Tag Archives: western suburbs

Westie barbers No.3: Mai Hair Salon

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Mai Hair Salon, 3/119 Hopkins St, Footscray

Barbers of European or Mediterranean extraction are not the only places to obtain a cheap, great and enjoyable haircut in the west.

Far from it.

In the Vietnamese precincts of Footscray and further west, the options are many.

When I enter one of these emporiums in, say, Sunshine or St Albans, my arrival is often greeted with an effusive bubbling of Vietnamese chatter.

This usually translates, I have learnt, as something along the lines of, “OMG check out this dude with the crazy moustache”.

This doesn’t happen at Mai in Footscray, however, on account of me going there so often for so long.

Mai is not a barbershop, of course.

They do all sorts of do’s here, male and female.

But for my purposes, it’s perfect.

A smile, a welcome, “how you want your hair?” is the usual routine.

“Zero, all gone, very shiny.”

No problem – $8 including eyebrows!

Brilliant.

 

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Sandwich culture in the west

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Thanks to Jill Rowe of Spice Bazaar for letting us publish her entry in our guest post contest – it may not have won but we love it anyway!

Check out the Spice Bazaar website – and their wonderful cooking courses – here.

BTW, Consider The Sauce is also a big fan of the Sourdough Kitchen sangers – they’ve regular work lunch fare this tear.

*****

I remember my school lunch sandwiches with disdain.

My evil step mum would work her magic on creating something that couldn’t be eaten.

By the time lunchtime arrived, the filling of warm plastic cheese, wilted lettuce, congealed chicken slice and soggy tomatoes had turned the white bread into jelly – nobody was surprised to see it in the bin.

Oh mum, you tried!

Sometimes I would buy a bread roll and a packet of chips from the canteen – definitely no discernible health benefits but at least it was crunchy.

More satisfying were the after school versions we made ourselves.

Fresh white bread, with exactly the right amount of butter and Vegemite

It was a science.

 

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Food is memory and I bet many South Americans remember their version with mother love.

It’s fresh white bread, a single slice of cheese with a slathering of mayonnaise – I’m sure this is their version of our Vegemite variety.

This humble looking, but tasty, sandwich was enjoyed at La Morenita and it did remind me of those Vegemite days.

 

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Nuevo Latino’s “midnight sandwich” is full of delicious pulled pork, crunchy pickled vegetables and mustard – totally addictive.

Think – delicious weekend roast leftovers, and after watching the soccer on a Sunday evening you start to get peckish.

Of course, you want  a midnight sandwich. It’s enough to carry you through to the next morning.

 

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Then there are the “sandwich-like” papusas, also served at Nuevo Latino.

These crafted corn discs ooze the meltingly delicious cheeses that make up the filling.

Peel one apart (it’s how you tell a good one), fill with a little curtido and sauce, fold together and eat like a Salvadoran.

Forget that diet for today!

 

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Inside Little Saigon market hides a Vietnamese treasure (well there are lots of treasures here but here we are talking about bread and sandwiches).

IMHO this is the best version of banh mi.

At Nhu Ngoc bakery, ask for the “combination on a tiger roll” and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

 

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So I was searching for the “perfect sandwich” – and I found it at the Sourdough Kitchen in Seddon.

One made with fresh sliced sourdough bread, highest quality sliced ham, perfect pickles, bitter fresh rocket and a home-made chutney.

Wow!

If my mum could have made me a sandwich like this, I would have eaten lunch every day.

Meal of the week No.7: Kebab Surra

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There are three – THREE! – new restaurants of the Afghani/Iranian/Persian persuasion CTS is keen to get cracking on …

In the meantime, Footscray’s own, Kebab Surra, has become a regular since our initial write-up.

I’ve become used to getting a most welcome bowls of lamb/barley soup with my meals here.

That isn’t forthcoming when I order chela kebab ($14) – but that’s OK because what I do get is terrific.

Nice rice.

Two sublimely juicy, meaty skewers of marinated chicken; no such thing as too-dry chook breast meat here!

Tangy yogurt with cucumber and dried mint.

Most excellent fresh bread – like a cross between Turkish bread and naan.

Chewy and excellent.

And – instead of the usual mixed salad – a much more finely diced effort in the Indian style.

No wonder Kebab Surra has become a very firm favourite of Joe.

 

Dancing Dog Diary No.4

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IMPORTANT LINKS

Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog Pozible campaign – click here.

Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog Facebook group – click here.

Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog website – click here.

Real estate listing – click here.

 

Consider The Sauce is unusually late in getting moving this Sunday – time to go!

Besides, the great and extensive work some of my #letsbuythedog colleagues and friends are doing is making me feel like a bit of a malingerer.

