Cafe Vue @ 401

Vue wagyu burger with french fries - $15

A text message I received this week during a particularly stressful day at work:

How about breakfast at the new Café Vue on st kilda road? It's shannon bennett's new cafe.

Yes, that sounded perfect for me!

Cafe Vue
401 St Kilda Rd
Melbourne VIC 3004
(03) 9866-8055
Website

I am, of course, aware of Australian super-chef Shannon Bennett, but before today I had never actually visited one of his restaurants or cafes. I know, bad blogger! In fact, I even served him once when I used to work at a cinema. I was all nerdy and excited with my co-workers, "OMG guys Shannon Bennett's here!", to which they responded, "Is that that blonde chick from Neighbours?" DOI!

Anyhoo, after I received that text message, I had a look at their menu online, I thought that Cafe Vue @ 401 would be a good introduction to the Vue empire - casual, well priced and in a convenient location!

Ooh - I couldn't stop staring at the rotating chickens.

We arrived at about 1pm on a Sunday, and it was busy but not too crowded, and we got a table straight away. I really liked the decor - I thought of it as a pleasing mix of classic, Marie Antoinette and Jacques Tati. (And the red tiles in the bathrooms are SOOOO cool!) For some reason there were 3 TV's on one wall playing a looped video of guys cycling in Sydney. I didn't quite get it. Despite the reasonable prices, for some reason the crowd was super-wealthy - Gucci bags, custom-made Adidas trainers and directional haircuts galore. (The crowd reminded me of this ad campaign, hehe).


The pastry cabinet - the cakes looked great; the macarons looked... well... some were ok, many were cracked and uneven. I guess they're better left to the experts. There was also a basket of pastries/danishes etc next to the espresso machine, which looked like they had seen better days.

I ordered a freshly squeezed orange juice, which came in a cute glass bottle.
Orange juice - $4

I'm glad it wasn't me who ordered this latte - apparently it was super, super-strong...
Cafe Latte - $3

... but when we asked for some extra hot milk, it came in a gorgeous little jug!


I was really enamoured with all the plates and cups, and the nice box they brought out containing mismatched cutlery and tomato sauce.


The plates too, were beautiful, and I really, really want a set for my own place! (I had a look online and you can actually purchase them, but they are waaaaay expensive. *Sigh*)

Sandra had the wagyu burger that you see at the top of this post. I snuck a bite (as well as a couple of fries, hehe), and thought it was delicious. It looked a bit small when it came out; but apparently it was very filling and just the right size. I think that is because wagyu is more rich and fatty than normal beef.

I cannot resist a pie.
Chicken and porcini mushroom pie - $11

This pie, sitting atop a small pool of pureed peas and thin jus, looked like a very posh version of that Aussie classic, the pie floater. It was filled with lots of chunky chicken pieces in a salty, savoury sauce. The pastry was less flaky than I am used to for pies, but I enjoyed it all the same, and was quite full by the end.

But not too full for dessert! I was hoping for cannelés, but alas, they were all out. Instead I got a cappuccino and shared Sandra's dessert.

Cappuccino - $3 - Creamy and strong, but not super strong like the latte from earlier.

FYI, they don't have skinny milk here, only organic full-cream or soy. I heard more than one lady near our table order it and act disappointed when they were refused. But seriously, after a wagyu burger, fries, wine and a pastry, you think skinny milk will make a difference?

Raspberry mousse is not the type of dessert I would normally order, but I'm glad we did. It was very light, with a wonderful fresh raspberry taste. The mousse had a thin layer of sponge on the bottom, a pool of intense raspberry sauce on the top, and was coated in what I believe was dried raspberry powder.
Raspberry Mousse - $4.50

The only tiny issue with this dessert was its presentation - it came out on a beautiful plate, with the shell spoon, but was too long to fit on the plate properly, and just sat on an angle. Obviously this wasn't a massive problem, but it just seemed out of place with so much care and cost obviously put into the rest of the cafe's presentation.

I really liked Cafe Vue overall - the food was great and well priced and I loved the decor. The atmosphere was very relaxed and I've already suggested to a few of my friends that we should come here. A great place to while away a sunny day.

Vue wagyu burger with french fries - $15

A text message I received this week during a particularly stressful day at work:

How about breakfast at the new Café Vue on st kilda road? It's shannon bennett's new cafe.

Yes, that sounded perfect for me!

Cafe Vue
401 St Kilda Rd
Melbourne VIC 3004
(03) 9866-8055
Website

I am, of course, aware of Australian super-chef Shannon Bennett, but before today I had never actually visited one of his restaurants or cafes. I know, bad blogger! In fact, I even served him once when I used to work at a cinema. I was all nerdy and excited with my co-workers, "OMG guys Shannon Bennett's here!", to which they responded, "Is that that blonde chick from Neighbours?" DOI!

Anyhoo, after I received that text message, I had a look at their menu online, I thought that Cafe Vue @ 401 would be a good introduction to the Vue empire - casual, well priced and in a convenient location!

Ooh - I couldn't stop staring at the rotating chickens.

We arrived at about 1pm on a Sunday, and it was busy but not too crowded, and we got a table straight away. I really liked the decor - I thought of it as a pleasing mix of classic, Marie Antoinette and Jacques Tati. (And the red tiles in the bathrooms are SOOOO cool!) For some reason there were 3 TV's on one wall playing a looped video of guys cycling in Sydney. I didn't quite get it. Despite the reasonable prices, for some reason the crowd was super-wealthy - Gucci bags, custom-made Adidas trainers and directional haircuts galore. (The crowd reminded me of this ad campaign, hehe).


