Category Archives: Places we like to eat at

Fine barbecue for the west

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The Park Hotel, 12 Watton Stree, Werribee. Phone: 9741 1441

The Park Hotel has been on our radar for yonks – but it seemed like every time we’d start meandering in that direction, we’d get distracted.

Tonight all the stars align.

Being unable to attend the launch of the pub’s whiz-bang barbecue range a few weeks previously, we’ve been happy to accept an invite to take the smoked goodies and sides for a run for a mid-week dinner (see full disclosure below).

So there’s big star No.1 – a new venue doing barbecue in the western suburbs.

Yay!

 

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As well, it’s the very day of Bennie’s 15th birthday so we are joined by his mum, Deborah.

And we all have a very nice time.

Many readers more locally long-standing than I will be aware of this venue’s notorious past.

There’s a running joke about the length and specificity of the Park’s dress code, which definitely sets out to prevent a return to the bad old days.

 

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So much so that “park hotel werribee dress code” is a Google thing.

But no problems these days – the Park is a pleasant, roomy and friendly venue, with an array of seating options.

Family-friendly, too.

If the music is tad on the loud side for us, there is one monumental blessing – no pokies here!

The Park Hotel menu is just part of the food they’re doing here (see menu below).

But based on our very enjoyable meal, the pub is likely to find itself a destination for barbecue fans.

Partly because the nearest specialty barbecue places are in Maribyrnong, Footscray and beyond.

But mostly because what we have is, mostly, very good and priced pretty much how we’ve come to expect this kind of food of this kind of quality.

We are not served from the menu list but instead are provided a mighty fine sampler platter for the three of us plus three sides samples.

So it’s hard to gauge where our fare would fit in price-wise – I’m guessing somewhere between the $45 Pleased To Meat You option and the $65 Meat Master offering.

So what do we have?

 

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In order of wow factor:

Lamb, rosemary and olive sausages – superb!

These wonderful snags are listed on the menu as going for $12 the pair, which we reckon is a steal.

Roast chicken maryland with a maple glaze – also superb!

Like just about everyone else, we eat a lot of chook especially given how much Indian, Vietnamese and African food we eat.

So it takes a lot to impress.

As soon as Bennie takes a mouthful of the Park chook, he opines: “Oh man, this is good!”

I agree.

Pulled pork shoulder – very nice and better than most we’ve tried in the past few years.

Cool with the “Carolina vinegar” sauce served on the side.

Pork ribs – ostensibly “Kansas City style”, these are not on the bone as we may have expected and are on the extra fatty side and a little too chewy.

Enjoyable but …

 

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And our sides?

Mac ‘n’ cheese – simple, no-frills and the best we’ve had in Melbourne.

It’s moist, rich and delicious.

Cornbread – a deep brown and with a delightful nuttiness.

Coleslaw – this is a bit of letdown; mostly, I suspect, because it has dried out a bit in the small sample tubs.

 

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Dessert?

Hey, it’s Bennie’s birthday – of COURSE we’re going to have dessert!

He absolutely loves – and inhales – his chocolate brownie with salted caramel sauce and coconut ice-cream that is turned into an impromptu birthday cake.

 

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His mum, meanwhile, is very happy with her dark chocolate and beetroot cheesecake – as are we all.

 

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Many thanks to the Park staff for ensuring we had a very enjoyable evening.

Check out the Park Hotel website (including menu) here.

(Consider The Sauce dined at the Park Hotel as guests of the management and we did not pay for our meal. We were served a selected range taken from the venue’s new barbecue line-up. Park management neither sought nor was granted any input, oversight or pre-publication access to his story.)

 

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Point Cook burgers ace it

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Gemelli Cafe Grill, Shop 123, 22-30 Wallace Avenue, Point Cook. Phone: 9369 7602

Consider The Sauce has addressed Melbourne’s fixation with burgers a couple of times in recent months.

We’ve even been known to mutter about “burger burnout”.

So what do we do?

We eat more of them!

This is not a burden when the ones we try are so very, very good.

And it’s a special pleasure when we find them at places that are simply not part of the developing burger scene as such.

 

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First, a few weeks back, there was the fabulous burger ‘n’ chips combo at Searz in Newport.

Tonight it’s twin Gemelli Burgers at a newish cafe/grill in Point Cook.

Gemelli has been open a few weeks and is already a big hit with locals.

And so it should be!

It’s located in a commercial precinct on the opposite side of the freeway from Williams Landing station.

So new is the neighbourhood that there is building activity going on aplenty.

But for locals, and the overwhelming majority of them around here are young families, there’s not a lot about in terms of food so Gemelli surely seems like a gift.

So much so that perhaps we are chancing our arms a little by hoping to simply waltz in for a mid-week dinner.

But all is good as we wait just a few minutes for a table to be cleared.

 

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Among the various comments I have seen from (mostly very happy) customers have been a few noting a certain skittishness as the young floor staff get comfortable with their roles.

We talk with a few of them and find they’re all locals and that for most of them these are their first serious jobs.

We find them all cheerful and capable and the service top-notch.

As you’d expect, the dining space has a “family restaurant” feel – and if there is a bit of shopping centre food court vibe going on as well, it is soon forgotten as we get to grips with our dinner.

 

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A large serve of “Italian herb and parmesan” fries ($6.50) is not particularly cheesy but the chips are fine, hot and tasty. A small bowl of aioli is provided upon request.

 

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We both choose, from a line-up numbering six, the top-of-the-line Gemmelli Burger ($14), which is described as “2 homemade beef patty, 2 X cheese, Berkshire bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, relish, burger sauce”.

The verdict?

Bloody awesome!

The meat is, well, very meaty and a chewy delight.

The bacon is crisp and its flavour permeates the whole burger – such is not always the case.

The pickles, too, assert their presence and all the other protagonists are deftly put together to create perfectly balanced burgers.

As with the Searz burger, this is a 9/10 effort.

I prefer Gemelli, Bennie prefers Searz.

Everyone’s a winner!

We’re out of there for just over $42 including two soft drinks.

See the Gemelli Facebook page here and its website here.

 

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Corralling the drinks so Bennie doesn’t finish them off before our food arrives.

