Tag Archives: Melbourne

Littlefoot tastes great

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Littlefoot, 223 Barkly Street, Footscray. Phone: 9396 1282

Consider The Sauce’s gaze was largely elsewhere as Littlefoot was coming together

So it was long after it opened that a happy bunch of CTS regulars hit it after going Indo-Chinese up the road apiece.

We were there only briefly, for post-dinner drinkies and dessert.

But one of those desserts – a foundation menu listing – was so brilliant we vowed to return to take the whole menu for a spin.

In the meantime, yours truly was at Littlefoot for the Letters To The West event that was part of the Emerging Writers Festival.

And a fine night it was, too, with me playing catch-up in terms of just what a very cool additional piece is Littlefoot in the Footscray/inner west scene/jigsaw puzzle.

So it is that the following week the exact same crew of six plus two more great CTS pals front up for a mid-week dinner.

 

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It’s been a chillingly cold day so Littlefoot is almost empty when we arrive.

Thankfully, a more cheery bar vibe evolves as our meal progresses.

The round front table is ours for the night and proves precisely right for the eight of us.

I’d been a little concerned about effective photography but the light proves OK.

Littlefoot really is a fine place to spend time with friends and conversation – with or without food.

I’d thought that with a table of eight we’d pretty much try everything on offer food-wise.

As one of our party enthusiastically quipped when Littlefoot plans were afoot: “Eat everything!!!”

But as it turns out, our collective eyes are drawn to specific menu items at the expense of others, though we try quite a bit.

It’s all good, better than good or really good.

 

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Yep – pork rind chips ($3.50) look just like the trash food that comes from convenience store plastic bags; but they taste way better.

Perhaps it’s for the best that our single bowl provides each of just a nibble or two before we move on to things more robust and (ostensibly) healthy!

 

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Fried chicken spare ribs ($10) with crunchy crumbs and wasabi mayo are terrific.

The coating really is crunchy, but also grease-free.

The ribs are suitably meaty and flavoursome and the wasabi mayo a true delight as a foil.

 

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The chips with beer cheese ($12.50) are fine but it seems I’m the only one unwowed by the beer cheese dip.

I don’t find it to be a bad taste – it simply doesn’t turn me on.

(Going by this wikipedia entry, that I don’t find beer cheese a winner seems surprising – no matter; in this matter, at Littlefoot, I am a minority of one amid a table of eight …)

 

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Several serves of both versions of banh “mini” ($5.50) –  teriyaki tofu and BBQ braised beef – are ordered.

They’re as fresh and tasty as could be desired.

One devil’s advocate wag points out that they are both smaller and more expensive than the regular banh mi to be had just a block away at Nhu Lan and other outlets.

To which my immediate thought is: “Meh … this is a bar …”

 

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Slow-cooked kangaroo on Ethiopian bean ful, topped with hemp seed dukkah ($18) is another outright winner and good value for money given the generous size of the portions.

The photograph here shows the big chunks of roo meat broken up – very tender and toothsome!

The bean mix is a cool blend that reminds me of chilli con carne.

That’s fine by me – Littlefoot’s aim is to embrace and celebrate the surrounding food cultures, not replicate them; best to leave notions of authenticity at the door.

Rolls of injera and excellent greenery complete a fine dish.

I suspect that when it comes to a “main course” concept at Littlefoot, this roo dish is it – there is only one item that costs more, the $25 tasting board.

 

 

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We are presented a duck pizza by the management, an on-the-house gesture that is appreciated.

By this time we’re all getting fullish so it’s just right that there’s a pizza slice each to appreciate.

It’s good, the meaty duck complemented by nice crunchy things.

 

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Dessert time!

And once more, we inhale enjoy the injera and hazelnut chocolate pinwheels with creamy coconut dipping sauce ($9.50) had on our earlier visit.

What a superb and utterly delicious piece of imagination is this, perfectly encapsulating the Littlefoot food philosophy.

The sourness of the injera does a sexy tango with the sweetness of the hazelnut/chocolate, this time even more ooozy and plentiful, all of it lubricated by the coconut sauce.

Totally Yum.

Sign up to the Littlefoot Facebook page, which is regularly updated with forthcoming events, musical and otherwise.

 

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Meal of the week No.13: A1 Essendon

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Bit by bit, more Lebaneese food and related Middle Eastern goodies have become available in Melbourne’s inner west.

But that doesn’t mean it’s no longer worth a short drive to Essendon for a visit to A1 Bakery (18 Napier Street).

It most certainly is.

I’m sure the pies and pizzas remain the mainstay of this place, but as ever I am irresistably drawn to the glass display cabinet of “mum made it” brilliance.

I have a fabulous smallish plate custom made.

Excellent kibbeh and stuffed vine leaf.

Warmed, incredibly fresh za’atar.

A big dollop of baba ganoush packed with smoky flavour.

And – best of all – zingy, damp, utterly perfect tabouli.

It’s an incredible lunch, the charge for which is $10.

