Tag Archives: Melbourne

Unwrapping parcels, so exciting!

6 Comments

spicy3

Spicy Hut, Shop 6/35 Aspen Street, Moonee Ponds. Phone: 9375 2191

Many times on our various visits to Puckle St, we’ve wandered down the cul de sac that is Aspen St, adjacent a huge, unsealed parking lot, to scope out Spicy Hut only to walk away unfed and disappointed.

Each time there seemed little by way of any activity, so we didn’t even venture inside.

This obviously speaks to a lack of boldness on our part, because Consider The Sauce pal Nat continued to maintain he had been enjoying swell, cheap and delicious Sri Lankan food there quite a while.

So I am delighted to join him there for lunch, knowing for certainty his assertions will be well founded and we will eat very well.

They are and we do.

The tiny cafe space is rather spartan but offset by the charming welcome of the couple who run the joint.

The menu includes various options of the snack/street food variety such as rotis, samosas, hoppers and dosas.

As well, on three days of the week there are specials, with today’s being lamprais – so that’s what we have.

spicy1

According to the Wikipedia entry on Sri Lankan food, this dish is of Dutch derivation.

In Spicy Hut’s case, they are described as: “Rice cooked in chicken stock & served with eggplant, pickle, fish cutlet, boiled egg, choice of chicken or beef curry (all wrapped in banana leaf).”

With Nat going for the beef and me the chicken, our meals ($11) are delivered wrapped in foil and with papadams sitting atop.

Unwrapping the foil reveals mounds of steaming rice cocooned by banana leaves. The rice is moist but fluffy and quite nicely spicy.

My single chicken drumstick is tender and tasty, but really it’s the combination of all the bits and pieces that make this a splendidly enjoyable meal.

The fish cutlets (balls), made with mackerel, onion, potato, ginger and garlic, are delicate yet robustly fishy.

I enjoy my hard-boiled egg just as much as I do when they are served with biryani.

The “seeni sambal” sitting on top of my chicken adds a bitter element through the use of curry and pandan leaves, lemongrass and garlic.

And the dry jumble of eggplant, capsicum and onion on the other side of the rice has brilliant eggplant flavour.

Thanks, Nat, for revealing this lovely place to Consider The Sauce – I’m keen to return.

Spicy Hut is closed on Tuesdays.

 

spicy4

spicy5

spicy2

Westies abroad …

6 Comments

We live in the west and we eat in the west – and we love doing so.

There’s more than 500 stories on this website, and overwhelmingly they’re concerned with the food we’ve discovered in the western suburbs of Melbourne and the wonderful people who produce it.

But we sometimes step out into other parts of Melbourne.

Private vehicles, public transport, Racecourse Rd, Dynon Rd, Footscray Rd, the West Gate Bridge – these are some of the ways westies get to other parts of Melbourne.

So far, passports and visas are not required.

Just sayin’ …

Ayam Penyet RIA

1 Comment

ayam5

Ayam Penyet RIA, 248 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne. Phone: 9077 2947

Ayam Penyet RIA is part of an Indonesian restaurant chain , one that – going by its website – is based in Singapore.

The South Melbourne branch has been open about a month – and the word is well and truly out among students and other Indonesians in Melbourne.

Even on a chilly Monday night, the limited seating is at a premium, with there being more potential customers than the place is able to accommodate.

The concise menu runs to four mostly meaty soups, three meat plates and a few more of egg and eggplant, along with gado gado.

I find the service cheerful and quick.

ayam1

But my “smashed chicken” platter with rice ($10.50) doesn’t quite reflect the various photos around the place in terms of generosity.

The greenery is limited to a single slice of cucumber, and there is a single chunk apiece of tempeh and tofu.

The good-sized piece of fried chicken is real fine, though, especially in conjunction with what the website calls “blacan-chilli relish” – a wonderfully potent concoction!

All this combined with the rice makes for a good meal.

But I suspect there may be better to be had here – the beef ribs and gado gado I see being whizzed past me look interesting and more substantial.

Worth another look, for sure.

 

ayam4

ayam2

ayam3

Feeling the love in Hoppers Crossing

Leave a comment

glory25

Glory We Cafe, 3/76 Old Geelong Rd, Hoppers Crossing. Phone: 9394 8845

While we enjoyed our first visit to Glory We Cafe, the chances of return visits seemed slim at best, especially given the options we have in the greater western suburbs for the sort of food it serves.

But since that visit, a few things have happened – with the upshot being the Glory We crew have earned our return custom through their goodwill, sincerity and dedication in engaging with their customers.

For one thing, they have made the switch from plastic, disposable implements and receptacles to those of a more re-usuable variety.

We don’t know or care if Consider The Sauce had anything to do with them making that change – we are simply happy that they have.

For another, we couldn’t help but notice the regular updates on their Facebook page in which they have been introducing new, alluring and seemingly authentic dishes of a Singaporean and Malaysian nature.

So off we go for Sunday lunch!

That Glory We remains a rather charmless, utilitarian space is well and truly compensated for by depth of the warm and caring service that is bestowed upon us on our return visit, service way above that we commonly expect from such places.

Combined with reliably good and sometimes very good food and the lack of alternatives in this general neighbourhood, we reckon Glory We fully deserves whatever good reputation it is earning as a westie hotspot.

The same photos that have appeared on the joint’s Facebook page grace the walls of the restaurant, so we take only a few minutes to make our selections.

glory21

Mee goreng ($9.50) looks nothing special – like what might get served in any old shopping centre food court, in fact.

But this wet version tastes a whole lot better than that.

A wonderfully gooey fried egg sits atop lovely al dente egg noodles, with calamari, prawns, egg and tofu complemented by crunchy onion slivers and some greenery.