The pastry cabinet - the cakes looked great; the macarons looked... well... some were ok, many were cracked and uneven. I guess they're better left to the experts. There was also a basket of pastries/danishes etc next to the espresso machine, which looked like they had seen better days.

I ordered a freshly squeezed orange juice, which came in a cute glass bottle.
Orange juice - $4

I'm glad it wasn't me who ordered this latte - apparently it was super, super-strong...
Cafe Latte - $3

... but when we asked for some extra hot milk, it came in a gorgeous little jug!


I was really enamoured with all the plates and cups, and the nice box they brought out containing mismatched cutlery and tomato sauce.


The plates too, were beautiful, and I really, really want a set for my own place! (I had a look online and you can actually purchase them, but they are waaaaay expensive. *Sigh*)

Sandra had the wagyu burger that you see at the top of this post. I snuck a bite (as well as a couple of fries, hehe), and thought it was delicious. It looked a bit small when it came out; but apparently it was very filling and just the right size. I think that is because wagyu is more rich and fatty than normal beef.

I cannot resist a pie.
Chicken and porcini mushroom pie - $11

This pie, sitting atop a small pool of pureed peas and thin jus, looked like a very posh version of that Aussie classic, the pie floater. It was filled with lots of chunky chicken pieces in a salty, savoury sauce. The pastry was less flaky than I am used to for pies, but I enjoyed it all the same, and was quite full by the end.

But not too full for dessert! I was hoping for cannelés, but alas, they were all out. Instead I got a cappuccino and shared Sandra's dessert.

Cappuccino - $3 - Creamy and strong, but not super strong like the latte from earlier.

FYI, they don't have skinny milk here, only organic full-cream or soy. I heard more than one lady near our table order it and act disappointed when they were refused. But seriously, after a wagyu burger, fries, wine and a pastry, you think skinny milk will make a difference?

Raspberry mousse is not the type of dessert I would normally order, but I'm glad we did. It was very light, with a wonderful fresh raspberry taste. The mousse had a thin layer of sponge on the bottom, a pool of intense raspberry sauce on the top, and was coated in what I believe was dried raspberry powder.
Raspberry Mousse - $4.50

The only tiny issue with this dessert was its presentation - it came out on a beautiful plate, with the shell spoon, but was too long to fit on the plate properly, and just sat on an angle. Obviously this wasn't a massive problem, but it just seemed out of place with so much care and cost obviously put into the rest of the cafe's presentation.

I really liked Cafe Vue overall - the food was great and well priced and I loved the decor. The atmosphere was very relaxed and I've already suggested to a few of my friends that we should come here. A great place to while away a sunny day.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Saturday Night Baking: Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cookies are my favourite thing to bake. (Duh). I made these ones, adapted from the July issue of Delicious, after I received a very vocal request for GIANT cookies with a bit more texture than my usual Mrs. Fields' wannabes. I thought these would fit the bill as the dough contains almond meal. We oomphed up the texture by using half wholemeal flour, half plain, and some chopped macadamias.


I used a small ice-cream scoop to get even-sized cookies.

Cute! Ice-cream scoops of cookie dough.

Brushing the tops with milk.

And here they are!

These cookies were very short and crumbly, probably from all the wholemeal flour/almond meal/macadamias, and they broke apart quite easily. The flavour was great, and they made a nice change from my usual cookies, but because of the texture, I wouldn't be in a rush to make them again. I like my cookies chewy, and my shortbread short.

In the magazine, they suggest serving them with apples sautéed in butter - a little too O.T.T., even for me. A cold glass of milk is more my style.


Giant Chocolate-Chip Cookies
(Adapted from July 2009 Delicious Magazine)

180g unsalted butter, softened
150g caster sugar
2 large egg yolks
1/2 c almond meal
1/3 c chopped milk chocolate
1/3 c chopped white chocolate
3/4 c wholemeal self-raising flour
3/4 c white self-raising flour
3/4 c macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
Milk, for glazing

Preheat the oven to 190C. Cream the butter and sugar for 8-10 minutes until light and creamy, using an electric mixer. Add egg yolks, almond meal, chocolate, flours and nuts, stirring well with a wooden spoon. If dough has trouble coming together, tip out onto a floured surface and knead gently until smooth. Use a small ice-cream scoop to portion out the dough. Place balls of dough on a lined baking tray, leaving room for spreading. Flatten slightly, and brush with milk. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Allow the biscuits to firm up on the trays for 5 minutes or so, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with an icy-cold glass of milk.

Cookies are my favourite thing to bake. (Duh). I made these ones, adapted from the July issue of Delicious, after I received a very vocal request for GIANT cookies with a bit more texture than my usual Mrs. Fields' wannabes. I thought these would fit the bill as the dough contains almond meal. We oomphed up the texture by using half wholemeal flour, half plain, and some chopped macadamias.


I used a small ice-cream scoop to get even-sized cookies.

Cute! Ice-cream scoops of cookie dough.

Brushing the tops with milk.

And here they are!

These cookies were very short and crumbly, probably from all the wholemeal flour/almond meal/macadamias, and they broke apart quite easily. The flavour was great, and they made a nice change from my usual cookies, but because of the texture, I wouldn't be in a rush to make them again. I like my cookies chewy, and my shortbread short.

In the magazine, they suggest serving them with apples sautéed in butter - a little too O.T.T., even for me. A cold glass of milk is more my style.


