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Shanghai Street Dumpling

21/2/2012

A contender has emerged to rival Hu Tong for the best xiao long bao...apparently.

With a no reservations policy, lines that go out the door and a closing time of 8:30pm it's not a carbon copy of the Hu Tong formula.

The last couple of times I have been to Hu Tong the XLBs have been good but everything else a bit meh so if this proves worthy, I could experience a change in heart.

The Tungs join Steve and I on a Tuesday evening and as I turn the corner at 6:30pm there is a small queue. We hang around for about 15 minutes and we get a table inside. It's a pretty small place and can probably seat no more than 30 so that goes part way to explain the queues.

Our table for four is a pretty small square table and it's bit cramped so we can only sit along two sides of it rather than one person per side. We'll be eating and leaving quite quickly as it's not entirely comfortable and the queue waiting for tables never goes right down.

We try an assortment of things (l - r):

Steamed xiao long bao - pork
Pan fried pork dumplings
Pan fried pork buns

The XLBs are pretty good. The filling is meaty and the broth tasty. I can understand why this is a contender to the crown. Similarly the pan fried dumplings are also good and less greasy than others we've had. Sadly the pan fried buns don't achieve the same standards as the other dumplings. They look appetising but the "bread" is tough, dry and chewy and the filling isn't good enough to compensate for this.

We also shared:

Shanghai fried rice cakes with pork
Beef soup with coriander and vermicelli
Grilled chicken maryland with rice and chilli sauce

Mixed response to the rice cakes. It all gets eaten so it's decent enough but I find it mushier and sloppier compared to others so I prefer a drier and less greasy / saucier version. Steve actually quite likes this and he's not usually that big a fan so it must have some redeeming qualities.

The beef soup was cheap and really was just some broth, noodles, coriander and a few slices of beef. Not bad but not good enough to warrant a repeat order.

Chicken maryland was a pleasant surprise. The chicken was tender with a tasty soy glaze. The sweet chilli added another taste dimension. Sweet chilli makes everything taste better though. But as a lunchtime or dinner dish this is a good plate of food - generous serving size and a mound of green veg too for a good price.

We also ordered a hot and sour soup which was again a generous serve and came in a large bowl. I wasn't enamoured with it, nor was Ling but the boys polished it off.

In my opinion Shanghai Street is a contender to Hu Tong because the flavour / taste / quality of the XLBs are at a high enough standard. It becomes a serious contender because of the prices it charges. The price to quality ratio makes it great value. The reason it hasn't overthrown Hu Tong is probably because it's not as pleasant a place to enjoy a meal. There's no lazing and taking time (the queue outside makes you feel too guilty to stay longer than necessary) and is definitely more fast food canteen style casual dining. If it had slightly bigger tables I reckon I'd gladly come here and bring my friends and family over Hu Tong but until it does that this is probably just a place for two.

Also just by way of a mention, Ling suffered severe thirst after the dinner indicating high levels of MSG used in the cooking. Now I'm also usually quite sensitive to this but didn't have such a reaction so whether it was overuse of MSG or not is still unproven. I'd be happy to return and test out some other dishes to see though!

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Mamasita

19/2/2012

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Firstly I love Mamasita and enjoyed every meal I've had there and I'm even pretty patient about the whole queue thing they have going on. Just have to write a quick review though that this Friday night wasn't quite so good.

It started off well with only a few people ahead of us, a warm welcome and a cooler temperature in the restaurant. Apparently they have a new air con unit.

Food was hit and miss sadly although service was as friendly as it always is. The elotes although super tasty as usual; I love the spicy, zingy lime and cheesy flavours were actually cold but I was so hungry I forgave them that and ate it before I considered sending it back! And before I knew it the corn had been eaten and I felt a little disappointed I hadn't been more patient and got a hotter version...

Anyway it was minor flaw and sadly there was another minor flaw coming. The ceviche was too sharp and tasted more of lime than fish.

And then the major flaw; the black pudding taco was horrible and I usually love black pudding. I took one bite and found it over greasy, too squidgy, too fatty and not tasty so I had to leave it. It was not pleasant.

