Everything looked delicious and it took us a little while to decide what to get.
Blueberry Coconut Cheesecake, Lemon and Ricotta Crumble Cake, Hot Jam Donut
★★★☆☆
Apple and Raisin Danish
★★★☆☆
Scrambled egg, bacon, tomato and avocado panini
★★★★★
Scallop & wakame pie
★★★☆☆
Pork, Sage and apple sausage roll
★★☆☆☆
Overall:
We grabbed some takeaway and found the food to be delightful. This place is well worth stopping by.
Jackman & McRoss
59 Hampden Rd, Battery Point, TAS
(03) 6223 3186
Salmon cream cheese roll
Seared salmon and scallops
Lobster salad gunkan
Seared scallop nigiri
Spicy seared salmon nigiri
Prawn box sushi
Chicken karaage
Spicy tuna nigiri
Salmon avocado roll
Takoyaki
Overall:
Love this place. In fact not much has changed since my first visit over a year ago. The service is still super quick (I ordered pretty much everything from the electronic touch screens) and the food is still fresh and delicious. The menu is updated 3 to 4 times a year and everything is freshly hand made right in front of your eyes. This time around I especially enjoyed the spicy seared salmon nigiri, chicken karaage and the seared salmon and scallops (I could really go for more of this right now!) This is definitely the place to go to if you are after quick, tasty, reasonable priced sushi train food. Note that this place can get quite busy and that they will not seat you until your entire party has arrived.
Check out the first part of this clip to get more of an idea of what to expect at Sushi Hotaru.
Sushi Hotaru
Shop 118, 200 Bourke St (1st floor of MidCity Arcade), Melbourne
(03) 9663 7538
*Disclaimer: I dined as a guest of SD Marketing Global.
El Nachos Montana
(corn chips, grilled mozzarella, salsa mexicana, organic black beans, guacamole, jalapeños, sour cream)
★★☆☆☆
Sweet corn on the cob
(charred corn with smoked paprika, sour cream, parmesan, chilli)
★★☆☆☆
Conchinita pibil
(organic pulled pork, slow cooked in achiote chilli, orange, pickled Spanish onions, and apples)
★★☆☆☆
Mexican rice, organic black beans, warm tortillas
★★☆☆☆
Pork taco (pulled pork, chilli, orange, pickled Spanish onion)
Beef taco (beef in chipotle and smoked paprika, salsa verde, coriander, lime)
Prawn taco (pan fried prawns, purple cabbage, salsa mexicana, and chipotle aioli on blue corn tortilla)
★★☆☆☆
Overall:
Awesome courtyard out the back, friendly staff, unexceptional food. And why is this place called ‘the Chinese’?
El Chino
214 St Georges Rd, Fitzroy North, VIC
(03) 9078 7974
Ingredients:
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Combine brown sugar, peanut butter, butter, milk, and vanilla in a large bowl. Add egg and mix.
3. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to creamed mixture and mix just until blended.
4. Form dough into 3cm balls. To make reindeer-shaped cookies, pinch the bottom of the ball slightly to form a point, then gently flatten with your hand.
5. Place cookies on a greased tray and gently press pretzels onto each cookie.
6. Bake for 7-8 minutes or until cookies begin to brown.
7. Remove from the oven and IMMEDIATELY (and gently) press M&Ms in for the eyes and an M&M for the nose.
Overall:
How cute are these cookies? They are slightly crumbly, not overly sweet, have a wonderful peanut butter flavour, and are simply perfect for Christmas.
Tasmanian oysters
★★☆☆☆
Chicken and duck rillette, fresh baguette, cornichons, apricot puree, lemon
★★☆☆☆
House cured ocean trout, radish, beetroot, goats cheese
★★☆☆☆
Cape Grim scotch fillet, shoestring fries, green salad, red wine jus, cafe de Paris butter
★★☆☆☆
Cape Grim eye fillet, celeriac puree, wild mushrooms, tawny port reduction
Basically a pile of mushrooms with a TEENY TINY piece of average tasting steak underneath.
★★☆☆☆
Duck a l’orange – confit duck leg, roasted chat potatoes, braised green beans, orange glaze
Overpowering orange glaze.
★★☆☆☆
Overall:
Extremely disappointing considering the number of awards they have received. The food was mediocre and pricey, the service was average and the red lighting gave this place a darkroom sort of feeling.
