Chorizo

Le Petit Prince

Mushrooms and Chorizo

(with smashed avocado, beetroot hummus, poached egg and feta on quinoa and soya toast)

★★★☆☆

Green Bowl

(kale, kiwi, cucumber and coconut smoothie with black chia seeds, house granola, coconut flakes and seasonal fruits)

Simple, colourful, guilt-free.

★★★☆☆

Iced Matcha

Check out the huge clumps of undissolved matcha powder.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

I liked how the menu here was divided into 3 sections: ‘The Light’, ‘The Healthy’ and ‘The Rich’. Of course my eyes immediately went to ‘The Rich’ section and I had to convince myself that ordering from ‘The Healthy’ section would be just as good. Service was helpful and I really enjoyed sitting outside under the shade of the large leafy trees.

Le Petit Prince

1A Mercer Rd, Armadale, VIC

(03) 9824 6404

http://lpparmadale.com.au

Mountain of Bears

BBQ Pulled Pork Burger

(slow cooked pork shoulder served with lettuce, tomato, pickles, fried shallots and house made slaw with a side of grilled kipfler potatoes)

The pulled pork was juicy and well flavoured while the potatoes were a nice change from the usual side of chips that you get from everywhere these days.

★★★☆☆

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Valencian Paella

(clams, squid, chorizo, chicken and shrimp cooked with saffron infused rice served in a claypot, topped with parmesan and spring onion)

Bland but filling.

★★☆☆☆

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Berries For The Bears

(strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, milk, yogurt)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Tucked away in a small arcade, Mountain of Bears is a place that offers friendly service, an inviting atmosphere and cleverly named menu items. Let’s avocuddle anyone?

Mountain of Bears

556 North Rd, Ormond, VIC

(03) 9578 9882

Little Creatures Fremantle Brewery

Roast pumpkin, pepita, pesto and ricotta woodfired pizza

★★★☆☆

Garlic chilli prawn, red pepper and salsa verde woodfired pizza

★★★★☆

Beef nachos, guacamole, jalapenos

★★★☆☆

Grilled chorizo

★★☆☆☆

Grilled chicken skewers, honey, chilli

★★☆☆☆

Charred corn cobs, manchego

★★★★☆

Overall:

Located in an enormous shed that was formerly a crocodile farm, the set up here is rather impressive as diners are surrounded by an array of massive beer tanks. No big surprise that this is the birthplace of Little Creatures Brewing. So not only is this the perfect place for grabbing a drink, the food here is pretty tasty and well portioned too. The lively atmosphere was great however the service was so-so. Getting the attention of the wait staff was a bit tricky as the place was so busy but at least the food came out in fairly good time.

Little Creatures Fremantle Brewery

40 Mews Rd, Fremantle, WA

(08) 6215 1000

https://littlecreatures.com.au/

The General Food Store

Arabesque

(poached eggs, grilled halloumi, beetroot relish, hazelnut dukkah, baby spinach, toasted sourdough)

★★★☆☆

El Capitan

(pan fried chorizo, spring onion, pea and chard, white bean puree, poached eggs, toasted sourdough)

★★★☆☆

Overall:

This cosy cafe has a teeny-tiny kitchen so it was understandable as to why it took some time for our food to come out. The menu is small and changes monthly as they use seasonal ingredients that are mainly sourced from local and greater Victorian food regions. Note that this place doesn’t take bookings but if you call up 20 minutes before you arrive, they will reserve a table for you.

The General Food Store

377 Belgrave-Gembrook Rd, Emerald, VIC

(03) 5968 3580

http://www.thegeneralfoodstore.com.au/

The Peddler Cafe

Campfire (Baked) Eggs

(chorizo, bacon, butter beans, chilli, parmesan, napoli)

★★☆☆☆

Roast Salmon and Quinoa Salad

(avocado, snow peas, rocket, saffron and elderflower vinaigrette)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

A charming unpretentious cafe where the staff were lovely and provided great service. The menu was limited compared to many other cafes (which is perfectly fine), however the dishes we sampled were merely average which was a shame.

The Peddler Cafe

295b Springfield Rd, Nunawading, VIC

(03) 9877 4381

Victorian Cider and Pork Festival 2016

Over the 2016 Australia Day Long Weekend, the Yarra Valley hosted the inaugural Cider and Pork Festival – the first ever to be held in Victoria. Set amongst the scenic vines at Rochford Wines, the two day event celebrated the humble pig and the crushed apple.