Positive experiences include great venison tostaditas which we'd not had before. The roast potatoes (also a new dish for us) were also great.

If this had been my first Mamasita experience I would wonder what the hype was about. But I know it can be great so I was more disappointed than anything else. I guess much like our Gingerboy experience, it must have been an off day. Unlike our Gingerboy experience I'm prepared to give this place another chance because I've experienced a non off day and I have enough faith that it will be good again...

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Church St Enoteca

16/2/2012

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We had to pick a place for dinner that would play host to our reunion with Toni and Peter who are a couple we met on a Tassie tour and with we shared a rockstar's bus. They were in town visiting their daughter Kirsty and son in law Marty and ll six of us were to enjoy a meal together.

Steve and I ummed and aahed over numerous places. We needed it to not be ridiculously priced but fairly fine dining. We wanted to be able to reserve a table and not do the Melbourne queuing thing. It also had to be conducive to conversation and provide a pleasant environment to spend the evening as opposed to the cramped busy restaurants where you jostle with the table next door and have nowhere to put your handbag.

Finally we decided on Church St Enoteca. We fel the menu had enough to offer everyone something and cater to likes, dislikes and allergies. The fact we hadn't been there meant we didn't feel too much pressure as we weren't recommending it; merely trying it out!

Anyway we loved the art deco styling and we sat very comfortably at a long table. The ambience was right for us as we didn't stop chatting but perhaps it may be a bit too quiet for people who don't have lots to catch up on!

Service was attentive and non intrusive and our waiter addressed me as "young lady" many times. It's been a while since I've been called a young lady! He also seemed somewhat fixated by my English accent and wanted to talk about Premiership football an awful lot. Not my forte and I tried to get him to talk to Steve but no he seemed to like talking to me. Must be my friendly welcoming face and my scintillating conversational skills!

Anyway I digress...

We all opted for entrees but I didn't take pictures. Between the 6 of us we ordered carpaccio, duck, trout and I had a seafood spaghetti. Everyone seemed happy with their choices. I enjoyed the spaghetti - not as delicious as the version at The Atlantic but still pretty tasty with a tangy white wine almost broth and a touch of tomato.

Steve and I both went for the Abbachio alla Romana described as braised suckling lamb with a parmesan crust and gnocchi alla romana. I don't usually like to order the same dish but given we were seated at opposite ends of the table I was happy to do so.

The triangle of gnocchi arrived alone on the dish and then shortly after a pan of braised lamb arrived which was scooped onto my plate. It smelt beautiful - all herby and lamb like.

In terms of taste, it was nice enough. Not mind blowingly so and aside from the gnocchi a little part of me felt that I could make a good lamb stew at home that would be comparable. Having said that the gnocchi was light fluffy with a slightly crispy outside and that was delicious with the stew juices.

Dessert time soon came. The picture on the left is the semifreddo - chocolate and salted caramel semifreddo, pistachio nougat, raspberry sorbet. The other picture is of the bombolini - doughnuts filled with marscapone mousse, hazelnut foam, espresso ice cream.

I chose the bombolini and enjoyed most of it. The hazelnut foam was yum as was the espresso ice cream. The doughnuts weren't actually filled with anything and were a little dry so the hazelnut foam helped. I wasn't too keen on all the citrus peel topping either.

I heard really good things about the semifreddo about the flavours and the textures so it obviously worked well.

Church St Enoteca was a great place for our occasion. The food may not have been memorable but it certainly was decent and enjoyed by all. The environment and ambience was exactly what we were seeking so overall I was really pleased.

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PM 24

10/2/2012

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A restaurant like PM 24 deserves a hot date! And my Friday night date was the delightful Miss. Stefanie.

We could only get a table for 6:30pm so opted for an early dinner. Naturally a hot date meant getting dressed for the occasion and we enjoyed being frocked up and celebrating a Friday evening.

PM 24 has a French bistro kind of feel with the wooden chairs with the round seats. There's an open kitchen and we'd managed to snag what I thought was a great table in the far back corner so we could sit at an angle to each other and both look out and view the dining hall. Also it's a good place to come perhaps in a three or five as there are a number of round tables. I am a fan of the round table.

