Eat Like Ushi

I had to write one final post for Pho Phu Quoc. After eating Vietnamese food for the past 15 years (two Vietnamese girlfriends, their parents, going to Vietnam, living off Victoria Street, eating in Springvale, watching Luke Nguyen and owning all his cookbooks...), the homestyle excellent cooking of Pho Phu Quoc always made me happy.

Since my first visit there in the old premises (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/pho-phu-quoc-canberra-09-2014) to watching the mayhem of customers in the bigger and slightly more upmarket new location, I've found my staples in an excellent 3 colour drink (usually about 5-6 colours, although I'd prefer the ice to be more finely shaved), the exceptional fish hot pot and the delicious mussels. There are many other dishes I have enjoyed (such as big juicy prawns, tofu, green papaya salad, fried rice paper rolls) there but those are my favourites.

I tried the banh xeo once (difficult for me as only served at lunch but quite good) and the pho twice (nice and warming but I prefer the soup flavour from Fyshwick market and Bistro Nguyen) and can still recommend them.

I met Sue (the lovely owner) and her mum back at my workplace in early 2014 and she always remembers me and welcomes me back. I'll come again sometime...

I've now moved onto my next Vietnamese-ville in Footscray and I hope I can find somewhere as good.

I had Mocan & Green Grout on my eat list for a while. I can't quite remember where I read about it, most likely a Canberra recommended food list or best breakfasts or something along those lines. New Acton wasn't the most convenient area for me to get to any morning, so this was likely the main reason it took nearly 2 years to get there.

It's a small cosy place where opportune seating means you can watch the cooking action unfolding in front of you in what I would've thought was an impossibly small area to feed the hungry waiting for gourmet breakfasts and coffees. The menu is also quite small (which probably helps given the limited space) and makes decisions easier.

- Chai tea - I'm slowly turning from chai lattes to chai tea with milk (courtesy of Local Press). This version was ok but I'd probably get a smoothie instead next time;
- Smashed Eggs with Smoked Trout, Nettle, Sorrel, Parmesan $18 - I can't say I've ever seen smashed eggs before and it does look a bit like a mess. It seemed a bit of an odd way to present the dish with the expensive ingredient of smoked trout hidden underneath (and only a small amount of it);
- Baked Eggs, Charred Eggplant, Harissa, Meredith Chevre $17 - baked eggs

What I can say is the bread from A. Baker is phenomenal. I went to follow up by buying my own loaf from there but they were out of loaves that appealed to me. I'm happy I finally tried this place, but I do personally prefer the food and drink at others - Local Press, Cupping Room and ONA would be the main ones. 

If I was in the area I'd probably try the breakfast at A. Baker considering their excellent bread and also the outstanding dinner from 2014 (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/a-baker-canberra-11-2014). Slow cooked local eggs, crispy smoked salmon, sauteed silver beet, ginger, charred bread and a takeaway of 100% dark rye or dark ale sourdough sounds like an excellent morning.

After the exceptional meal of 2015, I couldn't leave Canberra without one final booking. This restaurant thoroughly deserved the one chef hat accolade in their first year and I was excited to come back especially after re-reading my previous review (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/lilotang-canberra-06-2015).

I couldn't resist re-ordering my favourites from the last visit. I held off on the pork belly skewers (for no particular reason) but otherwise obeyed my "next time I would order" reminder. The complimentary grilled edamame was flavoursome as I remember and started the stomach juices flowing. Quail kara-age (still succulent, tender and delicious), black cod saikyo miso (still incredibly flavoursome, delicately textured and well cooked) and the Wagyu sirloin (seemed a little more cooked and chewy and slightly less melting than last time). The kaki-age tempura rice was much less moist than last time and therefore much better. One dessert was also a repeat with mochi tofu and green tea ice cream better than I remember and now presented in a glass.

