Category: Windsor

Highline

14/10/2016

About a year ago, Steve and I enjoyed Simon Tarlington's cooking at a private dinner where we were served some wonderful meat...lots of meat. Since then we have always talked about trying Highline but it's taken us a year to get there. It is South of the river after all - ha!

So on Saturday evening we made that journey. We were a little early but were prepared to have a drink at the bar but our table was actually ready. The Railway Hotel and Chapel Street was pumping as expected for a Saturday night and the Highline offered a dark enclave to shelter from the beat of the hipster drum.

We strapped ourselves in for the 8 course farm adventure and wine match and made ourselves comfortable which was easy in the dining space of muted colours and natural soft furnishings; think Australian natives for flowers and rings of wood on the tables.

Service is personable and slick as the courses come out and and delivered to the table. We're never waiting for the wine to catch up with the food or the food to catch up with the wine. It all works seamlessly and enjoyably.

Pea and Ham is served first and the consomme is poured at the table. Clear and dark amber in colour it's salty and delicious and the fresh sweet pea cuts through that umami. Steve and I choose different wine pairings and we try one standard and one premium. Turns out I'm a cheap date as I seem to prefer the standard offerings! In this case it's a really crisp and fresh Willie Smiths Organic Cider from the Huon Valley served delightfully cold. Great start!

Next course was the:

Smoked Oak Valley Lamb, Sea Flakes, Broad Bean and Beetroot

For this dish I preferred the premium wine pairing which was a deliciously silky 2014 Cos Frappato, Sicily. I think the sea flakes were shaved, translucent slices of dried scallop. The lamb was tender and delicious. We found the servings generous which we welcomed warmly. I think it's lovely when a restaurant is generous to its customers. It adds positivity and hospitality to the whole experience.

Victorian Asparagus, Marmalade, Oak Valley Hen's Eggs, Macadamia Nuts

I love a good asparagus dish and at the moment the one that holds the bar is the one we had at Marion. This one is similar with an sunny coloured hollandaise. I loved the shaved Macadamia nut and the tangy hollandaise, I didn't need the fruit tones of the marmalade which I think detracted the intensity of the fresh asparagus.

After one sunny dish came another one and like the pea and ham it arrived plated up ready for the liquid to pour into the dish.

Australian Bug Curry, Fennel, Garlic

Described as a version of a bouillabaisse this was a spiced version. The bug was slightly undercooked for our tastes but just by a smidgen. I enjoyed this one but Steve preferred the other courses.

And then our adventure took us to our final savoury course:

Rabbit, Old Garden Leaves, Parsnip, Preserved Barley

This is a plate packed with flavour - fermented leaves like kim chee, rich braised rabbit meat and creamy sweet parsnip puree. It's a pretty heavy dish so the portion we had was definitely enough.'

The wine we had with it was a great pairing though both premium and standard as it cut through the heaviness.

And then came the sweet adventure that is dessert:

Buttermilk, Thyme, Rhubarb

White crackles of milk atop a creamy panna cotta like mess with pretty pink rhubarb. Not overly sweet the buttermilk added a sharpness that was welcome after the richness of the previous course. A nice transition to dessert and a palette cleanser in one.

From the clean white dish of panna cotta we moved to the darker dimensions of chocolate:

Daintree Chocolate, Strawberries

A pretty sphere of goodness ready to be smashed revealing mousse and berries and cocoa nibs. Delicious classic blend of chocolate and strawberry; fun to eat and delicious. Winner!

The dessert adventure is a fun one as our last course is about our own campfire at our table for us to toast marshmallows on. All very dramatic and all very fun. We remember that our first Simon Tarlington experience last year ended similarly except we trooped outside to a fire and stood around with the sweet fragrance of burnt sugar lacing the air.

Highline makes some good food memories. It's creative and well executed with impeccable service to back it up. We likened it to Ides and it seems that both sides of the river have their own up and coming creative cooking destinations.

Good value, plenty of deliciousness and creativity - this is Melbourne at one of its finest and most fun!

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Hawker Hall

21/4/2016

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A rainy Thursday evening saw me South of the river catching up with Kirsty and finally getting round to trying out Hawker Hall. We hoped and hoped there wouldn't be a queue and the rain would have kept eaters away. Sadly traffic from the city and those pesky eaters finished off that dream as we rocked up at 7pm and advised it'd be an hour to an hour and 15 wait.

Determined to dine there we sought refuge in the pub on the corner which must be the Hawker Hall holding pen and waited for the text to come through. And an hour and fifteen later it did!

