Chocolate

Basilico

216 Blackburn Rd, Glen Waverley 9887 6288

Al Salmone gourmet wood fired pizza

Polpette Al Sugo (Meatballs) Risotto

Belgian Dark Chocolate and Strawberry dessert pizza

Thoughts:

Al Salmone pizza – thin crispy pizza base topped with slices of tomato, cheese, salmon, finely chopped leek, fresh basil, spanish onion, spring onion and cracked pepper. There was a generous amount of salmon on this pizza which made it noticeably salty, however the sweetness from the leek and onion helped to balance this out = Good

Polpette Al Sugo Risotto – tender Italian meatballs in a Napoli sauce. The sauce itself was tasty but the risotto was unfortunately hard and undercooked = Not bad

Chocolate and Strawberry dessert pizza – thin crispy base topped with deliciously melted dark chocolate brownies, fresh strawberries and four massive scoops of sweet vanilla ice cream. The base was superb and the ample amount of topping was fantastic. Hands down the best dessert pizza that I have tasted so far! = Excellent

Overall:

Great pizzas (there is a large selection of gourmet wood fired pizzas to choose from as well as original wood fired pizzas), average service, casual family-friendly dining atmosphere. But seriously, come for the Chocolate and Strawberry dessert pizza!

Chocolate Mill

5451 Midland Hwy, Mount Franklin 5476 4208

Chocolate counter

Milk Hot Chocolate

Ice Chocolate

Thoughts:

Milk Hot Chocolate – although you cannot tell by simply looking at the contents of this egg shaped mug, this is in fact some of the BEST hot chocolate that I have ever tasted. Made with delicious Belgian Callebaut chocolate, this particular blend is smooth, rich and not overly sweet = Excellent

Ice Chocolate – rich and refreshing, with a generous amount of vanilla ice cream = Good

Overall:

What I like about this place is that all of their chocolate contains no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. They even have chocolate that is vegan, coeliac and diabetic friendly. All of their products are made and sold on site and there is a viewing window that allows you to see what goes on behind the scenes. What I do not like about this place is that they do not offer tap water (as tank water is used here), and that the cafe area can sometimes be uncomfortable (draughty in winter and sweltering in summer). Nevertheless, the quality of the chocolate here is amazing and it is definitely worth stopping by.

Lake House

4 King St, Daylesford 5348 3329

Olive crisps, churros and olive aioli

Tuna sashimi, sea lettuce, buckwheat, avocado, bonito aioli, nori, mojama

Freshly baked grain roll, flaxseed crisps, white bread rolls

Eel, pancetta, beets

Mt Mercer pork, fermented pickles

XO braised pastured beef, grilled bug

Brioche french toast, Holy Goat cheese, poached pear

Lollipop

(lemon curd covered with Italian meringue)

Chocolate mousse, raspberry sorbet, fresh raspberries

White chocolate and cranberry squares with almond biscuits

Overall:

A trip to Daylesford is never complete for me unless I dine at this outstanding restaurant. Situated upon Lake Daylesford, this place offers impressive views of both the lake and of surrounding wildlife (which includes a local kookaburra family who fly in everyday to be fed). The decor here is absolutely beautiful and service is very professional. The menus are altered twice each season to ensure the usage of the best available produce. We chose to get the Summer Tasting Degustation and found every single dish to be superb with all the fresh ingredients and amazing flavours. Definitely worth a visit the next time you are in Daylesford!

Cutler & Co.