New dishes tried were:

- Chargrilled Baby Octopus, Mizuna, Pinenuts, Mustard Miso $15 - I had to look carefully to see if this was raw. The texture is so soft that it almost feels that way but didn't have any chewy or stringy parts. It's cured in sake and mirin overnight and tenderised to the point that it doesn't require extensive cooking; 
- Chicken Meat Ball, Creamy Egg $13 - nice smooth minced chicken swathed in a liquid egg yolk. The egg isn't the easiest thing to eat with the meat balls but brings a different flavour and texture;
- Sardine Namban, Spicy Tartar $15 - a beautifully presented and exceptional dish of chewy (essentially) de-boned fish that was an absolute pleasure;
- Shitake, Enokitake, King Brown Mushrooms, Selected Special Soy $12 - strong flavours enhanced by a touch heavy of salt on the shitake;
- Roast Fuji Apple, Yuzu Ice Cream, Walnuts, Honey-Infused Umeshu $15 - a warming dessert of slightly tart yuzu icecream that held well without melting too quickly on roasted apples cooked to retain a small amount of internal crunch and walnuts. Excellent. Last time I had the persimmon version which was also great.

Having eaten here twice, the quality is not fluke. The food and flavours are strong, bold and excellent (if you like strong flavour). 

The cumulative dishes I've tried means that my favourites list for next time (which I'm sure there will be some day) are: edamame, quail, pork belly skewers, sardines, black cod, possibly Wagyu, roast apple for hot dessert and mochi tofu for cold dessert. And this is all before I've managed to try the chicken thigh skewers, lamb backstrap with eggplant, pork spareribs, duck sukiyaki or tea pudding with sweet potato. Hmm.

I was really excited to read about Fillos coming to The Hamlet. I'd long yearned for a souvlaki and as good as Yarralumla Pide House is, the flavour is just different to souvlaki (as it should be since they serve doner).

Unfortunately despite it being on my list, it seemed I'd never get there. I'd even removed it from my list given the realms of possibility. But after the hasty last night minute arranging of farewell drinks at Hopscotch, I knew it could be done.

After a few drinks (which is often the best time for souvlaki from a van), I ordered a lamb souvlaki. Overall it didn't live up to my expectations. The meat was from a kebab rather than a yiros and it seemed tough (where my standard is now Jimmy Grants (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/jimmy-grants-melbourne-01-2014) and didn't have the characteristic Greek-charcoal-oregano-lemon flavour (where my standard is the over-the-top flavour at Stalactites).

I'm looking forward to getting back to my favourites in Melbourne.

I've finally left Canberra. Living in Kingston, the easiest and most accessible quick meal (which also served as an indulgence) was Brodburger. Wednesday even turned into The Bachelor and Brodburger night for a while. The mobile ordering app that saved the 30-40min wait there and allowed a timed pickup then the option to sit or takeaway was a God-send to many.

In the 2 years spent in Canberra, I've enjoyed Brod more than any other in town. There were multiple in 2014 (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/brodburger-canberra-2014) and certainly many more in 2015 including once at Broddogs (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/broddogs-canberra-02-2015). And during the final housemate meal on a Wednesday after we'd all slaved away packing our lives for removalists and bursting cars, it seemed a fitting end.

I've enjoyed 4 things particularly at Brodburger and have never been able to stray.

1) The easiest to discuss is the fries. $2.50 for good side serving is great value. Although they look like McDonald's, they are crisper and hotter (make sure you ask for fresh fries if they've been sitting in the bag and soft when you receive them) and less salty but enough seasoning such that they taste similar to the tears of enjoyment of the meal;

2) Brodburger - the simplest burger is the one I ordered 90% of the time. I used to ask for rare (instead of the default medium rare) but I don't think it made a difference and the burger was always enjoyable. A thickish good quality patty and an overall complimentary set of ingredients;

3) Brodveg - I'm not joking when I say there has never been a better vegetarian burger anywhere. The intense salty halloumi, the grilled eggplant, the tangy capsicum and there's more. I always took a few bites of someone elses so got lucky and didn't have to order it myself;

4) Brings me to the mother - Brodveg with beef patty (pictured). A friend suggested this one day and it combines the greatness of 2 and 3 together. Keep in mind, a full size one of these is huge and almost akin to the ridiculous size of Broddeluxe (which I wouldn't advise due to the size and to me disproportionate ingredients) and so a Baby Brodveg with patty might be the way to go.

