My foodie colleague Susan and I had walked past Chuckle Park one day and the sign advertising pulled pork sandwiches had caught our eye so we shelved it in the lunchtime inspirations box.
On a sunny Friday, I was reminded by Susan of this and her mention of pulled pork lured the Director of the project we both work on and fellow foodie, Ken into trying out this little gem.
We liked the quirky fit out with the jam jar lights hanging overhead and the caravan serving hatch.
There was only one member of staff responsible for serving and cooking by the looks of things and whilst he was friendly enough was struggling to keep up the pace. When we ordered he informed us our food would take 20 minutes if not more and that there were no more meat balls.
We went with pulled pork rolls each and corn on the cob (elotes) and we took our seats in the sunshine and waited. And waited. And basically everyone else there were also waiting and we were last. Good thing we were conversationalists and we enjoyed having a chit chat and the break out of the office. And we had been warned about the delay and it wasn't unpleasant sat in the little courtyard with a typical Melbourne view of an alleyway adorned with graffiti and industrial sized bins. So Melbourne to be seated in a quirky place with a quirky view.
There was only one member of staff responsible for serving and cooking by the looks of things and whilst he was friendly enough was struggling to keep up the pace. When we ordered he informed us our food would take 20 minutes if not more and that there were no more meat balls.
We went with pulled pork rolls each and corn on the cob (elotes) and we took our seats in the sunshine and waited. And waited. And basically everyone else there were also waiting and we were last. Good thing we were conversationalists and we enjoyed having a chit chat and the break out of the office. And we had been warned about the delay and it wasn't unpleasant sat in the little courtyard with a typical Melbourne view of an alleyway adorned with graffiti and industrial sized bins. So Melbourne to be seated in a quirky place with a quirky view.
After about a 30 minute wait our food came. We were so excited. A little disappointed with size and the colour was a bit beige but the bun looked soft, there was cheese and it smelt good.
Flavours were intense - a spicy kick, a taste of BBQ. Pretty good and the overall conclusion was that it was worth the wait however two would be a better portion size for one appetite! We had to wait another 5 or so minutes for the corn and when it arrived there was silence as focused on eating. The lime, the cheese, the paprika all made the corn super good. Not quite as good as Mamasita but still very tasty.
If I had the time to spare, it was a sunny afternoon and was in the right frame of mind so that the laid out vibe of the server / chef wasn't going to annoy me then I'd definitely return. The key thing is not to be in a hurry and not to be stressed because Chuckle Park is about happiness and sunshine and cocktails in jars and not about time constraints and getting things done!
I complimented chef / server on his rolls and he was really happy. I don't think he'll be speeding things up though.
Flavours were intense - a spicy kick, a taste of BBQ. Pretty good and the overall conclusion was that it was worth the wait however two would be a better portion size for one appetite! We had to wait another 5 or so minutes for the corn and when it arrived there was silence as focused on eating. The lime, the cheese, the paprika all made the corn super good. Not quite as good as Mamasita but still very tasty.
If I had the time to spare, it was a sunny afternoon and was in the right frame of mind so that the laid out vibe of the server / chef wasn't going to annoy me then I'd definitely return. The key thing is not to be in a hurry and not to be stressed because Chuckle Park is about happiness and sunshine and cocktails in jars and not about time constraints and getting things done!
I complimented chef / server on his rolls and he was really happy. I don't think he'll be speeding things up though.
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