 

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First stop is Officeworks to get some flyers run off.

They’re pricier than I expect so cut back on the number I hoped to buy.

 

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First order of business is to get my wheels suitably adorned – then it’s off to Footscray.

The only firm idea I have is to tape flyers to the lamp posts in the neighbourhood surrounding the Dancing Dog building itself.

 

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But first – of course – lunch: pretty good Somalian meat ‘n’ rice from Jazeera Cafe in Paisley Street.

 

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Back at the Dancing Dog Cafe itself, things take a heartening turn that seems emblematic of so much that is happening with this campaign in terms of support, friendship and community bonhomie.

Jo, one of two Dancing Dog staff members on hand, makes me a brilliant cafe latte.

She grabs a handful of flyers to put in the nearby university and at Footscray City Primary, where her kids go to school.

 

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Then two of my #letsbuythedog compatriots – Viki and Chela – arrive.

Viki, too, grabs a bunch of flyers.

They’re here for the regular Sunday Westword poetry bash – so I leave a bunch of flyers for the gathered poets, too!

 

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It’s clear my supply of flyers will be gone in the next day easily just through the normal course of living and working in the inner west.

How cool is that?

 

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Supa fun, super burgers

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Supanova, Melbourne Showgrounds.

Supanova is a celebration of pop culture, and – more specifically – all things comic, scifi, fantasy, gaming and more.

Bennie and I attended in 2009 and had a fine time.

Back then we did some planning, taking banh mi and a big bottle of Coke.

This time around, it’s an impromptu day and we suffer for that.

For starters, while Bennie reckons the entrance fee is $30 it’s actually $40 on the day.

Plus $10 for parking.

So we’re up for almost $100 before we even get in.

As well, it seems Supanova has grown A LOT in the intervening years.

Even after nearing the showgrounds, it’s takes almost a full hour to secure a parking spot.

 

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Then it takes more than half an hour to work our way to the front of a ticket queue that stretches for about 400 metres.

Of course, we can’t blue about this too much as we could depart at any point – no one is forcing us to endure this bullshit.

But, heck, we could’ve just about walked from Yarraville and gotten in quicker.

 

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There must be a better way – especially for an event that costs so much to enter, only for patrons to be greeted by more queues – for food, autographs and photo ops – and many, many more ways to spend more money.

And after all, if you’re going to attend such a party, there’s no point in doing so if you’re going to be a complete tightwad about it.

 

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Anyway, we persevere and get there in the end – but by then I’m plenty cranky and exasperated.

What to do?

Eat!

Instead of standing in line for any of the in-house offerings, we don our wrist bands and head around the corner to Zigzag Burgers ‘n’ Salads.

Since our initial visit here, I’ve been back once by myself and am very happy to return once more.

 

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Our burgers are excellent and the hand-cut chips are better than before.

Zigzag is now our official go-to burger joint – yep, above and before 8bit, food trucks and any place else you care to mention.

 

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Thus fortified, we enter re-enter Supanova with glee and enjoy a giddily fantastic few hours.

The main hall has many hundreds of stalls and I’m thrilled.

Unlike Bennie, I’m not really into to comics and gaming but I find plenty to keep me entertained.

For starters, I’m delighted to see more books than I recall from our previous Supanova outing.

 

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I’m supa happy to meet Justin Woolley, buy his book, a rather darkish fantasy/speculative fiction outing called A Town Called Dust, and get it autographed.

I have a longish and fascinating chat with Justin about book blogs, their role in book promotion and the inevitable spectre of corruption that can arise.

Very interesting!

 

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A little further on, I buy another book by another Melbourne author, get it autographed and enjoy talking with its author.

Steve P Vincent‘s Foundation is a ripping political conspiracy thriller – I’m up to page 100 and loving every word of it.

Steve is an Ascot Vale local and is fully familiar with the fantastic food of Safari.

How cool is that?

 

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Bennie, meanwhile, has bought some vintage comics and is eager to get a poster by Tony Moore, who was responsible for the artwork on the first six issues of The Walking Dead, which my lad only recently inhaled.

He gets his poster, has it signed and has a pic taken with the artist.

How cool is that No.2?

 

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This ease of access to Supanova guests – buy the product and get a chat, an autograph, a photo at no extra cost – is a vivid contrast to the cavernous hall in which the event’s superstars (none of which I’ve heard) do their thing.

Here punters are herded like cattle, wait times seem very long and the prices for autographs and photos averages around the $50 mark.

Stuff that!

 

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Back in the main stall hall, I am happy to take in some sports activity to fill in for the fact I’m missing out on my usual Saturday arvo soccer and/or league.

 

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After several hours, Bennie and I are getting leg weary.