Giant Chocolate-Chip Cookies
(Adapted from July 2009 Delicious Magazine)

180g unsalted butter, softened
150g caster sugar
2 large egg yolks
1/2 c almond meal
1/3 c chopped milk chocolate
1/3 c chopped white chocolate
3/4 c wholemeal self-raising flour
3/4 c white self-raising flour
3/4 c macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
Milk, for glazing

Preheat the oven to 190C. Cream the butter and sugar for 8-10 minutes until light and creamy, using an electric mixer. Add egg yolks, almond meal, chocolate, flours and nuts, stirring well with a wooden spoon. If dough has trouble coming together, tip out onto a floured surface and knead gently until smooth. Use a small ice-cream scoop to portion out the dough. Place balls of dough on a lined baking tray, leaving room for spreading. Flatten slightly, and brush with milk. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Allow the biscuits to firm up on the trays for 5 minutes or so, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with an icy-cold glass of milk.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Don's Great Salamis of the World Lunch

Salami macht Sarah froh...

If there was a perfect event for me, I think Don's Great Salamis of the World lunch might have been it. We would learn about salami, there would be copious amounts of salami to eat, and we'd hear from a real life Fleischmeister. (Compound German words being yet another attraction).

When David from Nuffnang called me to ask if I wanted to attend, I do believe my response was a very enthusiastic: "Yes absolutely, I LOVE salami!". It may have sounded sarcastic, but as you all will know, it is very very true. I must admit though, lots of my friends were laughing like crazy when I told them I was going to a salami-tasting event, hehe.

Cute salami-style invite!

The lunch was held at The Tea Room at The European (same building as Supper Club), and was hosted by Masterchef's Matt Preston and Don's Fleischmeister, Gerhard Feiner.

The European
161 Spring St
Melbourne 3000
(03) 9654-0811
Website

I was very excited to meet Gerhard, the Fleischmeister who oversees Don's salami-making processes. (We usually eat Don Hot or Don White salami at home). It takes up to 7 years to qualify as a Fleischmeister, and it is the highest level one can attain as a meat-specialist in Europe. Gerhard is originally from Austria, (which means he has a wicked-awesome accent!!!), but is now based in Australia.

It was also cool to meet the other bloggers - Jeroxie, Adrian, Iron Chef Shellie and Rilsta. We could identify each other as soon as we walked in - a group of Asians with SLR's! (I'm still to shy to take my SLR out to restaurants with me; I stick to my little digi-cam for now).

Top from right: Ich und das Fleischmeister, Gerhard and Matt talk salami; Matt gives Adrian tips on food styling
Bottom: Matt & the foodbloggers (yes we are all that short); Matt shows off his cow-boots.

The afternoon was a mixture of eating and listening to Gerhard/Matt talk about salami. The talk was high on interesting facts and (impressively) low on innuendoes, hehehe. The main points I took away were that: salami should be eaten at room temperature, it shouldn't be sliced too thinly, and it should have a nice colour and not be too dry or hard around the edges.

A few different ways to enjoy salami:
Front: Don White Hungarian Salami, chardonnay vinegar, citrus olive oil, fresh mint and basil fire-roasted capsicums in a shot glass
Back: Oysters with julienne Don chorizo, sautéed and tossed with champagne vinaigrette

Antipasto featuring Don White Hungarian, Don Hot Hungarian, Don Danish and Don Pepperoni

Salami close-up, including kabana

The mains were served wedding-style, with dishes alternating along the table. I was hoping for the steak...
Angus fillet with Don Chorizo and apple rosti and red wine jus

... but ended up with the fish; which I actually preferred. I'm not sure why, but the steak didn't seem to have any chorizo on it, just a piece of pancetta.

The creamy-chive sauce with the fish was just delicious. Chives are my new best friend.
Pan roasted barramundi with roasted beetroot and beer cream with Don Chilli Cheese Kabana chips.

I was interested to try salami prepared in different ways, but I must say I still prefer the classic German style (surprise surprise, Sarah!) of salami mit brot und käse for dinner.

A couple of desserts. Again, these were alternated down the table.
Sage and honey pannacotta with candied sweet potato

I'm not big on odd-flavoured desserts, so was a bit disappointed when this one was placed in front of me. The candied-sweet potato reminded me of that Thanksgiving dish where they bake mini-marshmallows on top of sweet potato (I read about it in a Nigella book), which is served as a supposedly SAVOURY accompaniment to turkey. *Faint!* I shared a couple of bites of this one with IronChef Shellie, and it actually wasn't too bad. I did find the spices/herb a bit strong, and probably wouldn't have been able to eat the full-sized dessert.

Just quietly, I managed to get a sticky-date pudding too.

Sticky date pudding - classic for a reason!


Showbag! I'm a sucker for a good showbag and we got a LOT of salami. It's not in the picture, but we also got a blue and white striped Don butcher's-style apron. I had been thinking about splashing out on a Finnish Marimekko apron, but now that I've got a very kitsch and retro-cool Don one, I'll save my money.

So in my house, this supply of salami might last for a week or two?

Salami macht Sarah froh...

If there was a perfect event for me, I think Don's Great Salamis of the World lunch might have been it. We would learn about salami, there would be copious amounts of salami to eat, and we'd hear from a real life Fleischmeister. (Compound German words being yet another attraction).

When David from Nuffnang called me to ask if I wanted to attend, I do believe my response was a very enthusiastic: "Yes absolutely, I LOVE salami!". It may have sounded sarcastic, but as you all will know, it is very very true. I must admit though, lots of my friends were laughing like crazy when I told them I was going to a salami-tasting event, hehe.