55-57 Gertrude St, Fitzroy 9419 4888

Seaweed and tapioca cracker with eggplant puree and black sesame

Rye toast with crème fraîche, smoked trout and Avruga cavier

Kingfish sashimi, green strawberries, sorrel and apple

Peas, baby zucchini, toasted seeds, onion and bergamot

WA marron, buttermilk potato, fermented carrot and Espelette

Smoked duck breast, boudin noir, beetroot and sour cherry

Wood grilled beef rib, kohlrabi and sesame

Cream, watermelon and lychee granita

Earl grey ice cream, chocolate, cherries and brandy jelly

Overall:

I was very excited to finally try out this place as I am a fan of chef Andrew McConnell having previously dined at his other restaurants Cumulus Inc. and Golden Fields, and absolutely loving the food. Located in an old metal works factory, this restaurant occupies a large interesting space filled with stripped back brick walls, high ceilings, exotic ferns and warm wooden tones. We decided to get the degustation menu (which changes quite often) and were quite impressed with the food served. The only problem with having really delicious degustation food is that before you know it, your plate is empty and you are left wanting more! This is definitely a place that I would visit again.

Mr. Hive Kitchen & Bar – Dessert Degustation

8 Whiteman St, Southbank 9292 8300

Chiboust, exaggerated blackberries, basil sorbet, hazelnuts, hazelnut oil, mint chocolate and puff pastry

Lychee and pine nut tartare, white chocolate, raspberries, gruyere cheese, lychee bubbles and poached raspberries

Mandarin and yogurt ice cream balls

Chestnut honey yogurt, milk crumb, scorched ruby and pink grapefruit poached in elderflower, elderflower jelly, caramelised seville orange, peach/honey/yogurt sorbet and orange isomalt sugar

Housemade dulce leche mousse in a mango glaze, mango poached in kaffir lime leaf, oat cookies, dark ale granita and a multigrain crouton

Dark chocolate sauce, milk chocolate cremeux, dark chocolate frozen soil, pistachio crumb, strawberry sorbet, dried strawberries and strawberry dust

Complimentary take home chocolates: Raspberry milk chocolate & Yuzu and chai dark chocolate

Overall:

I simply LOVE dessert. I am one of those people who always has room for something sweet. So when we decided to come and sample the new dessert degustation menu at Mr. Hive, I was very excited. And I must say, the dessert here did not disappoint.

The dessert bar was overseen by pastry chef John Demetrios, for whom I have a lot of respect. Previously the pastry chef at Circa, he was responsible for some of the best soufflés that I have ever tasted in Melbourne. As we sat at the bar and watched him at work, I marvelled at how quick and neat he was at assembling all the delicate little pieces and tiny details that made up each dessert. Although I thoroughly enjoyed every single dish that John created, the stand out elements for me were the basil sorbet (strikingly fresh with a strong basil flavour), the mandarin yogurt ice cream balls (which were lightly scorched before being served so that the ice cream inside was soft and bursted with flavour once you bit into it) and the dark ale granita (beautifully refreshing).

Note that the dessert degustation menu changes weekly every Tuesday and that the dessert bar only seats 6 people so bookings are recommended.

The Last Piece

7/2 Stadium Circuit, Mulgrave 9545 3040

Spiced school prawns with saffron aioli

Chunky chips with aioli

Hunter & collectors pizza – tomato, roasted chicken, peppers, flor di latte, olives and mushroom

I like italian sausage pizza – tomato, fior di latte, pork & fennel salsiccia, broccollini, cherry tomato and oregano

Penne grande with pork & fennel sausage, broccolini, cherry tomatoes, fresh chilli and white wine

Chocolate fondant with salted caramel ice cream

Flourless orange cake with blood orange sorbet

Spanish doughnuts with vanilla custard and nutella

Thoughts:

Prawns – the batter was unfortunately too hard and was difficult to cut, but the saffron aioli was nice = Not bad

Chips – regular chunky chips = Not bad

Hunters and collectors/I like italian sausage pizza – freshly made thin pizza bases with a decent amount of topping = Not bad

Penne – pasta was a bit undercooked = Not bad

Chocolate fondant – dense and tasted quite eggy, while the salted caramel ice cream was overly salty = Not bad

Orange cake – extremely moist and left a distinct orange peel aftertaste, while the sorbet was sweet and citrusy (tasted just like blood orange soft drink) = Not bad

Spanish doughnuts – are a different shape and are slightly more dense than regular doughnuts, but otherwise taste pretty much the same = Not bad

Overall:

An average pizza and pasta place located in a newly developed residential area that happens to overlook Waverley Park oval (where the Hawthorn football club train). Service was good (although our waitress wanted to clear our plates time and time again before we had even finished eating), and the atmosphere was friendly and relaxed.