We were shown to a table towards the back of the dining area and we had to wait a while before water and a drinks order taken. So I caught the eye of waiter who seemed a but confused when I said I wanted to order drinks. Maybe we weren't in his section or something. Not the most reassuring start. But not long after our actual waiter came along in braces and high waisted check trousers and a cheery smile and it was pretty plain sailing after that as we left it in his hands in terms of food. The menu is vast so it seemed easier for someone else to make the decisions but there was plenty we didn't get to try and should come back for.

SprOur smiley cheerful waiter advised that the food comes out pretty quickly and after an hour and fifteen wait, that is a good thing and very very welcome.

PRAWN‭ & ‬GINGER DUMPLING W‭. ‬SOY‭ & ‬BLACK VINEGAR CARAMEL‭ (unpictured)

Dumplings came first; 4 snowy white plump parcels. Pretty traditional and classic and a happy start. I didn't get the caramel aspect and the dipping sauce was like what I usually make when I pour soy and black vinegar together to get the salty, tangy balance. Good balance but not as innovative as caramel would suggest. The dumplings were quickly followed up with the two pictured dishes:

MALAY VEGETABLE SPRING ROLLS W‭. ‬GREEN CHILLI SOY‭
TOASTED COCONUT MEATBALLS W. LIME & SWEET SOY

Spring rolls were spring rolls. I prefer Vietnamese style and the best are my grandma's so spring rolls have a hard job to impress me!

The little toasted meatballs did impress though and we were pleasantly surprised as we probably wouldn't have ordered these. The toasty coconut flavour really came through as did the fresh flavour of lemongrass. Delicious bite sized meaty morsels.

MALAY SHREDDED CHICKEN SALAD W. TOASTED COCONUT SAMBAL
STEAMED BARRAMUNDI W. RICE NOODLE (unpictured)
GRILLED BEEF SHORT RIB, OYSTER SAUCE, RED CHILLI & CORIANDER

Between started and main came a few in between dishes and again they came out at a good pace. The chicken salad was zingy and fresh but with a depth of richness from the addition of coconut and coconut cream.

The steamed barramundi comes with about 3 little rolls of rice noodles so it's not quite the noodle dish I though but the fish is steamed perfectly - clean, fresh and light with soy sauce, spring onions, coriander. Again a very traditional and classic Chinese dish.

From the muted clean flavours of salad and steamed fish, in came the spice factor and a dish with more oomph and richness. The short rib came on rice and was rich and tender with a little stickiness. I thought the rice was a touch underdone and a little hard and brittle not helped by a lack of sauce. A touch more juiciness would have elevated this dish.

We so could have stopped there with the food but where's the fun in that right? And our mains arrived sharing style.

PENANG DUCK CURRY W. PEANUTS & EGGPLANT
CAULIFLOWER ROASTED W. TUMERIC, COCONUT & RASINS
GREEN BEANS, SWEET SOY & TOASTED COCONUT CASHEW

The duck curry was good enough. Super saucy unlike the short rib. Although it was meaty, it could have been any meat really as I think the duck had been mullered and smothered that the duckiness didn't really come through. Green beans were nicely charred and cut through the richness of the food. The dish that wasn't so great was the cauliflower. It was all mushy and tasted over boiled and smothered in cream rather than roasted and spiced which is the impression the description gives. It's creaminess didn't go well with everything else I felt and was a bit overwhelming. But one miss doesn't necessarily make a bad meal.

We were given free reign over dessert and could choose one to share. There were quite a few that appealed but we went for the most popular:

MILO DINOSAUR SUNDAE W. CHOCOLATE BISCUIT

Effectively a chocolate ice cream sundae with lots of crunchy biscuit crumb. It offers universal appeal and the cold creaminess of the ice cream went down a treat. It wasn't overly sweet which was good as it was a hefty serving size and it was very enjoyable.

I found the flavours and cooking style of Hawker Hall, although similar to big sister Chin Chin, were less complex and perhaps more authentic to the hawker hall style of Asian food. I loved the speed at which the food arrived and the vast choice of the menu. Understandably not every dish on there will float everyone's boat but feasting on some of them will certainly result in some treasures and I'd go treasure hunting there again for sure.

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Tokyo Tina

27/2/2016

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Since moving North side, we've struggled to go South of the river in spite of the appetising lure of Hanoi Hannah, Saigon Sally and Tokyo Tina. We've been able to resist their charms thus far. But this Saturday we found ourselves in Windsor at a 40th birthday party and decided to pop in for a late feed. Well late for us old fogeys but it was more just after 10pm and Chapel Street was pretty pumping!