Burger Bonkers

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Consider The Sauce has had a bit of dabble at Facebook advertising in the past.

At the weekend just past, I gave it another crack, spending a few cents short of $30 in pursuit of FB “likes”.

This time, it appears, I did something right.

By the end of the weekend, CTS had gained about 50 new “likes”, of which 41 were directly attributable to the ads.

I’d be thrilled if even a handful of those new connections became regular readers.

But a closer look at the Facebook analysis of my ad “campaign” reveals something interesting.

I had four ads running, all with the same wording: “All about the marvellous food and cultures of Melbourne’s western suburbs.”

The ad featuring a pic of a lovely Japanese spread generated zero “likes”.

Not a single one.

Ditto for the ad featuring the marvellous meal enjoyed by CTS at last week’s Tamil Feast.

The ad featuring a photo from the equally marvellous spread at new Deer Park Ethiopian eatery Betty’s generated – wait for it ! – one “like”.

So from whence did the other 40 paid-for “likes” come?

They came from the ad featuring a photo of the burger and chips I enjoyed at Searz in Newport.

That’s right – 40 “likes” from the one ad.

Now don’t get me wrong – the Searz burger-and-chips combo was outstanding.

It was very bloody good.

But please – a reach of 2702 for my ad featuring an oozy, doozy burger?

And a reach of 92 for the other three ads – combined?

Blimey – all of Melbourne has gone bonkers.

Burger Bonkers.

 

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Meanwhile, on Sunday I enjoyed the above, mindblowingly good platter – for the cost of $13 – at A1 Bakery in Essendon.

Very good chook skewer.

Insanely delicious and juicy lamb kofta skewer.

Two kinds of salad, including a wonderful tablouleh.

Superb, tangy hummous and babaganoush.

Two pieces of house-baked z’ataar.

The outcome of my brief Facebook ad campaign precisely reflects the data-derived and anecdotal evidence being provided by several foodie, social media and food media pals.

Like I said … bonkers.

Burger Bonkers.

The lure of Sydney Road

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Al Hana Charcoal Chicken, 417  Sydney Road, Coburg. Phone: 9354 4300

Despite the improved situation of Middle Eastern food in the western suburbs, CTS continues to feel the pull of Sydney Road in Coburg.

The starting part of Sydney Road, upwards from Royal Parade, has some marvellous food even if it’s looking more like Fitzroy these days.

But it is the kilometre or so south of Pentridge Prison that draws us.

Sometimes it’s just about needing a bit of a drive.

A time to ponder, to chill, to work through a knotty problem or even write a story in my head while listening to some pounding sounds.

And sometimes it’s just about the food.

I like the fact that as I cross the freeway, the houses on the narrow streets are different from those of the west.

I love the diversity of this part of Sydney Road.

The shop spread is a kaleidoscopic marvel.

Most of all, perhaps and putting aside our favourite eating places hereabouts, I love most the handful of really old-school arcades running off Sydney Road.

This is a retailing style that is pretty much extinct, though there are a few such arcades off Keilor Road in Niddrie.

 

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Al Hana is like a cross between a regular Aussie charcoal chicken shop and a Lebanese grill house.

There’s lamb here but it is chook that dominates.

This is my second visit to Al Hana and I order the exact same meal – the half-chicken meal for $17.95.

This time around, the chicken is a bit of a disappointment.

The breast meat is too dry and all is simply a bit on the bland side – even the skin.

The leg is a winner, though.

The accoutrements are outstanding.

Three dips – a creamy garlic, smoky eggplant, hoummus – are all terrific.

The chips are hot and crisp.

The tabouleh is wet, fresh and lemony.

And there’s two kind of pickles – cucumber and turshi.

There’s so much food, I barely make use of the pita bread provided, instead dipping the chips in the dips.

Makes a difference from the ubiquitous mayo or aoili of burger bars!

 

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A Tamil feast

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Tamil Feasts, Ceres, Stewart St & Roberts St, Brunswick East.

Tamil Feasts have been run at Ceres Community Environment Park in Brunswick for about eight months.

They are held on Monday (pescatarian friendly with vegan options) and Tuesday (vegan friendly) nights every week.

 

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I arrive early on the Monday night I attend, which gives me plenty of time to take in the set-up and meet several of fine folks involved.

There volunteers working hard but the main heft of the cooking and its inspiration falls to a half-dozen or so Tamil asylum seekers.

 

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My understanding is that these wonderful cooks are still seeking refugee status but are free to live and work in the community.

After years of being detention, being able to prepare food for hungry guests not only earns them income but a whole lot of satisfaction.

Though, as event co-ordinator Molly points out, two days hardly provides a livable pay packet.

But still …

 

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The tables for a sell-out crowd of 70 are beautifully set.

And as more guests start arriving, it strikes me – this party is just like a Consider The Sauce Feast or fundraiser for West Welcome Wagon!

The people and the food (see menu below) are very familiar.

And that’s a good thing!

 

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Our feast starts with bhajis of onion, silverbeet, curry leaves and spices served with a mild tomato-coconut sambal.

These are magnificent – crisp on the outer and quite moist and juicy on the inner.

 

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Then follows our waonderful main fare, served upon thali plates.

Devilled prawns.

A super, spinachy dal.

A green bean and carrot curry.

Unusually flavoured roast garlic with sugar.

A salad of roast eggplant spiced with coriander, lemon, chilli and more.

And another salad of parsely, coconut and chilli.

It’s all very good and well worth every cent of the $30 we have paid.

 

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The evening has been an unalloyed pleasure and the event has been very well run.

Highly recommended!

Many thanks to Goya and her friends for inviting me!

To make a booking, go Tamil Feasts at website or Facebook page.

 

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Awesome meat, superb pricing

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Euro Cafe & Grill, Shop 26, 1-3 Princess Street, St Albans. Phone 9364 0451

Euro Cafe & Grill is about a block from the Vietnamese-heavy joy of Alfrieda Street.

We’ve been here before – many years ago, for an early CTS post, when similar food was being served under another name.

After that, the place closed.

A new name and new management were put in place a while ago and when we venture in we find it’s being run by Bosinian Steve and his wife, who were customers at the former set-up.