We’re almost done but it’s still a gas to wander around checking out our fellow punters and the extreme efforts so many of them have made to get into the spirit of things.

 

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Supanova may not press my music and food buttons but to a large degree, I realise, these are my people.

Kenny – 58 going on 18.

 

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Dancing Dog Diary No.3

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IMPORTANT LINKS

Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog Pozible campaign – click here.

Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog Facebook group – click here.

Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog website – click here.

Real estate listing – click here.

 

Meeting No.3 and the second of which I have attended.

Familiars faces and new faces.

The Pozible campaign – link above – is tootling along but it seems clearer than ever we’ll not be reaching our target unless unless philanthropy of some sort comes into play.

But everyone is united that this project is worthwhile no matter what for a variety of reasons.

Other group beliefs are re-iterated:

The is a not-for-profit community group.

It is NOT anti-development.

It IS about retaining the Dancing Dog building as a community asset and space.

Many, many ideas and suggestions are discussed.

They include allies, a plan B, a heritage listing with more clout than the current one, promotions, media, an “angel developer”, and what to do on auction day.

But time is running out, so we must stick to the, um, “pozible”.

 

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Our plan of attack – to spread the campaign as widely as possible online and offline.

You never know what could happen.

We might just make our target or a “white knight” might step in.

Or we might just scare off developers who have no regard for what we love about the building and encourage those who are keen to do something community minded and inspired.

What we do know, is the more support we can show for this campaign, the more likelihood there is of a good outcome of some sort.

One thing that struck as I drove to Seddon for meeting …

If the building should fall into the hands of developer with no sympathy for widespread community regard for the building, the result could be not just townhouses/apartments the likes of which have been built in the surrounding neighbourhoods.

It could be worse as the site is so prominent, standing as it does on a corner.

And as it is what greets motorists and pedestrians when they enter the Foostcray CBD from the Albert Street overpass, it could even be argued that the building is something of a gateway to Footscray.

Not, perhaps, to the same degree as Footscray Road or Dynon Road/Hopkins Street river bridges … but still.

 

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Meal of the week No.6: Dosa Corner

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Consider The Sauce may end up doing a more substantial write-up on Dosa Corner, the new Indian place opposite long-established Dosa Hut on Barkly Street in West Footscray – when there are a tableful of mouths to feed.

In the meantime, here’s the goss.

Dosa Corner has been open about a week, there’s incense burning, the place is bright and cheerful, and the service good considering this is a snack-type joint.

The menu is quite long and super cheap.

There’s dosas aplenty, of course.

But there’s also chaat, uthappams, quite a few Indo-Chinese dishes, biryanis and a trio of sweets.

Get a load of the above-pictured pooris!

The freshly fried breads are a little smaller than usual but very good.

The gloopy dal/vegetable mix is excellent.

The other accompaniments are those that attend your typical dosas.

The price?

$5.

How’s that for a brilliant light lunch?

 

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Hardware overkill

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The is the new Bunnings that is rapidly nearing completion at the Footscray site of what was once the HQ for the Forges/Dimmeys empire.

As we were driving past yesterday, Bennie asked:

“Who is going to shop there?”

Good question, I reckon.

This behemoth will join newish Bunnings outlets at Altona and Highpoint.

There are others in Sunshine, Melton, Hoppers Crossing, Werribee Caroline Springs, Taylors Lakes and Essendon.

And of course, Bunnings has competitors – there’s Mitre 10, Masters/BCF and Home Timber & Hardware outlets scattered across the west, too.

Indeed, there is one of the latter just a few hundred metres from the new Footscray Bunnings location.

As anyone who has even so much as glanced at a television in recent years will attest, all these companies spend A LOT on advertising.

Their slogans are as embedded in our collective brain as deeply as any irritating pop song.

 

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I’ve heard it said that such edifices are what has closed down neighbourhood hardware stores.

I’m sure that’s true – there used to be one of the smaller variety in Anderson Street, Yarraville.

But it doesn’t explain the growth explosion of these mega-stores.

Mega-stores?

More like aircraft hangars.

Or aircraft carriers.

And I know the greater western suburbs are experiencing tremendous growth and a steep population increase.

But that doesn’t do it for me, either.

After all, these places are becoming so ubiquitous that they’re the hardware equivalent of 7-Eleven, Subway or Maccas.

What is going on?

Post-script: The answer to the above question – or some of the answers – are to be found in this very good piece from August last year in The Monthly.

Thanks to Amy for the link!

 

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Dancing Dog Diary No.2

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The Let’s Buy The Dancing Dog Pozible campaign went live last Thursday morning.

By early evening, it had accrued just over $1000 in pledges.

“OK – cool!” thought I.

A mere 12 hours later that figure had swelled to more than $30,000.

Wow!