It’s simple, homely and fine.

glory22

Our second dish is the subject of today’s Glory We Facebook post: “XO Sauce Fried Carrot Cake – Introducing our NEW weekend delicacy which is a common dish in Singapore which Singaporeans eat throughout the day whether at breakfast, lunch, dinner or even supper. This dish consist of stir-fried cubes of raddish cake. You can order it fried with or without sweet black sauce. To order one fried with sweet black sauce, you have to tell our friendly staff you want it ‘black’.”

This is a new one on us, so we had sought advice from Ms Baklover, who spent a week or so eating her away around the island state a while back and so whom we consider an oracle of all things Singaporean.

She told us it’s a delicious dish “when made right”, but to be cautious when it comes to the “black” version as she finds it a bit on the cloying side herself.

So we order and don’t ask for dark – and end up with the dark variety ($9.50) anyway.

It’s OK and Bennie likes it but, truthfully, I do find it too rich and oily.

Our bemusement over what we’ve been provided sparks some charming back-and-forth dialogue with the staff, with the chef explaining that the dark version is a Singaporean preference and light a Malaysian one.

“That’s OK – we’re Malaysian,” I proclaim.

(Cue much laughter all ’round …)

So we’re served a plate of the lighter variety of the Glory We Cafe XO Sauce Fried Carrot Cake at no charge.

(It’s important to acknowledge that this generosity and level of customer care would have been afforded us no matter who we were or that the staff members eventually twigged that we were food bloggers or some other sort of busybodies.)

glory23

Ahhh, this is more like it – and much more to both our liking.

There’s a lighter touch going on here and much more textural variety, with the raddish cake pieces having nicely tanned and crisped exteriors.

At this stage of our meal, though, it’s more than we can consume so what’s left goes home with us.

If this dish, no matter how good, is unlikely to become a firm CTS favourite, we’ve had such a fine time at Glory We that this place already is.

Check out the Glory We Cafe Facebook page here.

 

glory24

glory26

Momo a-go-go in WeFo

8 Comments

magic22

Magic Momo Kafe, 588 Barkly St, West Footscray. Phone: 9972 2616

“Looks like a work in progress.”

Bennie may be on the unfair side there, but Magic Momo Kafe does have an undeniable vibe of being newly minted and very recently opened.

The double doors are wide open to the world on a cold day and the three staff members in attendance are pumped with nervous energy and eager to pleaseness.

Writing about such a place at such a time in its life almost seems on the cruel side.

But what the hey – we’re only after an after-school snack.

As we’d been promised when we called in while the place was still under construction, there is a lovely looking range of luridly colured Indian sweets, along with some cakes and slices of the brought-in variety.

We know the momos are produced in-house, however, on account of the big tub of ace-looking seasoned pork mince that is being used to fill pastry casings.

OK, so a post-school serve of fried chicken momo (10 for $7.95) it is for us.

magic21

The fried is pan rather deep, with the bottoms nicely tanned and the tops chewy in just the right way.

The innards are peppery, maybe there’s some ginger in there somewhere as well, and have crunch from onion and colouring from coriander.

They go great with the medium-spicy chilli concoction served on the side.

We’re both halfway through our first momo when we immediately acknowledge the pressing need to also order a 10-piece serve of the vegetable dumplings.

magic23

If anything these are even better. Bennie certainly thinks so.

They’re the same price and appear a little bigger, even though I’m sure the same dough cutter has been used for both varieties. As well, the dough used in this batch is a bit darker.

I’ve been expecting a filling packed with crunch and slither from cabbage, mushrooms and the like.

Instead, we get a filling that seems to be potato and carrot-based and that, as my unusually-astute-on-this-day offsider instantly observes, makes these dumplings seem a bit like soft samosas.

Mind you, there is some crunch and texture from onion and cabbage, while – like their chooky colleagues – these are also peppery and scrumptious.

Explorations of the burger, kebab, BLT, French toast, lemon pepper calamari and tomato soup variety at this intriguingly multi-focussed eatery will have to wait for another day and a more suitable occasion.

In the meantime, and based on our two fine serves of momo, we can attest that there is indeed magic in the air here.

 

magic24

Getting serious at the Plough

8 Comments

plough33

Plough Hotel, 333 Barkly St, Footscray. Phone: 9687 2878

We attended the opening night party, and we’ve read reviews and comments – including those at Footscray Food Blog.

Now it’s time for us try a meal proper at the new-look Plough Hotel for ourselves.

It’s an early Sunday evening dinner for us, so it’s something of a departure from our usual routine of settling in for the end of weekend night.

At the time we arrive, the landmark pub seems to be about a quarter full, yet it’s already quite noisy. The chatter and hubbub are such that they render the music little more than more background rumbling.

I can imagine that when this place is really packed and jumping, that it may be a matter of shouting instead of conversing.

Still, it’s a cheerful scene and we’re looking forward to some ace food.

There’s never been any doubt that on this particular adventure that I’d lose out to Bennie in the “I’m having the hamburger” stakes.

plough31

His “150g veal pattie served w. caramelised onions in seeded mustard, fresh tomato, lettuce, bacon, cheddar cheese & roasted garlic aioli, served w. beer battered chips” ($21) is pretty good.

For all the fancy words, it is just a burger – and he’s more than happy with that. He rates it an 8 1/2 or 9 out of 10.

I try a few hearty mouthfuls of the meat, finding it has great texture and bite but lacks somewhat in the robust flavour department.

The chips are, truth to tell, a little disappointing … in that they’re merely good rather than being the outstanding we feel entitled to expect from this sort of place selling this sort of food.

And in my case, I have to rescue my chips from underneath the chicken parmagiana ($25) that is squatting atop them.

I’m not the first person to raise this issue, and I’ll not be the last.