We like their style.

The food is similar to that you’ll find at, say, the Croatian club.

There’s stuffed cabbage, for instance.

 

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But mostly there are grills of many kinds.

There are no chips – unusual for this kind of food.

But we’re not at all put out – if anything, this makes our Sunday lunch more enjoyable and more guilt-free.

Moreover, the food here is not only very fine but also superbly affordable.

Look, it may be a case of comparing apples and oranges … and this may be a low-overhead mom-and-pop operation.

But still – grills and accessories for $14 to $18 certainly shed an interesting comparison light on the many burger and barbecue places that have shot up all over Melbourne in the past couple of years.

 

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Our meal commences with lovely bread – not made in-house but sourced from Jenny Bakery just up the road.

It’s nothing flash but just right for the job and the food at hand.

Chevapi ($14, top photo) are superb.

There’s 10 of them and every one is a chewy, meaty cigar of delicious.

 

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Pleskavica – big patties – come in beef and chicken versions, with or without stuffed with cheese.

Our plain beef number ($14) is just as yummy as the chevapi.

Bennie and I split the meat contents of our two plates and struggle to finish, so generous are the portions.

Served with our meals are diced onion, a simple cuke-and-tomato salad and finely chopped white cabbage.

The latter is austere – we are used to having a little salt, pepper, vinegar and perhaps oil with such cabbage. But there is vinegar at our table and we should’ve made happy with it.

As well, small bowls of capsicum relish are brought to our table – they add dash and color very nicely.

During busier times – dinner at the end of the week, for instance – dishes such as goulash, tripe soup or lamb on the spit may or may not be available.

Just depends; it’s that kind of place.

But Steve is adamant we really, really should return for his ribs.

Count on it!

 

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Beaut bento, better burger

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Searz Caffi, 39 Challis Street, Newport. Phone: 9399 2393

The Challis Street shops in Newport – off Mason Street – are the sort of strip we’ve been driving by for years just for a look every now and then to see if there’s anything cooking.

On Challis Street, there never has been.

And now there is.

Searz is a very fine local cafe.

It serves (see menu below) standard-range cafe breakfasts and mains such as a caesar salad, a burrito bowl and fish ‘n’ chips.

But running through the mains and the smaller (“tapas”) dishes are Japanese/Korean influences.

We find our meals of two visits, the service and timing, the whole experience to be absolutely top notch.

 

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The bento special no doubt changes periodically.

This version has fish three different ways – teriyaki salmon, battered cod with wasabi mayo and grilled gemfish with Korean chilli sauce.

They are all delicious and beautifully cooked.

There’s about half a dozen different kind of pickle, some of which I love, some of which I could do without.

The house-made zucchini pickles are very fine.

The bento mix is completed by good salad and rice.

This bento, given the quality of the seafood involved, would be right at home in a bona fide Japanese restaurant.

And the price, $18, is grand.

 

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Bennie’s bibimbap $16) is a doozy, too.

He loves the finely cooked beef and mushrooms, the salady bits, egg, enokis and more.

Unlike so many versions of this dish, this one has enough fluid action going on that it is a well-lubricated “sweet and spicy” treat right to the bottom of the bowl.

 

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But however fine his bibimbap, Bennie is openly envious of my “1010 burger” ($15) – and so he should be.

Despite the burger burn-out factor of the past year or so, this strikes us as being a superb.

It’s a 9/10 burger and chips combo that scrubs up much better than many of those to be had at more storied burger joints around Melbourne.

There’s more of those zucchini pickles in there.

And there’s “Searz aiolio”, tomato relish and the usual, standard salad accessories.

The meat patty is thick, juicy and screaming with beefy flavour.

Gosh, it’s fantastic.

The chips are hot, fresh and very plentiful.

Searz is a prime example of everything a neighbourhood cafe should be.

And the food, what we have enjoyed of it, rocks.

 

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Yarraville eats goss 11/2/16

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George from Andrew’s Choice is always smiling.

That’ll never change.

Even though he tells me that after quite a lot of to-ing and fro-ing with council officialdom, the prospects of the much-loved Saturday snag stall outside Andrew’s on Anderson Street getting a new life are … well, not good.

Not good at all.

 

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Around the corner on Ballarat Street, the Younger Sun bookshop has moved to 26 Murray Street, almost looking straight down Ballarat towards Francis.

 

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The former Younger Sun premises on Ballarat will, I’ve been told, be taken over by the Cornershop for expansion purposes of some kind.

 

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Jasmine Inn, on the corner of Ballarat and Anderson, has been closed since late October.

The sign in the window says “for renovations” … but the place does not look anything like being in reno mode, with an unloved look and mail unattended.

 

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The long-running but never wildly popular Nando’s branch on Anderson Street has closed.

Two village sources tell me that franchisee/management team was there one day and literally all gone the next.

One of my sources tells me the place has been leased with a view to opening a Vietnamese or Korean restaurant.

 

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If the former is the case, the new tenants will certainly want to be aware that a new pho/coffee joint will soon be opening at 3 Ballarat Street, right opposite the old, brick post office.

Mr, where are our dumplings?

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Mr Pan Fry, 268 Racecourse Road, Flemington. Phone: 0455 452 119

Consider The Sauce and pals – quite a number of them – have gathered for a sort-of informal Chinese New Year celebration.

The venue for our eating is a brand new Chinese place called Mr Pan Fry.

As previously noted, we love the intense diversity of Racecourse Road.

But we rarely venture down this end, so I have no recall of what sort of business was formerly in these premises.

Mr Pan Fry is done out crisp but basic furnishings and colours.

The front window space is dedicated to on-view dumpling production, though by the time I think to photograph some of that action, the work has ceased for the night.

There’s a heaping variety of those dumplings listed on the menu, which also extends to a variety of meat and vegetable main dishes and some rudimentary rice and noodle offerings.

We order with abandon, doubling up on some dishes to make sure there’s enough to keep all nine of our mouths happy.

 

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Shanghai fried noodles ($10.80) are a good, basic dish.

 

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The broth-laden “baowie steamed juicy pork buns” ($10.80) are very excellent.