 

 

Super Sri Lankan in Sunshine

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Curry Leaves, 463 Ballarat Road, Sunshine. Phone: 8528 3876

Given the number of budget-priced eateries Consider The Sauce tries, it’s hardly surprising that when it comes to rotis we sometimes get less than what we hope for.

Specifically, it’s sometimes plain that the rotis we get are store-bought.

When they’re otherwise – when they’re made fresh and in-house – our delight is all the more.

That’s what we get at Curry Leaves, a newish Sri Lankan restaurant in Sunshine.

The outstanding rotis are just one of several high points of a tremendous meal.

 

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Curry Leaves is a nicely appointed eatery right on Ballarat Road and right next door to a discount grocery outfit.

It’s a pleasant space to be in on a cold night, waiting as the traffic whizzes by.

It’s not often we eat in an establishment that uses real linen serviettes – especially not at the prices we’re about to pay.

We’re told that later in the week and at the weekend, when there is a buffet available, the place is “packed”.

Early in the week, we’re the only eat-in customers but there’s steady takeaway business coming and going.

There’s much to ponder in the longish menu – what we share between Bennie and I is just a beginning, we reckon, of our relationship with Curry Leaves.

 

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Our fabulous rotis come as part of the special roti meal ($11.90) that includes two “godamba roti”, one “egg godamba roti”, dal and beef curry.

The rotis really are fabulous – big, not too oily, fluffy and chewy, and the perfect foil for the wet dishes.

The dal is simple and delicious – mildly spiced, sweetish.

The curry is spicier by quite a bit but the meat itself is very good and tender.

 

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Our other board serving is the string hopper meal deal ($12.90) of string hoppers, beef curry, the same dal and pol (coconut sambol).

The string hoppers are super fresh and dainty, and splendid for soaking up the gravy juices.

As instructed, we use our right hands to mix and mop the curry and dal and coconut sambol, doing the best we can based on our greater experience with injera.

We get messy but have an all-round, lip-smacking good time.

As we’d ordered chicken but got beef by mistake, a serve of chicken curry is also brought.

The string hopper meal deal, BTW, is topped price-wise on the menu only by the banana leaf-wrapped lamprais ($14.90), which we only bypass on account of the listed 30-minute wait.

Next time!

We’ve had string hoppers before but not often – all the rest is familiar from hundreds of meals.

It’s simply that these – the string hoppers, the rotis, the curries and dal – are way better than most similar food we eat.

The meats and other ingredients are better quality, the dishes fresher and the simple seasoning more vibrant.

Dosas go (further) west

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Dosa Hut, Wyndham Village Shopping Centre, 380 Sayers Road, Tarneit. Phone: 8742 4263

Dosa Hut in West Footscray has become an institution.

So much so that even the recent appearance of an upstart imitator right across the road has caused not a blip in Dosa Hut’s business.

But it should always be gratefully remembered that it was Dosa Hut that brought dosas – and related foods such as idlis and vadas – to Melbourne’s west.

Those introductions have wrought a revolution.

These days, it’s very rare to find an Indian restaurant on West Footscray’s Barkly Street Indian precinct – or Werribee’s equally busy Watton Street – that doesn’t sell dosas and the like.

As well, most who do so are these days also selling biryanis, Indo-Chinese dishes and even breakfast/snack dishes such as bhel puri and cholle bhature.

And they are often doing so without having on their menus once-were-staples such as beef vindaloo or butter chicken.

All this has been great for us punters – we’ve got more variety of Indian food in the west at lower prices than is normally the case in more formal a la carte joints.

It can even be argued that much of this new wave of Indian food is healthier!

 

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But as we’ve been chowing down on our inner-west dosas, the western suburbs themselves have been expanding at a frenetic pace.

And in the new housing wilds of Tarneit and Truganina, there has been little or no Indian food to be had – until now.

I suspect the opening of a Dosa Hut branch at Wyndham Village Shopping Centre is a masterstroke – one that is soon to followed by another branch at Roxburgh Park.

The new Tarneit establishment has more obvious similarities to a fast-food place than its West Footscray sibling – the young and efficient staff are even decked out in uniform black, including caps, and the ordering process is conducted via tablets.

But as far as we can tell, the long menu is the same.

There’s enough that’s recognisable about our surroundings that we relax but we nevertheless stick to a couple of old stagers to share – just to make sure the food here is of the same high standard as closer to home.

As we fully expect it to be …

 

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Masala dosa ($9.50) – with the crisp, fermented rice and black lentil crepe stuffed with spuds – is the default position when it comes to dosas; not as bare or unadorned as a plain dosa, not as rich as those stuffed with lamb, chicken or cheese.

This is a fine version with all the accoutrements lined up, including a very fine sambar (a soupish, curry mix of dal and vegetables), though the potato masala is bit more dry and crumbly than we are familiar with.

 

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Chicken biryani ($11.95) looks a little on the plain, unseasoned side as it is brought to our table.