One question: Why?

Another question: Would a restaurant serve a steak on top of the accompanying chips?

One solution: Ask the customer their preference.

plough32

My parma itself is very good and very big.

The chicken is beaut – flavoursome, well cooked and juicy.

The cheese layer on top, too, is wonderful, and there’s quite a bit of basil doing good things amid a sauce made with real tomatoes. The gypsy ham doesn’t seem to add any extra flavour.

The salad of capsicum strands, radish and various greens is OK, but Bennie eats most of it.

But here’s an interesting thing about my otherwise lovely parma – it’s crunchy.

Yes, crunchy!

I lift up the cheese topping to discover from whence does the crunch come – only to discover that the cause is raw onion.

Quite a lot of raw onion, actually.

Red onion, mind you, so the flavour does not overpower enjoyment of my meal, especially once I scrape most of it to the side of my plate.

But still, it seems quite odd.

An inquiry made to a staff member elicits the information that the kitchen is aiming for a twist on the typical parma tomato sauce by concocting more of a salsa vibe.

OK, I quite like the sound of that.

But the actual fact of the matter is that there’s nothing salsa-like about my sauce.

What it seems like is fairly typical Napolitana parma sauce studded with quite big chunks of raw onion.

What it seems like is a mistake.

While our meal hasn’t really rocked our world, we like the new Plough heaps and will be back.

 

plough34

‘Premium fast casual’

11 Comments

“Premium fast casual”?

Sounds like pure PR/marketing drivel, doesn’t it?

I found it in this Age/Good Food story on the new wave of fast-food restaurant and chains – with the focus very much on Lord Of The Fries and Grill’d.

Before reading it, I knew zilch about Lord Of The Fries.

Now I know more, I’m actually keen to give it a go.

I’d hesitate to call us fans of Grill’d, though we most certainly prefer its wares to the dreadful likes of McDonald’s or Hungry Jacks.

In the case of Guzman y Gomez, we happily and unapologetically count ourselves as fans.

But on a general level of taste and flavour, we reckon these kinds of places really are a whole lot better than traditional, trashy fast-food franchise food.

Regarding nutrition and healthiness, I am simply unqualified to comment.

And the story does have a rather narrow focus – no mention, for instance, of sushi rolls or places such as Sumo Salad.

What do you think?

Are Grill’d and Lord Of The Fries a boon? Do you eat at such places often, occasionally or never?

‘Facilitating’ a blogger soiree …

17 Comments

bash1

Looking back on the first Consider The Sauce post and those that soon followed evokes a feeling of simplicity and perhaps even innocence.

It all seemed so simple – got out, have a feed somewhere or do some shopping, take photographs, go home, write about it.

Bingo!

Instant food blog!

We still do a lot of that, of course. Indeed, it remains the very core activity of this site.

But as we approach the end of our third year in operation, much has changed.

It’s been a gloriously enjoyable learning curve, with mis-steps and challenges, and many friends made in the process.

Central to that learning curve is that realising while the website itself remains the key element of what Consider The Sauce is about, there is a lot more to being a (hopefully) successful food blogger and running a successful food blog.

Along the way, I have sometimes attempted to tap into the wealth of experience and wisdom of blogging pioneers.

But as previously noted, more often than not I find doing so a particularly tiresome exercise, no matter how much I would like some or a lot of that good stuff to rub off on me.

The problem seems to be that no matter where a famed blogger starts his or her journey – be it as a specialist in stamp collecting or vintage horse shoes or whatever – once they become successful, what drives them on is the process itself. And that can be mighty boring, no matter how righteous the advice is.

So I am very grateful to Cheryl Lin of the blog BusinessChic for an excellent tip – the book microDOMINATION by PR warrior Trevor Young.

I’m only halfway through it. And, yes, it does have its fair share of self-help-style feelgood stories.

But it’s reverberating with me in many ways.

It’s been a pleasant surprise to discover that several of the initiatives taken – or at least attempted – by Consider The Sauce are very much part of Young’s broader aim of how to become what he calls a “micro maven” and using a blog to create a personal “brand”.

For example:

  • Not passively accepting that friends and fellow bloggers who leave comments on CTS must remain mere electronic cyber buddies, and seeking instead to meet face to face and see what happens from there.
  • Running, in conjunction with Ms Baklover and her Footscray Food Blog, a picnic late last year. The repeat event, coming this spring, will likewise be part and parcel of the broader picture of running a food blog. As will a special event, yet to be announced, that will be part of the picnic.
  • I have also learned that doing an occasional post about topics such as moving house or a bingle with a neighbour’s car is not only perfectly fine but helps give context to the ongoing CTS narrative.
  • A soon-to-be-announced CTS benefit/fundraiser being organised with wonderful and generous support from a local business and the funds raised from which will go to a very fine local organisation.

Another such event in the life of CTS occurred this week with a gathering of bloggers and a non-blogging likely lad at a Port Melbourne restaurant.

With CTS having already written about Third Wave Cafe twice, Greg from that establishment had contacted me.

His problem and challenge was that his business was in the process of transforming and extending itself from a place highly regarded for its lunchtime fare, including Russian specialties and fine coffee, to one offering American-style BBQ at night.

He and his team had invested considerable time and money into the project, and were eager to get the word out and help broaden and correct pre-conceptions in the wider community about what Third Wave Cafe has to offer.

Could I help?

And so, on the basis that Bennie and I enjoyed the food being offered – and boy oh boy, did we ever – Greg and I shook hands on a project that would see me organise a list of food bloggers and then invite them to try out the Third Wave BBQ goodies for themselves on the simple understanding they would write a story about their experiences.

Greg fully understood that neither he nor I would have any say whatsoever in what the invitees subsequently wrote.

