Eat Like Ushi

There was a brief period in late 2014 I was partially addicted to the chips from Kingston's Chicken Gourmet, which are served insanely hot, crispy fresh and smothered in fluorescent chicken salt. It seemed to be around the late AFL season and finals period where my standard halftime ritual would be to walk and get some chips to ease the tension.

After reading online about Kingsley's having the best chips in Canberra and an outlet in Woden, I tried several times to find it, eventually realising it must have closed down in the foodcourt and not that I was blind. Eventually my affair with Chicken Gourmet ended after a few substandard burgers (even with the 2-for-1 entertainment book discount).

Many months later I saw the ad for Kingsley's about to (re-)open in Woden. Conveniently this was located in the fresh food market area which I often frequented. One November lunch, I decided to succumb and try. What can I say - the burger chicken was reasonable but the dry white bun and other ingredients remind me why I don't particularly eat KFC burgers or Hungry Jacks anymore (and not for years). My burger and bread standards have changed. The fried chicken was nice and better than Chicken Gourmet's equivalent, but below KFC and my memories of Whitechapel's Royal PFC. The chips are crinkle and well cooked with unnecessary thick gravy. Interestingly they don't have chicken salt available.

I think I'm too old for this type of food anymore. Maybe I'll only just settle for the chips next time.

(The Woden zomato is delisted, so I'll have to settle for this one.)

After a long late night out, lunch at Grazing started with a sobering 30km drive from Canberra. The scenery was peaceful with not many cars on the road. A brief walk down the main road at Gundaroo didn't reveal much and so perhaps the restaurant is really the only thing to specifically come here for.

The setting is an a quaint corner house and the menu is seasonal.

- Layered scallop mousse with squid ink pasta, heirloom tomato and micro basil $17 - a beautifully presented dish with intense black and mildly ink-flavoured soft pasta and a lovely distinctive scallop gel;
- Deboned quail with black pudding, roasted pear and parsley root puree $17 - impeccable meat enjoying quail without having to pull it from the bones. The black pudding sauce was potent and rich and excellent;
- Saltwater Barramundi with butter poached prawns, white cabbage, fennel and red wine reduction $33 - perfectly cooked fish, nice crisp skin, well seasoned;
- Pork belly with loin - soft tender meat, quite nice overall, but perhaps overshadowed by my recent memories of the quail;
- Roast pineapple pavlova with sticky meringue, coconut curd and passion fruit gelée $17 - very sweet flavours, perhaps a little too much for me, but nice.

Overall an outstanding meal with exceptional skill and ingredients. I don't know if I'll ever be back in the area but if I am it'll be an easy stop.

I remember they promoted wholefoods and all things good for you. I also vaguely remember the last (and only other) time I was there over 1.5 years ago they sold quite a few products on the benches which were now gone.

I ended up at Maple & Clove more by coincidence, with the final nights in Canberra being spent at the lovely 5* Hotel Realm whilst the apartment was being cleaned. It's a nice area with the patrons tending to be business people and the standard mothers with prams.

Choc almond smoothie (almond milk, dates, banana, activated almonds, coffee & cocoa) $9 kicked things off. The dates didn't make the drink overly sweet and there was a nice blend of flavours and grainy texture. I do wonder if activating nuts makes a discernible difference to either taste or health benefits.

- Maple Whole Waffle (wholemeal spelt, zucchini & sweet corn waffles served with smoked King salmon, confit tomato & slow cooked egg) $20 - an interesting waffle that was certainly different to usual. It had a strong corn flavour which I always enjoy;
- Sweet potato hashbrown (with gypsy ham, scrambled egg, dukkah, rocket & mint) $18 - I can't resist a good hashing of potatoes. This one was fine but nothing that particularly excited me.

It's a small menu and I do prefer other cafes in Canberra so this was more a meal of convenience than anything else.

The meals seemed a little small compared to the standard (or maybe I'm just greedy). Wholefoods are always more expensive I suppose but the quality is meant to be better? Maybe I'm just reminded of Wholefoods in NYC and London which was always a nice place to wander through and dream of spending that much on groceries...

After living in Canberra for 2 years I could finally realise the quality of some of the local products. There are the truffles, the wine, the bacon and (even though I don't think it) the coffee. The owner of ONA (and thus Cupping Room) was awarded the best barista in the world. Quite an accolade especially when you think about all the coffee wank in Melbourne. Not only this, I had heard the same guy submitted his coffee bean to some kind of international judging panel and won that too. The world's best barista using the world's best beans? That's going to be pretty hard to beat.

Even though I'm sure the super barista himself rather (if ever) served mortals his coffee, I'd always been told the coffee at Cupping Room was by far the best in town. Considering it was also the same place that created my ever favourite cherry chocolate coconut king shake, it was an appropriate final brunch before leaving town (forever...)