Our waitress was very friendly. There was another waitress that helped out but either it was her first night or she wasn't very good as she seemed to get confused a lot and there were small hiccups such as a delayed drink, coming to take dishes away only to put them back down again and run off and hovering around the table with one of the dishes not sure what to do with it and then disappearing with it only to bring it back again. Anyway hiccups make life interesting or so they say...Anyway in the hands of our capable waitress we ordered our first cocktails and browsed the menu.

The cocktails were delicious - I'd started of with a passionfruit and mango one and Stef went for a raspberry cosmo. Perfect to kick off a Friday evening. We decided to go with the degustation to try everything but changed the roast chicken to lamb because we both felt roast chicken was too boring!

First came two glass bowls of the soup du jour and on this day it was a tomato gazpacho with the most amazing little crumbs of crouton. Cold and refreshing it had the right flavour balances of sweet and tangy tomato without being overly sweet or sharp which can happen with a tomato soup. Thumbs up!

Also have to mention the delicious crusty bread rolls served warm and the most decadent French butter. Bread and butter so simple yet so worthy of a mention.

Next we enjoyed the Ceas Spanner Crab which came in a bolognese sauce, fresh cappelini pasta and basil with a shellfish foam. The savoury bolognese sauce tasted great with the sweet crab. I'm used to light crab dishes so it was refreshing to sample a heavier take on crab and learn that it can indeed stand up to a meaty bolognese style sauce.

Apparently the degustation menu is about sharing so we would have to split the dish and plate it up ourselves.

The dégustation charcuterie was the PM 24 selection of cured meats, pain de campagne, pickled vegetables, a slab of terrine and roasted beetroot and Meredith handmade goat curd salad. This type of picnic food was a great compliment to our chit chat which was going at full chortle so ideal we could just graze as and when we took breath! The terrine for me could have done with a touch more seasoning but other than that no real complaints.

The fish dish as Harpuka fillet with
Bouillabaisse fumet, seafood ragout. The fish came with with a dark crust that shattered beneath the slightest of pressure. The seafood ragout was tasty but the fish itself was a bit bland and we couldn't quite figure out the crust. I enjoyed the crust - kind of vanilla ish but Stef thought it was too weird. The fish itself was dense and meaty and touch dry.

Now for the palate cleanser which was a short glass of mint sorbet. This to me was weird and I didn't really enjoy it. Kinda fruity with a strong mint flavour. Nope...next please!

So we'd changed the Organic Milawa chickent with rosemary and preserved lemon, sautéed potato to the rotisserie of the day which was leg of lamb and it came with mashed potato and atop some green beans. We'd ummed and aahed between leg of lamb and rack of lamb.

Lucky us in that the leg of lamb came with a cutlet each so in a way we got rack and leg. The lamb was beautifully flavoured and tender. The leg meat wasn't quite what I was expecting as it had been described as almost braised but this was definitely roast meat. Not that it mattered as it tasted good. I felt the sides of mashed potato were a touch on the small size as the meat to carb ratio was heavily towards meat.

Dessert on the degustation menu is either a shared choice of three but if the crepes are ordered it's a choice of two. We went for the French Crepes a la Minute, lemon curd, raspberry, caramel suzette and the chocolate and caramel tart with a passionfruit cream.

The crepes was divine and I loved the tangy lemon card and sharp berry flavours. I think it would have been nicer with a sweeter cream or ice cream than the berry sorbet. The tart was heavy and sweet and very full on and again I didn't feel the passionfruit cream was pleasant with it. It may have worked better if the berry sorbet and passionfruit cream were switched. I think the sorbet would have cut through the chocolate tart better and berries and chocolate are a great combo and the sweet passionfruit cream would have gone well with the crepes. That or vanilla ice cream with both!

In spite of some hit and miss I did really enjoy the food here. I guess I'm a sucker for French flavours and roast meat! Slightly reminscent of Bistro Vue but with a wider menu it's a good place to bring people because there is something for everyone. With the several cocktails and a glass of wine I had and some pretty decent food I thought it was priced at an acceptable level. One to bear in mind for when the parents visit.

