Modern Australian

Sault

House made sourdough

= ★★

Sher wagyu beef sourdough parcels, enoki mushrooms, soy, chives

= ★★★★

Hopkins River eye fillet, onion, red capsicum, eggplant, thyme volcanic salt, red wine jus

= ★★★

Roasted free-range corn-fed duck breast, chestnut purée, duck liver parfait, grilled mushroom, Pedro Ximenez jus

= ★★★

Musquée de Provence pumpkin, pine nuts, sage, blue cheese and buttermilk kuzu gnocchi

I could not believe that this was under the ‘something more substantial’ category of the menu. Where was the rest of the dish? What’s worse was that the five bites of pumpkin and five tiny morsels of soft watery gnocchi drowning in cheese also turned out to be extremely disappointing taste wise.

= ★

Overall:

Beautiful setting, good service (although our drinks were forgotten and had to be chased up), unsatisfactory food. Perhaps we went on an off night but even so I doubt I will return.
Sault

Sault

2349 Ballan-Daylesford Rd, Daylesford

5348 6555

Sault Restaurant Daylesford

Sault on Urbanspoon

Sun Moth Canteen & Bar

Fried bread, green olives, lemon, chilli, garlic and percorino

These crunchy little morsels were very addictive.

★★★☆☆

Duck liver parfait, salted figs and candied walnuts

Solid parfait that initially refused to come out of the jar but ended up being quite tasty.

★★☆☆☆

Sweet corn and chicken soup with buttermilk dumplings, spring onions and greens

A light Asian style soup with gnocchi-like dumplings.

★★☆☆☆

Mushroom, olive and barley risotto

This hearty risotto was perfectly cooked and had a delightfully rich mushroom flavour.

★★★★☆

Overall:

Enjoyable food, chillaxed atmosphere, clean and simple decor. A great place to unwind.

Sun Moth Canteen & Bar

28 Niagara Lane, Melbourne

9602 4554

Sun Moth

*Disclaimer: I dined as a guest of Sun Moth Canteen & Bar and the team at Zomato.

Lake House (revisited)

Veal tartare, mojama, bonito, nori

House baked sourdough

Confit trout, roe, cauliflower

Bug agnolotti, house kimchi

Skipton smoked eel in pancetta, new season beets

Limestone farms pullet egg, wild mushrooms, white polenta, porcini chestnut pangrattato

Seared duck breast, parfait, fig, muscatels, hazelnuts, salsify

Ginger and lemon shot

White chocolate mousse, poached pears, pear granita

Lollypop

Lemon curd meringue lollipops

‘An autumn ramble’

Almond biscuits, pistachio friands

Overall:

A perfect experience as always. We chose to get the autumn/early winter tasting menu and relished every single bite. My thoughts remain unchanged from my previous visit and I still believe that this place is worth a visit the next time you are in Daylesford!

Lake House

4 King St, Daylesford

5348 3329

Restaurant

Lake House

The Gem Bar and Dining

Ranch style beans with brisket ends

Sweet and spicy.

★★★☆☆

Mac & cheese, Zesty coleslaw, Potato salad

★★☆☆☆

Southern style cornbread

Extremely crumbly with corn kernels and pieces of capsicum.

★★☆☆☆

(from L to R)

Smoked Angus beef sausages

These were tasty however the casings were tough and chewy, and once these sausages had cooled down, each bite left a pool of oil in our mouths.

★★☆☆☆

Pork, fennel and chilli sausages

Smoky, spicy, slightly dry.

★★☆☆☆

Pork belly

Marginally dry.

★★☆☆☆

Beef brisket

Salty, not particularly smoky.

★★☆☆☆

Pulled pork

Tender, lacked flavor.

★★☆☆☆

Lamb ribs

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Casual atmosphere, average service, unexceptional food. I’d probably go elsewhere for American BBQ.

The Gem Bar and Dining

289 Wellington St, Collingwood, VIC

(03) 9419 5170

http://thegembar.com.au/

Lorem Ipsum

Tomato and mozzarella macaron

Crab, corn, yogurt and yuzu sake canapés

Scallops, black pudding, triple-cream mash

Sticky pork pancake, sweet pickle, togarashi mayo

Beef brisket, sauerkraut and secret sauce on brioche

Braised lamb, caramelised shallot puree, pickled onion, salt bush

Passionfruit tartlet

Hidden at the far end of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, this impressive pop-up gala event space is the first of its kind in Melbourne and aims to create an experience unlike any other. Lorem Ipsum is a space that captures Melbourne’s creativity, design and culinary culture. The space features stunning chandeliers, spectacular floor-to-ceiling gold pressed panelling, state-of-the-art audio and visual as well as the single largest outdoor area of a function venue in Melbourne. In fact Lorem Ipsum has the capacity to host gala dinners or lunches for 500 to 1200 people and cocktail functions for up to 2000 people. This unique space is available for end of year gala events from Thursday 3 December to Tuesday 22 December inclusive. For bookings or more details visit http://www.loremipsummelb.com.au.

