Eat Like Ushi

Possibly the best after midnight food whilst out and about (which usually also involves recovering or an intermission from a big night of spirits) is the souvlaki. It could well be the best in the world out of all I've tried. From Istanbul's islak burger, Adelaide's Ab(ortion), dimsum in Hong Kong, various doner/shawarma from Europe/Middle East, they all have in common the same heavy rich flavour and the regret of indigestion in the morning. I even tried a few specialty types in Turkey, including one comprised of lamb brain, tongue and cheek (sogus kebab) in Izmir. I've been around.

Nonetheless, like all good things, they seem a fantastic idea at the time. Looking for one good enough to eat during normal hours and sober is the best test.

London certainly lacked a souvlaki. Outside of Greece, kebabs are Turkish-inspired and I certainly had my local favourite known simply as Best Kebabs in Whitechapel and a more upmarket one in Elephant & Castle that served as stomach lining prior to Ministry of Sound. Even in Greece itself, the gyros (yiros) uses pork or chicken. My favourite of all-time still has to be the pork at Bairaktaris in Athens, a place I nearly left the airport during a 2.5 hour break just to get. The authentic souvlaki in Greece use pork and chips in a wrap, which is a far cry from the Melbourne ones I was introduced to in 1998.

I was impressed to see a specialty souvlaki shop opening in Collingwood but none other than George. I hoped it would be better than the last one I remember by Anthony Koutoufides, which reportedly didn't use a spit.

- steamed Jimmy Dimmy - fat soft versions of siu mai, simple tasty and moist;
- chips, garlic oil, feta, oregano - the same winning formula from Gazi with the feta adding an uplifting richness to the chips;
- Mr Papadopoulos souvlaki (lamb, mustard aioli, chips, onions, parsley) - delicate chunks of lamb with basic flavour, although lacking the crisp intense flavour hits I'm used to. More refined, horses for courses;
- The Patris souvlaki (prawns, attiki honey, mayo, cucumber, mint, coriander) - wasn't really a fan. Flavours were ok, but I suppose I'm looking for something stronger in a souvlaki.

Some people say the sizes are not the same inflated size as other places in Melbourne. It's a good thing - one of these with a few little side shares is enough for a person. It isn't open until late so it would be unlikely you'd be drunk stumbling in here (unlike Stalactites), but it serves a more gourmet one. If you want big size and heavy flavour, I'd go somewhere else.

Next time I'd order Mr Papadopoulos and a side of chips. I'd be tempted to try the Nonna Maria (chicken) to see what kind of flavour the gyros has. If you haven't been to Hellenic Republic or haven't made it yourself, try the Grain Salad.

05-2015

It's been a long 16 months since my first and only visit to Jimmy Grants. After a few drinks in the city, I was actually in the mood for Messina, however after seeing the 50 person queue, my hunger changed to settle on a souvlaki and chips.

Vaguely recalling my only being moderately impressed the first time, I ordered another Mr Papadopoulus and chips. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe my tastes have changed, but these were fantastic. The souvlaki had once again super tender morsels of lamb, without the crispy parts still, but with excellent succulence and rich not-overly-salty taste. The chips were fresh, crisp and zingy with feta.

I'll remember this time more than the first and be back.

In my absence, the Melbourne addition to the first world's street food revolution is souvlaki. It comes as no surprise that George Calombaris led the way with Gazi (focus on Greek street food) and Jimmy Grant's (focus specifically on souvlaki).

My cravings for Stalactites lamb gyro souvlaki was put on hold as I made a booking for Gazi as venue for a long overdue catchup.

I didn't take any photos that evening (which is a shame) and in a way it was telling that the food took backseat to the conversation and catchup. This could mean the conversation was all encompassing, but also the food was not particularly special.

For ease, the Doing It Greek Style 10-dish sharing menu was selected. It was a lot of food.