Cute salami-style invite!

The lunch was held at The Tea Room at The European (same building as Supper Club), and was hosted by Masterchef's Matt Preston and Don's Fleischmeister, Gerhard Feiner.

The European
161 Spring St
Melbourne 3000
(03) 9654-0811
Website

I was very excited to meet Gerhard, the Fleischmeister who oversees Don's salami-making processes. (We usually eat Don Hot or Don White salami at home). It takes up to 7 years to qualify as a Fleischmeister, and it is the highest level one can attain as a meat-specialist in Europe. Gerhard is originally from Austria, (which means he has a wicked-awesome accent!!!), but is now based in Australia.

It was also cool to meet the other bloggers - Jeroxie, Adrian, Iron Chef Shellie and Rilsta. We could identify each other as soon as we walked in - a group of Asians with SLR's! (I'm still to shy to take my SLR out to restaurants with me; I stick to my little digi-cam for now).

Top from right: Ich und das Fleischmeister, Gerhard and Matt talk salami; Matt gives Adrian tips on food styling
Bottom: Matt & the foodbloggers (yes we are all that short); Matt shows off his cow-boots.

The afternoon was a mixture of eating and listening to Gerhard/Matt talk about salami. The talk was high on interesting facts and (impressively) low on innuendoes, hehehe. The main points I took away were that: salami should be eaten at room temperature, it shouldn't be sliced too thinly, and it should have a nice colour and not be too dry or hard around the edges.

A few different ways to enjoy salami:
Front: Don White Hungarian Salami, chardonnay vinegar, citrus olive oil, fresh mint and basil fire-roasted capsicums in a shot glass
Back: Oysters with julienne Don chorizo, sautéed and tossed with champagne vinaigrette

Antipasto featuring Don White Hungarian, Don Hot Hungarian, Don Danish and Don Pepperoni

Salami close-up, including kabana

The mains were served wedding-style, with dishes alternating along the table. I was hoping for the steak...
Angus fillet with Don Chorizo and apple rosti and red wine jus

... but ended up with the fish; which I actually preferred. I'm not sure why, but the steak didn't seem to have any chorizo on it, just a piece of pancetta.

The creamy-chive sauce with the fish was just delicious. Chives are my new best friend.
Pan roasted barramundi with roasted beetroot and beer cream with Don Chilli Cheese Kabana chips.

I was interested to try salami prepared in different ways, but I must say I still prefer the classic German style (surprise surprise, Sarah!) of salami mit brot und käse for dinner.

A couple of desserts. Again, these were alternated down the table.
Sage and honey pannacotta with candied sweet potato

I'm not big on odd-flavoured desserts, so was a bit disappointed when this one was placed in front of me. The candied-sweet potato reminded me of that Thanksgiving dish where they bake mini-marshmallows on top of sweet potato (I read about it in a Nigella book), which is served as a supposedly SAVOURY accompaniment to turkey. *Faint!* I shared a couple of bites of this one with IronChef Shellie, and it actually wasn't too bad. I did find the spices/herb a bit strong, and probably wouldn't have been able to eat the full-sized dessert.

Just quietly, I managed to get a sticky-date pudding too.

Sticky date pudding - classic for a reason!


Showbag! I'm a sucker for a good showbag and we got a LOT of salami. It's not in the picture, but we also got a blue and white striped Don butcher's-style apron. I had been thinking about splashing out on a Finnish Marimekko apron, but now that I've got a very kitsch and retro-cool Don one, I'll save my money.

So in my house, this supply of salami might last for a week or two?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

"Beast on a Block" at The Point

"A Taste of New Season's Lamb"

Myself and a few other lucky bloggers (Thanh, Claire, Jackie, Neil, Elliot, Ed, Jess and Cam Smith from RRR) were invited along to Scott Pickett's first bloggers' event: "Beast on a Block", which was held last night at The Point in Albert Park. Scott is the executive chef at The Point, has his own blog, and as we discovered, is a really, really nice guy. I was greatly looking forward to the event, but not quite sure what to expect. The invite said we'd see a whole lamb get broken down (awesome!), participate in a cook-off (scary!) and then have a meal (yay!).

The Point
Aquatic Drive
Albert Park Lake
VIC 3206
(03) 9682-5566
Website

We started off with intros, drinks, and a chat about blogging and the restaurant scene. Then we were taken on a tour of the kitchen and meat fridges, with Scott talking us through how the kitchen is set up, and how he sources and hangs/ages the meat.
Left: small meat fridge downstairs.The bigger ones are lambs. The small dark ones are hares.
Right: show fridge upstairs - lots of beef.

Then it was back to the dining room, where Scott got down to the business of breaking down the lamb. But first, let's take a moment to admire the knives. Ooh... shiny...
Knives!! You will notice that the bottom knife is a Wusthof - my favourite brand of knife. The 2nd one from the top was bought in Kappabashi Kitchen Town!

We also had Kumamoto oysters to nibble on as we watched.

The lamb was quite young, 6-8 weeks, and was very small overall. I was actually amazed by how many different cuts he got out of the lamb. The little lamb chops and fillets were so cute!

Below is the whole lamb broken down, after being brought into the kitchen. Vegetarians look away now. How cool does the crown-roast look!
I'm not sure what the prawn dish is - it was an order for another table.

Rather than getting us to participate in the proposed cook-off (which would have delayed the eating!), Scott got us to jump into the kitchen in pairs, with each pair watching a different course get prepared.