 

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But spilling the rice, profusely studded with cloves and cardamom pods, on to our metal tray reveals a much wetter and more highly flavoured mixture.

Buried among it are a chook drumstick and a meaty thigh, both good of flavour.

The peanutty gravy and runny raita are the usual, expected and enjoyable accessories.

Just one, final word of warning – not all the food at the likes of a Dosa Hut is highly spiced and hot.

But most of it is – if you’re not used to very hot food, or who have children who are likewise, ask the staff for safe tips.

Hair? Yes. BBQ? No.

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Meet Lina.

She’ll do you a do or a haircut with a smile and skill.

Lina’s Hair Salon is at 1/7 Kinnear Street, Footscray.

 

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What Lina cannot do is provide with you with a lunch or a dinner – or even a snack – of barbecue.

Which is quite at odds with a recent listing on Urbanspoon.

Whatever the origins of this mystery, Lina is being a good sport about.

She is, however, fielding phone calls from barbecue fans wishing to book tables.

But at least I know where to go to get my next haircut!

 

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More than dumplings in Moonee Ponds

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Dumpling House, 2 Everage Street, Moonee Ponds. Phone: 9372 9188

Consider The Sauce recorded the new existence of Dumpling House in a Moonee Ponds eats goss post a month back, noting along the way how much I enjoyed the chicken and mushroom wontons in “peanut, chilli and spice sauce”.

Today I’m back for lunch and I have company.

Between us we try enough of the menu to ascertain that Dumpling House is about more than dumplings and is, indeed, a very handy arrival in the Puckle Street neighbourhood – basic of decor, very cheap and with surprises waiting to be unearthed.

And word, it seems, is getting out – there’s one large lunch group, another table of four and a few takeaway orders going out the door.

 

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Pan-fried chicken and prawn dumplings ($9.50 for 12) are a big bite size and quite chewy.

The innards (top picture) are a deft mix of chicken and prawn – very tasty!

 

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We enjoy, too, the Shanghai fried noodles ($9.50).

There’s nothing spectacular about this dish – it’s simply a good, solid rendition of a standard noodle dish with greenery, carrot and beef.

 

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We are so very happy we have ordered the spicy eggplant ($16.50).

Not that it’s spicy, mind you.

It’s not.

And forget the capsicum, which is little more than a garnish.

The dish is also monumentally oily – but I doubt it could be made any other way.

What it does have is gorgeously luscious eggplant pieces with flavour that has us moaning and sighing with delight.

The sort of eggplant flavour, in fact, of which I dream.

All this is set off by the wonderfully by bright green, al-dente broad beans – such a nice touch!

 

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Meal of the week No.12: Brother Nancy

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Brother Nancy escaped my radar right up to and past Erika’s marshmallow story.

Lately, though, it has become for me a very good road coffee alternative to my usual haunts – I love it that parking is such a breeze.

Today is just right for a Brother Nancy lunch.

I’ve been driving around somewhat aimlessly – to Sunshine and back, for gosh sake – without fixing on an eats decision.

You know what?

I realise that while driving I had been far from idle – I’ve actually been working on a blog post.

Really.

I suspect I’m far, far from alone in being a writer who, by the time I front the keyboard, has the whole story virtually complete “in my head”.

Including punctuation.

Anyway, now it’s time for lunch.

I love the Brother Nancy space and vibe.

And I love the menu – with its Francophile outlook, it has really strong and laudable points of difference with all other inner-west cafes.

My crisp polenta chick pea and warm vegetable salad ($13) is a pearler that eats every bit as good as it looks.

The chick peas are superb in their tomatoey sauce.

The plump polenta patty is crisp only on the exterior – inside it’s delicate, steaming and wonderfully homely.

All the bits and pieces are good, too, including peeled baby tomatoes!

Though the shaved fennel adds nothing by way of flavour.

 

 

West Footscray and the winds of change

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It seems unlikely at this point that the possibility of about 200 apartments going up on the site of what is currently 501 Receptions will generate the same kind of uproar that greeted the developmental threat to the Dancing Dog building.

Still, doing a story about those plans has seen me engage in a number of interesting conversations about urban living and planning.

No one I’ve talked to is opposed to development – but that support usually comes with a proviso that new buildings be of high quality and intelligently designed.

There’s the rub …

One intensely interested West Footscray local also brought into focus for me the fact that the 501 Receptions proposal is just one of many changes taking place within a very small area.

I had been at least subliminally aware of most of them, unaware of others – but taken as a whole, they certainly signal a neighbourhood in transition.

What is driving these changes?

Is the demand really there for so many apartments and townhouses – or is there always an element of guesswork in such investments?

I wonder, too, if there is a cadre of long-time landlords and property owners who have been passive investors for decades but who are suddenly feeling the inclination to cash in.

If so, why?

On Barkly Street – between 501 Receptions and Dosa Hut/Dosa Corner, and amid much commercial activity of various kinds – there is a surprisingly high number of residential properties.

I wonder what their future is in a time of neighbourhood flux.