- 3 dips + flat bread - tzatziki, taramosalata (fish roe) with prawn crackers, miso melitzanosalata (eggplant, miso);
- Saganaki, honey, sesame, lemon - delicious fried cheese with a good amount of saltiness, elasticity and a tiny bit of crunch;
- Soft Shell Crab Souvlakakia (mint, coriander, honey, mayonnaise) - very nice soft fried crab;
Duck Souvlakakia (chips, parsley, onion, pear, mustard mayo) - very very crispy strips of duck meat with unmistakable duck flavour, but lacking the succulence the meat usually deserves;
- Wood-Fire Grill Swordfish - sadly was well cooked through and a bit dry;
- Wood-Fire Spit Pork Belly (white beans, apple skordalia) - moist soft chunks of belly meat that I couldn't stop helping myself to;
- Chips of Tiganites Patates (oregano, garlic oil, feta) - reasonably crispy chunky chips, good seasoning, and the feta lifts it to another level of silky unhealthiness;
- Acropolis Now (stawberry mousse, coffee and mastic) - very sweet strawberry dessert;
- Loukomathes (honey nutella, crushed hazelnuts) - excellent warm doughnut balls crispy smothered in honey.

There are two dishes I can't recall - one was probably a street food starter and the other was a salad. I was a bit disappointed there wasn't any lamb, not even available as a souvlakakia.

What I will gripe about is the service. A friend had previously warned me they had several different waiters and a degree of neglect overall. Our experience was again, having 4-5 different servers - I don't tend to mind this much, but when there is no communication between them and every 5 minutes a different waiter comes to ask us how everything is, it starts to really get annoying.

Next time I would order the a la carte instead of tasting menu. I'd be quite happy to eat the Saganaki, Pork Belly and Loukomathes again. I'd be willing to give the Crab and Duck Souvlakakias another try with more of my mind's focus, but am also tempted by the rumours about the Beef Brisket one. Off the dishes not yet tried, the most enticingly worded are Crispy Lamb Brains, Wood-Fire Grill Lamb Cutlets and what would likely be the piece de resistance, the Koondrook Braise of Kid Goat for 2.

After returning from London, one of my most missed foods for either late night (post-alcohol) snacking or a really lazy unhealthy dinner at home was the fried chicken from Royal PFC 2 in Whitechapel. Needless to say KFC never stacked up against it (although the opposition from the KFC backers was strong).

Combining this with what appears to be Melbourne's arrival of Korean food, I ended up at 10pm going to Gami. I thought it was a new place arriving in my absence, but was told it had been around at least since 2011. Who knew?

In traditional Korean meal fashion, a few freebies were thrown to start off as drink snacks - Calbee prawn crackers and some pickled cubes of white radish. I didn't realise these would soon be used to offset the chicken.

- Half Chicken with Spicy Sauce - a large half of fried chicken cut into palm sized pieces and smothered in a thick, red, burning chilli sauce. It brought tears to my eyes and a sting to my tongue, but only a little too hot for enjoyment. It didn't stop it from being finished by 2 of us;
- Chicken pieces (wings) - original fried chicken drumsticks and wings with a nice crunchy batter.

Both came with a cabbage salad with mayonnaise to appease the heat. The chicken was well cooked, not dry, but not particularly moist either. It hit a spot and I would go back if I was craving it, although probably not too far out of my way. The Gami house lager was the first beer I've finished voluntarily (maybe the heat numbed and burnt my tongue enough to tolerate the lighter beer taste),

Next time I would order the fried chicken either sweet chilli or sweet soy garlic sauce to try the different versions. I like the meat on these larger pieces better than the wings, and the wings don't come with the sauce options. There are other light meals listed, but why would you get them at this place?

10-2014

A recent (month long) craving for fried chicken brought me back to Gami. Reading through my last entry (one of the great things about having a food journal) guided me into ordering a whole fried chicken - half sweet chilli and half sweet soy garlic sauce. The sweet soy garlic sauce is a milder flavour, light on garlic that is rather pleasant. The sweet chilli is a milder form of the spicy sauce with a very minor amount of burn. Both are good and recommended. Funnily enough I preferred the soy garlic sauce on the night I ate it, and the sweet chilli on the subsequent two nights after microwaving. Odd. 

Once again the cabbage salad was simple enough to break up the chicken taste and I particularly liked the pickled radish cubes too. Takeaway took 20-30mins, so I'd advise to phone order in advance if you have enough forward planning skills.

Fish Market supposedly only serves sustainable seafood and as I was craving ocean flavours, this seemed the logical choice to try for lunch. There is a cheap lunch menu but the a la carte selections sound much more inviting.

Complementary bread had a wonderful crust to start things off.