 

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Pot stickers (pan-fried chicken and prawn dumplings, $12.80) are served like a crispy upside-down pie.

They, too, are very good.

 

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Stir-fried tofu with vegetables ($13.80) and …

 

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… fried tofu with pork mince and Sichaun sauce ($13.80) steer us away from dumplings with some aplomb.

The latter’s tofu is a silky smooth treat in a dish that is our most spicy of the night by quite a distance.

 

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Stir-fried salted pepper ribs ($18) are nice but not quite what we – well, what I – have been expecting.

The tangy batter is rather like that most of tonight’s group had across the road at Pacific Seafood BBQ House on a night of rampant crabiness. In that case, the batter coated chicken ribs.

With the pork ribs? Hmmm, interesting … chewy but not quite a bullseye.

In addition to all of the above, at Mr Pan Fry we also enjoy spring onion pancake and another variety of dumpling, the precise nature of which now escapes me as a result of re-ordering due to unavailability of one species in our initial choices.

And we had a delicious, unctuous dish labelled stewed pork belly with chef special sauce ($20.80), which for some reason escapes scrutiny by my camera but which is, perhaps, the hit of the night.

We find the food at Mr Pan Fry to be mostly very good, with the dumplings rating a notch higher.

The menu isn’t as long but the approach is somewhat similar to the adjacent I Love Dumplings.

I suspect, somehow, that Mr Pan Fry has a good chance of becoming a regular haunt as it’s a lovely, cosy place and the service we are provided is warm, smiling and obliging.

We’ve eaten well and having such a big group seems to have helped keep the price per head at most admirable $22.

 

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Flash, big Indian for Footscray

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By Erika Jonsson

There’s no doubt Barkly Street in Footscray has been experiencing something of a renaissance.

Littlefoot Bar and Restaurant and African favourites such as Dinknesh Lucy and Kokeb have been drawing increasing numbers of people beyond the traditional Hopkins strip.

Now the long-empty, very big premises at 250 Barkly St – which was a Sichuan hotpot joint in its last incarnation – is being fitted out as a classy new Indian place.

Sankranti already has half a dozen up-market branches in Singapore and another two in Chennai. This will be its first Australian venture and operators are hopeful of a March opening.

The menu will feature classic north Indian and Indo-Chinese food as well as seasonal specials.

It’s good news for this site right next door to Nando’s, which has been gathering dust for some years. Locals are licking their lips in anticipation.

Braybrook brilliance

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West of Kin, 17 Lacy Street, Braybrook. Phone: 9317 7553

Asian fusion?

Fusion Asian?

A mix of Asian flavours?

Or Asian flavours “fused” with something else?

Whatever the case, and no matter how you phrase it, this is something that is not necessarily an easy sell in Melbourne’s western suburbs …

Where there is such a glorious profusions of Asian food to be had.

And when the very word “fusion” comes with baggage that hints at vital compromises of tastes and dishes and ingredients.

Nevertheless, a fighting fit CTS team of three is very excited to be heading for West of Kin.

 

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As the restaurant has come together, and tackled tiresome gas issues along the way, we have seen the photo’s on the WoK Facebook page, read a blog post and a Zomato review by a CTS regular reader (Hi, Loren!).

It’s all looking good and the signs are hot.

Of course, the most miraculous thing about West of Kin is its very existence.

Here it is, shiny and cool and looking lovely.

And situated off Ballarat Road, on a street and in a neighbourhood mostly comprised of auto wreckers, panelbeaters, furniture factories and sundry light industry.

It really is amazing stuff!

West of Kin has three eating areas …

 

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An outdoor garden place that is sure to be very nice on summer days and warm nights.

 

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A bar area for a casual drinking and eating.

 

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And the main dining area.

This has a nice vibe going, with its very high ceiling, exposed bricks and comfortable, elevated booths.

We are shown to one of the booths and proceed to get to grips with the menu (see below).

Tonight, a scant handful of days into the restaurant’s life, we are the guests of proprietors Andy and Tram (see full disclosure below) so have no need to concern ourselves with credit-card pain.

But the food list is so admirably tight that choosing is easy and money not really a factor.

“Taste” courses number nine and are priced between $8 and $11, or sold in trios for $22.

We get three …

 

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Yunan-style lamb ribs, sesame seeds, sweet and sour soy lacquer are lovely, though fatty – as is to be expected.

Sichuan-style beef tartare, fried shallot and garlic, quail yolk has little by way of the feistiness we normally associate with that Chinese province though it is a subtle and delicate delight, served on a prawn cracker.

Prawn toast?

Even if it is served with yuzu mayo and Asian herbs?

Oh how we chortle!

Among the three of us there has been a uniformity of experience with this dish, no matter whether the most humble Chinese noodle shops and posh eateries have been involved.

You know – triangles of white bread, supposedly containing prawn meat and annointed with a coating of sesame seeds.

Seen one, seen them all – so, of course, we order the West of Kin version.

We are stunned and the first of our West of Kin instances of eye-rolling, moaning pleasure inter-mixed with the silence of reverential eating kicks in.

This prawn toast is a sensation, the white-bread base sitting beneath a thick slab of roughly chopped prawn meat topped with black and white sesame seeds and festooned with a heap of herbs.

The seasoning is not listed but the prawn mix, the whole dish, is entirely delicious.

 

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The WoK menu has only four main dishes and we order three of them – they’re all very good or superb.

Superb is the ma po tofu pork and black bean ($22).

Here the penny finally drops for us – fusion at WoK is all about the mix of Asian flavours, not some contrived mash-up of Asian and something other.

And overwhelmingly, the Wok flavours are robust and in no way compromised.

The ma po tofu pork is a hummingly super dish that has us giggling with the excellence of it – and it’s the sort of dish of which anyone’s lovely HK nanna would be rightly proud.

 

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Our other main dishes don’t quite reach the same giddy heights but they are both very fine.

Master stock shredded duck, egg noodle, XO sauce, spring onion, coriander, chilli, fried quails eggs ($28) has heaps of delectably sweet and salty duck meat.

Oddly enough, perhaps the key ingredient here is the unlisted cucumber.