 

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Likewise, how secure is the future for the old Barkly Street churches?

 

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Opposite 540 On Barkly stands what can accurately be called a paddock.

It bears a “for lease” sign.

 

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Further along, and opposite Ovest, is another vacant lot, this one not so big and without signage.

 

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There’s another paddock on the corner of Clive and Russell streets, behind Dosa Corner.

What was once a funky ’60s-style church is now definitely earmarked for apartments, I’m told.

 

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Further along, opoosite West Footscray Vet Clinic, stood for many decades a neighbourhood mechanic.

I’m told that one minute a few weeks back it was there and about 30 later it was gone, the land destined for … apartments and/or townhouses.

According to the vet clinic folks, “people who have been bringing their animals to us for years had been taking their cars there for years”.

 

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Back in the village, the two shops between Dosa Hut and the paint shop are to become townhouses, six of the eight already sold, according to the sign.

 

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According to a post on the Barkly Village Facebook page, the defaced property next to the laundrette is all set to become an amusement parlour – “primary use seems to be for billiards and games machines”.

 

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Also in the village, GM Manchester is adorned with “closing down” signs.

 

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The short-lived Akshaya Indian street food enterprise is giving way to a WeFo branch of Biryani House.

When I have a peek, they look like they’re just about ready to roll …

On a roast roll

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Carv’n It Up, shop 1a 167-179 Tarneit Road, Werribee. Phone: 9974 0661

Werribee Village is one of the older – and smaller – shopping centres in the area.

It has a Sim’s.

It has Chinese x 2, F&C, a chook shop and a place with curry signage that purportedly sells kebabs.

And now it has a brand new purveyor of old-fashioned roasts and accessories.

 

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Carv’n It Up is rather austere in terms of decor but on the evidence of my Saturday lunch-time visit, it is already a hit with locals.

Folks aren’t queuing up out the door but they are coming and going in a steady stream.

The roast theme is delivered via meals, family deals, rolls and a bevy of extras.

I am gratified my lunch is served on good, solid, real crockery and with metal cutlery.

Potential takeaway customers be warned, though – at least some of the to-go meals are served on yukky polystyrene trays.

 

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Roast beef with veg (14.90) does me real good.

The three slices of beef are well done but cut easily enough – though a serrated knife would’ve been appreciated.

The meat serve is very generous – so much so that what at first appears to be a surfeit of gravy is only just enough to make my meal work.

I like the spuds and peas.

But I am enough of a roast traditionalist to find the veg “medley” a bit over ambitious and fiddly – I do not want capsicum with my roasts.

See other recent stories about roasts here and here.

 

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Hot lunch and free soup

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Pacific Seafood BBQ House, 295 Racecourse Road, Kensington. Phone: 9372 6688

Let’s hear a big cheer for places that serve soup – soup unordered, soup served simply as part of the dining experience, soup that is a tradition and not added to the bill at the end of the meal.

Safari, the brilliant Consider The Sauce Somalian fave in Ascot Vale, serves sublime bowls of broth almost as soon as you are seated.

On several visits to Kebab Surra in Footscray I have been provided a marvellous lamb-and-vege-and-barley soup – though it seems to depend on just which main is ordered.

Pacific Seafood BBQ House, the newish Chinese place on Racecourse Road that is a sibling to older establishments in the CBD, Richmond and South Yarra, follows the same tradition when a frequent CTS dining pal and I visit for lunch.

Our soup seems to have a what I regard as a rather robust corn flavour, even though there are no corn kernels in evidence, and has what I at first take to be spud chunks.

My companion reckons, no, it’s winter melon.

She’s right.

We also subsequently discover the gratis soup is indeed corn-infused and is a pork broth.

Whatever the details, we love it.

We also love the enthusiasm with which our curiosity about the soup’s contents is greeted by the bloke manning the soup ladle.

 

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From there, ignoring the many specials detailed on wall paper that seem more suitable to night dining and larger groups, we head straight to the quickie lunch list.

We are very happy we do so.

We both order roast meat dishes that cost $11.50.

We rank them as being at the highest end of what is expected from such dishes.

 

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My soya chicken and BBQ roast pork with rice is wonderful.

The meats are moist and, as is almost always the case, more generous of proportion than eyeball or photographic impressions may convey.

The crackling is a crunchy, sinful delight.

The rice has enough soya cooking juices to do the job and the bok choy is fine.

The oil/green onion/ginger mash is very, very welcome though I wish there was more of it.

 

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My friend goes the roast duck with noodles.

The noodles glisten atop a bed of soya juices and bok choy – she fails in the mission of consuming them, as I do with my rice.

The roast duck is expertly done.

The meat comes from the bones more easily than is often the case and the skin is a dark brown and, yes, another sinful delight.

We love Racecourse Road – and now we love it more.

 

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Meal of the week No.11: Saudagar

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Saudagar has been a Footscray fixture for years.

I’ve had their cholle bhatura and tried some of their sweets.

