After owning my first bike (in at least 25 years) I've been looking at trails from Footscray to take advantage of the quickly retreating weather and warmth. One Saturday a trip down south to Williamstown looked like something new. I think I may have been to Anchorage once over 10 years ago and have not otherwise set foot or tire in Williamstown. There were a few places on my list (garnered from the Entertainment Book) and after seeing the view of Shelly's with its outdoor area facing the ocean and semi-protected by the winds (but not the seagulls), a lunch venue was selected.
The service was great by an enthusiastic waiter.
- Smoked eggplant arancini (with house aioli) $15 - very nice crisp arancini but no detected eggplant nor smokiness about it;
- Gnocchi (with prawn ragu, fried vegetables, proscuitto & confit tomato) $29 - a very thick rich creamy cheese sauce with nice gnocchi and an incredibly number of prawns. The proscuitto was very salty (which is expected and fine) but the cheese sliced on top all melted and stuck together (maybe I should just stir faster and more aggressively). A very heavy dish but it was alright;
- Shelly's fish & chips (with tartar and mixed leaves) $26 - a price that reflects the setting as the fish batter was reasonable but the fish itself just seemed to lack some quality. The fillets were very thin and so didn't have the thick juicy flesh I expect, was a grey colour (rather than white) which may reflect a frozen rather than fresh source.
Upon paying the bill, the cashier (likely the owner or manager) looked perplexed at the Entertainment Card. Ah yes, there's one more week to use this, which the now-ex deputy manager had signed up for without informing anyone and thus been sacked because "clearly this is not for us". There was an awkward pause where I was wondering if it was hoped I would offer to forget about it, but not to be. In the end I received 20% instead of the 25%. Oh well I can't imagine going there particularly in the future anyway. The Strand and Sam's Boat Shed are Entertainment Book options left remaining.