Pierre’s
88 George St, Launceston, TAS
(03) 6331 6835
Wood fired pizza – spicy pork sausage, buffalo mozzarella, San Marzano tomato, chilli
Thin crispy base, spicy herby topping.
★★★☆☆
Moscato Granita and Moscato & Sipsmith Summer Cocktail
Both drinks were very refreshing however I enjoyed the granita more as it was sweeter.
★★★★☆
Overall:
Try the Moscato, it is fantastic.
Innocent Bystander Winery
336 Maroondah Hwy, Healesville, VIC
(03) 5962 6111
http://www.innocentbystander.com.au/
Devonshire Scones (plain and fruit) served with home-made raspberry jam and freshly whipped cream
The scones were moist and fluffy, and had a texture that was comparable to a light cake. The jam was sweet and fruity, while the cream was deliciously light (our waitress informed us that the jam and cream were refillable).
★★★☆☆
Miss Marple’s Famous Fingers – chicken, cheese and asparagus
These open toasted sandwiches were quite cheese heavy and needed a bit more chicken in them.
★★☆☆☆
Miss Marple’s “Sundae Best” (layers of ice cream and berry sauce topped with chocolate fudge, whipped cream, almond biscotti, roasted flaked almonds and strawberries)
This thing was HUGE and we only managed to get through half before throwing in the towel.
★★★☆☆
Overall:
After reading so many negative reviews, I was initially wary about coming here. But my experience turned out to be a really enjoyable one. We arrived on a foggy Saturday morning at around 11am and were seated immediately. The atmosphere was very intimate and homely (teapots and kettles everywhere, floral tablecloths and curtains, traditional English lamps, fireplace), the service was prompt and polite, and the food was delightful.
Miss Marple’s Tearoom
382 Mount Dandenong Tourist Rd, Sassafras, VIC
(03) 9755 1610
Spring Bay mussels, white wine, garlic, parsley, dill, shallots, saffron aioli
★★☆☆☆
Tasmanian oysters
★★★☆☆
Tassal salmon ceviche, crisp radish, pickled fennel and celery, goats curd cream
★★☆☆☆
Grilled Tassal salmon, freekah, faro and du puy lentil braise, chimichurri, chorizo and herb salad
★★☆☆☆
House made linguini, Spring Bay mussels, spanner crab, yellow tomato, pernod, bottarga
★★☆☆☆
Chargrilled baby chicken, sweet corn puree, quinoa, roasted summer onion, tomato and walnut salsa
★★☆☆☆
Pan fried house made herb and parmesan gnocchi, pancetta lardons, baby carrots, pear, walnuts, cavalo nero, pecorino
★★★☆☆
Overall:
Good food, casual atmosphere, friendly staff.
Smolt
2 Salamanca Sq, Hobart, TAS
(03) 6224 2554
Smashed Avocado (Persian feta, toast, poached eggs, dukka, relish)
★★★☆☆
Eggs SS (smoked salmon, toast, spinach, hollandaise)
★★☆☆☆
Eggs Benedict (leg ham, toast, hollandaise)
★★☆☆☆
Overall:
Good solid breakfast fare can be found at this comfortable little cafe. Service is friendly and the atmosphere is relaxed, making it a great place to drop by before you start your day.
Cafe Mondello
242 Charles St, Launceston, TAS
0408 326 848
103 Murray St, Hobart 6231 0558
Smoked new season pink eye potatoes, sauce of whey, garlic scapes, herbs, flowers
Tartare of veal leg, uni and pine nut cream, nasturtium buds, speck and aged buffalo cheese
Green feast peas, lovage, samphire, lardo
Venerupis clams cooked in kombu butter, chicken and anise hyssop dashi
Garagistes smoked eel, poached rhubarb, laver and pickled hawthorn blossom
Lightly steamed Tasmanian blue eye trevalla and oyster mushrooms cooked over charcoal
West Hobart lime posset, iced fig leaf kefir, caraway and dill shortbread
Kunzea blossom ice cream, elderflower milk crisp, green almond cream
Overall:
Garagistes offer an ever-changing five course set menu with optional artisanal sake to match. The food here is beautifully presented and has interesting flavours, however portions are quite small (I left still feeling a bit hungry). Service was friendly but slow, and the decor was simple (eg. plain wooden communal tables) and dark (eg. black walls, dark floors). Not a place I am likely to return to.
Note that this place opens Wednesday to Saturday from 6pm, and that reservations open two weeks in advance.
DAMMIT JANET I LOVE FOOD 