But it’s never appealed as an obvious or attractive place in which to obtain a nice, cheap feed of Indian tucker.

 

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So I am delighted – thrilled even! – to discover the place has been spruced up a bit with some new furniture and a much more welcoming look that says, “Come and eat here!”

Aside from the sweets, the prices – AFAIK – are the cheapest in the inner west: Vegetarian main courses all about $8, meat mains about $10, chicken biryanai $9.

 

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I enjoy a vegetarian thali priced at $8.

Unbuttered naan – and that’s fine by me.

Excellent, uncreamy daal that has a nice hit of ginger and appears to be made of aduki beans.

Malai kofta – wonderfully delicate and toothsome potato and cheese balls in a creamy cashew nut sauce.

Fluffy rice, pickles, onion slices.

I love my Saudagar lunch but I’m not about to tell you that it’s exceptional in any way – and that’s a profound testament to just how rich we are in the west of terrific Indian food.

 

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198 apartments for Barkly St, WeFo?

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More than a year ago, I tried to sweet talk the proprietor of 501 Receptions in West Footscray into letting me do a story on his operation.

Specifically, I wanted to spend a Saturday night at 501 Receptions taking in the go-to-whoa of an event such as a wedding – taking in along the way the staff, the kitchen, the food, everything.

Nothing came of my idea – even after a mutual acquaintance, someone who is something of an elder statesman of western suburbs food, tried to ease the way with 501 Receptions on my behalf.

Now I find that, under plans before Maribyrnong council, the future of 50 Receptions is very much up in the air.

 

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According to a story by my Star Weekly colleague Benjamin Millar – read it here – council is considering a development proposal that would see the property home to 198 units in twin five-storey blocks plus eight retail tenancies.

I am not automatically opposed to such a development but such a plan certainly raises many questions.

The plans show carparking spaces to the tune of 201 while, according to Ben’s story, council guidelines would require a minimum of 260 spaces.

According to Ben’s story …

“A traffic assessment by engineering consultant Cardno found ‘anticipated traffic volume … is expected to have no significant impact on the surrounding road network’.”

Hmmm … I wonder what data and/or methodology they used to reach such a conclusion?

 

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As anyone knows who regularly drives on Barkly Street, West Footrscray, or on Rupert or Cross streets, which run parallel to the railways tracks, the traffic situation in the area can get quite intense even with the current housing/resident levels.

And it would seem the revamp of West Footscray station is rather timely – but are there, or should there be, limits?

I’m interested in hearing from anyone who regularly uses either West Footscray or Tottenham stations as to whether either is nearing or already at peak capacity, especially in peak hours.

And on top of Banbury Village, what would such an apartment block plan mean for the area more generally in terms of what is often referred to as “amenity”?

Bug Boxes and Burmese

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Bug Box party, Footscray Makers Lab, West Footscray

Bug Boxes are very clever self-watering, modular raised garden beds that uses wick technology to water plants from the bottom up.

Bug Boxes are built by a team of former refugee and Australian-born carpenters at the Footscray Maker Lab in West Footscray.

They are being created, using 100% recycled materials, under the auspices of BEAUT – Burmese Enterprise Association for Urban Trading.

As it says on the BEAUT website: “When you buy a Bug Box, you give an ex-refugee tradie a job.”

They are priced from $49 to $119, with delivery with seedlings to suburbs in the west costing $10.

To arrange a Bug Box purchase, visit the BEAUT Facebook store – but be warned: the Facebook store doesn’t load on mobile devices so you will need to order from a laptop or desktop. 

Bennie and I felt very honoured indeed to be invited to the Bug Box party at Fooscray Makers Lab – but we did wonder how many, if any, people we would know there.

We need not have worried in that regard.

Among the cheerful throng were …

 

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… Mia from West Welcome Wagon – you can read about the forthcoming WWW/CTS Greek feast fundraiser at Santorini here.

There are still tickets available but they WILL sell out.

Mia is the one with the very surprised look on her face.

On the right is Liana, one of the wonderful brains behind Footscray bar Littlefoot.

Consider The Sauce has taken its time about getting around to visiting Littlefoot but as it happens we had visited for dessert post-Pandu’s just a few nights before.

So I was happy to tell Liana that I consider Littlefoot’s “injera and hazelnut chocolate pinwheels with creamy coconut dipping sauce” a work of intense genius.

Frankly: We can’t wait to return to try out the entire menu.

Stay tuned!

Liana and her family were just some of the friends I’d made during the Dancing Dog building campaign who were in attendance at the Bug Box shindig.

 

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Some of the teenagers attending were only too happy to display their social deftness.

Crowning the happy gathering was a really fine spread of Burmese tucker.

 

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The lighting situation was challenging to say the least – suffice it to say the food was delicious, even if the photographs fail to convey that fact very well!

 

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Sunday pub roasts? We have a winner.

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Railway Hotel, 35 Anderson Street, Yarraville. Phone: 9687 2034

Sunday roast lunches at pubs – $10, $15, $20, $25?

