Eggplant

Richmond Hill Café and Larder

RHCL grilled cheesy toast with eggplant & chilli pickle

I simply cannot describe how amazing this was! The toast was perfect, the cheese was unbelievable, while the eggplant and chilli pickle added delicious zing and was a fantastic contrast to the heavy cheese.

★★★★★

The Lot

(two eggs any way with toast, bacon, baked beans, mushrooms & roasted
tomatoes)

★★☆☆☆

Potato & spring onion rosti with smoked salmon, two poached eggs, spinach pistou sauce, Cantalet cheese fondue & grain mustard

The crispy rosti was tasty but could have been finished within two bites. Okay maybe three bites.

★★★☆☆

Baked Eggs

(two baked eggs with RHCL sausage ragu, toasted pinenuts, feta & fresh coriander)

The feta was fantastic! If only there had been more!

★★☆☆☆

Baghdad Eggs

(two fried eggs with lemon & garlic, sprinkled with cumin & mint on homemade flat bread)

Super simple, super marvellous!

★★★★★

Overall:

Terrific food, warm atmosphere, prompt service (although we did feel a bit rushed when our bill was presented as soon as we had finished eating and before we had even asked for it). Richmond Hill Café and Larder even have their very own cheese room which offers an impressive selection of local and imported cheeses, many of which they mature in-house. I am so looking forward to my next visit. I already have my eye on the cheese platter…

Note that this place takes bookings.

Richmond Hill Café and Larder

48-50 Bridge Rd, Richmond, VIC

(03) 9421 2808

http://rhcl.com.au/

360 Bar & Dining

100 Market St, Sydney NSW 8223 3883

House-made focaccia with honey, garlic and rosemary

Pacific oyster, cucumber and gin martini, avruga

Baked eggplant, buffalo mozzarella, basil, 25 year old balsamic vinegar

Prosciutto, rockmelon, rocket, gorgonzola dressing, roasted hazelnuts

Wagyu beef cheek raviolo, shiitake, oyster and swiss brown mushrooms, master stock

150 day grain fed Angus beef tenderloin (Darling Downs, Queensland)

Seared king salmon fillet, roasted cauliflower, citrus and cauliflower puree

Vanilla and rhubarb panna cotta, genoise sponge, poached rhubarb

Overall:

I had been wanting to dine at a rotating restaurant ever since I first saw the Sit-N-Rotate restaurant in an episode of The Simpsons back when I was kid. It looked like it would be so much fun and you would never get bored because the view outside your window would be constantly changing. So with a location 305 metres above sea level, it comes as no surprise that the views from 360 Bar and Dining are absolutely fabulous! The floor-to-ceiling windows and unique rotating floor provides amazing, uninterrupted 360 degree views of Sydney and beyond.

It was quite a bizarre experience stepping out of the elevator and into the restaurant and feeling the floor move beneath my feet. I initially felt a little wobbly (like I was on a boat) but thankfully adjusted after some time. In all honesty I was there for the experience and the view, and not really the food. Thus I was delighted when it turned out that the food here was actually quite good! I later discovered that the Head Chef was in fact Ashley Hughes who has previously worked with Marco Pierre White at L’Escargot as well as alongside Jamie Oliver at The River Café in London.

Each dish was beautifully constructed and contained fresh ingredients that marvellously complemented each other. The dish I enjoyed the most was the wagyu beef cheek raviolo (the mushroom stock was bursting with flavour and the delicious beef simply melted away in my mouth). Service was friendly and the decor was refined. Note that the restrooms don’t stay in the same spot as the restaurant rotates.

Red Pepper

14 Bourke St, Melbourne 9654 5714

Vegetarian Thali

Aloo Baingan

Butter Chicken

Thoughts:

Vegetarian Thali – includes one paneer dish, one seasonal vegetable dish, daal makhani, rice, one plain naan and raita. Our vegetable dish was a spicy cauliflower and potato curry which turned out to be my favourite dish of the night. The paneer dish and the daal makhani were tasty but nothing extraordinary = Good

Aloo Baingan – eggplant cooked with potatoes, herbs and spices, served with raita and one plain naan (we requested garlic naan instead). This dish actually had a slightly sour undertone. I’m not sure if that was the intention, but I wasn’t a fan = Not bad

Butter Chicken – tender pieces of boneless tandoori chicken in creamed fresh tomatoes served with either two plain naans, one plain naan and small rice, or rice only. (we also requested garlic naan instead with this dish) = Good

Overall:

Although some of the staff had no idea what certain menu items were and that service was noticeably slow, this simple eatery does serve up cheap and enjoyable Indian food. Note that orders are taken up at the counter and that this place opens until 3am.

Wah Kee

338 Clayton Rd, Clayton 9544 5156

Rendang Daging

Curry Laksa

Salt and Pepper Squid

Stir fried Chinese water spinach

Eggplant with Bean sauce

Char Hor Fun

Cha Kueh Teow

Thoughts:

Rendang Daging – steak pieces cooked in spices and desiccated coconut = Not bad

Curry Laksa – a bland mix of noodles, fish cake, chicken, roast pork and fried bean curd in a coconut milk curry soup = Not bad

Salt and Pepper Squid – well seasoned pieces of delightfully crispy squid = Not bad

Stir fried Chinese water spinach – simple and not overly oily = Not bad

Eggplant with Bean sauce – the eggplant skin was a bit too chewy, but apart from that it was quite a tasty dish = Not bad

Char Hor Fun – stir fried rice noodles with pork, chicken, squid, prawns and vegetables, topped with egg gravy = Not bad

Cha Kueh Teow – stir fried rice noodles with shrimp, roast pork, egg, bean shoots and chilli = Not bad

Overall:

The food here is typical of a Chinese-Malaysian restaurant with no particular dishes standing out. The staff are friendly and the service is quick. Note that they are closed on Tuesdays.