Whereas cucumber discs often accompany many dishes we eat, such as Hainan chicken rice, either eaten or ignored and functioning somewhat like a garnish, here the cuke batons are integral to whole texture and experience of the dish.

Clever and interesting!

 

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None of the three of us are diehard baramundi fans but we enjoy this meaty specimen ($MP), which – according to the menu – has been grilled in its banana leaf with house-made XO and is served with rice.

It has that earthy baramundi taste but there is no doubting the wonders of the luxurious, perfectly cooked and generous quantity of white flesh. And the bones are no hassle at all.

 

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Dessert time!

There’s three available ($12) so we order one of each!

Once more, the assuredness of those in the kitchen shines forth.

Our dessert trio is more European than Asian, but there are Asian flavours utilised.

What’s more, they are used with telling subtlety and profound skill.

The WoK sundae has a familiar flavour that has scratching our heads.

We find out that it’s dried mandarin!

The chocolate de lice, golden leaf, hazelnut crumble is a solid slab of incredibly intensely flavoured and bitter African chocolate.

The stand-alone panna cotta is firmer than most, though still gorgeously wobbly, and is spiced with cardamom.

All three are wonderful in their own ways.

After our meal, I talk with Andy and Tram and am asked for some honest feedback.

We have just one criticism … the main course that has gone untried by us is the whole roasted lamb leg with kimchi butter and chef’s seasonal sides ($56).

We inquired of our server if this would be so substantial that it would spoil and overwhelm our meal – the answer was in the affirmative.

When we see this dish arriving at the booth next to our own, we realise we have been smart as it looks VERY big.

But it also looks amazing so we feel we’ve missed out on a real treat.

Perhaps West of Kin could manage smaller serves of this dish somehow?

Surveying our neighbours’ leg – so to speak – I’m guessing ordering it would require a table of at least four.

But given the pleasure our night here has provided, this seems like a minor quibble.

For a mid-week dinner just days after the restaurant has officially opened, there have been – at the night’s peak – eight or nine tables/booths occupied.

Another good sign?

As we leave, tummies full of very good food, we look back in wonder at this most unlikely of eating joints in an equally unlikely but just-right location.

We are smiling as we do so.

We reckon it’s going to be hit.

It’s actually not that often that I get to write with such unbounded, off-the-leash enthusiasm.

It’s been a pleasure.

Nor is it always the case that complementary food is the cause of the most pleasurable experiences and memories.

But that has certainly been the case at West of Kin.

Check out the Urban Ma’s review here.

(Consider The Sauce dined at West of Kin as guests of the management and we did not pay for our meal. We chose from regular menu and had no restrictions placed upon us in doing so. West of Kin management neither sought nor was granted any input, oversight or pre-publication access to this story.)

 

 

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Among those checking out West of Kin on the same night as CTS were the Urban Ma and her hubby, Wes.

Ethiopian salmon

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Betty’s Ethiopian Restaurant & Cafe, 819 Ballarat Road, Deer Park. Phone: 9363 0857

Consider The Sauce is not used to seeing fish on the menu’s of Ethiopian eateries.

And certainly, spying salmon kitfo ($17) on the menu at betty’s in Deer Park is a first.

It’s a beguiling dish.

The flavour of the chopped salmon is subtle but very present.

The fish dances atop of bed of near-creamed spinach and a base of ricotta and yogurt.

And there’s quite a high level heat provided by, according to the menu (see below), green chilli.

It’s beaut and, naturally, one of the more unusual dishes on the Betty menu.

 

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On a visit earlier than my mid-week fishy lunch, Bennie and I tried the beyaynetu vegetarian combo ($15 per person).

It’s very good.

It has lentils three ways, the familiar mix of spud and beetroot, and cabbage/carrotconcoctions that display a bit more crunch and texture than is often the cooked-down case in the other Ethiopian places.

The beyaynetu is accompanied by a typically high-quality simple salad full of zing and crunch.

Betty’s is unusual in that it one of the very few Melbourne Ethiopian restaurants that makes its own injera – in this case with a mix of barley flour and Australian-grown teff.

 

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Before opening their new cafe/eatery, Betty Diemsse and her husband, Beruk, ran a grocery store at the same premises alongside a small business importing Ethiopian spices and the like.

The Derrimut couple tell me that since opening recently they’ve welcomed into their restaurant all sorts of locals – Sudanese, Somalian, Eritrean; Aussies of many kinds, in truth.

Betty’s joins good Turkish and Vietnamese places, and the popular Chef Lagenda, on the the Deer Park commercial/eats strip.

With the looming arrival of Latin Food & Wines, which is moving from its long-time base at Berkshire Road in Sunshine, it could be said things are looking up food-wise in Deer Park.

Latin Food & Wines will be taking over the big premises that formerly housed Blue Cow Deli.

Their sensational sandwiches and empanadas will be joined by a range of more substantial South American dishes, an expanded line of groceries and a bottle shop.

Excitement!

 

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Smokin’ in Footscray

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Up In Smoke, 28 Hopkins Street, Footscray. Phone: 9689 8188

Standing outside Up In Smoke on a Thursday night, I am breaking two firm ‘n’ fast CTS rules.

First one is, never queue.

Happily, the only people I know who spot me being such an arch hypocrite (apart from the pals I am with) are a famous blogger (see bottom photo) and a Star Weekly colleague – so not too much damage done.

Second rule is, never hit a restaurant – especially one about which there is a buzz – on opening night.

And about Up In Smoke there is most certainly a buzz.

A HUGE buzz.

 

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My fellow blogger and pal Nat Stockley and I had been discussing this phenomena earlier in the week – how we can enthuse about our latest Indian or Middle Eastern hidey holes and earn good responses from our readers; but post in Melbourne anything to do with barbecue and/or burgers, and all of a sudden the readership broadens way, way beyond just the regulars.

Anyway, my friends and I do pay a price for our opening night decision.

“This place took forever to open – now it’s taking them forever to feed us!” quips one of my companions.

It’s true – our food is slow in coming. But that IS what you get on opening night so no blame on the eatery from me.

And after a cautious start in terms of the “small dishes” we share, and especially once we get on to some real meaty action, we have a ball.

