walnut | DAMMIT JANET I LOVE FOOD

Coconut Kingfish Ceviche – young coconut, tomato, cucumber, chilli

This basically tasted like an amazing curry dish – fresh and creamy, with a bit of heat from the chilli.

★★★★☆

Grilled Corn On The Cob – chipotle mayo, ground masa, lime

I love grilled corn and whenever I see it on a menu somewhere, I always order it and then compare it to the corn here at The Black Toro. It’s been years since I’ve had this and after my first bite I felt super ecstatic as the corn was still as incredible as I remembered it to be.

★★★★★

Spicy Pulled Pork Tacos – soft corn tortilla, sriracha mayo, cabbage slaw

These were some tasty tacos and I really appreciated how they were served on a warm plate so that the tortillas would remain soft and warm for longer.

★★★★☆

Salmon Tartare – avocado puree, radish, toasted black sesame, puffed rice chicharon

The salmon needed a bit more seasoning otherwise this was a light and enjoyable dish.

★★★☆☆

Crispy Pork Hock – masterstock braised pork, guajilo chilli caramel, green apple salsa verde, butter lettuce

Sticky, sweet, and full of flavour. I made such a mess wrapping my pork up but it was totally worth it.

★★★★☆

Dessert Tasting Plate

Can’t pick a dessert? Why not try everything!

★★★★☆

Passionfruit Tart – berries, toasted meringue, mint

Beautifully presented with a lovely balance of sweetness and tartness. Meanwhile the combination of the smooth filling, the fresh fruit and the dehydrated fruit provided delightful texture variation.

Deconstructed Peanut Butter Cheesecake – chocolate ice cream, peanut butter ice cream, honeycomb

Best eaten with a little bit of everything on your spoon, as the peanut butter was extremely rich on its own.

Chocolate Brownie – salted caramel, popcorn, vanilla ice cream

These brownies were phenomenal – extremely smooth and highly decadent. They tasted amazing on their own, and the other additions were merely added bonuses.

Arroz Con Leche – coconut rice pudding, saffron spiced pear, cinnamon, walnut

Creamy and satisfying.

Overall:

Always a great experience. The food, service and ambience is brilliant, and the grilled corn is still my absolute favourite in Melbourne!

The Black Toro

79 Kingsway, Glen Waverley, VIC

(03) 9561 9696

http://theblacktoro.com.au/

Asparagus, sea butter, olive plant

Raw pea & lemon aspen tart, Brook trout & nut butter crisp

Prawn, nasturtium, finger lime

Iced Oyster, Beef tendon & mountain pepper

Chilled broth of broad bean, green almond, strawberry, fig leaf & yoghurt whey

Sourdough (made from hand milled wheat and baked on site) & freshly churned butter (made from locally sourced jersey cows)

Calamari, black lip abalone, broccoli & blue mackerel

Artichokes & salt grass lamb washed with mussel juice & citrus

Potato & jerusalem artichoke crisps served with a single poached yolk

Bass groper, cured back fat, walnut & butter braised turnip

Aged Pekin duck wood roasted on the bone, quandong, dried liver

Milk, honey & mandarin

Parsnip & apple

Rhubarb, pistachio, blood & preserved blackberry

Overall:

I visited Brae late last year so this post is a bit overdue.

Impressively ranked at number 87 in the world’s 100 best restaurants list of 2015, Brae is undeniably a place where you will find quality food and innovation. Located 130km southwest of Melbourne in the small town of Birregurra, our visit to Brae was indeed a fun little road trip. As soon as we arrived we noticed some construction happening right next to the parking lot. We later found out that this was to become six on-site accommodation suites which will open from February 2016.

As we stepped into the simple weatherboard farmhouse, we were warmly greeted and guided to our seats. Service throughout our meal was exceptional (as to be expected), with the staff being friendly, courteous and efficient. The origins of each dish was diligently explained and all my random questions about the food and the restaurant were happily answered. The atmosphere in the dining area was bright and comfortable, and we were also able to get a glimpse into the kitchen from our table which was nice.

A great deal of care and attention to detail was seen with the presentation of each dish, and although I throughly enjoyed sampling everything on their degustation menu, I did have my favourites and my not-so-favourites. My not-so-favourite was easily the asparagus. Sure it was fresh and crisp, but a single stalk of asparagus does not get me salivating. Luckily the asparagus was served first because it all went uphill from there. The absolute stand out dishes for me were the prawns and the iced oyster. The prawn heads and the prawn parcels bursted with amazing flavours, while the iced oyster turned out to be sweet and creamy, similar to a deliciously smooth ice cream with a gentle hint of oyster.

Our visit to Brae was a lovely experience and it is a great place to head to for memorable world class food.

Brae

4285 Cape Otway Rd, Birregurra, VIC

(03) 5236 2226

http://braerestaurant.com/