Thanh and I went in to watch the first course, and I scored an extra piece of confit flash-grilled king salmon, heh heh.

We didn't get an actual menu; rather, each of us was given a list of the main ingredient in each course (e.g. king salmon, marron, pineapple etc.), so that we could guess the ingredients and discuss the different components of each dish. Such a great idea.

Let's go course by course. The following descriptions are from the notes I was hastily scribbling down during the meal. (It's not nerdy, we were all given notepads). Apologies if I've made any mistakes or missed anything out!


KING SALMON

"Confit King Salmon, Potage Parmentier and 3 different eggs"
The salmon (from NZ) was lightly cured in salt and sugar for an hour, then confit in grapeseed oil. The 3 eggs were soft-boiled quails egg, salmon roe and Osetra caviar (!!!). It was served with a quenelle of Meredith goat's curd, and a Chinese Lantern flower petal.

Into this bowl of deliciousness our waiter poured a hot potato and leek soup (the potage parmentier)...

I loved this course - the salty flavours of the salmon and caviar and the tangy goats curd worked so well against the mild-flavoured soup, which itself was rich and creamy.


CHICKEN

"Caramelised stuffed chicken wing, pumpkin gnocchi, emulsion of potato and black truffle"

Scott said the starting point for him creating this dish was the classic chicken & mushroom combination.

The chicken wing (centre cut) was completely boned and formed into that small log shape, and topped with the potato/black truffle emulsion and a trompette de la mort (black mushroom). I thought the gnocchi was more like a blini than a gnocchi, and it had been crispy roasted. The black sauce was a field mushroom and butter puree, with squid ink for that dramatic black colour. Wow.


MARRON

"Butter poached Western Australian marron, foie gras parfait, brioche crumbs and sauternes reduction"
The black flecks on the marron are flakes of Cypriot black salt, and the small squares are apple jelly. More of those Chinese lantern petals too - aren't they pretty? I also enjoyed this course (I think by this stage we can safely assume I loved all the courses so I'll stop repeating myself), but I found the foie gras parfait a little rich, and could only eat about 3/4 of it (sorrrry!!!). It was great with the jelly and marron, but too intense to be eaten by itself once I'd finished everything else on the plate. The jelly was a wonderful touch, and really lightened up the dish.

Elliot actually got a separate course, because the last time he visited The Point he'd ordered the marron. His kingfish and eel terrine was beautifully presented, but I will leave it for him to blog.


LAMB

"A Taste of New Season's Lamb"

You'll have seen this photo at the top of the post. But check it out... I've labelled it!!! (Yes, I'm a dork).


This was absolutely gorgeously presented, and if you do happen to get down to The Point while the new season lamb is in (Spring usually), I wholeheartedly recommend you order it. I don't think I've ever had lamb this tender. I worked my way from the outside in, saving the lamb chop for last.

Some closeups:
Top: The organic single clove of garlic which was confit (or is it fondant?). It was very mild in flavour, and quite soft. The texture actually reminded me of potato.
Middle: Sticky glazed tender lamb shank with fondant potato.
Bottom: Crumbed brain. I didn't know what it was when I bit into it, which is probably a good thing, so there was no mental hesitation about it. It was very rich (not surprising, as one serving gives you 709% of your daily cholesterol needs), but surprisingly light and easy to eat.


PRE-DESSERT

"Vodka and Cranberry Jelly, lemon and blood orange granita"

The green is basil foam, and the granita was made with San Pellegrino aranciata rosso and limonata soft drink. The pre-dessert was delightfully refreshing, but unfortunately I could only have a few spoonfuls as I was driving that night.


PINEAPPLE

Dessert was either pineapple or chocolate. At first I was hoping for chocolate, but once I tasted the pineapple, I was very, very happy.

"Caramelised pineapple crumble, coconut cream and anise myrtle"
The pinapple is cooked 2 ways - one is blowtorched, the other is cooked sous-vide with 1 chilli, and then pan-caramelized. The clear jellies are ginger, and the tiny green leaves are lemon balm shoots. There were 2 tuilles filled with coconut foam, and the black dots are licorice "microdots", to give a hint of licorice flavour. There were also biscuit crumbs sprinkled over. I'm not entirely sure what the ice-cream was; I think someone at our table suggested it was yoghurt?


CHOCOLATE

"Valrhona chocolate and chestnut tortellini, coffee ice-cream and tonka bean foam"

No, I didn't have 2 desserts - this one was Thanh's. (Although I did steal one of his tortellini, heheh). The tortellini was filled with chocolate and chestnut, and was gorgeous! I didn't realise they would be soft (they looked like set dark chocolate to me), and it was a total surprise to bite into one, realise it was soft and have the filling come through as well. Beautiful. There were also pieces of caramelized pear, some pistachios, and a quenelle of chocolate-chestnut mousse. I've since learned that tonka beans are banned for consumption in the USA by the FDA, which makes this dessert even more badass.


POST-DESSERT

Some small bites to have with coffee.
Not sure what the jelly on the left is. The pink one was a musk-flavoured marshmallow/meringue, and on the right was a salted-caramel chocolate.

I was going to take just half of the salted-caramel chocolate, but I couldn't cut through it with my spoon, so I just *had* to take the whole thing.