Do you get what you pay for?

As far as we know, the Spottiswoode Hotel continues to offer a grand $10 deal on Sundays.

Others we know of in the inner deliver offer $20+ offerings.

This Sunday, Bennie gives up on his desire for Vietnamese tomato rice in the face of his dad’s determination to go roast.

We first head for a certain Williamstown pub we believe now has $15 roast lunches on the menu, but on arrival we discover they will not start until the following weekend.

Plan B is return home, park the car and walk to our local, the Railway Hotel, which has been advertising $18.50 Sunday roasts – sort of a middle ground price-wise , with two kinds of meat on offer.

Will it be worth the extra dollars?

We pay, get our number and wait.

 

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Bennie chooses the pork.

I try a mouthful.

Perhaps unsurprisingly it’s dry but – good stuff – tender enough.

But it IS full of strong, good piggy flavour.

The crackling is a tad salty but all of it is crisp and a joy to eat.

One pub manager has told me it’s simply impossible in regards to power bills to serve roast veggies at these sorts of prices.

That I don’t mind.

The spud is roasted and herbed and very good.

The beans, broccoli and carrots may be steamed but they are wonderful – cooked more than al dente and perfect.

 

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I select the roast beef (top photograph).

It’s fabulous.

It appears to be smothered in good gravy.

But as it turns out there is just enough gravy – and only just enough – to support the meat.

I am served three slices that are just shy of half an inch thick.

The meat is tender and tastes grand.

It breaks apart in strands that I more familiar with from dining on brisket at BBQ joints.

This is new and wonderful territory for me when it comes to roast beef.

There is so much of it, I keep offering Bennie hefty chunks even as I close in on the final slice.

“I can’t eat it all, mate!”

“That’s because you aren’t manly enough …”

I am on a serious food high as we skip down the street for some sugar and spice from our fave ice-cream joint.

The Railway Hotel Sunday roasts have convinced me that sometimes, at least, you do get what you pay for.

And it’s still a bargain.

 

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Back at Pandu’s

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Pandu’s, 351 Barkly Street, Footscray. Phone: 8307 0789

We haven’t eaten at Pandu’s for a good long while and we’re excited to be back.

Even more so because among our group of six are two people who have pretty much eaten the inner west dry but have yet to dine at this Footscray Indo-Chinese institution.

And there’s two others have never tried Indo-Chinese at all!

After we enter and a get a table, I realise there have been changes at Pandu’s.

There’s more people in the kitchen.

The prices have crept up – but not too much.

And there’s a new menu that considerably broadens Pandu’s previously hardcore Indo-Chinese line-up.

There’s biryanis, dosas and – oh yes! – cholle bhatrua and pooris with potato maslala.

Most of those will have to wait for another day, however, as we stick – with one exception – to Indo-Chinese.

 

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One member of our group is quite taken with idea of nachos salad as spied on the online menu – as am I.

So we order two.

What we get is, well, weird.

Doritos drizzled with some yogurt and sprinkled with not a lot of cheese, onion and greenery.

It’s OK to nibble on before our more fully cooked goodies arrive.

But Doritos?

Ugh!

In quick time, arriving at our table are …

 

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… vegetable manchurian …

 

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… cauliflower 65 and …

 

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… pepper fish.

By unanimous acclaim, the fish is our meal’s big winner.

Encased in a delicious but not particularly peppery coating are gorgeously tender and tasty chunks of white fish.

As Josh says: “I could eat these all night!”

The gobi and vegetable ball dishes – standard orders for Bennie and I at Pandu’s – are good, too, though a little wetter than we’ve had on previous occasions.

We bulk up our meal by ordering another standard for us …

 

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… veggie hakka noodles as well as …

 

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… veggie Singapore fried rice.

Both are simple but very good in that trans-national way that we usually expect more of the food from Malaysia or Singapore but which is right at home with Indo-Chinese.

Finally, we also enjoy a fine chicken biryani – which I forget to photograph!

 

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Bennie and I reckon the portion sizes of non-carb Indo-Chinese selections may have been a bit smaller than on previous visits – but that could be because there’s so many pals with us tonight and the food disappears quickly.

As well, we note that the shredded cabbage is of a rougher cut that makes it less appealing to incorporate into our meal, and that the gobi, fish and vegetable balls are not adorned with the usual jumble of chillis, curry leaves, onion and capsicum.

But still, these are minor quibbles – Pandu’s remains our go-to place for Indo-Chinese.

I have not kept track of prices as I expect to just call up the Pandu’s website when I get home.

But now I discover the prices there are not up to date!

But here’s the biz – for all of the above food, and a fine meal, the six of us pay a few bucks over $90.

That is, about $15 each!

Fantastic!

 

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Meal of the week No.10: Footscray Milking Station

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Footscray Milking Station has been around for about three years now but never before covered in any way by Consider The Sauce.

We’ve dropped in for coffee or sanger on a few occasions but …

Recently it’s become a regular for me when seeking a nice place to have a quick lunch on one of my mid-week days off, after I have taken care of blogging and associated tasks at home.