And, yes, I would be paid what both Greg and I agreed, easily and quickly, was a fair amount for my efforts.

The list I configured was a mixture of firm and very good friends, bloggers with whom I had had at least some personal contact and others for whom I had high regard.

In all cases, the people involved were of what I considered to be of the highest integrity – no “floggers” or egomaniacs allowed or wanted!

In the end, about half of the invitees responded in a positive fashion, and the table of five – including myself – turned out to be just the right size for a superbly enjoyable evening.

Those who attended were: Nat Stockley, a non-blogger (so far …) widely known for his entertaining and excellent reviews on Urbanspoon; Eve from Conversation With Jenny; Catty from Fresh Bread; and Bryan from Let’s Get Fat Together.

This gang had a quite varied amount of previous experience with this style of food, but everyone seemed to enjoy their meals, which like that of Bennie and myself were a broad sampling of the Third Wave Cafe BBQ line-up.

As the meal wound down, Greg emerged from the kitchen to see how we’d gone and tell us about how his Russian-menu cafe had taken such a bold and surprising leap into new territory.

Rather delightfully, for two of the participants this was a debut occasion to be sharing a table with full-on likeminded souls and in a situation in which EVERYONE involved was using a camera.

There was much telling of tales and swapping of notes; much laughter, too.

On that basis alone, I am happy to judge the night a success.

Of course, I suspect that will mean very little to Greg and his team, for whom this was a straight-out business proposition.

But then again, who knows where such connections may lead? That, too, is part of blogging.

I gave some serious thought to the ethical ramifications of accepting paid work of this type from a restaurant.

And I’m sure there are those for whom taking this step will forever have tainted me in some way.

But I’m entirely comfortable with the whole process.

Greg had a need that I met with honest endeavour. The dinner invitees didn’t seem to think it off or otherwise noteworthy that I was getting paid for pulling it all together.

Or not so they told me, anyway. Indeed and instead, they seemed more than happy to be involved.

However, this event was the result of a confluence of several particular circumstances – so I’d be surprised if similar projects eventuated in the future.

Another topic covered in Trevor Young’s book microDOMINATION is the importance for bloggers of complete transparency at all times – which, of course, is one of the reasons for writing this post!

You can read Catty’s review here and Eve’s review here.

 

Providorable – all sorts of nice things in Willy

4 Comments

prov8

Providorable, 46 Ferguson St, Williamstown. Phone: 9399 9355

Consider The Sauce had been aware of Providorable, but it took Miss Biscuit, Julia, to actually get us to check out the Williamstown shop.

Before getting around to an actual visit, I found myself becoming more and more impressed with the regular updates Providorable proprietor Kelly posts on her shop’s Facebook page – they’re full of passion for the goodies she stocks.

A visit to the Ferguson St emporium confirms the sincerity of those updates, with Kelly pointing out some of the high-quality products and their suppliers for which she is most enthusiastic and which you may struggle to source elsewhere in Melbourne (or our side of it anyway).

Products such as …

prov1

… McGrath dressings from Albury and …

prov5

… Arthurs Creek oils and condiments and …

prov4

… she-tea from Daylesford (the tea is imported but the packaging and gorgeous artwork are done in Victoria) and …

prov6

… lovely fruit-studded nougat from The Sweet Boutique in Brighton.

Mind you, Kelly is also has some delightful imported goodies as well, such as …

prov2

… Harney & Sons tea from New York and …

prov3

… fabulous Mazet chocolate in various flavours from France.

Providorable maybe isn’t the kind of place you’ll go to “stock up”, but for just that particular product or luxury item you seek or deserve, it’s a treat.

prov7

Aangan’s lunch menu

3 Comments

aangan3

Aangan Indian Restaurant, 559 Barkly St, West Footscray. Phone: 9689 4175

Aangan’s food has come our way several times – all of them well before Consider The Sauce was launched.

In its earliest days, Aangan was a very makeshift affair with a small but ridiculously cheap range of food.

Just our kind of place in other words!

We visited again a few times when it went more formal and ritzy.

Since then, it has lost out in our affections to the plethora of places doing hit-and-run thalis, dosas, biryanis and other super cheapo Indian tucker in this part of West Footscray and elsewhere not too far away in the inner west.

I recall being told by a pal that Aangan was introducing a lunch menu more of the street food, cheap eats orientation in order to meet the challenge posed by its neighbouring competitors.

That information lay dormant until I happened to be passing and saw a mid-week table occupied.

OK, let’s give it a go!

The lunch menu advice I had received is correct – I am delighted to find quite a long list of goodies at very affordable prices.

They include gol guppe, cholley bhuturey, Punjabi parantha, some Indo-Chinese dishes and the expected idlis, vadas and dosas.

(I have used their spellings as on the Aangan lunch menu – see below.)

But what’s with the thalis, be they meat or vegetarian?

They are listed as including one chaat dish, entree, three curries, raita, salad, rice, roti and dessert.

Blimey – I am seriously intrigued.

But at $20, they’ll keep for a more special occasion.

Besides, they sound like they may be a sharing proposition.

aangan1

So a modest masala dosa ($9.50) it is for me.

It’s very good.

Though the pancake itself is among the smallest I have ever encountered.

But the filling of turmeric-tinged potatoes, mustard seeds, curry leaves and onions providing textural diversity is very fine indeed.

I am served two coconut-based chutneys, though struggle to perceive any difference between them.

The third, red and usually more spicy accompaniment is rather mild but good.

The nice-and-salty sambar is also mild, but I gleefully slurp up the whole lot.

It’s great to know there’s another very affordable Indian lunch option available in this neighbourhood.

 

aangan2

New Kingsville coffee spot, WeFo momo update …

5 Comments

project1

What was once Petitou at 206 Somerville Rd is now Project 206.