We also got wine with our courses, each carefully selected by The Point's somellier, but being such a wine-noob I can't remember exactly what they all were. I do remember we had a chardonnay with the king salmon, a German riesling (yay!) with the marron, a bordeaux with the lamb, a muscat beaumes de venise with the pineapple, and a pedro xeminez with the chocolate. Again, I was being a responsible driver so could only have a couple of sips of each. Note to self: Take a cab when going to a nice restaurant!!

It was an absolutely brilliant night and a real treat. Not only was the food absolutely delicious, but Scott put so much thought into making it a really interesting and interactive event. It was lovely to catch up with the bloggers again too. I enjoyed the whole evening so much, I've already decided I'm bringing my family back for my birthday next year. FYI, I've looked it up, and a 7-course tasting menu at The Point is $95 PP ($155 if you get matching wines), which I think would be well worth it.

Thank-you so much to Scott for organising and hosting this great event!

Sarah dined courtesy of The Point, with thanks to Scott Pickett.

"A Taste of New Season's Lamb"

Myself and a few other lucky bloggers (Thanh, Claire, Jackie, Neil, Elliot, Ed, Jess and Cam Smith from RRR) were invited along to Scott Pickett's first bloggers' event: "Beast on a Block", which was held last night at The Point in Albert Park. Scott is the executive chef at The Point, has his own blog, and as we discovered, is a really, really nice guy. I was greatly looking forward to the event, but not quite sure what to expect. The invite said we'd see a whole lamb get broken down (awesome!), participate in a cook-off (scary!) and then have a meal (yay!).

The Point
Aquatic Drive
Albert Park Lake
VIC 3206
(03) 9682-5566
Website

We started off with intros, drinks, and a chat about blogging and the restaurant scene. Then we were taken on a tour of the kitchen and meat fridges, with Scott talking us through how the kitchen is set up, and how he sources and hangs/ages the meat.
Left: small meat fridge downstairs.The bigger ones are lambs. The small dark ones are hares.
Right: show fridge upstairs - lots of beef.

Then it was back to the dining room, where Scott got down to the business of breaking down the lamb. But first, let's take a moment to admire the knives. Ooh... shiny...
Knives!! You will notice that the bottom knife is a Wusthof - my favourite brand of knife. The 2nd one from the top was bought in Kappabashi Kitchen Town!

We also had Kumamoto oysters to nibble on as we watched.

The lamb was quite young, 6-8 weeks, and was very small overall. I was actually amazed by how many different cuts he got out of the lamb. The little lamb chops and fillets were so cute!

Below is the whole lamb broken down, after being brought into the kitchen. Vegetarians look away now. How cool does the crown-roast look!
I'm not sure what the prawn dish is - it was an order for another table.

Rather than getting us to participate in the proposed cook-off (which would have delayed the eating!), Scott got us to jump into the kitchen in pairs, with each pair watching a different course get prepared.

Thanh and I went in to watch the first course, and I scored an extra piece of confit flash-grilled king salmon, heh heh.

We didn't get an actual menu; rather, each of us was given a list of the main ingredient in each course (e.g. king salmon, marron, pineapple etc.), so that we could guess the ingredients and discuss the different components of each dish. Such a great idea.

Let's go course by course. The following descriptions are from the notes I was hastily scribbling down during the meal. (It's not nerdy, we were all given notepads). Apologies if I've made any mistakes or missed anything out!


KING SALMON

"Confit King Salmon, Potage Parmentier and 3 different eggs"
The salmon (from NZ) was lightly cured in salt and sugar for an hour, then confit in grapeseed oil. The 3 eggs were soft-boiled quails egg, salmon roe and Osetra caviar (!!!). It was served with a quenelle of Meredith goat's curd, and a Chinese Lantern flower petal.

Into this bowl of deliciousness our waiter poured a hot potato and leek soup (the potage parmentier)...

I loved this course - the salty flavours of the salmon and caviar and the tangy goats curd worked so well against the mild-flavoured soup, which itself was rich and creamy.


CHICKEN

"Caramelised stuffed chicken wing, pumpkin gnocchi, emulsion of potato and black truffle"

Scott said the starting point for him creating this dish was the classic chicken & mushroom combination.

The chicken wing (centre cut) was completely boned and formed into that small log shape, and topped with the potato/black truffle emulsion and a trompette de la mort (black mushroom). I thought the gnocchi was more like a blini than a gnocchi, and it had been crispy roasted. The black sauce was a field mushroom and butter puree, with squid ink for that dramatic black colour. Wow.


MARRON

"Butter poached Western Australian marron, foie gras parfait, brioche crumbs and sauternes reduction"
The black flecks on the marron are flakes of Cypriot black salt, and the small squares are apple jelly. More of those Chinese lantern petals too - aren't they pretty? I also enjoyed this course (I think by this stage we can safely assume I loved all the courses so I'll stop repeating myself), but I found the foie gras parfait a little rich, and could only eat about 3/4 of it (sorrrry!!!). It was great with the jelly and marron, but too intense to be eaten by itself once I'd finished everything else on the plate. The jelly was a wonderful touch, and really lightened up the dish.

Elliot actually got a separate course, because the last time he visited The Point he'd ordered the marron. His kingfish and eel terrine was beautifully presented, but I will leave it for him to blog.


LAMB

"A Taste of New Season's Lamb"

You'll have seen this photo at the top of the post. But check it out... I've labelled it!!! (Yes, I'm a dork).


This was absolutely gorgeously presented, and if you do happen to get down to The Point while the new season lamb is in (Spring usually), I wholeheartedly recommend you order it. I don't think I've ever had lamb this tender. I worked my way from the outside in, saving the lamb chop for last.