Tina was still bustling in spite of the off peak hour but we were warmly showed two places at the bar. Steve is doing Febfast and I didn't want to cause him too much grief so in spite of the impressive drinks list and the fact it was Saturday night and we were in a bar it was green tea for two. And we didn't feel too out of place!

We ordered pretty quickly and our food arrived even quicker! I love it when food comes out speedily. And the service is smiley with lots of checking in to make sure all is good.

Our first two dishes to arrive are:

ORGANIC SOBA SALAD Salmon Sashimi, Pumpkin, Snow Pea, Ponzu Ginger Dressing
WAGYU BEEF TATAKI Miso Mustard, Pickled Onion & Nectarine

My initial reaction to the soba salad is that it looked dry but and lacklustre but actually it was really tasty Fresh flavours, pickly tones and zest. Yummy. The tataki was also tasty with a sweet richness from the miso mustard. I like my beef tataki cut a touch thicker but I'm being picky!

The next two dishes arrived pretty promptly too so it was good to be able to move on swiftly.

TEMPURA EGGPLANT Miso Chawanmushi, Pickled Ginger & Spring Onion
KARAAGE CHIKEN RIBS Hot Gochujang Sauce & Lemon

The eggplant was on top of a layer of chawan mushi which in spite of the description on the menu I wasn't really expecting. This was my least favourite dish. I found the eggplant bland although the tempura was crispy and the chawan mushi wasn't as silken in texture as I like. Plus it tasted a bit cheesy so the whole thing was a bit weird. Although Steve had no problem with it!

The chicken was exactly what it should be. Crunchy outer, juicy meat and spicy sauce. Simple but truly good.

We had a slight breather before the final dish which was one out of the three poke dishes Tina offers.

SNAPPER Rice, Toasted Coconut, Cherry Tomato, Onion, Topico Roe

Traditionally Hawaiian and basically a form of ceviche, Tina's twist was to have it on top of warm rice. With fresh lime, coconut milk, shreds of chilli, sprigs of coriander and fresh sweet tomatoes this was delicious. The fresh snapper and fresh coconut shavings were really brought out of their potentially bland selves and joined the flavour party! And these are my kind of flavours.

We found Tina hospitable and the food delicious. Worth the journey and I'm a little bit jealous that there in spite of all the wonders of the North side, we don't have a Tina!

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Morris Jones

13/11/2013

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Steve and I were very kindly invited to try Matthew Butcher's mastery at Morris Jones and we headed there one evening after work.

I had been before about a year ago and it was a pleasant enough experience and I recall I always thought I would return but I guess I just got distracted by other places and it just didn't happen.

There's a pleasant feel to Morris Jones; roominess with the high timber ceilings, dark wood floors and tables, leather chairs...it's all quite manly. The menus have a wooden back board and a leather cover so definitely on the testosterone side of things. Steve felt quite at home, whereas I felt a little bit of an outsider...like a guest but as a guest, you get treated well so it's not a bad thing to not feel completely at home at times.

We admired the creativity of the menu - circles and and flow chart like. Creative yet not unscientific reminiscent of those molecule diagrams we used to draw in high school. As we browsed, Sebastian the lovely waiter was very attentive and ever so pleasant.

We were in the hands of chef Matthew Butcher who really proved to us that he is an extremely skilful technician yet also has an inspiring creative streak too that he calls being "quirky". This "quirkiness" is what make his dishes unexpected and a little bit exciting.

The first items to come out were bread with what was described by Sebastian has whipped honey butter. It was delicious. Creamy butter with a hint of sweetness a little bit like raw cake mixture. I thought I loved salted butter; it turns out I also love honey butter!

Our amuse bouche was a mouthful of the busty beet salad - goat's curd, red sorrel, buckwheat. Classic combination of flavours perhaps but there was a real sharp tang in the curd and then a saltiness from the buckwheat. A strong indication that what was to come would be delicious.

Two China plates with glass cloches over them arrived and when the cloches were lifted; smoke billowed out revealing the dish of:
Black and blue tuna - white radish, chestnut, puffed quinoa, yuzu and soy

Meaty squares of chargrilled tuna, with snaps of pickled mushroom flavours coming through, toasty notes from the quinoa, classic soy and sashimi and then a cleansing flavour of chestnut. Very clever, very creative and very delicious all with a little theatre. Accompanied by a glass of Moet this was such a wonderful way to celebrate a Wednesday evening! Nothing more decadent than French champagne on a non occasion - it turns it into an occasion!

Next came the Jerusalem artichoke soup - mock truffle, Shimeji mushroom, snow peas. Matthew poured the soup over the dry ingredients at our table.