- Smashed avocado, two poached eggs, tomato & olive salsa, whipped goats cheese & rye sourdough toast  with Pialligo Estate bacon $25 - I don't like reading the words "smashed avocado" anymore however when it comes with Australia's best bacon it becomes a necessary evil. I didn't get a chance to get back to Pialligo Estate to pickup some dry cured and smoked bacon so had to make do with this. And it was extraordinary - salty, strong, crisp and made of dreams. The eggs were well cooked, avocado and cheese combined well and tomato & basil completed the meal with sourdough. Outstanding;
- Cured salmon, a soft boiled egg, wasabi pickled daikon, pear & ginger gel, enori, radish, green tea aioli & rye sourdough toast $20 - there's a LOT of salmon on the dish and only a small amount of bread. It was a beautifully presented dish and equally satisfying.

My favourite shake hasn't made a return as it was part of the previous year's summer menu, so many again in a few months time. In the meantime there's the pistachio & chamomile which is nearly as incredible. I like pistachios, especially as gelato, so that was an easy choice. The chamomile flowers added an extra flavour and texture element which was unexpected and great similar to a sweet chewy popcorn. I'd tried the dark chocolate and honeycomb version a couple of months earlier also which was ok but only a poor cousin to the cherry version.

The menu is full of things I'd want to try - what is compressed watermelon? Octopus and squid ink salad, roasted pork belly or the mythical huevos bollo roll with Pialligo Estate bacon...

It was a fitting farewell to a city that has surpassed my culinary expectations.

(I also decided to upload a picture of a chickpea salad with kataifi egg and flatbread from the meal a couple of months earlier just because it looks nice.)

After the initial scallop pie at Smith's in Salamanca Market (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/salamanca-market-and-smiths-specialty-pies-hobart-01-2016) and then earlier that morning at Jackman & McRoss (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/jackman-and-mcross-hobart-01-2016), I couldn't decide whether to remain happily full or go the full hog and try the final scallop pie on my list.

I walked through Salamanca Place and past the Bakehouse back and forth deciding. In the end I decided to reign down my greed and in the name of food research just do it.

The $7.50 had good thick scallops, similar to Smith's. The inside was very creamy curry but the pastry was a little soft unfortunately.

For the convenience I'd be happy to have the pie here especially considering the place is open 24/7?? On a Saturday, Smith's is so close that I'd go there inside. For a slightly more sophisticated pie with vegetables and good pastry I'd consider the detour to J&M. But let's face it, I'd eat any of them that was available.

One of the things I anticipated most about the trip to Hobart was the market, specifically the Saturday Salamanca Market. I'm always a fan of the local markets, to see and smell the cooking foods, the noises and bustle of people (hopefully not too many) and to look at the local produce available. I'm less inclined by trinkets and wares but I suppose you need something for everybody.

There were some nice truffle products, a stand that sold fresh wasabi paste (they wouldn't sell the actual root to the public unfortunately), but I most was looking forward to the Tasmanian scallop pie. This would be my first, and Smith's seemed a great start.

I thought a $7 pie was a little much, but scallops aren't cheap, they are the local delicacy, and now it's probably partially a tourist thing also. After eating them elsewhere, I realised this was actually cheaper than the others (given it's a food van I'm not surprised).

The pie contains 3 thick scallops, really meaty and impressive and a mild curry sauce with (what I think is) a light sprinkle of curry powder on top of the pie to engrave the name. It was a fine start especially straight after breakfast at Pigeon Hole.

Right at the end of the market, a mother and her two young children sold ginger beer. Extra zingy and gingery was the way to go and washed things down nicely.

Walking from the harbour up towards the other restaurant front along Elizabeth Street, you'll come across Mako Fresh Fish. Apparently it's quite well known for its fresh seafood and the Chinese tourists seem to like it. Not sure about the second part, but the first seems to be true.

There are two counters within the same store - a fresh seafood spot and a cooking area where fish and chips etc. can be purchased. Given it was around 4pm and I just needed something to tide me over until dinner, it was mainly a snack I was after. Of the fresh counter, the oysters seemed best.

When reading menus online, Hobart restaurants charge about $35-40 for a dozen oysters, even natural. By contrast, the same ones are around $14 at Mako. I sat down, paid $1 for a lemon (which was unnecessary in hindsight) and enjoyed the large, creamy, moderate strength delicacies at the central table. I also bought an arancini ball with cooked salmon inside. They were kind enough to microwave it for me but unfortunately the outside was hot but inside still cold. I won't make that mistake again.

It'd be a great spot for a full lunch (or dinner) - oysters from the counter, fish and chips (which is a bit pricey) from the cooked area.

