not too much, bubbly, but not too much and almost creamy in the mouth,

Success!  We had a wonderful dinner that suited our mood and our wants.  Nothing was complicated, everything was enjoyable, we left happy, relaxed and satiated.  We probably should get back and try order a couple of the non-Tasting dishes...

Stay JOLLY!
D