 

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Grilled corn ($5) is, well, corn – there’s little or no sign of green habanero mayo and not much that is bacon about the “bacon salt”.

 

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Jalapeno, bacon and cheese stuffed potato skins ($6) are very good and keenly priced.

 

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Smoked hot wings with ranch dressing ($10) are OK but seem to fall into the realm of average bar food. And they’re a bit cold and clammy.

 

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The German’s potato salad ($6) is beaut and another dish that is well priced. There’s apple, celery and pickle in there.

 

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As has been noted here previously, I’m not a big fan of fries heavily seasoned with suspect stuff.

Just salt, thanks …

But the Up In Smoke fries ($7) work real fine, their “BBQ rub” seasoning coming across as something tasty and worthwhile rather than as mean and nasty.

 

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Mac & cheese ($6) is lovely and much moister than it appears in the above photograph.

Now on to the meat!

 

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Ostensibly our table of four ordered as follows …

“The Big Tray” (top photo, $42) of pulled pork, jalapeno-cheese sausage and brisket to be shared by two of us.

The beef rib platter (above, $18) for myself.

 

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And the pork rib platter ($28) for our fourth.

But the truth is we all share everything one way or another.

The pork ribs are of the chewy variety; the single, massive beef rib is melt in your mouth tender.

The pulled pork is smokey and better than most; the brisket is fine.

The sausage is a fatty work of art.

I love it all – including the sauces, pickles and milk buns.

 

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Best of all are the prices.

We’ve dropped some hefty amounts of money on barbecue in the past year or so and generally accept that the prices we must pay for such food are higher than those at our regular, westside cheap eats.

At Up In Smoke, by contrast, you can get a simple meat platter of your choice AND a fine side and end up paying just a little over $20.

Alternatively, you could go with one three $10 sandwiches (brisket burnt ends, pulled pork, pulled chicken), add a side and get a fine meal for $15.

Excellent!

A barbecue place where eating barbecue doesn’t have to be a big deal.

Up In Smoke does, however, bear comparison – in terms of food, prices, vibe – with Fancy Hank’s.

Though the Footscray establishment has more variety, including tacos.

Up In Smoke is a surefire hit.

It’s casual, the prices are great for such food and – frankly – I am very eager to return to explore the menu further.

It’s local, the parking is a breeze (if you know where to go!) and it can be a spur of the moment thing for us.

 

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Super Sri Lankan to help WWW

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THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT.

West Welcome Wagon is an all-volunteer group that help asylum-seeker households in the western suburbs.

The WWW crew devotes incredible amounts time, effort and passion to providing everything from toys, toiletries and TVs to computers, furniture and much more.

CTS is a bit in awe of the work they do.

West Welcome Wagon has grown a lot in the past few years.

But one thing that hasn’t changed is the need for cash – not all the demands WWW meets can be met by donations.

So CTS is proud and happy to once more host an event to do just that.

This time around, it’s at our favourite Sri Lankan restaurant, Curry Leaves in Sunshine.

This time, too, I was keen to make it a very affordable event – and thanks to the generosity of Curry Leaves’ Dillon and Bec, it will be.

The price of this fundraiser will be $30, with $20 from every ticket going straight to WWW.

So let’s get 50 punters in that place and raise WWW some much-need cash. Auction items to be rustled up by CTS and WWW will boost the total further.

Here are the details:

West Welcome Wagon Fundraiser,
Curry Leaves, 463 Ballarat Road, Sunshine. Phone: 8528 3876.

Date: Tuesday, March 15, from 7pm.

Price: $30 per person.

Menu:
Rice – jasmine and fried.
Rotis.
String hoppers.
Curries – lamb, beef, chicken.
Dal.
Vegetables – eggplant moju, potato curry, green beans.
Raita and chutney.
Papadams.
Fresh fruit.

We look forward to enjoying your company and some excellent Sri Lankan tucker!

Check out the West Welcome Wagon Facebook page here.

Very short Road trip

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roti24

 

Roti Road, Highpoint. Phone: 9317 4293

When Consider The Sauce and friends hit Roti Road in Footscray – see story here – we enjoyed a good feed.

However, subsequent visits failed to back up that good impression.

One such visit involved myself and Bennie and also involved, IIRC, nasi lemak and Hainan chicken rice – both dishes being of the very average variety.

Another visit involved myself alone and was prompted by the restaurant’s claim on FB that it had listened to its customers and lifted its laksa game. I found that not to be the case, or not according to my laksa tastes anyway.

Since then, we have – as you’d expect – avoided the place, save for a very occasional visit for the reliable, cheap roti canai.

And that’s why Roti Road is pretty much the last of the eateries at the new Highpoint dining area to be checked out by us.

Bowling up solo just before Christmas, I wasn’t exactly feeling trepidatious but I certainly had no high hopes.

 

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So I am surprised and delighted to find that my lunch – Hainanese chicken rice ($12.90) – is in every way wonderful.

Soup – hot and not too salty.

Condiments – chilli sauce and ginger mash just right.

Chicken – a big serve of beautifully tender and expertly boned meat luxuriating in cooking juices mixed with soy sauce.

Rice – stock-cooked and fine for the job at hand.

Really – one of the best versions of this famous dish I’ve enjoyed in recent years.

A more recent visit with two lads in tow fails to reach such heights but makes for a good lunch nevertheless.

 

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Six chicken satay sticks are the real deal, coolly priced at $9.90 and served with a sticky and flavoursome peanutty sauce on the side..

I am irked that I must share them with two teens.

 

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Mee goreng ($11.90) is a fine version of another staple dish – we like it a lot.

 

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Vegetable curry with rice ($11.90) tries hard but doesn’t really get where it should be going.

We like that there’s myriad green vegetables such as beans and broccoli involved.

Bbut the eggplant is cooked down to mush and the whole impresses as steamed vegetables with curry gravy added rather than as a from-scratch curry.

Still, it’s not a bad way to ensure vegetables are had in a setting where it’s easy to give them miss.

Roll up for jaffles? I’ll be in that!