I like it – a lot – that there always seems to be ample parking.

The place is always warm and inviting.

And the coffee is grand.

A few weeks back, I had – from the specials board – a fine panini of house-smoked salmon, creamed cheese, rocket and pickled shallots.

That board is always worth checking out – one of these days, I’ll have the soup.

Today I go for the salad bowl ($12).

Normally, roast vegetable salads are no-go territory for me as they invariably number pumpkin among the ingredients.

Not today – so I’m in.

Instead, there’s big, beefy chunks of succulent fennel, chick peas, lots of parsley and even – unadvertised! – pistachio nuts, all of them dressed with a masterful touch.

I mind not in the least the other salad also includes fennel.

In this case, it’s shaved so there’s a very cool contrast with the roast version.

In my second salad, there’s also cucumber, baby tomatoes, rocket, dill and black sesame seeds.

Again, the dressing is amazing –  tangy and with just right amount of moisture to ensure ease of eating without sodden-ness.

It’s a superb, knockout lunch.

Cool tandoori in Hoppers

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Kabul Kebab & Curry House, Shop 12A Woodville Park Shopping Centre, 70 Warringa Crescent, Hoppers Crossing. Phone: 9749 0944

Between and around the riches of Watton Street in Werribee and Barkly Street in West Footscray, there are lots of Indian or curry restaurants hidden away in all sorts of places.

In the case of this Hoppers Crossing find, it’s a matter – ostensibly – of Afghan food.

On a cold week night, Woodville Park Shopping Centre presents a rather bleak prospect but the glowing lights of this place draw us in.

 

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The series of events – post-school volleyball, guitar lesson, traffic congestion – that have brought us here find us also of robust appetite, so we’re happy to be in a nice, warm, cheap eatery.

Given the location and lack of research, it’s a throw of the dice but we are not disappointed.

The place is done in typical, basic ‘burban ethnic and we’re the only customers – but we are re-assured by the number of locals coming and going for takeaway that there is something worthwhile going on here.

 

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While we await our meal, we are greatly entertained not only by the Bollywood music clips on the telly but even more by the cornball old-school adverts that accompany them.

The pricing is attractive and there’s a range of your usual korma, kofta, vindaloo, masala and other curry dishes.

But we choose breads and the kebab offerings.

 

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First, though, onion pakoras ($6) are a rapidly devoured, well-fried treat.

 

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Potato bolani naan ($5) is fantastic and almost a meal in itself.

 

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Garlic naan ($3) shows scant traces of garlic but is good, too.

 

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Instead of having to select from the kebab/tandoor line-up, we go straight for the “Sizzler Special” ($22).

The menu says it consists of kebab items numbers one through six and comes with salad and dips.

We’re not sure about that – and there are no dips.

But we’re more than happy, anyway.

We’re not about to pretend this is the best or best-cooked meat of this kind we’ve had but it does the job for us.

The minced-lamb sheesh kebabs have a bit of a bitter flavour to them.

The chunks of lamb kebab could be a bit more tender.

But the chicken tikka pieces and two chook parts of tandoori chicken are real good.

We’re happy to have paid only $36 for a satisfying meal.

Do readers have any out-of-the-way faves?

A good thing on Nelson Place

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General Food Co, 117 Nelson Place, Williamstown. Phone: 9397 8239

General Food Co is on Nelson Place but not really of it.

It’s down towards the shipyard area of Williamstown and separated from Nelson Place’s hit-and-mostly-miss range of eateries by Thompson Street with its Greek restaurant on the corner.

This is a good thing!

Instead of having a Willy food hub vibe about it, General Food Co has a friendly, we-love-locals thing going on.

 

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The interior is small but cosy; there’s an outside area that must be simply great on nice days and there’s more tables on the footpath.

The service is fine, kids are greeted on a first-name basis and the coffee is outstanding.

The two dishes CTS tries – one smaller, one larger – are lovely to eat and behold, and are cooked and presented with skill.

But they are of modest proportions.

They’re perfectly fine for a light lunch but we advise against bringing a rampant appetite here – or perhaps, if that is the case, heading towards the breakfast list, several selections of which I spy as being more generous.

 

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I’m told the “dakos” in my smashed beetroot dakos ($12.50) is a kind of Greek rusk.

Atop the pleasantly chewy bases is a cool, luscious and tangy mix of beetroot and fetta.

The balsamic reduction seems a little out place and is too sticky.

 

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Lamb keftethes ($19) are three plump, generously sized lamb meatballs, deliciously chewy and well-seasoned, with a fine tzatsiki, pita bread that is both crisp and chewy and good salad components.

Some more yogurt/cucumber and a few more slices of pita would’ve been appreciated.

It is genuine regret that I have included some critical comments in this story – General Food Co is a lovely place and, as already stated, the coffee is fab.

 

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Cross-town Georgian joy

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Aragvi Georgian Cuisine, 318 Centre Road, Bentleigh. Phone: 9557 2893

By Erika Jonsson

Dumplings are one of my ultimate comfort foods.