How did that happen?

Easter has slowed things down, unsurprisingly.

But as of this writing – early evening on Easter Sunday – the pledge amount stand at more than $37,000.

Wow!

Maybe we can really do this!

In the meantime, the campaign’s Facebook page has been filled with enthusiasm and all sorts of exciting and inspiring link and stories.

Even to the most ardent optimist, however, it may still seem like a preposterous long shot.

So is there a point to all this if we fail to reach the required amount?

Oh yes there is!

As Katerina said in an email gee-up to supporters:

“Already, these meetings have brought people together and brought out all sorts of wonderful stories. Even if the campaign doesn’t win, it’s been worth it just for these moments. Come and enjoy the inspirational community spirit. And remember, even if we don’t get the money we need to buy the building, the better this campaign does, the more we are putting developers on notice that they will have a fight on their hands if they do anything really inappropriate.”

Personally, I am already enjoying the community goodwill and spirit being displayed by all and sundry.

And given the networks of connections and relationships that are being utilised, it’s unsurprising that some things are becoming nicely personal.

The best friend of my son, Bennie, is a lovely lad named Che.

When they first became pals, they were both attending the same Sunshine primary school and Che lived with his mum, Viki, and sister, Chela, in North Sunshine.

A few years back, they moved to Yarraville – and just a few blocks from us.

The boys’ friendship has deepened since then and yours truly is slowly, bit by bit, getting to know his mum and the family in general.

One thing I have learned through conversation and Facebook is that Viki is a really, really good singer.

What I did not know until #letsbuythedog is that she has a rich and intense history with the Dancing Dog.

Here’s what she posted for the Let’s Buys The Dancing Dog Facebook group:

“I love this place – I’ve spent many a Sunday afternoon here with the Westword poets. My kids love the cookies they serve. Our band has played gigs there and we made one of our video clips there. I hope this place can remain as a space where people make music/poetry/art/socialise as before. I don’t know if this helps in any way, but here’s a video clip we did, much of which was filmed at the Dancing Dog, the fact of which epitomises what it means to me and many others. The people at the Dancing Dog were very supportive when we made this.”

 

 

And here, just as a matter of record, is the Biggin & Scott video spruiking the building:

 

 

Remember: The auction is scheduled for Saturday, April 18, at 1pm!

Altona joy

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The House Of Beans Cafe, 25 The Circle, Altona. Phone: 0419 375 397

Bennie always showed more interest in the F&C shop at one end of The Circle’s shopping strip than I.

But that wasn’t hard as mine was pretty much zero.

My lack of curiosity continued when the premises became a cafe that – and here I am, judging a restaurant by its cover – seemed to offer little more than basic coffee.

So it is only happy circumstance – the Lebanese pizza shop up the road being closed – that forces me through the door to see what’s on offer.

My prior judgments based on appearances prove to be utterly false.

 

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In fact, House Of Beans serves a nice longish range of Lebanese food – think falafel, foul, hommos and the like – that puts it on the same footing as the fabulous Abbout Falafel House in Coburg.

And about that I am ecstatic.

Just think – no more driving to Sydney Road!

Unless we feel like a drive, of course.

For my first visit, I go for the “kefta in bread” ($6.50) and a small serve of fattoush ($7) (top photo).

 

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At first blush the kefta found between layers of lovely, toasted house-made flat bread appears to be very similar to the pinkish meaty smear found on your basic meat pizza up the road and elsewhere.

It’s nothing of the sort.

This is much more juicy, well seasoned and delicious – in short, it really is lamb kofta in a sandwich.

Marvellous!

The generously proportioned fattoush is wonderfully fresh but, if anything, the dressing is a little too lemony.

And regular readers will know that I really like a lemony dressing.

On the basis of what I’ve already, tried I am excited upon returning with Bennie.

Nahida helpfully explains the ins and outs of the five different varieties of foul on offer – basically they’re all variations on red beans, depending on the addition or not of tomato, tahini or chick peas – but we perversely go in the opposite direction.

 

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I let my young man have his way with an order of the most expensive menu item – mixed grill ($15).

It’s a ripper!

There’s a skewer apiece of kofta, lamb and chicken.

They’re all fabulous – heavy with amazing chargrill flavour, juicy and tender.

Throw in a good gob of hommos, some rice and the same good salad mix, and you’ve got a splendid meal.

 

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My falafel plate ($10) looks a little on the bare-bones side until the arrival of …

 

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… a fabulously tangy bowl of green olives, pickled cucumber and chillis, mint and onion with which Bennie and I both make happy.

The falafels themselves are fresh and yummy though a tad on the dry side for my tastes. Next time, I’m sure some yogurt will happily be provided to moisten things up.