The festival showcased more than 60 mouthwatering pork dishes from locally sourced produce from leading Melbourne restaurants and food trucks that included Fancy Hanks, Blue Bonnet BBQ, The Rib Joint, Pulled Kitchen and Pig On The Spit. The festival also showcased some of the best cider from around Australia that included St Ronan’s Cider, Napoleone Cider & Brewery, Willie Smiths Organic Cider, Batlow Cider Co, Hills Cider, Custard & Co, Daylesford Cider Co, Flying Brick, Sidekick Cider, Granite Belt Cider and many more.

We arrived late in the afternoon and by this stage the lines for the food trucks/stalls were INSANELY long. Not only that, quite a few places had run out of food which was very frustrating, particularly if you had been waiting in line for a long time. Here is the result of my hour long wait:

BBQ and Rice Noodle Salad

Spanish Meatballs, Chorizo and Pickled Octopus

Both of these were delicious and complimented the cider that I sampled nicely. Now the mood at this festival was very laid back with everyone relaxing and having a good time eating and drinking. This was indeed a fun event, and hopefully the food shortage and long waiting time issues are resolved by the next Cider and Pork Festival.

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Tyrell Publicity & Promotions.

Oscar Cooper

Spiced napoli baked eggs, grilled zucchini, spanish onion, corn, chorizo and manchego cheese served with ciabatta

A bit on the watery side but very flavoursome with a brilliantly spicy kick.

★★★☆☆

Crispy truffle polenta slice, confit field mushrooms, poached eggs, shaved manchego and jamon

The polenta slice was delicious with a distinctive truffle aroma while the eggs were perfectly poached.

★★★★☆

Oscar’s benedict on potato roesti, smashed avo, poached eggs and tangy hollandaise with house cured salmon

The potato roesti had been overly fried so was incredibly crispy. Eggs were perfectly poached and the hollandaise quite tasty.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

This popular corner cafe draws in the crowds with their enjoyable food, easy-going service and the all day booze they have on offer. So remember this place for the next time you have an early morning hankering for some wine or a cocktail.

Oscar Cooper

160 Greville St, Prahran, VIC

(03) 9529 5670

http://www.oscarcooper.com.au/

Smolt

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

Home

Raspberry Fool

Baked eggs (caramelised onion, ham and gruyere) with toast

★★☆☆☆

Scrambled free range eggs with chorizo and toast

★★☆☆☆

Poached free range eggs with sausage and toast

★★☆☆☆

Chocolate French toast with honey, yogurt and pear compote

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Small cafe with a small menu that offered friendly service and reasonable food.

Note this place is closed on Sundays

Raspberry Fool

85 Bathurst St, Hobart, TAS

(03) 6231 1274

Miss Fitzy’s

I was invited to a menu tasting at Miss Fitzy’s a little while ago and had the pleasant opportunity to sample a range of their mouthwatering dishes.

Monica’s Melting Majik

(Van Gogh coconut vodka, strega liqueur, housemade chai syrup, coconut water, candied cherry)

Smoked quail, parsley and mustard fruits on rye

Spicy fried school prawns served with garlic aioli

Organic tomato, buffalo mozzarella, herbs

Roasted squid, chorizo, parsley, pickled onion

Smoked chicken wings, pork belly, mustard fruits

Grilled Robbins Island wagyu bavette steak, poached quail eggs, truffle

Scallops, bacon, truffle, watercress, black caviar

Grilled goats’ cheese, beetroot, quinoa, hazelnut

Whole 1kg crispy fried snapper, asparagus, sauce grenobloise

(deboned and reconstructed!)

Asparagus, snow peas, parmesan & egg

Smoked saskia beer corn fed chicken, roasted celeriac, brussel sprouts

Cape Grim black Angus 2+ Tri Tip, charred onions, roasted carrots, duck fat potato

(from left to right)

Bitter chocolate, olive oil & peanut brittle, brown butter sherbet

Cinnamon doughnut custard, chocolate, coffee, shortbread

Rhubarb & pear jelly, liquid puff pastry, prune and Armagnac ice cream

Overall:

Located at the beach end of Fitzroy Street in St Kilda, Miss Fitzy’s is a great place to head to if you are after a tasty sharing menu or a decent late night feed. The menu has French and Spanish influences and has been created by head chef Lachy Cashman (Circa, Sloaney Pony, Salsa Bar and Grill Port Douglas) who has a background in butchery and meat curing. So it came as no surprise to discover that Miss Fitzy’s has their own custom-built smoker and curing room. Every dish I sampled was terrific but I particularly enjoyed the prawns, smoked chicken wings, scallops and the duck fat chips (oh so amazing!). The decor here is simple and chic, with impressive 1920s inspired murals along the back walls. Note that this place is closed on Mondays.

Miss Fitzy’s

23 Fitzroy St, St Kilda, VIC

(03) 9537 1653

http://missfitzys.com.au/

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Miss Fitzy’s.