Some closeups:
Top: The organic single clove of garlic which was confit (or is it fondant?). It was very mild in flavour, and quite soft. The texture actually reminded me of potato.
Middle: Sticky glazed tender lamb shank with fondant potato.
Bottom: Crumbed brain. I didn't know what it was when I bit into it, which is probably a good thing, so there was no mental hesitation about it. It was very rich (not surprising, as one serving gives you 709% of your daily cholesterol needs), but surprisingly light and easy to eat.


PRE-DESSERT

"Vodka and Cranberry Jelly, lemon and blood orange granita"

The green is basil foam, and the granita was made with San Pellegrino aranciata rosso and limonata soft drink. The pre-dessert was delightfully refreshing, but unfortunately I could only have a few spoonfuls as I was driving that night.


PINEAPPLE

Dessert was either pineapple or chocolate. At first I was hoping for chocolate, but once I tasted the pineapple, I was very, very happy.

"Caramelised pineapple crumble, coconut cream and anise myrtle"
The pinapple is cooked 2 ways - one is blowtorched, the other is cooked sous-vide with 1 chilli, and then pan-caramelized. The clear jellies are ginger, and the tiny green leaves are lemon balm shoots. There were 2 tuilles filled with coconut foam, and the black dots are licorice "microdots", to give a hint of licorice flavour. There were also biscuit crumbs sprinkled over. I'm not entirely sure what the ice-cream was; I think someone at our table suggested it was yoghurt?


CHOCOLATE

"Valrhona chocolate and chestnut tortellini, coffee ice-cream and tonka bean foam"

No, I didn't have 2 desserts - this one was Thanh's. (Although I did steal one of his tortellini, heheh). The tortellini was filled with chocolate and chestnut, and was gorgeous! I didn't realise they would be soft (they looked like set dark chocolate to me), and it was a total surprise to bite into one, realise it was soft and have the filling come through as well. Beautiful. There were also pieces of caramelized pear, some pistachios, and a quenelle of chocolate-chestnut mousse. I've since learned that tonka beans are banned for consumption in the USA by the FDA, which makes this dessert even more badass.


POST-DESSERT

Some small bites to have with coffee.
Not sure what the jelly on the left is. The pink one was a musk-flavoured marshmallow/meringue, and on the right was a salted-caramel chocolate.

I was going to take just half of the salted-caramel chocolate, but I couldn't cut through it with my spoon, so I just *had* to take the whole thing.

We also got wine with our courses, each carefully selected by The Point's somellier, but being such a wine-noob I can't remember exactly what they all were. I do remember we had a chardonnay with the king salmon, a German riesling (yay!) with the marron, a bordeaux with the lamb, a muscat beaumes de venise with the pineapple, and a pedro xeminez with the chocolate. Again, I was being a responsible driver so could only have a couple of sips of each. Note to self: Take a cab when going to a nice restaurant!!

It was an absolutely brilliant night and a real treat. Not only was the food absolutely delicious, but Scott put so much thought into making it a really interesting and interactive event. It was lovely to catch up with the bloggers again too. I enjoyed the whole evening so much, I've already decided I'm bringing my family back for my birthday next year. FYI, I've looked it up, and a 7-course tasting menu at The Point is $95 PP ($155 if you get matching wines), which I think would be well worth it.

Thank-you so much to Scott for organising and hosting this great event!

Sarah dined courtesy of The Point, with thanks to Scott Pickett.

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Tonkatsu Time - ハ人の和風お昼ご飯

Tonkatsu! (No sauce)
トンカツ(ソースぬぎで)

Despite my love for Japan, and many years of study (so many kanji and "未来の夢"の作文!), I very rarely cook Japanese food myself. I used to make oyako-don and sukiyaki occasionally, but that was B.B. (Before Blog), if you can imagine such a time. However, since my bro and his girlfriend Su came back from a holiday to Japan, they have been cooking it quite a bit. Cold soba noodles, full Japanese breakfasts, that sort of thing. Even natto (blergh). Inspired, I decided to make a Japanese-style lunch when we had our friends over last weekend.


A Japanese-Style Lunch for 8

Zaru Soba / ざるそば
Gyoza / 餃子
Tonkatsu with Cabbage and Rice / トンカツ、キャベツサラダ、ご飯
Taiyaki / たい焼

The preparation involved a pretty expensive shop at Fuji-mart, and 2 un-stressful hours before the lunch. In the morning, I cooked and chilled the soba, sliced the cabbage, made the dough/custard for the taiyaki and crumbed the pork (see previous post). Susu came over an hour in advance to assemble her gyoza, and our friends arrived right on time. (With a slab of Sapporo - thank-you to Justin & Megan!)

A very crowded table

We started off eating the soba and gyoza. We had the noodles with soba sauce (bottled) and finely chopped spring onions. Normally you'd have wasabi too, but we'd run out, so people started dipping into the super-hot mustard I'd made for the tonkatsu to get that wasabi-like hit. I love zaru-soba; it is so delicious and refreshing.

Clockwise from front: spring onions, gyoza dipping sauce, mustard sauce for tonkatsu

Mmm... gyoza...

After that, I got up and started a-frying!


The meat is pork loin. Sometimes it's sold as "butterfly pork", and if so you'll need to cut it down the middle to get single pieces.

Whilst I love, love, love deep-fried food (tonkatsu, tempura, even KFC), I rarely deep-fry at home. Obvious health reasons aside, deep-frying is a total pain in the A**. The painful splatters, the huge amount of oil you have to dispose of, the fact that your hair will stink for days afterwards.