- Fish Market Prawn Cocktail - recommended to me over the lobster cocktail. Small prawns and cocktail sauce were average, but the large boiled prawn sitting atop was deliciously sweet and I wanted more;
- Fish Pie (haddock, Loch Var salmon & prawns) - pie filling ingredients cooked perfectly with a hint of dill. Crunchy prawns, soft delicate salmon, meaty haddock all with their individual tastes and textures.

There are plenty more options on the menu I will go back for.

Next time I would order some new things to try - Lobster Bisque, Sea Bass Ceviche, White Wine Mussels, Fish & Chips or Crustacea in the Shell (whelks, winkles, shrimps). 

It seemed a bit unusual that there would be availability of a respected two-chef hat restaurant for a Friday night when booking only a few hours earlier. I suppose it is because Matteo's is not a new place, it isn't in the middle of the city, and doesn't follow any current food trend. Additionally the name suggests an Italian focus, but in fact it is a very Japanese-inspired menu.

The clientele is very western european with many Greeks and Italians. Given that the restaurant is in Brunswick, that probably shouldn't be so unexpected.

Given it was our first trip here, we opted for the degustation menu with the addition of some oyster shooters (which is only listed on the lunch menu for some reason). The 10 servings of the set are presented as 4 courses of 2-3 each, which is a more casual way rather than continuous procession of waiting staff and plate/cutlery clearing.

- Oyster Shooters (with mirin & sake) - same base as the benchmark from Ezard. No chilli or wasabi in this version, but still the strong sweet mirin followed by a lovely salty oyster flavour. Much cheaper too at $3.50 each.
- Hiramasa Kingfish Sashimi (with prawn remoulade, shiso sauce) - nicely textured sashimi slices with a tangy yuzu sauce;
- Citrus-cured Ocean Trout Tataki (with lattice chips, creme fraiche, Yarra Valley salmon roe) - almost a biscuit sandwich of salmon slices with some roe that I couldn't taste. Nothing special;
- Teriyaki-glazed Smoked Eel (with potato & egg roulade, bonito mayonnaise) - strange dish of potato salad and eel wrapped in nori. The eel was thicker than the delicate Japanese unagi I expected and did not have the sweet thick brown sauce;
- Steamed Scallop Dim Sum (with roasted parsnip, yuzu-witlof sauce) - sweet juicy scallop dumpling with a tart citrus sauce. Delicious;
- Tempura Zucchini Flower (with fetta, watermelon, radish, coriander & peanut salad, tamarind vinaigrette) - excellent fetta-filled tempura on a lovely combination salad mixing sweet and sour, soft and crunchy;
- Chinese-roasted Five-spiced Duck Breast (with Tokyo turnip fondant, Yakiniku barbecue sauce) - beautifully rare duck with wonderful flavour;
- Seared Wagyu Beef Sirloin (with spinach fondue, kimchi-capsicum piperade, miso-shiraz sauce) - small cube of medium rare beef with some visible marbling and good texture. I think wagyu should not be served with sauce as the beef flavour wasn't discernible through it;
- Vanilla Bean Bavarois (with summer berries, macaroons, strawberry sorbet) - vanilla ice-cream, cold fresh fruit, sweet marshmallows (which they said were macaroons), and meringue pieces moddled together. Refreshing and lovely;
- Roasted Yellow Peach Tarte Tatin (with raspberry & almond frangipane) - outstanding soft sweet peaches in a circular moist and slightly crispy pastry. Enjoyed every bite;
- Poached Meringue with White Chocolate-Nougat Parfait - very heavy and sickly, too much for me.

Next time I would order the degustation menu for the first time. The degustation dishes sounded a lot more interesting in words than the a la carte menu. Many dishes were delicious and well executed, without any one demanding a return just for it. Overall a very good meal.

Neil Perry's expanding restaurant empire in Melbourne relatively recently added an Asian food focussed place at Crown Casino next to Rockpool. Although seemingly predominantly Szechuan-based, the main attraction for me to come here was for the reputation of having a more upmarket and diverse take on yum cha.

As yum cha translates to drink tea, it is expected to have tea with the meal. The standard Cantonese restaurant will vary from providing free standard (usually Jasmine) tea or charging $1-2 per person for this. Some specific tea houses provide tea flowers or leaves generally for $5-7 per pot. Spice Temple charged us $5.5 per person to share one pot of tea. $11 for a pot of tea is quite extortionate. I suppose that comes from having a restaurant in Crown and being known for reputation, expense and more upmarket takes.