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Maha

4/2/2012

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Saturday came round too quick and we didn't have dinner reservations! And I hate doing the whole queue and leave it to chance thing on a Saturday.

We'd left Saturday dinner plans a bit up in the air because that's where we'd been Saturday morning...does that sound cryptic? Well by way of explanation; we'd been up since 3:15am having had to be in the CBD at 4:45am for our hot air balloon trip. As we didn't know how we'd feel following the lack of sleep.

Anyway at about 2pm we decided we wanted a good feed and to try somewhere fun so we rang Maha and they were able to fit us in at 8:45pm. This suited me and I promptly took a hour nap!

We arrived at Maha on time and were shown to the bar as our table wasn't quite ready. Service was warm and friendly. I wanted a cocktail that wasn't available as they were out of the rhubarb soda so I opted for the Nenu which is based on citron vodka. It was delicious and Steve took the recommendation for the Cisk beer which is Maltese. The bartender seemed to approve of our choices as did the sommelier and the another guy who I think must be front of house manager or have some role in the ownership of Maha as he said my martini was named after his grandfather!

Coconut water and orange blossom, lime pearls, local scallops, blue swimmer crab, kombu was the first to make its entrance. The coconut water was actually in a frosted bottle left on the table and then two dishes of the other ingredients were brought over and the contents of the bottle poured. The liquid turned the torn fabric looking konbu into the more familiar seaweed.

This was a cold broth and actually set the bar extremely high for the rest of the meal. This was Steve's favourite dish of the night. Usually with cold soup I'm a bit meh. It's ok but I often think it would be better warm! This is probably the only one that I thought was better cold. Delicate coconut flavours, sweet crab and scallop, salty konbu and the occasion sharp citrus zing as a lime pearl came into the mix.

There was a fair wait between courses but I put that down to a couple of large courses. As the meal progressed the lag reduced.

I loved the arak cured King Salmon, black chilli, roast lemon gel, blonde tahini, eel parfait, raz el hanout nougatine. The blobs of lemon gel were yummy withe the fattiness of the salmon. I enjoyed the tingling chilli sensation and crunchy sweetness of the nougatine was a little strange but rounded off all the flavours. I probably would have enjoyed the dish with or without the line of eel parfait.

After the freshness of the salmon came two much richer dishes. Next was line caught Goldband Snapper, basil gel, corn custard, crab and sucuk zalzett. The crab and sucuk zalzett was like a little crab parcel a bit like a Thai fishcake in texture. The fishiness of it went well with the sweet and creamy corn and the corn kernels added texture. The snapper was pleasant enough but I'm not a huge snapper fan as I find the flesh a bit dry and bland. Certainly the spicing in this dish helped the snapper but still the texture of it reaffirmed to me it was not my fish. I'd have loved this combo perhaps with flounder or barramundi.

We'd been looking forward to duck and pistachio sausage, foie gras and porcini "truffle", fried semolina, nasturtium leaves, beetroot jelly. It was actually a cold dish and more like a terrine but we enjoyed the dense meatiness to it and the sweet beetroot jelly was a great accompaniment. The nasturtium leaves didn't do much but the little ball of foie gras corted in porcini dust (made to look lik a chocolate truffle) added a depth of flavour and richness to the sausage.

Another rich dish was delivered - Tunisian brik Bangalow pork belly, pork popcorn, Lebanese pickled cabbage, onion mayo. It also came with a quennelle of olive oil mash on the tap.

The belly pork came in a rectangular block coated in a very fine filo type pastry atop some onion mayo.

Whilst the flavours were good and the meat oh so tender, this dish just bordered on too much for me. Too many flavours and too much meat! The mash did help diffuse the flavours and the sharpness of the pickled cabbage did help cut through the richness.

I think for a degustation menu this would have been better at half the size. Having said that Steve ate all of his so perhaps it's just me!

And as if we could fit anything more in? Two more courses plus sides and a dessert left to go! The next courses were so good though that we did manage!

Rangers Valley Wagyu rump cap, marble score 9+, pinenut hummus, dehydrated shankleesh, lemon, cumin was a delight. The white stripe of sauce wasn't my thing - a bit too horsradishy for me but Steve liked it. The beef itself was so tender and so tasty reminiscent of the beef we had Jacques Reymond but with different flavourings and accompaniments.