 

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Nahida brings us some foul to try regardless of our regular order.

This one is an oily mix of red beans and chick peas that is slightly surplus to the rest of our meal.

But we enjoy most of it anyway.

I love how its plainness works in a harmony of contrasts with the various contents of our pickle bowl.

We love what Banjo (he declines to tell me from part of Lebanon his name comes), Nahida and their family have going on here and what they bring to the table in terms of swelling the depth of Middle eastern food available in the western suburbs.

We suggest you get there pronto – but take on board that House Of Beans Cafe is a lunch-only establishment.

 

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Our mission? Fried chicken!

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Snow Tree, 119 Hopkins Street, Footscray. Phone: 9689 0871

Consider The Sauce has been to Snow Tree once before when it was mostly a waffle/sweets place.

In the ensuing months I have been somewhat aware that the place has been evolving.

But it was only very recently that I noted that it now has a much more fetching interior and a much-extended menu.

Snow Tree has become a full-on Korean restaurant!

So it is that the same Team CTS of four rocks up for a feed.

Fried chicken is very much on our minds.

So at first we are shattered when we discover there is a big red cross drawn right through the fried chook section of the menu proper.

 

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No problem – it’s all on its own laminated card.

But at Snow Tree, it has to be said, the fried chook list, the lunch menu and the menu proper are difficult to navigate, with a confusing range of “sets” and options.

Hard to know just how to do it for a group of four.

We settle on a whole chook to share and a main with condiments each.

Yep, we’re in over-order territory but not by much.

One of our mains is forgotten, but the boo-boo turnaround is admirably swift and in no way detracts from our dinner enjoyment.

 

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Our whole chicken costs $29.

It’s just fine.

It comes with the requested “spicy” sauce and is festooned with chips.

Korean fried chicken has so rapidly become a bit of a craze that there seems to be heap of folks – bloggers and others – who are experts.

I am not one of them.

So I simply do not know if the chips and the masses of sticky sauce are traditional, normal or even acceptable.

For me, the chips seem redundant.

The sauce is spicy but makes for a supremely sticky – but not necessarily unenjoyable – eating experience.

The chicken itself?

Excellent.

 

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My spicy beef “rip” stew ($14.50) is a bit of a mixed bag.

The gravy/soup is not terrifically spicy but has a tremendous depth of flavour.

I love the way it works with the vegetables and some rice.

There’s heaps of beef rib bits with sizable meat chunks (and fat). But the meat itself is chewy to the point of closing in on inedible.

Dang!

 

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Bennie and Eliza both enjoy their “stone” bibimbap ($12), and I note with some envy that the rice bottom of Bennie’s dish is suitably brown and crunchy.

 

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Josh goes for the spicy pork belly on rice ($10.50) and I hear no complaints from him.

The kimchee, slaw, bean sprouts and roast potato cubes (we think that’s what they are) that accompany all our dishes are OK without evincing much finesse.

The above-noted forgotten dish aside, the service is good and the wait times about right for the dishes we have ordered.

All minor quibbles aside, we enjoy our time at Snow Tree.

It strikes us as a winning Footscray spot for Korean food that can cater for a quick ten-buck solo lunch or for more relaxed meals for larger groups.

And the menu is comprehensive!

 

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Dancing Dog Diary No.1

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Katerina Gaita and a few pals set the ball rolling to attempt saving the Dancing Dog building as a community space/asset little more than a week before the mid-week meeting I attend but the campaign is already gaining momentum.

I filled in the contact form – “How can I help?” – form on the new group’s website and have been duly contacted.

I proffer my services, suggesting that maybe – just maybe – I can offer some help by way of media savvy.

The truth is, though, I feel a bit redundant …

 

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… because the sale of the property at 42 Albert Street and the campaign to keep it “in the community” has already scored the front page splashes of BOTH local newspapers.

That’s impressive!

Katerina assures me, however, that this is because the story has captured the community’s imagination and not necessarily because of any top-rate media hustle by herself or anyone else.

Still …

You can read the Star Weekly story here and the Leader story here.

As well, The Age has also been busy in the form of story in its Domain section, which you can read here.

But time is short as the auction is scheduled for 1pm on Saturday, April 18.

 

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I am one of 13 people who attend the meeting in Seddon and one of only three blokes on hand.

I feel even more out of my depth when the complexities and work involved in setting up such a project – administrative, legal, financial, crowdfunding and more – are grappled with.

Luckily, we have among us a number of what I suspect are very capable community activists and it is all addressed, and roles and aims allocated and decided, within a couple of hours with a minimum of fuss.

There is wine and Easter eggs on hand to grease the wheels.

Everyone is on board but all those present, without exception, have busy lives and a gazillion other things to deal with.