- Fried Salt & Pepper Silken Tofu with Spicy Coriander Salad - tofu with lovely flavour and delicate texture with a very spicy chilli sauce (I think the word salad is a bit generous);
- Soy-Baked Fremantle Octopus with Broad Beans - tender octopus, crunchy broad beans, inconspicuous flavour;
- Hot & Numbing Dry Wagyu Beef - fantastic deep salty meat that served the best dish of the lot. Surprisingly not very hot despite the name;
- Crab, Flathead & Spinach Dumplings - thick gelatinous coating a pretty unmemorable filling;
- Cumin Pork Ribs - delicate meat off the bone, great texture but needed a bit more salt to accentuate the cumin;
- Braised & Fried Pork Hock with "Floss" - pieces of crispy pork with skin and fat to chew through the various textures;
- Egg Custard with Crab & XO Sauce - really tasty and chilli sauce lifting a smooth custard with intermittent morsels of crab meat;
- Steamed Scallop Dumplings - quite small dumpling with a watery scallop filling. 

Next time I would order the Fried Wagyu Beef. Most of the dishes from the Fried list are worth getting. Avoid the standard dumplings as they cost 2-3 times more than other yum cha restaurants for a smaller dumpling that doesn't taste particularly different nor with finer ingredients. If you are ordering tea to share for two, try specifying it for one - I can't possibly justify on their behalf charging double just to provide an extra cup.

I didn't want to make a trek all the way back to Melbourne and not try somewhere new and cool. Along the top end of Gertrude Street near the dining haven of Cutler & Co came the new venture from what could be the best tapas in Melbourne at Bar Lourinha (still on my list to try).

It seemed like an excellent combination for a Thursday night - staying out of the middle of the city, ample free parking around, takes reservations and had availability last minute, and on the new and cool list being awarded "Best on Trend" in The Age Good Food restaurant wrap for 2012 only one week prior.

On this day the specials from the coal roast pit were kid and veal ribs.

- Yellow-Fin Tuna 'A La Gallega' - expected a cube of raw tuna and actually got a piece cooked straight through. Didn't like it and wouldn't recommend it.
- Kingfish Ceviche, Lemon Oil - honestly don't remember it;
- Anchovy Montadito - fried bread rectangle housing a thin but powerfully strong anchovy slice. Delicious;
- Northern King Prawn, Smoked Chilli, Lemon - deliciously succulent large prawn, charred crispy shell and full of flavour. Outstanding;
- Tomato, Buffalo Mozzarella, Parsley - juicy salad to cut through the grilled flavours;
- Five-Spiced Pork Belly - like an outstanding and quality version of char siu. Less crispy and thick crunch (which of course has its own appeal) and more delicate meat, sweet pork and five-spice flavour. I like it;
- Pit-Roast Kid - quality thick portions of goat meat to chew on and be happy. A couple of pieces were a little tough, but the majority was delicate and smooth;
- Chocolate Bunuelos & Hazelnut Sauce - soft balls of fried dough with a deep chocolate enriching the insides and a lovely nutty sauce. 

Next time I would order from the standard menu Pork Belly, Anchovy Montadito, Northern King Prawn plus any meat special of the day from the coal roast pit. It isn't particularly cheap, but the food and open atmosphere are nice.

A brief break in between a wedding ceremony and reception seemed like the perfect opportunity to try Melbourne's reputed best burger. Given the explosion of London burger joints, it isn't surprising we've been putting many to the test.

I tried the Denise burger, which is a Huxtaburger - beef pattie, mustard, mayo, tomato sauce, tomato, cheese, lettuce, pickles - upgraded with jalapenos and sriracha mayo. What can I say, it is an ugly but very soft breaded bun (from Breadtop I've heard), a strongly flavoured salty meaty pattie and some standard supporting ingredients. Overall very good and split the crowd as to whether it was preferred over MeatLiquor (I prefer the latter for its unadulterated meat and megagrease bun).

Crinkle cut chips were simple to complete the classic pairing, and washed down with some nice cider.

Next time I would order the Bills or Theo just for some change and comparison. Chipotle chips are also available on specific request and I think they would more memorable than the basic one.