The soup was special - deep in flavour so I know the stock used must have been good and veiled over with the nutty creaminess of Jerusalem artichoke. The mock truffle, we found out is toasted breadcrumbs infused with truffle oil and that added fragrance as well as texture. There was chew from the mushroom and crunch from the snow peas and such deep deep savoury flavours that touched the very depths of our souls.

This was Steve's favourite dish which was surprising given it's a veggie dish!

Otway crispy pig - prawn popcorn, cucumber, dashi and basil seed was our main dish. Pale pink mini crackers atop a slab of belly pork presented so prettily.

The prawn crackers were salty and tasty and belly pork so juicy yet crunchy. With a Japanese twist from the dashi, the flavours worked well but to get to the meat the crackers would fall into the broth and become a slimy mess which was less appetising. I think the best way to eat this was to munch on all the crackers first before going with the pork. Visually this worked; practically it wasn't the easiest to eat.

Quick palate cleanser of kiwi lollipops came out next. Covered in some gel that was a bit gooey, I think I'd have preferred a crackly sugar coating like a toffee apple. However, I still liked the sharpness and the freeze of the fruit and yes my palate was refreshed and cleansed ready for dessert.

Chocolate pudd, raspberry sorbet, salted caramel
Strawberry and cream, texture of strawberry, white chocolate

Two contrastingly wonderful desserts; the strawberry plate was right up my street. Creaminess, sweetness, coldness, toasty shortbread crumbs, strawberriness, Summer on a plate. Steve loved the salted caramel and chocolate. I'm not a huge chocolate dessert fan and whilst I enjoyed the sorbet I found the pud a little grainy in texture but Steve ate it all!

We thoroughly enjoyed our dinner at Morris Jones and are really excited about what it wants to do and where it wants to go, Thank you for sharing your story with us. Throughout our meal, sommelier Tim kept our glasses topped up and chose some beautiful wines to accompany our exciting dishes. Loved it so much that Steve booked us in the next week to join them on their "Wild Table" dinner which I'll go into later on.

Morris Jones is definitely going through a renaissance and we have been lucky to be their for the tail end of it. It's time other people begin to see this too and get to enjoy the talents of Matthew Butcher who has been a little under the radar in the Melbourne food scene. I

The Urbanspoon score is low but the reviews from the last 6 months have been stellar and that demonstrates and indicates the re birth this place has had and the new direction it is moving in and Steve and I have bought into this and want to support it as much as we can.

Matthew explained to us that he has spearheaded a new initiative called the Morris Jones Food Society where a 4 course menu is served with a theme and there's a bit of education / discussion thrown in. This month's was about foraging and Matthew Connelly, chef at The Commoner and forager was working with him to provide produce and insight into foraging. We love The Commoner also so Steve signed us up there and then to join in. Our menu was:

Shells from the Sea - Local pippies and clams, sea herbs, pig face flowers, jamon consomme
Northside Community Garden - Mushroom dirt, Spring vegetables, garlic flowers
Duck Loquats - Duck breast and leg, coastal spinach, nasturtiums, pomme souffle
Choc Joint R18 - Smoked chocolate, edible ash, choc mint

The italic ingredients indicate what was foraged. And there was a little palate cleanser of home made lemonade from some stole lemons! Foraging, stealing...there's a fine line?! No that's not what we were told, just my opinion!

We were seated at a table of 6, we enjoyed the company of Paige and Erin as well as others and we definitely enjoyed the food. The stand out for me was the delicious duck with crispy potatoes. The breast was done rare and plump and juicy whereas the leg was slow cooked, shredded and delicious. Steve loved the veggie dish (they do their veggies well here) and I have to say, I hate carrots but even I ate them. I loved the English style salad cream Matthew incorporated into the dish.

The shells from the sea was delicious and I loved the salty savouriness of the consomme. The plump sea herbs added a real briny touch that emphasised the shellfish element. My slight quibble was by the time our consomme was poured into our dishes the temperature could have been warmer and given there wasn't that much of it, it cooled down and became cold consomme quite quickly. Whilst that wasn't unpleasant I'm pretty sure, hot consomme is better than cold consomme.

The choc joint was creatively presented in a glass ash tray and had an ash tip. I wasn't a huge fan of the ash - too much like chewing an old cigarette but the chocolate mint mousse like cigar was yummy and the mint prevented the chocolate dish from being too cloying. I think a scoop of something cold like an ice cream would have added a temperature dimension to the dessert but maybe that's just me being greedy!

And this review is only my opinion and Steve's opinion based on our visits. Our first visit was with the kind compliments of Morris Jones (thank you very much) and the second was paid for by Bank of Barley.

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Highline

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