Whether they are filled with beef, lamb or vegetables, small or large, I’ve never met a dumpling I didn’t like.

Crisp-based gyoza, wontons in broth, slurpy xiao long bao, Mongolian buuz – they are like friends who have never met; they share important traits but are beautiful for their differences.

My dumpling-making days petered out when my kids were born – it’s not easy to respond to a crying child when my hands are covered in raw meat and my dough is in danger of drying out.

So if I’m out for lunch and can enjoy an expert’s touch, I don’t think twice.

We found ourselves on the other side of town recently after a foray to the Glen Eira Sports and Aquatic Centre recently to apply a fundamental tenet of parenting – if you want happy kids, just add water.

And water slides if possible.

Mission accomplished, it was time to add food.

“What kind of food are we having for lunch?” Joe asked from the back seat.

“I’ll give you a clue,” my husband replied. “The capital city is Tbilisi.”

Georgian!

My tastebuds were tingling at the thought of lots of bread, meat – and dumplings.

Aragvi in Bentleigh did not disappoint in any way – in fact, we are already considering a return trip.

 

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Delicious hunks of warm bread with a side of unsalted butter started to fill the void ahead of the arrival of a bowl of borlotti bean stew, or lobio.

I was surprised when Joe wasn’t interested, but Hugh loved it, as did my husband and I.

Walnuts and coriander were the dominant flavours in a dish that was somehow both simple and complex.

Next out were the dumplings – Joe chose chicken over pork and beef.

Our waitress gave us a quick tutorial on how to eat Georgian-style dumplings, which were quite large and shaped almost like mushrooms.

Use the stem of the dumpling like a handle to allow you to bite the side then suck out the broth.

Continue until you are left with just the dough handle, which is traditionally left behind.

The flavour was quite mild and the seasonings delicate. They were a hit for our hungry family, especially covered in black pepper.

 

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Our next dish was grilled chicken kababi rolls with adjika chilli sauce, salad and housemade chips.

This turned out to be my favourite dish of the day – the colours were vibrant; the chilli sauce sang with heat; the skinless sausages were perfectly cooked; the salad was zingy and fresh; and the chips were crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.

Not yet sated, we shared some delicious cakes, including a walnut sponge and a pastry filled with almond-flavoured custard.

My latte could’ve been a bit stronger, but that’s a small criticism in the context of a really memorable meal.

Aragvi was quiet during our weekday lunchtime visit – I’m not sure why.

We don’t usually travel far beyond Footscray for food, but this gem is worth the drive.

New Afghani in Sunshine

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Afghan Shaheen, 231 Hampshire Road, Sunshine.

The success of Afghan Master Kebab in Sunshine has seemingly inspired others to try their luck with likeminded eateries.

Further afield, in Fooscray, Kebab Surra has made its mark.

In Sunshine, it appears there will be three new kids on the block.

One, already open, is situated in the food court at Sunshine Plaza and yet to be investigated.

Another, on the wider bit of Hampshire Road, still has newspapered windows.

Afghan Shaheen is up and running on the narrower part of Hampshire, heading towards the station.

 

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It’s done out in cheerful cafe style with ornate and shiny furniture.

It’s an Afghani eatery with a few twists thrown in.

You’ll find the chargrilled meats that are the principal reason of the much-love for the already established places.

As well, though, the menu (see below) features a longish list of straight-up Indian dishes and even an Indo-Chinese section.

Additionally, Afghan Shaheen is big on baking.

 

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One display contains a glistening range of Indian-style sweet treats that go for $18 a kilogram.

 

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Another cabinet displays many biscuits that look just like Italian-style biscotti.

I’m told, however, that they really are Afghani!

Rest assured, though, they contain heaps of butter.

They sell for a terrific $16 a kilogram – I’m surprised how many I get for $7.

A bowl namakpura (top photograph) – cumin-seasoned strips of deep-fried pastry – are brought without being ordered.

Playing the same sort of teasing role as papadums, they’re yummy.

 

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Lamb kebab ($13.99) has superb chargrilled meat of high quality – the de-skewered chunks shown here are only half of what is served.

The bread is good but unlike either regular naan or the more chewy, crusty bread delivered at Afghan Master Kebab or Kebab Surra.

 

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What I first mistakenly take to be some kind of soup turns out to be an excellent mint dipping sauce – a vinegary version of the pale green version often served.

It’s piquant and delicious.

 

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Curry and rice for $13.99 doesn’t sound like such a crash-hot deal but qabuli palaw is excellent.

The same, good bread.

The same salad bits

Fluffy white rice studded with moist currants and festooned with cooked, tender and sweet carrot strands.

The lamb “qorma” itself is mildly spiced but as deep in flavour as it is deep in brown.

The lamb is of the same high quality and tenderness as found in the kebab serving.

With its many bits and pieces, this $15 dish could easily suffice as a meal for two.

 

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