The place looks a treat, the coffee is good and they have a buy-five-get-one-free loyalty card and wifi.

Food runs, at present, to breakfast regulars, such as eggs and pancakes, and light lunch fare, such as a soup special, frittata and lasagna.

The kids/toy space at the back has given way to more regular seating and a liquor licence is in the works.

Owner Natalie tells me there are plans afoot to see the abandoned servo across the road become a four-level apartment block.

Whatever our collective ambivalence about rampant apartment development, that will surely be an improvement on the current eyesore!

Project 206 is open 10am-3pm Mondays, 9.30am-4.30pm Tuesdays to Fridays and 9am-430pm at weekends. Phone: 90044563.

project4

Meanwhile, over in Barkly St, Magic Momo Kafe proprietor Ravi tells me his baby is still at least a week away from opening its doors for the first time.

He’s taken a realistic approach to competing with the varied Indian options in the area, so is excited about a menu that covers a number of bases.

He promises a lively cafe vibe with great coffee and a spectacular range of Indian sweeties.

High points at Highpoint

3 Comments

hp8

Fish Pier, Highpoint Shopping Centre. Phone: 9318 8277

Cupcake Central. Highpoint Shopping Centre. Phone: 9077 4542

Despite the fact we found the array of outlets and services available in Highpoint’s new food court a bit of a mixed bag, we have been enjoying our visits there.

The more recently opened fashion precinct adds a touch of undeniable class, even if the many shops therein are unlikely to ever see any of our money.

In the food section itself, we’ve bought meat and boreks from the rather classy butcher.

And if other chores and purposes take us to Highpoint, we’re more than happy to do our dinner shopping – and even a stock-up shop – at the very well stocked fresh produce store.

My one serious reservation about the new food area has been the lack of interesting places to eat.

There’s now an Italian-style panini/focaccia/sandwich place that looks like it may be worth checking out, although the salads on display look rather shopping-centre dreary.

In this setting, Fish Pier is also well stocked with fresh seafood.

It’s a pity, perhaps, that the place’s eat-in assortment is tucked around on the side, as on the basis of my lunch it’s well worth considering.

hp1

At $10 or thereabouts, my fish and chips would be a perfectly OK lunch; at the special promotional price of $5 it’s an outright bargain.

The chips are fresh and hot but only average.

The flathead fillet is much better – a winner!

The panko-crumbed calamari rings ($1 each) are not freshly fried for me and are thus a bit tired on it, a bit soggy and chewy.

I could do without the salad bits and pieces.

hp4

Like Fish Pier, Cupcake Central is part of a chain.

But forget about that; forget, too, the shopping centre location.

This is a stylish cafe space I’d be happy to spend time in just about anywhere.

Especially as my $3.30 cafe latte is outstanding.

My salted caramel cupcake ($4) is about 30 seconds of sticky decadence, although I do end up scraping off about half of the creamy, cloying topping.

All sorts of other sweeties, especially of the Italian variety, are always going to have bigger place in my heart than cupcakes, but this is a top spot.

See earlier stories about Highpoint here and here.

 

hp2

hp9

hp5

Killer BBQ in Port Melbourne

3 Comments

third35

Third Wave Cafe, 189 Rouse St, Port Melbourne. Phone: 9676 2399

There are least a couple of reasons Consider The Sauce is not making merry with the growth of American-style BBQ availability in Melbourne.

One is geography.

While we’re not averse to crossing the Maribyrnong for a good feed, planning to do so contradicts our general ethos.

That’s an ethos that routinely, weekly sees us heading out to eat, getting to the end of the street and then deciding whether to turn left or right.

More often than not, at the time we leave home we have no idea where we’ll be eating.

Another factor is cost, although it does seem many of Melbourne’s BBQ offerings try to beat the cost pain by pitching themselves as bar or snack food.

But that leads to another, related factor.

For me, BBQ is about great slabs of meat, flavours going ballistic, lusty sides and generally pigging out.

“Pulled pork sliders” – shredded pork on bread rolls – just don’t impress me that much.

So I was intrigued to get an email from Greg from Port Melbourne’s Third Wave Café.

His establishment has featured twice at Consider The Sauce – see stories here and here.

The café has won friends for its dedication to great coffee and a menu that includes many solid dishes of the Russian persuasion.

But those were not what Greg wished to discuss with me – his focus was very much on Third Wave’s new baby, its comprehensive BBQ menu.

So far only available on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, the new menu sees Third Wave transforming from daytime lunch and coffee spot to night-time restaurant.

That’s quite a change of direction.

And it’s a significant investment of time and money by Greg and his team, one on which the clock is ticking – Greg needs a word of mouth buzz and customers coming through those night-time doors, and quickly.

third34

When I meet Greg, a marketing man before his move into the hospitality industry, he tells me that in some way he wishes the internet – and food bloggers – had never been invented.

He reckons it would make life easier – or at least simpler.

But he also reckons that in a situation that finds Third Wave moving in a whole new direction, one that involves a sense of urgency in which the place’s Facebook page and established customers are unlikely to be adequate for the promotional cause, bloggers are his best bet.

He knows it’s a gamble, and that even should he get bloggers through the door, there’s no guarantee they’ll like the new food, let alone feel inspired to wax lyrical about it.

But he has profound faith in his product.

On that basis, would Bennie and I like to try the Third Wave BBQ goodies on a complementary basis?

And if that goes well, would I entertain the idea of helping organise a gathering of like-minded bloggers to do likewise?

 Sure, we’re up for that!

(Full disclosure below.)

As Bennie and I head for Port Melbourne, I’m hopeful but try to keep expectations in check.

Even before Melbourne’s current BBQ phase, my experience of ribs and the like in Melbourne has been one of abject mediocrity.