Lorem Ipsum

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Lorem Ipsum.

Punch Lane

House smoked tuna, goats curd, pickled fennel, mustard seeds

This entree was originally served on a different plate and our waiter divided up the contents, hence the careless presentation. The creamy goats curd, sharp fennel and spicy mustard seeds were perfect accompaniments for the wonderfully smoky tuna.

★★★☆☆

Roasted quail, almond cream, grape bath, vine leaf, red grapes

Crispy tender quail with extremely sweet grapes.

★★☆☆☆

Roast baby snapper, cauliflower, capers

★★☆☆☆

John Dee Black Angus scotch fillet, roasted shallots, harissa and watercress

The harissa was quite mild and did not overpower the tender scotch fillet

★★☆☆☆

Peanut butter parfait, dulce de leche, peanut brittle

The parfait itself was delicious but remarkably rich. Sharing this dessert would be a good idea.

★★☆☆☆

‘A bit of a mess’: strawberry sorbet, frangipane, custard, meringue, Antico Rosso jelly

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

I first ventured here almost a year ago and I remember being truly impressed with the food. Thus I decided to once again order the five course menu however this time I left feeling disappointed. The food was good but not outstanding (like my previous visit) and the portions served were TINY. (The tuna and quail each took all but three small bites to finish). In fact we ended up having a second dinner someplace else that night. I understand that fancy places tend to have smaller portions and I wouldn’t be grumbling so much had the dishes been more superlative. Perhaps things will be different with the next menu change. On a positive note the service was wonderful and the atmosphere was lively. I really do hope that Punch Lane was just having an off night with their food.

Punch Lane

43 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9639 4944

http://punchlane.com.au/

Coombe – the Melba Estate

675 Maroondah Hwy, Coldstream 9739 0173

A little while ago I had the opportunity to attend a private garden tour and morning tea at Coombe – The Melba Estate. This stunning property was once home to Dame Nellie Melba, Australia’s first world-famous opera singer.

The 2.8 hectare garden was designed by William Guilefoyle, who also designed Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens.

Hedge

Six hundred metres of beautifully manicured cypress hedges can be found here. By getting into a crouching position and slowly shuffling forward, I was able to squeeze into this particular hedge opening and experience being inside of an enormous hedge. It was pretty cool.

Not only does this spectacular garden contain plants (including rare ones), it also contains…

an old English oak tree (estimated to be over 180 years old)…

Victoria’s oldest swimming pool (built in 1913)…

vegetable gardens…

chickens…

a croquet lawn…

and much more. So after our garden tour, it was time for morning tea!

Top Tier: Fresh baked scones, Peach Melba Jam, Clotted cream

Middle Tier: Lemon meringue tartlet, Strawberry tartlet, Dark and white chocolate truffle, Friands

Bottom Tier: Pork and apple sausage rolls, Leek and Persian feta quiche, Coombe Farm pate on Melba toast, Asparagus dill cream cheese pinwheel, Smoked salmon ribbon sandwiches

Overall:

The restaurant is located within the restored motor house and historic clock tower, having a design that cleverly incorporated old and new. I found the huge glass windows that overlook the gardens to be particularly impressive. The morning tea served was good but nothing outstanding. Perhaps the brunch or lunch here is more delectable as seasonal and estate grown produce are used. Nevertheless I loved the history of this estate and the calming picturesque gardens. It’s amazing how after more than a century, this estate is now open to the public. Note that this place is available for weddings and private functions.

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Two Hands Agency. All food ratings & review are purely based on my own experiences and how I felt about the service, food and quality at the time of visit.

The Parlor

The Parlor Tasting Board

An ample selection of lunch times dishes which included hommus, house made polenta chips, pork belly,prosciutto, steamed broccoli, roasted capsicum, cured salmon, calamari, roast chicken, and ciabatta. Sharing this huge tasting board is definitely recommended.

★★☆☆☆