I've long-sampled most of Melbourne's reputed yum cha venues. The popular favourites around town are Golden Dragon Palace, Taipan, Gold Leaf, Shark Fin House, David's. My regular is the lesser known Minh Tan 2 in Abbotsford. The latest front runner is Neil Perry's Spice Temple - but unfortunately I wasn't around on a day on which they were serving lunch.

One place on the list that is conveniently located in the middle of the city is Oriental Tea House. Actually it is unexpectedly in the business district of town rather than in Chinatown which would potentially be off-putting. How surprising it was that the food turned out to be great.

First of all, as the name suggests, this is a tea house. They specialise in drinking tea, selling tea, teapots and other tea accessories. As an aside they serve yum cha to mainly corporates and caucasian retirees. I suppose this would usually be ominous for Cantonese, but give it a try.

- Chicken Feet (steamed with Black Bean Sauce);
- Scallop Dumplings (Minced Seafood wrapped & topped with a Scallop) - quality dumpling with a tasty scallop;
- Chilli Wagyu Beef Dumplings (Wagyu Beef Marinated with Kaffir Lime Leaves steamed in a Wonton Skin served with Special Chilli Sauce) - outstanding smooth texture with a beautiful chilli dipping sauce;
- Roast Duck Dumplings (Beetroot Wrapper with Shredded Duck, Chicken, Pork & Vegetables) - not a bad combination, but more striking appearance than taste revelation;
- Deep Fried Octopus - very nice fried flavour, although texture not as tender as Minh Tan;
- Sticky Rice (combined with Chicken, Mushroom, Egg Yolk, Prawns, BBQ Pork & Chinese Sausage steamed in a Lotus Leaf) - simple standard version.

The tea was a pure Jasmine flower in a clear pot. Perfect to complement the meal.

Next time I would order the Wagyu Beef Dumplings and any selection of the Seafood Dumplings (prawn or scallop). All the other dishes are standard but good quality Cantonese that probably cost a little more for the setting and table service. But you'll be satisfied. There are a lot of teas to select from also.

It was a much anticipated reunion with my favourite restaurant in Melbourne. All I knew is that the Crispy Fried Pork Hock was waiting for me.

We opted for the tasting menu just for ease. My friends had raved about a Whole Crispy Fried Fish that had been removed from the menu. Due to fate or otherwise, it was an optional add-on for the tasting menu.

- Caramelised Prawn, Eschalots, Chicken, Pork & Sour Pineapple - very strong sweetness with the palm sugar & peanuts glueing the ingredients together was a bit thick & heavy;
- Oyster (with Red Chilli, Lime Juice, Crispy Eschallots) - warm tasty steamed oyster in a salty soy broth, much like those from Cantonese restaurants;
- Eggnet, Pork, Prawn, Bean Sprouts, Cucumber Relish - delicious combination of vegetable textures (perhaps a little too heavy on the beanshoots) with a nice sweet & chilli fish sauce dressing;
- Green Curry Grass-Fed Beef - beef slices seemed a little confused; I assumed they were slices of fillet but cooked too much to be soft. I think a slow cooked tender cut would have been better;
- Caramelised Pork Hock, Five Spice, Chilli Vinegar - the perfect combination of soft juicy pork, gorgeous crunchy exterior and smothered in thick sweet palm sugar sauce. My favourite comfort & luxury dish in Melbourne;
- Whole Crispy Fish, Chilli, Lime, Roasted Rice - soft fleshed flounder with crispy skin topped with Asian herbs & a light sweet sauce;
- Steamed Chinese Broccoli, Oyster Sauce;
- Black Rice, Vanilla Tapioca, Custard Apple Cream - sweet combination of textures with rice grains, soft sago & smooth icecream.

Longrain still remains my long staple favourite. I miss it already.

It is also one of the reputed cocktail bars in Melbourne which serves to lessen the boredom in accepting their no reservations policy (you can book only for 6+ people). This is the only reason I would hesitate to recommend it to travellers - the wait can be unpredictable. Under those circumstances get a cocktail or two and you can order small items from the bar menu (Betef Leaf recommended).

Next time I would order my favourites from the a la carte menu - Betel Leaf with Pomelo and the Caramelised Pork Hock (the smaller bar menu option is enough for two and better value) in particular. If getting the tasting menu option, I'd choose the Sour Orange Fish Curry rather than the Green Curry Beef.