But, on the other hand, this will be Bennie’s first taste of this food genre – and I’m confident that if it’s any good at all, he’ll love it to pieces.

At the heart of the Third Wave BBQ menu are five meat offerings, one of fish and seven sides.

With the exception of the pork ribs, the small and large servings of which go for $28 and $53 respectively, the meats clock in at about $16-$19 and $29-$36. The sides range from $7 to $15.

Keep in mind, when looking at the pictures that accompany this story, that Bennie and I were served sample dishes of all the meat/fish offerings and four of the sides in order to have us experience a broad taste of the new menu.

But based on the half-dozen other occupied tables around us, the small serves are very substantial indeed. A half-serve and a side per person should be plenty and cost about $40.

That’s not exactly cheap eats territory, but it seems fine if it entails eating lusty BBQ in a glorious over-the-top fashion that I have never before found in Melbourne.

And as we’re about to discover, it does just that superbly.

Our first look and taste of the new menu comes with Greg introducing the three house-made sauces.

One with apple, one with bourbon, they’re of differing piquancy and spiciness and all delicious.

We proceed to enjoy all of them throughout the course of our meal.

Once the dust settles, the sauces would seem to offer ideal prospects for another future Third Wave commercial enterprise. If I was Greg, I’d already be having the labels designed.

But as he told me at our initial meeting, for him sauces should be the mere capping off of great meats smoked and cooked most excellently.

The place’s BBQ has those in abundance.

Let’s put it simply – the Third Wave BBQ dishes are without doubt the very best I have experienced in Melbourne and right up there with the greatest BBQ offerings I have previously eaten in the US.

Yes, really, that good.

third31

We start with the salmon and chicken.

(For full details of the smoking and cooking of each dish, please refer to the menu below.)

Bennie loves the salmon, but I find it hard to get excited about it. Maybe that’s down to a Kiwi upbringing that involved almost weekly eating of smoke fish.

The chicken impresses me a whole lot more with its great flavour and tenderness.

Next up are pork and beef ribs (top picture).

Oh my – these are incredible!

The pork ribs are fall-apart tender and produce great, delicious mouthfuls of pure delight.

The beef ribs are quite different but just as good. The staff have nicknamed them “dinosaur ribs”, such are the size of rib bones involved.

At a nearby table, a diminutive elderly gent is doing battle with a half-serve of these beef ribs. In an arm wrestle between punter and meat, we’d hesitate to nominate a winner.

third39

By comparison with both sets of ribs, the beef brisket looks rather demure.

Yet it, too, is amazing – so tender, juicy and delicately smoked. So much so, in fact, that I enjoy it without the addition of any of the sauces.

As with the beef ribs, the brisket is served with a creamy horseradish sauce. It’s fine, but we do prefer the tangy BBQ brews!

third310

By this time, Bennie and I are entering the realms of meat fatigue.

Perhaps that’s why the lamb shoulder doesn’t charm us quite as much as the more full-on meats that precede it.

And maybe, too, that’s down to the same Kiwi upbringing that saw lamb as at least a weekly affair.

It’s nice, but I can’t help but wonder whether lamb and smoking belong together. The house-made mint sauce is an oily number but supremely flavoursome.

But Greg tells us that some Australians simply can’t go past lamb.

For sides we have confit kippfler potatoes, glazed mushrooms, crispy coleslaw and pancetta peas.

They’re all fine, but apart from the juicy, rough-cut slaw, they are not your usual accompaniments to American-style BBQ.

We’re cool with that – we’re not about to start playing the purist game here.

In terms of sides, Third Wave is playing to its European/Russian strengths.

Besides, much as regular BBQ sides can very enjoyable, all too often they’re not that well done.

As we’d driven over the bridge to Port Melbourne, Bennie had asked what would become of the planned blogger do if we reckoned the food was no good.

The answer is, not a lot.

But on the basis of a terrific meal, I’m excited and happy to proceed.

Until June 6, Third Wave Cafe is offering a Thursday night special – buy any food item an get another free.

The Third Wave Cafe website is here.

Our meal at Third Wave Cafe was provided without charge by the owners in return for a story on Consider The Sauce. The food we were served was chosen by the staff in order to have us experience most of their new BBQ menu. Third Wave Cafe has not been given any editorial control of this post. Kenny has been engaged by Third Wave Cafe to help organise a blogger tasting gathering.

 

third311

third32

third33

third36

third38

third37

The art of biscuit making in Yarraville

4 Comments

bisc6

Miss Biscuit, Yarraville.

Miss Biscuit is Julia.

And Julia is Miss Biscuit.

But the Yarraville baker is a whole lot more – her day gig is as a speech pathologist and she’s mum, along with her husband, to kids aged 13 and nine.

Yet there’s no doubt she’s loving the “other” role she is forging for herself as creator of beautiful, intricately decorated biscuits.

What started as a hobby became a business in November last year.

“As I gave them to people, they started asking, ‘Can I buy some?’ – and I’ve just been taking it from there,” she says.

The timelines between family life, making batches of dough and the icing of biscuits tend to be on the cramped side, but Julia is enjoying every challenge her new gig is throwing her way – even if the business if far from being, as yet, a prolific money generator.

“I love it,” she proclaims with enthusiasm. “I love making and icing the biscuits, dealing with customers – all of it.”

IMG_6478

On the day Consider The Sauce visits, Julia is not icing any of her creations, but you can see plenty more of her incredible handiwork at the Miss Biscuit website or Facebook page.

In the local area, her biscuits are stocked by Cup & Bean on Wembley Avenue and Providorable in Williamstown.

The football jumper biscuits will be on sale at Flemington market on Sunday, May 26.