I'll be thinking of you Brod. Thanks for the memories.

On a hot Braddon evening, it seemed most apt to head to Frugii for dessert. The heat of the weather and also from the mild chillies from Mandalay Bus were still fresh and a cooling finale was sought.

The icecream and gelato flavours were varied but it seemed difficult to go back the great 2-flavour combination of dark chocolate and cherry. I've spent a bit of time at home trying to recreate the dark chocolate cherry king shake that used to be on the winter menu at Cupping Room and so this was an easy choice. The dark chocolate was smooth and sweet, similar to a 65% block. The cherry had moderate flavour and complemented well. Of course the gin & tonic, lychee and espresso flavours also appealed but you have to can't have them all (well I can't at least)

Additionally they were advertising some alcoholic dessert pops and the dark chocolate one had an unsweet, mildly bitter cocoa dryness, similar to eating 80-85% dark chocolate. I didn't mind it, but I can see lesser chocolate people (ie. those who prefer white or milk) wouldn't like this at all.

I've seen Frugii being sold by the tub at Essential Ingredient in Kingston. I'll have to grab a tub before I leave.

I had about 5 hours to spend in Belconnen whilst getting my car serviced. It was lucky that between my resting spot in the Westfield foodcourt (with free wifi) and the car service centre was Malaysian Chapter (which I'd heard first from the new Entertainment Book voucher a little while ago) and Goodberry's (which a friend insisted I try).

After a few hours of draining my laptop battery it was time for lunch. The humid 37C heat didn't make curry the obvious choice for lunch, but I was already committed. I couldn't decide between typical Malaysian noodles (ie. laksa) or roti. I saw the staff appeared Malaysian Indian rather than Malaysian Chinese so decided to go down the curry pathway.

- Roti chanai with lentil curry $3 - mildly flakey and a bit chewy but overall felt a little underwhelming. I prefer my roti wispy and light but buttery;
- Nasi lemak with beef curry (fragrant coconut rice served with sambal, peanuts, crispy anchovies, cucumber and hard boiled egg) $13.5 - I was hoping the beef curry was going to be rendang (as in the full menu) but was a more standard curry. The ingredients were all reasonable and made for an adequate meal.

If I'm ever back up on the north side at meal time, I'd opt to try their versions of noodles (laksa or mamak mee goreng) or beef rendang. I don't think I'd order from the lunch menu next time.

As my time living in Canberra comes to a close, there's a short list of food places to tick off. Pod Food had been on for 1.5 years and my last foreseeable Canberra weekend seemed like the best time to go. Additionally I wanted to go to Pialligo Estate for the first time and hopefully pick up some smoked goods to bring to Melbourne for Christmas.

In a cosy 38C heat, the air conditioning inside Pod Food was welcome. Nonetheless the other diners sitting on the deck protected from the direct sun all seemed to be having a comfortable enough time soothing their sweat with wine.

- Cranberry & pistachio stuffed chicken, beetroot, parsley cream - beautifully tender with some marginal pink (which is fine to eat) chicken with a sweet and textured filling;
- Kimchi pork hock, soft egg, togarashi popcorn - couldn't detect kimchi but the pork hock had outstanding strong flavour and the corn 3-ways (juicy cob, strong puree, salty popcorn) had good flavour and texture combinations;
- Ricotta zucchini blossom, pumpkin risotto, fennel chutney, pepitas - one very large zucchini flower with risotto and herbs;
- Harissa spatchcock, labneh, honey carrots, moghrabieh - well seasoned and cooked protein with spiced yoghurt sauce and Israeli couscous;
- Pod garden leaves, walnut, pear, local cow curd;
- Coconut parfait, cured pineapple, burnt butter crumb, mango - fruit pieces with coconut icecream essentially;
- Poached pear, yoghurt mousse, oat & almond crumb, parsley icecream - the green dollop had an intense parsley flavour. Quite different and interesting;
- Mandarin & almond cake, ginger crumb, Pialligo apricot, creme fraiche, icecream - the cake absorbed the Japanese mikan juice and turned into a moistened delight. Soaked apricot appealed to me more than the fresh. The icecream wasn't lasting very long in the heat.