My offer of putting Consider The Sauce at the campaign’s disposal is readily accepted.

So while #letsbuythedog has a Facebook group (see here) and a website (see here), CTS will work as a sort of clearing house – on a needs basis – for news, links to media coverage, stories, comments, conversations and notification of events, happenings and meetings.

Hopefully, we can all have some fun while we’re at it!

So why have I chosen to become in this when so many other similar campaigns have passed me by?

I’m not really sure, to tell you the truth.

I’ve certainly never been a regular habitue of the Dancing Dog.

I think it comes down to a comment left by regular CTS comment-leaver Jane on the Footscray eats goss post I put up a week or so ago:

“It’s going to kinda suck when Footscray is just another Yarraville…”

The group as whole, however, is determined that the campaign be promoted as community-positive rather than anti-development.

Check out the real estate listing for the property here.

Stay tuned!

Thank you, Footscray!

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Entries for Consider The Sauce Guest Post Competition were slow in arriving but in the end we got a goodly number.

All were good.

A couple were longer and more detailed than the winner.

But in the end, the honours go to Erika Jonsson for her eloquent and soulful homage to Footscray.

Congratulations and we hope you enjoy your lunch at Woven.

And thanks to all who entered!

 

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By Erika Jonsson

My four-year-old son’s fingertips are stained yellow.

He’s licked them clean but the turmeric always lingers in the beds of his nails for a day or two after an Ethiopian feast.

He loves eating with his hands, dipping tangy injera into brightly coloured stews or wrapping it around perfectly cooked meat.

Joe slides down from his seat and heads to the counter to pay – a responsibility he takes seriously.

“Don’t forget your manners,” I remind him as he walks away.

He proffers a $50 note and accepts his change.

“Amesegenallo,” he says.

The faces behind the counter light up – shock quickly becomes delight at the realisation a small, blond boy has just said thank you in Amharic, Ethiopia’s primary language.

“Thank you” is a powerful word in any language, but say it to someone in their native tongue when they are not expecting it and you can open up a conversation in an instant.

My son has spent the entirety of his short life in Footscray.

He loves to talk and he loves to make people happy.

So he says “cảm ơn” when he’s been eating pho; “terima kasih” at Roti Road; “shuk’ran” at Babylon (a favourite that

has now sadly closed); and “grazie” to Joe the barber for a handful of lollies after a hair cut.

He takes diversity for granted.

“How good does Kebab Surra smell?” he exclaims from across the road as he catches a whiff of charcoal and spice emanating from his favourite restaurant. “Can we have Kebab Surra for dinner please, please, please?”

I grew up in a household with plenty of culinary variety, but nothing like the world of choices Joe has on offer within a kilometre of our central Footscray apartment.

When we moved to Footscray, when I was pregnant with Joe, my friends and family were aghast.

Occasionally they still express concerns about safety or doubts over our inner-urban lifestyle.

I just laugh.

I’ve never regretted our decision to move to Footscray.

Every now and then I wish for more space, but the trade-off isn’t worth it.

Joe and I walk everywhere.

We eat out when we feel like it, and a family meal for three plus an increasingly hungry nine-month-old rarely costs more than $40.

We have a world of food right outside our door, and it opens up a world of possibilities when it comes to travel, friendship and cultural awareness.

Life tastes good in Footscray.

Meal of the week No.6: Ebi

5 Comments

f&c

 

The dinner hour for CTS and, we suspect, many other bloggers and foodies is somewhere between 6pm and 7pm.

For some, this is the legacy of having – or having had – very young children.

Perhaps “available light” has something to do with it.

I’ve even heard of bloggers who only do lunch for that very reason!

But a big part of it for us is … we’re hungry for food, hungry for adventure.

So 8pm seems way too late, especially on a work/school night.

The Mediterranean post-sietsa 9pm or later?

Unimaginable!

Early evening dining also means missing rush hour and always getting a seat.

In the case of tiny Ebi in West Footcray, that latter point is no small thing.

Entering by myself and taking a seat at the bar, I go through the usual routine … look at the display cabinet, consult the blackboard menu, peruse the regular menu, before saying …

“I’ll have fish and chips thanks, John – large!”

John: “How did I know you were going to say that?!”

Me: “Hmmpf! You must have other regulars who always order the same thing?”

The genial, chrome-domed Ebi host the proceeds to count off a long list of regulars with whom he is on first-name terms and their invariable choices – “fish three ways”, vegetable balls, udon, bento and so it goes.

Everyone gets their own groove on at Ebi …

Kiwi connection in Sunshine

5 Comments

ka1

 

Ka Pies Bakehouse, 250 Hampshire Road, Sunshine. Phone: 9939 7512

You can buy Kiwi-style Ka Pies all over.