There’s little profit, Julia says, in wholesale, so that’s mainly a matter of exposure. Most of her sales come from online.

Unsurprisingly, much of those are sales are generated by kids’ activities or parties, but she has also supplied goodies for anniversaries and weddings.

The biscuit bases are created from a simple dough of butter, flour, vanilla, eggs and baking powder.

The dough aspect of her 200 or so biscuits a week is cheap and quick – it’s the icing process that’s more pricey and time-consuming.

IMG_5595

She uses standard food colourings in her icing, having found the more “natural” products simply don’t have the vividness required.

She says it’s not an issue for almost all of her customers.

Incredibly, given the intricacy of her biscuit designs and aside from some skill as a gardener, Julia makes no great claims to being the “creative sort”.

“I can’t draw a circle!” she says with a laugh.

She does use a projector to help with some of her designs.

Meanwhile, you can bet Bennie and I will be springing some cash to try Julia’s forthcoming Jake and Finn Adventure Time biscuits!

 IMG_5053

Don’t judge a book by its noodle box cover …

2 Comments

nood8

Footscray Noodles In A Box Cafe, 83 Nicholson St, Footscray. Phone: 9687 8882

What?

I reckon that would’ve been a common reaction when many citizens realised Footscray mall was to become home to a noodle box establishment.

In a neighbourhood teeming with outstanding noodle options, it did seem like a food faux pas indicating unimagination running wild.

So now that it’s been up and running for a while, what’s the story?

Is it more than the signage might suggest?

The answer is an unequivocal, “Yes!”

nood7

Sure, there are noodle box stalwarts such as wonton noodle soup and “chew kawi teow”.

And doubtless, it’s possible to order them in a box.

(I hate them, by the way – food killers!)

But this Sunday lunch time, when the cafe is one of the very few mall businesses actually open, the place is busy with customers, several of them hungry types of the Asian persuasion tucking in to big bowls of soup ‘n’ noodles.

As well, there’s other stuff going on here – affogato, chips, breakfast. And I bet they do a killer coffee.

I’m partially hankering for laksa, but spying the hand-written specials list at the serving counter, I have no hesitation in ordering pho.

What better way to see if these folks can rise above the baggage that goes with noodle box associations of mediocrity?

nood1

My one-size-fits-all, $10.50 beef pho is fabulous.

Joining the lean sliced beef are slices of a fattier cut, beef ball discs and even some brisket.

The broth is a deepish brown with heaps of flavour.

Black pepper from the beef balls combines with red chilli slices to really give this soup bowl a hefty spice kick. I subsequently discover the chillis used are a shorter, hotter variety than is normally the case.

Given the quantity of meat, it’s a serve far larger than I can complete – if they sold small, medium and large, I’d order small.

Still, it’s been a killer lunch, with smiling, friendly service a bonus.

 

nood5

nood4

nood6

nood3

Pre-match brekky a lark at the park …

Leave a comment

tofwd1

TOFWD* the organic food and wine deli, Orrong Park Tennis Centre, Sydney St, Prahran. Phone: 9510 6481

For a couple of reasons, Bennie has missed both footy practices this week.

Still, we’re up for the Saturday game, prepared to front up, make our apologies and get into it.

Feeling a bit out of the loop, we rely on the bare bones information on the official draw – which tells us it’s the first away game of the season.

Easy – over the bridge, along Kinsgway and eventually turn left on to Orrong Rd.

It’s only on awakening that I recall this fixture the previous year started a full hour earlier than usual, supposedly to preserve the afternoon tranquility of the sensitive residents.

So just to make sure, we hit the road at 7.30, only to arrive and find … no one, save for an adult exercise group and a heaps of dogs chasing balls.

tofwd5

How to pass the time? That decision is a breeze on account of the presence of a rather lovely cafe.

Breakfast was bananas so we’re for sure up some actual on-a-plate food and suitable beverages to accompany.

In junior football settings, I find the usual canteen fodder of snags in white sliced bread sublimely appropriate, but given we have the time, we certainly plan on making good use of what is at hand.

TOFWD, a sister establishment to the one in Degreaves St in the CBD, has some inside seating, but a whole lot more outside in the sun.

It’s a lovely setting, which we are delighted to find is matched by the food, service and coffee/hot chocolate.

tofwd2

Bennie’s “egg & bacon butty w spinach and bbq sauce on toasted ciabatta” ($10.50) looks a little light on for the price.

But it looks and smells divine, and does a fine job for the boy.

My repeated requests for a taste are deftly waved aside by my smirking offsider.

tofwd3

My “avo & fetta smash” ($10.50) is likewise satisfactory.

It’s fresh as can be and on good bread.

So if you’re not here to play tennis, play fetch with a four-legged buddy, otherwise exercise or await your junior rugby teammates, is there any reason to visit TOFWD?

Well, yes.

The lunch menu (below) features such items as salads, pasta and a pie.

It’s quite the gem and this has been a fantastic Melbourne accident.

Open 7.30am-3pm Monday-Friday , Saturday 8am-3pm and Sunday 8am-2pm. Through the tennis term, are open until 5.30pm Monday to Wednesday.

 

tofwd4

tofwd8

tofwd6

tofwd7

tofwd9

Sun Mei – still mostly a takeaway joint …

Leave a comment

sunmei3

Sun Mei, 83 Charles St, Seddon. Phone: 9687 0680

Despite our many years in the neighbourhood, Sun Mei has never tempted us.

On the rare occasions we indulge in the Chinese delivered route, we go with a more distant but significantly cheaper outlet.

Eating out?

We keep on motoring to Footscray central or further afield.

Or if we stop in Seddon, there are other more alluring options – especially in more recent times.