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Little Garden Cafe, 407 Mount Alexander Road, Ascot Vale. Phone: 0410 922 242

Down behind a Mount Alexander Road florist is a cool, green space just right for a chilled-out lunch on a sunny Saturday.

It’s retro central – in the form of armchairs, sofas and more.

And retro, too, in the form of the kitchen and serving area, for which purposes a vintage caravan has been pressed into service.

 

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Given the tight space situation, it’s no surprise the food line-up is equally tight and also light (see menu below).

That’s fine by us – on the way here we mused over possibilities such as Somalian, Chinese BBQ meats and dumplings but the truth is we’re just not THAT hungry.

 

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There’s goldfish in the house; we see two.

We’re told six.

 

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Our jaffles arrive looking pretty as a picture.

 

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Bennie adores his Doori Time! ($8.50) with its chicken and cheese swimmingly soaked in a delicious, piquant and dark sauce. It’s unclear if the shredded chook has spent any time in a tandoori oven but it matters not.

This jaffle comes with a pot of raita – nice touch, that.

 

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My Brekkie Time ($8.50) is good, too, though doesn’t have quite the same sort of flavour hit.

The ham is indeed cut thickly and it works fine with the egg and sauce.

 

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Our matching $3.80 cafe lattes are spot on.

It’s worth signing up to the Little garden Cafe Facebook page, wherein specials such as a Beefy Slaw sanger of “succulent bbq pulled beef, creamy housemade slaw, mozzarella cheese, toasted on organic sourdough” are regularly listed.

 

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App zap brings fish and chips

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Consider The Sauce is skeptical about apps.

Sure, since belatedly joining the smart-phone world, I make daily use of a variety – gmail, wordpress, ColorNote, the ABC, my credit union.

But when it comes to our zeal for exploring the world and new things in it, apps – it mostly seems – are all about limiting choices and discoveries.

After all, apps are a closed world – you are limited to what the app creators/owners have included.

And then, of course, there’s the familiar joke – an app is someone wanting to sell you something.

However, we have been won over by Menulog.

Really, this app and the attendant service are beaut.

And we offer that endorsement freely and with no support or inducements from the company.

(A few years back, Menulog did try repeatedly to get me involved in doing promo work for them. The approaches were painfully inept:

“I am a major fan of your writing and thought you would appreciate if I send you a few ideas that might help you grow your audience:

1. Partner with other bloggers (I can give you some contacts if you want).

  1. Run a competition (do you need free prizes? Just let me know).
  1. Use infographics in your posts …
  1. Give back to the community: review your local restaurant and help them to promote their name (I can organize a free meal from them for you).
  1. Have you thought about having a guest post on your blog? Menulog can send some really fun editorial content and stats e.g. Top 5 takeaway meals in your city or even Top takeaway orders to cure a hangover.”)

So we have come to appreciate Menulog all on our own.

We’ve found the service and its cost and processes pretty much faultless.

OK, once – a few weeks ago – the delivery guy failed to include a can of soft drink.

But that’s it.

Getting food delivered is not something of which we’re REALLY big fans of – we much prefer getting out and about; meeting the people who make the food we love makes it taste so much better.

But sometimes it is just the ticket.

Inner-west favourites we’ve used Menulog on so far are Kitchen Samrat, Mishra’s Kitchen, Kenny’s Yum Cha House, Rizq Bangladeshi Cuisine, Motorino and Krishna Pait Pooja.

For this lazy Friday night, we’re taking a Menulog punt with one of our favourite westie fish and chip places – Dough! in Newport.

We’re usually rather fastidious about always wanting to eat F&C we’re they’re made – so we’re a little nervy about what sort of nick our meal will be in by the time it arrives.

 

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Our fears turn out to be completely unfounded – our food has, it appears, gone straight from the deep-fyers into a car and thence driven straight from Newport to Yarraville.

Everything is hot and fresh.

Two two big, handsome slabs of battered fish are wonderful.

Two serves of BBQ corn at $1.20 each turns our to be three slivers – they’re fine and juicy but it’s not clear how BBQ-ing has been going on with them.

The chips?

Those legendary rough-cut, warts-and-all chips?

“Wow – these chips are so great!” quips Bennie.

These are terrific fish and chips – and our meal has turned out to be much the same price (and better) as if we’d walked around the corner to Anderson Street.

With a $5 delivery fee and a 10 per cent discount for a first-time order, the total is $25.61.

Forgetting about the corn and getting a small serve of chips (which would’ve been ample) would get that price down to a very splendid $21.15.

Ordering a home-delivered meal from Dough! has also seen us not left to deal with the plastic containers that go with all other delivered food, save for pizza.

Another potential downfall?

I wonder if the delivery drivers, in general, are caught up in the same onerous work/pay/conditions situation as convenience store workers and Myer cleaners.

I’m very interested in some reader feedback on this.

Do you use Menulog?

Or another service?

If so, what have been your westside winners?

What – if any – have been the disasters?

Gelati fantasia in Kensington

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gel9

 

1565, 3 Gower Street, Kensington. Phone: 9376 1965

Tootling to Kensington to do a story on Kensington’s new gelati joint for The Age – see story here – I am envisaging little more than the profound pleasures of trying some excellent Italian ice-cold creaminess, meeting the people involved, writing about both and then maybe creating a subsequent post for CTS.

An enjoyable, satisfying day’s work, in other words, for a western suburbs food blogger.

I get all that in spades – and more.

 

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For what I discover is that the crew behind 1565 – brothers Adriano, Alfred and Alessio Acquaro and their mum, Joy – have strong family ties to Pizza d’Asporto and Kiosk by d’Asporto in Williamstown and Impasto Forno Antico in Avondale Heights.

Indeed, the canoli and the like that abet the 1565 gelati and coffee here are supplied by the latter establishment.

How wonderful to discover yet more of the connections and depth of food culture traditions that weave and wander across the west in all sorts of ways!

 

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1565, just off the commercial strip of Macaulay Road, is done in simple, elegant style.

It is named after year gelati was apparently “invented” in Florence.

If, on that basis, you’d expect an approach to gelati that is strong on tradition, you’d be spot on.

 

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But while staying within those parameters, the 1565 crew are doing marvellous things in terms of flavour diversity.