But where they are made is at 250 Hampshire Road.

But 250 Hampshire Road is also home to Bro’s Choice, a humble cafe that – naturally – sells Ka Pies!

It’s a straightforward place and about far from hispsterdom and smashed avo as it’s possible to get and still be a cafe.

I’m happy to call it home for half an hour as I sample my choice of pies.

Yes, I have two – at $4.50 a pop each.

Smoked fish pie is delicate, subtle and very nice.

Lamb roast pie is some kind of magic.

Yes, it tastes of lamb.

But more than, it tastes like ROAST lamb!

How cool is that?

With it sheep meat, bits of spud, carrot and corn, and gravy, it’s very, very good.

I take home four cold pies for further exploration with Bennie – two apiece of hangi pie (with smoked pork, kumara and potato) and pork and watercress.

I’m knocked out to find the price of the cold ones is a real fine $3.50.

Bargain!

And significantly less than the prices listed on the Ka Pie website, never mind delivery costs.

So Bro’s Choice would seem to be logical destination to stock up on these goodies.

We’ll be doing so.

Ka Pies may not have the same heft or all-out richness as Pure Pies but they taste just as good and are a whole cheaper.

 

Bro's Choice Cafe on Urbanspoon

 

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Meal of the week No.5: KItchen Samrat

1 Comment

samrat2

 

The perpetual blog-driven need for the new and interesting can mean old reliables are overlooked.

But as it happens, this very mid-week lunchtime I am in the mood for Indian snacky stuff.

And I am in Footscray.

So I step through the doorway of Kitchen Samrat (36 Leeds Street) for the first time in years.

I am surprised and delighted to find the place has gone from shabby to somewhat chic.

 

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It looks like a proper Indian restaurant now.

There’s even real cloth napkins, the classy effect of which are rather diminished by there being some dried food crud on the bench seat I initially choose.

The menu is longer and also more proper, and includes a number of good-looking banquet options.

Perhaps a lingering and wide-ranging CTS meal here is warranted.

But I spy with delight that the quick lunch items such as cholle bhatrua at Amritsari kulcha ($12) are still in the house.

The latter is just lovely – chick peas, butter knobs, pickle, onion and two wonderful breads stuffed with potato, coriander and spices.

Footscray eats goss

13 Comments

footgoss4

 

Changes are afoot in Nicholson Street, Footscray.

Pho Ta (above) and …

 

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… Babylon have both closed.

Asking around, the best I could discover in terms of reasons was along the lines of “problems with landlord”.

These closures are a shame as both joints added diversity to a colourful part of Footscray.

 

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Over in Hopkins, Snow Tree has set itself up for soon-come visit by the CTS team by the agency of a much more attractive fit-out and a much longer menu – including fried chicken!

 

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The Dancing Dog building will be auctioned on Saturday, April 18, at 1pm.

There is a meeting being held tonight (Wednesday, March 25) with a view to making a stab at keeping the property out of the hands of developers.

For more details, check out the Permaculture Out West Facebook page.

 

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Meanwhile, up in West Footscray, what was once Gusto will soon become Dosa Corner.

According to the always reliable Barkly Village Facebook page: “Gusto will be replaced by a South Indian Style Restaurant. Ex chef from Dosa Hut across the road.”

We wonder if there will be any point of difference between the new place, Dosa Hut and the neighbourhood’s other Indian eateries.

Truth is, though, Dosa Hut is usually busy so maybe it’s not an issue.

 

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Dosa Hut itself is growing, with the opening of a branch in Tarneit at the Wyndham Village Shopping Centre.

I suspect our Tarneit readers are doing cartwheels.

Very excellent – bank on it

4 Comments

ovest25

 

Ovest, 572 Barkly Street, Footscray. Phone: 9687 7766

Ovest has been open a while by the time Team CTS visits.

Every time I’ve passed by in recent weeks when the place has been open, it’s been jumping.

So our hopes are high – especially those of my friends, who live just a black away and for whom this shapes as a welcome local of the non-Indian variety.

Our hopes are fulfilled, and in terms of the food well exceeded.

 

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Here’s the bottom line – we have one entree, one side, one pizza, two mains, one dessert, two glasses of wine and a soft drink.

The bill comes to just cents above $40 each.

What an absolute ripping bargain!

We’ve booked at 6pm on a Sunday night – which may have been a mistake as it’s family rush hour, the joint is very noisy and the service is a little scrappy, but not enough to cause any alarm.

When I amble back to my car, post-dinner and after having picked up a wonderful loaf of freshly baked bread from my companions’ place, Ovest is a lot more placid.

The dining room looks a treat and it’s a wonderful thing that this old bank is playing host to such vibrant life.