Green Refectory

115 Sydney Rd, Brunswick 9387 1150

Breakfast stack

The big breakfast

Pavlova

Black forest cake

Thoughts:

Breakfast stack – a potato pattie, bacon, grilled tomato, spinach, haloumi cheese, basil and a poached or fried egg = Good

The big breakfast – eggs, toast, bacon, spinach, tomato, onion, haloumi, sausage, avocado, mushroom and homemade baked beans. One of the best ‘big breakfasts’ that I have ever laid eyes on; huge variety of food (no need to order anything extra), huge servings and is great value for money! = Good

Pavlova – light and fluffy meringue (that wasn’t overly sweet) with a generous layer of fresh cream and fruit, just amazing! = Excellent

Black forest cake – a typically tasty black forest cake = Good

Overall:

This hipster-filled place is always busy for good reason: the food is is fantastic, the portions are generous, there is a huge variety to choose from, the prices are great, and the service is quick and efficient. Just note that you need to go up to the counter to order and that this is a cash only place.

HD Cafe Bar and Grille

19 Royton Street, Burwood East 9886 8258

Filet mignon

Chocolate soufflé with vanilla ice cream

Thoughts:

Filet mignon – chargrilled eye fillet (that was cooked precisely as desired) served with scallops, king prawns, buttery mashed potato, steamed vegetables and a cream sauce. I was actually surprised at how good this dish was = Good

Soufflé – well cooked with lots of solid chocolate bits in it. Not sure if this was intentional or not, but it gave the dessert an extra chocolate kick = Not bad

Overall:

A little hidden restaurant just off Burwood Highway that serves an array of different dishes (Greek, Italian, Modern Australian). It is a family owned place with the husband as the chef, the wife front of house and serving, and the kids serving/milling around. The service was good but I’m not sure if it would have been the same if it had been a busy evening. Atmosphere was not so great, the place just didn’t feel very comfortable to me. Having said that, I would probably come back here again as the food was considerably tasty.

Acland St Cantina

2 Acland St, St Kilda 9536 1175

Salted caramel ice cream churros tacos

Triple chocolate & chilli trifle with passionfruit

Thoughts:

Churros tacos – I initially thought that this was going to be a mix between a churro and a taco but it turned out to be churros dough that had been piped out into a round flat shape. As it turned out the combination of warm cinnamon churros, cold salted caramel ice cream and crunchy praline, drizzled with dulce de leche sauce was just terrific = Excellent

Trifle – comprised of a passionfruit jelly-like layer, a chocolate mousse layer, a more dense chocolate layer, a scoop of some sort of sorbet (i couldn’t tell what is was because my tastebuds were overwhelmed by all of the chocolate!) and shaved white chocolate on top. There was no taste of chilli at all though. Maybe they forgot to add it? Nonetheless, a rich creation that I would recommend for any chocolate lover = Good

Overall:

I have walked past this place so many times never realising that there was a restaurant here. So we were given the choice of either dining in the brightly coloured retro front area or the dark modern candle lit back area. We decided on the back area as that was where the crowd was at, including the DJ who was happily doing his thing in a dim corner. Service was good but the noise level here was considerably loud so this is not the place to go to for a quiet catch up. Dessert wise, this place was absolutely delectable.

Chocolate Bliss Balls

Recipe from Karmea Fitness.

Overall:

Great for those wanting to be healthy but crave something sweet. This recipe is so quick and easy, ANYONE can make these.