Sure, there’s vanilla, pistachio and coffee.

But there’s also booze in the form of rum and raisin, Prosecco and the sweet liqueur of No.43.

Then there’s poached fig, watermelon and mint, panettone.

 

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I enjoy a wonderful scoop apiece of ricotta and miele (honey) and Nutella with rum baba.

Like orange and fennel, that latter of my two is imbued with textures beyond creamy.

Bennie is equally delighted with his double-banger cone of poached fig and coffee.

1565 is open from noon until late seven days a week.

 

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For all of our 15 years in the west, five of them as food bloggers, we have frequently observed that the Macaulay Road strip looks like it should be a food and drink star.

But it’s never been that.

Under-achiever is a phrase that comes to mind.

Perhaps the arrival of 1565,  joining the cool Korean of Frying Colours up the road and with a new Italian place soon to be unveiled, heralds an upturn in Macaulay Road’s eats situation.

 

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Bao boogie @ Littlefoot

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The Bao Bros Pop-up @ Littlefoot, 223 Barkly Street, Footscray. Phone: 9396 1282

The Bao Bros are coming to Footscray.

They’ve secured a very interesting location.

But its unveiling is several months away.

In the meantime, they’ll be testing their recipes, processes and skills at that sublime monument to good times known as Littlefoot.

For details of how that pop-up-style project will unfold in terms of how and when, check the Facebook pages of either the Bao Bros or Littlefoot.

 

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Littlefoot’s Liana and Stu with the Bao Bros crew – Mickey, Kiet and Long.

 

If you look up “bao” at, say, Wikipedia, you’ll find the main reference is to the likes of pork buns familiar from yum cha.

The Bao Bros offerings, though, are by way of a Taiwanese variation in which the buns are turned into fat sandwich casings.

The idea, I’m told, is that the buns be so ethereal and lightweight that they virtually disappear and let superior ingredients shine.

On that account, Bennie and I reckon the Bao Bros score really well.

We loved their handiwork and were grinning right from the first mouthful when he and I joined a group of folks acting as guinea pigs for the Bao Bros bun line-up.

We reckon these make for a delicious fast-food experience.

The pricing will be in a very good $5 to $8 range, and maybe two for $10.

We tried all five.

Or, in my case, almost all five.

I didn’t make it as far as the tofu number (top photograph) but Bennie actually liked it the best, digging its crisp tofu, crunchy veg and dollops of pesto.

As for the rest …

 

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Pulled pork was, for me, top dog (or top pig) – salty, wet and with a bit of a spice kick.

 

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The beef was almost as good.

 

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The fish items were, too, very good, with crisp-battered fish, tartare sauce and dill.

 

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The fried chicken bao looked a treat but were the only ones that fell down on the job a little for us. The chook was beautifully cooked but rather flavourless, while the slaw could’ve been more finely chopped and had more dressing.

Those minor quibbles aside, we loved our bao!

See earlier Littlefoot story here.

 

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CTS reader Zelda (on the right) and her pals were on bao test duty, too, and were as impressed as we were.

Classy Italian in Essendon

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400 Gradi, 110 Keilor Road, Essendon. Phone: 9351 6690

Keilor Road has always appeared to us to hold much food promise – promise that largely goes unfulfilled.

The Mount Alexander Road end, especially, seems to be perennially drab.

So we’re happy and excited to accept an invite to dine at the swish, new 400 Gradi, an invite that came to us through a media colleague for whom it was not a good fit (see full disclosure below).

It’s entirely possible we may have gotten around to trying the Gradi Brunswick sibling.

The one at Crown?

Very probably not.

But a sexy new place in Essendon?

Oh, yes!

 

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The Essendon Gradi, on the ground floor of a newish apartment building, has high ceilings and two main dining spaces as well as stools at the bar.

Much is black and/or shiny.

 

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We find the service to be spot on, while our table in the main dining area affords us the wait-time pleasure of watching the open kitchen and its inhabitants in overdrive.

We’re in two days before Christmas and the place is VERY busy.

 

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Having watched the cured meats being sliced off in a neverending stream, that’s how we start – with 18-month prosciutto crudo di Parma Mornello ($15) with cornichons and caperberries.

It’s a delight to which some very good fresh bread is presented on the side.

We’re not paying so there are no financial factors stopping us from going for secondi such as slow-cooked capretto with lemon, paprika, white wine, tomato and olive oil ($30); or the Gradi porchetta with apple balsamic, cipollini and white cabbage ($35).

But it’s a hot day, we’re not much in the mood for meat – and we have our eyes on dessert.

So pasta it is for us.

 

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In the past year or so, Bennie has developed an interest in gnocchi.

I tell him the gnocchi di patate with 20-year-old balsamic, black garlic and sage butter ($24) he is about to eat here will likely be the best he has tasted.

And so it is, the gnocchi being delectably fluffy pillows caressed by simple, high-quality accessories.

 

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My seafood linguini with fish (salmon and white fish I’m told is snapper), prawns, clams, scallops, garlic, chilli, napoli sauce and herbs ($34) at first blush appears to be a standard offering.

But it’s a much superior outing, thanks not only to the quantity of seafood but also to its startling freshness.

Aside from needing – for my purposes – a bit more zing in the chilli department, its perfect.

 

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And so to dessert …

We have a cone apiece of the house specialty gelati – margherita.

Its sweet, sophisticated and very Italian.

But its no match for the tiramisu (top photograph).

This is a stupendous masterpiece.

All the expected flavours and textures are in place but there simply seems to be more heft and substance and all-round yumminess than has been the case with most of the other, many versions we’ve tried.

The only downside to what has been a very enjoyable experience?

During a busy, silly-season, pre-Christmas lunch session, the noise levels have been very high.

I’m told some soundproofing is on the way.

Next time, we’ll take those pizzas for a spin.

400 Gradi is open for dinner seven days a week and lunch Thursdays to Sundays.

(Consider The Sauce dined at 400 Gradi as guests of the management and we did not pay for our meal. We chose from regular menu and had no restrictions placed upon us in doing so. 400 Gradi management neither sought nor was granted any input, oversight or pre-publication access to his story.)

 

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