But about a year, Sun Mei got a new look, some paint and quite a different vibe, with white-coated cooks energetically presiding over the woks in theatrical style every time we pass by at night-time.

So it is that I finally succumb to curiosity.

And discover, in the process, that Sun Mei remains fundamentally a take-away joint, despite the makeover.

But I agree with Consider The Sauce buddy James’ comment that with a little effort it could be so much more, as the food is “above-average” for its kind.

sunmei2

It’s very busy, even this early in the week. Locals are popping in with regularity, while the in-house delivery drivers comes and goes several times while I am in the house.

Eat-in facilities are minimal – a long wall shelf with stools opposite the wonderfully open kitchen and servery, and a small table in the window, at which I perch.

Two dim sims ($2.80 on the takeaway menu) are rather unglamourosuly served to me in a plastic takeaway container.

Who cares?

They’re mighty – tender, big, juicy, slightly peppery, all-round delicious and hearty on a chilly night.

Forget the legendary and over-rated South Melbourne Market dimmies – these here are the biz!

sunmei1

As could be expected, my kueh teow ($13) is significantly different from what would be served in a Malaysian restaurant.

The rather finely chopped pork and tiny shrimp come almost certainly from the same ingredient containers that are used in producing Sun Mei’s fried rice.

There’s no fish cake, egg, fat prawns, Chinese sausage or fresh chilli, with dried chilli flakes used instead.

But, golly, it’s crackingly good – notably unoily for this dish yet still evincing plenty of “wok hei” flavour.

 

sunmei4

Sang’s Takeaway Food Restaurant

1 Comment

sang4

Sang’s Takeaway Food Restaurant, 136 Mitchell St, Maidstone. Phone: 9318 8188

Sang’s is situated on the Mitchell St strip that houses Los Latinos and in a premises that once accommodated an Asian eatery of an entirely different kind.

The space has undergone a cheerful transformation to become a pretty nifty Vietnamese joint with a cleverly constructed menu and chefs-in-white all a-bustle.

Open just a few weeks, Sang’s is celebrating its arrival by running a hefty 20 per cent discount until May 25.

That’s code for, “Get your skates on!”

Sang’s has six kinds of rice paper rolls at $4 for a pair; there’s seven kinds of beef pho, all for $10.

A similar number of rice and broken rice meals cost the same.

I love Vietnamese chicken curry – especially the one I score in St Albans, though we sometimes grab takeaway when the dish is available at Minh Hy.

sang1

So scanning the Sang’s list of bun/vermicelli, my attention is grabbed by the chook curry variety – also $10. This is a twist on a dish usually served with rice or – even better – a crusty bread roll.

In this case, the usually runny curry gravy/soup is subsumed by the softish mound of vermicelli, which in no way diminishes my enjoyment.

Nor does the fact the chicken pieces are small and on the bony side.

The chilli heat is quite high for Vietnamese chicken curry and the tender spud and carrot bits are happily joined by a plentiful amount of basil and coriander. I love it when coriander becomes more than a mere garnish!

Anther non-standard dish that leaps out at me from the menu is Vietnamese pancake, while I’m betting the Singapore noodle and pad Thai will be worthy of exploration, too.

Sang’s seems ideally positioned to be successful – I reckon the locals in the immediate neighbourhood must be delighted.

If eating in, I suggest grabbing one of tables to the rear to avoid the nasty gusts that gallop through the wide gap between door and floor at the front.

sang2

sang3

Hong Kong BBQ Restaurant

4 Comments

hk2

Hong Kong BBQ Restaurant, 118 Hopkins St Footscray. Phone: 9687 8488

We’ve had some indifferent experiences at this Footscray institution.

Not so much with the food, which we’ve mostly found good and even – sometimes – excellent.

It’s had more to do with the service.

Service so brutally indifferent it has seen us depart without even ordering on a couple of occasions in the past couple of years.

Service that has felt like a slap in the face.

But Footscray is not richly endowed when it comes to Chinese roast meats, and sometimes nothing else will do.

So I’m happy to give this HK joint another go.

Maybe it’s all in the timing.

For today the place is pretty much deserted – just one other booth occupied, but with a bunch of folks coming, going and in takeaway mode.

I am served with the usual brusqueness, but by someone who injects a little humour and warmth into my experience when the pen she is using fails.

She later slaps down the top of my tea thermos with the admonishment: “Keep closed, tea stay hot!”

hk1

My two-meat combo of soya chicken and roast pork with soup/noodles ($10) is good, but I’ve had much better here and elsewhere.

The chicken is terrific, tender and flavoursome, with the meat not dauntingly attached to the bones.

The pork is on the fatty side. It always is, but this is more so than usual.

The noodles tend to stick together in a bothersome ball.

The broth is sadly short of hot. It’s salty, too, but I like that.

It’s probably also larded with MSG, but I don’t mind that. I’m not one of those people who can automatically tell one way or the other.

One large bulb of bok choy provides greenery and the feel-good factor. I could do without it.

hk3

There’s movement at the station …

11 Comments

station1

Surprisingly, given the name of the place, I only made it once to the short-lived Dosa N Biryani in Irving St, between Thien An and an Indian grocery.

Even more surprisingly, that single visit was not for a dosa or biryani – both of which I am a big fan – but instead a rather mediocre thali.

In any case, all that is already history.

The premises are undergoing a much more comprehensive overhaul and revamp.

And, if the sign in the window can used a gauge, the new business here is likely to also offer goodies of an Indian persuasion.

station2

Meanwhile, around the corner and directly adjacent the tram terminus, another business premises with a wobbly track record is also undergoing some sort of transformation, although these ones have the look of a more long-winded variety.

When I ask at Vietnamese butcher shop a few doors along if they knew what was planned for the place, someone chirped up with the phrase “coffee shop”.

  station3