 

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Coleslaw of cabbage, pear, radish, lemon and parmesan ($12) is a real big serve of yum.

At first, I wish for a little more salt and flavour bite, but by the end I come to love the rather perfumey flavours.

 

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Saganaki kefalograviera, sherry vinegar-soaked currants and pickled onions appears modest of portion but is so rich that three of us are happy.

The cheese has a marvellously toasted and salty crust.

 

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A mushroom pizza with taleggio, caramelised onion and fior de latte ($20) is very, very good, its many fungus chunks having a real meatiness about them.

 

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Tuna nicoise ($26) is a stunner and very generous to boot.

Underneath that handsome slab of fish lie spud discs and heaps of superbly creamy mayo.

My roast of the day (top photo, $25.50) is a simple but good-sized snapper stuffed with lemon.

The fish is lovely but it’s the accompanying salad/salsa that makes this dish sing – the clever addition of pickled chilli discs adds not just random exclamations of heat but also a just-right tartness.

The good, hot chips are served in such quantity that there’s more than enough for us all to share – but then, that’s true of everything we’ve enjoyed.

 

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By the time dessert selections are to be made, we’re stuffed.

So to speak.

So two becomes one with three spoons.

Panna cotta of yogurt, vanilla and strawberry jelly ($10) is just the sort creamy dream you’d expect and lasts all of about, oh, five seconds.

The jelly is a delicately-flavoured delight.

My pals are stoked.

So would I be if this “local” had just opened a minute from my front door!

 

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MiHub rocks it again

2 Comments

mihub413

mihub410

 

Consider The Sauce is happily falling into the happy routine of always, whenever possible, attending MiHub functions at the Laverton Community Hub.

Where else would we want to be early evening on a Saturday once a month?

But I suspect there is a limit beyond which reader endurance and loyalty should not be prodded in terms of recording each event.

There’s a fine line between giving context to food reviews and stories by interweaving other aspects of our lives into CTS on the one hand and overdoing it on the other.

 

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So this may well be the last MiHub story for a while … although I will for sure continue to post MiHub notifications on the CTS FB page and continue to recommend all and sundry give MiHub activities a go!

As I posted on FB yesterday: “Yum food, delicious people!”

 

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The “pop-up market” in this case was a part of Diversity Week, so there was a heap of people and a heap of food.

The theme was ostensibly Malaysian – but there was also Middle Eastern sweets, Indian tucker and Afghani fried chicken.

 

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I ate well and widely.

And I just loved meeting and talking with all sorts folks.

This time around they included CTS readers …

 

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… Sara and Sharon …

 

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… and Roopi and Jaspreet.

 

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As well as my Star Weekly colleague Karen, her hubby Chee (on the right) and their friend Sharil!

 

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Chook joint for Footscray

1 Comment
ogrill10

 

O’Grill, 149 Princes Highway, Footscray. Phone: 8307 0153

O’Grill is a new fast-food chicken place tucked into the service road just a block or so up from the Plough.

We like the idea of this sort of place in this sort of location – there’s pretty good parking capacity for one thing.

The menu is mostly chicken-based, well-priced and ostensibly of a Tex-Mex bent.

(See menu and prices below.)

The meal four of us have there is OK – but we for sure reckon some tweaking here and there could make it an outright winner.

 

ogrill4

 

By common acclaim, the hit of the night is this black bean salad.

Doesn’t look too tempting, hey?

But it is delicious!

Underneath the beans is a generous jumble of red onion, tomatoes and coriander, all of it liberally dressed with a really good green tomato salsa.

 

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Chips?

OK but could definitely be crisper.

 

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Corn?

OK but not much sight of the lime chilli dressing.

 

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Chicken wings?

Not “buffalo wings” – and thanks to one of my buddies for deepening my understanding of exactly what that means (deep-fried for starters) – but quite nice anyway.

 

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My two companions who go the burger route note a mismatch between the large buns and the less-so chicken.

Basically, too much bread!

My other companion goes, as I do, for a half chicken and like the burger eaters comments that the breast meat was a tad dry.

Yes, we know it’s hard getting that right.

And while me and my pals might prefer thigh meat in just about all applications, I’ve been told frequently by restaurant folks that there are a significant amount of customers for eating outlets of all kinds that demand breast meat … no matter what.

 

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I have no such problem with my half chook though there is little by way of the spiciness or smoky chipotle vibe I have been expecting.

Perhaps most of all we’d recommend some greater delineation between the various chicken options and an understanding that the people who come here looking for a feed are almost certainly well used to food that is super-charged in the flavour department.

But we’d also recommend giving this place a go – there’s a heap of other stuff on the menu.

Try the black bean salad when you do.

 

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