The food quality and dining setting are excellent. I'd have no trouble deciding whether to return or not. Lunch is a little cheaper than dinner for the same menu, and you can enjoy the surrounding greenery much more. There's also a 25% discount voucher in the Entertainment Book which improves the value somewhat.

Last year I lamented the lack of food trucks and street food in Canberra. Since then I've tried RJs (now closed I've heard), Westside Acton Park, the Hamlet but never made it to Mandalay Bus, which is probably the highest rated of the lot. On a sunny Friday evening, the Hamlet was pumping with people filling the seats, queuing and eating along the streets. It was the perfect opportunity to keep walking past and join the younger demographic with their BYO alcohol and hysteria.

- Prawn twisters $9 - prawns chopped into pieces and deep fried into thin rolls;
- Jalapeno aioli waffle fries $9 - exceptional waffle-shaped potatoes topped with mild aioli. Some of the most memorable fries I've ever had. Add some extra chilli to this fantastic dish.
- Satay chicken with kimchi on roti $9 - very nice tender satay with a tasty salad. Couldn't detect any kimchi in the salad and the roti quality was pretty average (flat, firm and chewy rather than flaky, buttery and soft). To me a roti should be soft and flexible whereas this one conformed to the bent boat shape of the box.

Overall the food quality was excellent, especially considering the price and setting. There aren't many places in Canberra you can eat for that price (the baby Brod being the possible exception). I'm quite keen to try the fried wings and pork belly saigon roll with tikka slaw & sambal next time. Of course the waffle fries are a given.

During the winter, Santa is a Brazilian churrasco with meat skewers (and assumably smells) filling the room. In the relatively warmer and quieter summer season, there is an a la carte menu that has Brazilian elements but certainly much less so. In any case there were enough Brazil bits to bring me here (and honestly the other options in Thredbo for dinner are quite limited...)

Immediately upon sitting the hostess asked if I'd like some Brazilian bread whilst reading the menu. My reflexes said no to bread, until I read it on the menu and reconsidered my decision. Next time just don't say no to Brazilian bread.

- Brazilian Cheese Bread (tapioca cheese bread wit brazil nut dukkah & olive oil) $6.5 - warm firm outsides and a doughy interior that is actually cheese rather than unrisen dough. The dukkah was salty and delicious although it was impossible to get any balsamic through the olive oil;
- Prawn & Snapper Moqueca (northern Brazil fish dish with coconut milk, tomato, capsicum, dende & coriander served with quinoa puff) $34 - a good number of prawns and reasonably well cooked fish in a creamy coconut milk-based curry;
- BBQ Pork Fillet & Spicy Chorizo Rotisserie Sword (with house sides of rice, polenta chips, black beans, salad) $34 - the meats were removed from the sword at the table. Chorizo was very mild but the pork was extremely tender and well flavoured;
- Baby Beetroot, Palm Heart & Fetta Salad (with crispy polenta, kiss peppers & salad leaves) $16 - a nice salad mix of juicy beetroot, heart of palm (which I have a can of at home and been waiting to work out how to use) and these small kiss peppers that look like tomatoes but have an unusual tangy sourness.

The food is quite expensive overall (as are most dining options in Thredbo) but nonetheless satisfying and filling. I'd happily eat these dishes again or hopefully try the churrasco adornment of meats.