Tender 12 hour roasted Mt. Leura lamb shoulder, pistachio and green olive tabouleh was thoroughly enjoyable and the salty tabouleh seasoned the soft lamb.

The two meat dishes came with rice pilaf which was flavoured with tomato and dill and a traditional bread salad which is like the Italian panzanella salad.

So the first of our desserts arrive and after all that spicing and seasoning and meat we're ready for sweetness. The peanut butter parfait, baklava crumb, salted caramel, chocolate sorbet, orange blossom foam served in a glass reminded me of a mushed up Snickers bar but Steve felt that the salted caramel was more like a Dime bar. Either way it was entirely enjoyable and I liked the cold chocolate sorbet and the room temperature foam and caramel and the crunch of the crumb.

By the time the Turkish delight filled doughnuts, olive oil baklava mousse, rosewater honey, white chocolate dust I was done. I ate half a doughnut and dug my spoon in once into to the honey and mousse. It was very very sweet so not really my thing but can see it would be right up the street for someone with a sweet tooth.

Middle Eastern cuisine is probably not something we've had often and it's also not top of the list in terms of favourite flavours. However we really enjoyed Maha. The surroundings and ambience was comfortable - buzzy and busy but not overpoweringly loud. We liked the personal service and we enjoyed the food. It was a memorable meal and Maha left a great impression on us. This was a far better experience than Momo.

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Walter's Wine Bar

3/2/2012

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Sunny Friday evening combined with wanting to find somewhere in Southbank to relax and have dinner after a busy week is often difficult. Pubs and bars are filled up with suits unwinding and the hip places that have the no booking policy are queuing out the door neither of which appeal.

Our criteria is good tasty food served reasonably quickly in a comfortable environment. Would be nice to sit outside but not be crammed in a confined space and a view would help the whole relaxing thing.

Steve and I meet near the Southgate Centre and we decide that the restaurants above ground level have a better chance of being emptier so we head that way. Tutto Bene looks full, Scusami looks too upmarket for our post work clobber, La Camera also looks too busy. The Deck looks empty but they turn us away so we try Walter's Wine Bar. We've eaten here before and it's always been decent food but ambience has been a bit flat.

Anyway we're greeted warmly and we have a choice of outdoor seating on the balcony or indoors so we choose outdoors where we enjoy the warmth of the evening. A large table arrives and there are other diners so ambience is buzzy but not overly so. A waiter is friendly, smiley and genuinely charming and we begin to relax.

Steve orders some goat's cheese and crackers for us to nibble on whilst we mulled over the menu.

Steve starts with the scallops and I go for the pasta special which is with garlic, white wine and seafood.

We enjoy our starters. My spaghetti is al dente which is how I like that so it remains light and not mushy. The seafood consists of flathead fish and plump mussels. It's fresh and tasty and I enjoy the flavours. Steve also enjoys his scallops.

We're feeling relaxed and happy. The bottle of pinot noir and the pretty view helps. Our main courses arrive and Steve enjoys rack of lamb with Meredith goats cheese and roasted veggies and I have the honey and cardamom roast duck with cherries. Both are attractive plates of food. The rack of lamb is cooked pink and the vibrant colours of the vegetables look good. Pink lamb and Meredith goat's cheese - what's there not to like? And yes it's delicious. Lip smackingly good.

The duck is glistening and a lovely caramelly amber colour. I can smell the cardomom and it's like a veil of scent over the duck. It's a generous portion; half a duck with two large fondant potatoes and huge mound of spinach as well as many many cherries. Duck and cherries - what's there not to like? I loved the sweet honey flavour of the duck. The only thing that put me off a little was the cardamom which was a little overpowering. I liked the scent of it but not so much the flavour.

We were fully satiated after that meal and both of us felt that Walter's had well and truly hit the mark and exceeded our expectations of our Friday night dinner. Considering the criteria we had, we were really pleased with Walter's.

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Shanghai Street Dumpling

Mamasita

Church St Enoteca

PM 24

Maha

Walter's Wine Bar

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