In Hobart there is Pigeon Hole Cafe and Pigeon Whole Bakers. It is a little confusing but I suppose the silver lining (if there is one for the more confused persons out there) is that both are well rated and so ending up at either is probably ok. They are in quite different locations (perhaps 20mins walk) so it's not the biggest deal if you are supposed to meet someone at the other.

Because I was looking for a full brunch, Pigeon Hole seemed to be more appropriate and better rated for this. It was an early morning exercise walking across town to get there, but meant it was an easy and scenic descent straight to the parks and to Salamanca Market.

The menu is actually very small. Considering the cafe is too this is probably not a bad thing. Funnily enough Pigeon Hole serve Pigeon Whole bread. I wonder if they are linked somehow...

Chai tea was served with soy milk. There were visible spices in the pot but even after steeping the flavours weren't very strong. It tasted quite similar to black tea with milk in the end.

- Pigeon Hole slow baked beans, raclette & sourdough $13 - a warming dish of beans, cheese and bread. The dish could have used some kind of vegetable or other element to contrast;
- Soft baked eggs with jamon, smoked paprika, greens, grana & toast $12.9 - a good mix of ingredients with softer than usual baked eggs. The greens were quite distinctive in flavour. I couldn't really tell much paprika.

On both dishes the bread was actually very nice. Very nice crust, good centres and enriched with butter. I may not visit Pigeon Hole next visit (as there isn't really anything else on the menu I particularly want to try) but I'll have to make a bread journey to Pigeon Whole Bakers. For a cafe experience, I'm keen to try Machine Laundry Cafe which is in Salamanca Plaza and a much busier piece of real estate.

After the disappointment of having to sell my Friday MOFO ticket and fly out, I had a good couple of hours to spare before the airport bus came. After looking at my Google map starred locations, I decided the way to end the trip was with a scavenge for scallop pies. I'd only had one so far at the Salamanca Market and considering how little information there is about places in Hobart to get these, had to scrounge to every little piece I could find.

With my backpack and roller hand luggage, I walked through Salamanca, up some stairs, and uphill to the large corner building of Jackman & McRoss. Walking toward the place you can smell the bakery aromas out on the streets. Once inside I had a difficult time controlling myself as to order only things I could realistically take with me. It's a shame I didn't get to order some of their loaves.

The Scallop & Wakame Pie $8.2 had smaller scallops, mild curry, carrot, potato and corn, and encased in very good pastry. The Duck, Cranberry & Walnut sausage roll $5.9 was an excellent mix of less common fillings with a multitude of textures.

I also impulse bought their chai tea mix as well as a takeaway chai with soy. Their version was probably the most complex I've had. Thankfully not too sweet with a fennel/aniseed aftertaste I couldn't quite put my finger on and a hint of chilli spice. Unfortunately when I've tried to brew from their mix, the taste was quite plain and not nearly as exciting. I'll have to keep trying.

They have sit down space but I'm not sure if they serve more than their outstanding bakery fare.

It's a real shame I didn't get to sit down and eat at Daci & Daci. I visited on two separate occasions for takeaway and the range and quality were impressive. Honestly the main reason I sought it out was after reading that they have a fantastic rocky road (which is sitting waiting for me in the pantry).

I do think that charging an extra $5 for a sandwich to be eaten in rather than taken away is a little excessive. Maybe that's a good reason to get takeaway and go sit in a very nearby park or down by the harbour.

The first item I had was a sandwich (with smoked free range ham, Tasmanian smoked cheddar, rocket & spiced pear chutney). Because of the takeaway, I had it a day later after the bread had become stale. But nonetheless the serve was large, ingredients and flavours were nice and quite satisfying overall.

The second takeaway adventure was for a pissaladiere (with caramelised onion, roast tomatoes, black olives, feta & basil) and a tart (roast pumpkin, thyme, caramelised onion, goat's cheese & walnut). Both were sensational with the pissaladiere having strong flavours, the tart plenty of textures, and both good pastry.

It's quite a pricey place but the quality is excellent. I'll definitely be back, particularly to try some sweets (like a black cherry and pistachio tart).

03-2016

Unfortunately my rocky road went mouldy. I opened it around March 3rd (and the "best before" date was March 31, not a "use by" date) which was greatly disappointing. The mould was on a few surfaces as well as filling the crevasses made by the chocolate. I still cut a few samples just to try (which were fine but nothing overwhelming) but had to throw out a good 90% of it.

I emailed to provide feedback and it was suggested I should have put it in the fridge. Considering chocolate isn't typically refrigerated, the rocky road in store isn't refrigerated and nothing written on it suggests so, I thought that was an odd justification. In any case without my asking I was offered a replacement, and when I replied it was unnecessary as I live interstate, they offered to mail out. After a few weeks I received a Belgian cocoa hazelnut brownie which is sensational warmed and eaten with ice-cream. Thanks a lot!