There is a wonderful moment when all the meat is fried, and you can turn off the gas and the noisy kitchen exhaust and just appreciate the gorgeousness of the crunchy fried golden-brown goodness.

Aah....
Letting the pork sit on a rack stops it from going soggy, and gives you maximum crunch. Unfortunately I didn't have those funky individual little grills that you get in restaurants in Japan, so made do with a baking tray and cooling rack.

I sliced each crunchy little piece of pork into strips, and brought the whole lot to the table, so each guest could take a re-assembled chop. Sandra & Su took care of rice-scooping duties. And then it was tonkatsu time!

Tonkatsu, tonkatsu sauce (Bulldog brand, from a bottle), cabbage salad, rice, and mustard sauce.

The only sauce that didn't come out of a bottle (don't judge me, it's the way Japanese housewives do it! :P) was the hot mustard sauce. I seem to remember always having a super-hot mustard sauce with tonkatsu, but couldn't find a recipe for it anywhere. I improvised, mixing together English mustard with finely grated ginger and soy sauce. (Similar to the dipping sauce Nigella suggests to go with her salmon with shitake mushrooms and greens from Nigella Bites). It worked a treat!

The sesame dressing was really delicious, and was very well received by my friend George, who ate more cabbage than the rest of us put together! Mmm.. cabbage.
Sesame dressing. It's hyaku-paasento kin no goma da yo!

After we recovered a bit, it was time for taiyaki. I'd planned on making just redbean and custard, but then got requests for apple, nutella, kaya...


It was so much fun, making the taiyaki and giving them out straight from the pan! (Watch out, that kaya gets SCALDING hot!) Best investment ever.

ポニョみたいよ！

Tonkatsu! (No sauce)
トンカツ(ソースぬぎで)

Despite my love for Japan, and many years of study (so many kanji and "未来の夢"の作文!), I very rarely cook Japanese food myself. I used to make oyako-don and sukiyaki occasionally, but that was B.B. (Before Blog), if you can imagine such a time. However, since my bro and his girlfriend Su came back from a holiday to Japan, they have been cooking it quite a bit. Cold soba noodles, full Japanese breakfasts, that sort of thing. Even natto (blergh). Inspired, I decided to make a Japanese-style lunch when we had our friends over last weekend.


A Japanese-Style Lunch for 8

Zaru Soba / ざるそば
Gyoza / 餃子
Tonkatsu with Cabbage and Rice / トンカツ、キャベツサラダ、ご飯
Taiyaki / たい焼

The preparation involved a pretty expensive shop at Fuji-mart, and 2 un-stressful hours before the lunch. In the morning, I cooked and chilled the soba, sliced the cabbage, made the dough/custard for the taiyaki and crumbed the pork (see previous post). Susu came over an hour in advance to assemble her gyoza, and our friends arrived right on time. (With a slab of Sapporo - thank-you to Justin & Megan!)

A very crowded table

We started off eating the soba and gyoza. We had the noodles with soba sauce (bottled) and finely chopped spring onions. Normally you'd have wasabi too, but we'd run out, so people started dipping into the super-hot mustard I'd made for the tonkatsu to get that wasabi-like hit. I love zaru-soba; it is so delicious and refreshing.

Clockwise from front: spring onions, gyoza dipping sauce, mustard sauce for tonkatsu

Mmm... gyoza...

After that, I got up and started a-frying!


The meat is pork loin. Sometimes it's sold as "butterfly pork", and if so you'll need to cut it down the middle to get single pieces.

Whilst I love, love, love deep-fried food (tonkatsu, tempura, even KFC), I rarely deep-fry at home. Obvious health reasons aside, deep-frying is a total pain in the A**. The painful splatters, the huge amount of oil you have to dispose of, the fact that your hair will stink for days afterwards.

There is a wonderful moment when all the meat is fried, and you can turn off the gas and the noisy kitchen exhaust and just appreciate the gorgeousness of the crunchy fried golden-brown goodness.

Aah....
Letting the pork sit on a rack stops it from going soggy, and gives you maximum crunch. Unfortunately I didn't have those funky individual little grills that you get in restaurants in Japan, so made do with a baking tray and cooling rack.

I sliced each crunchy little piece of pork into strips, and brought the whole lot to the table, so each guest could take a re-assembled chop. Sandra & Su took care of rice-scooping duties. And then it was tonkatsu time!

Tonkatsu, tonkatsu sauce (Bulldog brand, from a bottle), cabbage salad, rice, and mustard sauce.

The only sauce that didn't come out of a bottle (don't judge me, it's the way Japanese housewives do it! :P) was the hot mustard sauce. I seem to remember always having a super-hot mustard sauce with tonkatsu, but couldn't find a recipe for it anywhere. I improvised, mixing together English mustard with finely grated ginger and soy sauce. (Similar to the dipping sauce Nigella suggests to go with her salmon with shitake mushrooms and greens from Nigella Bites). It worked a treat!

The sesame dressing was really delicious, and was very well received by my friend George, who ate more cabbage than the rest of us put together! Mmm.. cabbage.
Sesame dressing. It's hyaku-paasento kin no goma da yo!

After we recovered a bit, it was time for taiyaki. I'd planned on making just redbean and custard, but then got requests for apple, nutella, kaya...


It was so much fun, making the taiyaki and giving them out straight from the pan! (Watch out, that kaya gets SCALDING hot!) Best investment ever.

ポニョみたいよ！

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