Melbourne Munchings Part 4

Last day in Melbourne, we had lunch at the Richmond Hill Larder and Bistro, and it was AWESOME.

I stopped by on the first day to buy cheese back for supper and it was great. This place was also featured in DH's Melbourne guide so we decided to come back for lunch. We really enjoyed it.

DH ordered the spaghetti with wagyu ragout, and shaved truffles (they forgot the truffles and we had to send it back).

My crabmeat risotto with avocado cream was excellent. I am so loving risotto right now. Ever since the Perth trip, where I also tried really good risotto.

We shared a mediterannean starter of soup with lima beans and tomato and I am not sure what else. (This one, may be it was a mistake ordering it, looks like the chef put all the stuff that was expiring into a pot and cooked a soup with it, no?)

This one, was the best!!!! we ordered a cheese platter (choice of 3 cheeses from 5) for AUD29. It was so good. From left: Goat's cheese (very creamy and melty (unlike the last one I bought, which was more crumbly) with a peppery flavour), delice the bourgogne (which translates to delight of burgundy, it is a double cream cow's cheese, with a very very rich buttery flavour) and blue cheese (which was fantastic and our favourite among all three. the blue veins were a little crumbly and crisp, and had a heavenly aroma).

Melbourne Munchings Part 3

Over the weekend, DH was able to tear himself away from business and join me and Baby, so we managed to explore more parts of Melbourne.

We took the yarra river taxi to Docklands (AUD25 for a family day pass, and you take as many trips as you like, there are 8 stops along the yarra river), where there were many waterfront apartments and eateries.

Blue Fire Churrascaria

We thought it would be nice to have a churrascaria by the waterfront, how lovely is that?

The style was a little different. The meats were served by only one passadore, and didn't come out till after they had served (and we were finished with) the grilled flatbreads and dips and the baked vegetables. A sneaky little ploy to make sure we didn't eat more of the high value meats if you ask me.

We ordered oysters to start: 2 each of the following: Tequila with chili and lime (served cold), Kilpatrick (bacon worcester sauce and cheese and baked) and something with salsa (served hot also).

DH had a lime margarita (which he thought would be frozen, ie like a slush, but came with ice cubes in it instead) and I had a lime caipirinha which I thought was very good, there were many wedges of lime and lemon in this thing so it was very tart and refreshing.

The grilled vegs were all very sweet, I tried the sweet potato and the corn. DH took only a tiny bite of each, as he didn't want to waste stomach space, or fall into the sneaky trap of the restaurant.

Didn't take any photos of the meats, because the selection was not as varied as in Singapore (one cut each of lamb, beef, chicken, pork, sausage, swordfish and squid). No chicken hearts and no selection of cuts of beef etc.

Grossi Florentino 80 Bourke Street

This place is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Melbourne, serving fine Italian cuisine.

We came with baby, and I felt a little bad having a little one run around and disturb the rest of the diners. The waitstaff and all were very nice about it though, and even brought me and baby to the kitchen to say hi to Grossi, the chef-owner (He was a very dishy Italian chef, are they all this goodlooking? Or am I just partial to a man who can cook well?)

DH had the degustation menu (AUD150) and I ordered a starter and a main ala carte.

His starter of wagyu carpaccio was very nice, but one couldn't really taste the richness or succulence of the wagyu when it's sliced that thin. Wagyu is best eaten slightly seared i think, to bring out the richness of the fat by melting it a little. sort of like toro, best eaten aburi style. The carpaccio was served with shaved parmesan cheese and also a cold goat's cheese dressing. I liked the taste of the cheeses, very refreshing.

Then DH had langoustines (which is a shellfish, a bit like lobster) and it was, as you can see, very artistically scattered around the plate. It was fresh and succulent and refreshing.

DH's next course of scallop with roast pork was very good. The pork was not the crackling crispy skin type as we would eat here, more like slow roasted (as the skin wasn't at all crispy), but it was very flavourful. The mash is sweet potato? it was sweet.

DH then had their risotto with morton bay bugs (a species of crayfish) and fennel and another herb (saffron?). It was a signature dish here, and it was very well executed. Tender and sweet crayfish paired with firm to bite risotto.

What is this one? I can't really remember, but I think it could have been a quail or bird of some sort.
This one was FANTASTIC. It is slow cooked lamb, with summer vegetables. It was tender, it was not strong smelling, it was flavoursome. Perfect.

I had the duck and porcini mushroom tortellini (stuffed pasta) with rich duck jus. It was very nice, very fragrant, and a little sweet. I am beginning to notice that the chef quite likes to put a sweet tinge to his dishes.

My main of beef fillet was very very tender, and also a little sweet, maybe cos of the caramelised onions. There was foie gras on the top, but not a whole piece, more like shavings of it. It was also very good, although I didn't think it was better than the one at Cantina Cecconi, so I would go for that one, since this one was almost twice the price.

The dessert, which we didn't take any photos of, were eaten in a hurry as by then Baby was getting restless (naturally!). There were 3 types of sorbet ( as a palate cleanser) - lime, blood orange and dunno what else. the first 2 were tart and the last one was sweet.

Then DH's last course was a chocolate lava cake with souffle. very nice. I only had one bite though. I tried a little eensy weensy bit and then took Baby to walk around and came back to find that DH had scoffed the lot. So I guess it must have been good.

All these were eaten whilst Baby was running around, pullling chairs, talking and laughing (it was no easy task, I tell you). We had to take him for walks around the restaurant, to keep him entertained and out of trouble.

Melbourne Munchings Part 2

Pavilion Cafe inside Fitzroy Gardens

I brought baby to the Fitroy Gardens to run around, and to see birds and flowers and the miniature Tudor houses in this place.

We had a mid-morning brunch of omelette with ham mushrooms and cheese, and a hot chocolate. It does look very lovely doesn't it? The cheese was gooey and stringy and quite nice. Too bad it got cold very fast. Also the toast at the bottom was too burnt to eat, but I wasn't interested in eating bread so I didn't make any fuss about it.

The waitstaff kindly made Baby a free cup of babycinno, which is milk foam with some chocolate flakes on top. But he didn't like it. Should have asked them to use mommy's milk instead! *wink*

Hopetoun Tea Rooms, Block Arcade, Bourke Street Mall

This is a very famous cafe serving cakes, pastries, teas and coffees. I stopped here for tea at about 430 pm on a weekday and it was CROWDED. Baby was asleep so we managed to manouvre ourselves into a corner table, where I had the pumpkin scone with cream and fruit coulis and a Hopetoun blend tea.

Melbourne Munchings Part 1

I didn't realise Melbourne is such a melting pot of races and cultures. I met Indonesians, Vietnamese, Iraqis, Greeks and other nationalities when I was there.

As such, Melbourne has lots of restaurants serving up different cuisines.

Cantini Cecconi - 73 Flinders Lane, Melbourne City

We came here for dinner as it was recommended in the visitor's guide on Melbourne that DH bought.

It was an open concept kitchen in the middle of the restaurant, and it served some very unique and delicious dishes.

DH and I shared a fantastic starter of lasagne of porcini mushroom, chicken livers and black truffles. It was velvety and delicious, and the black truffles were still very fragrant. Pity about the chicken livers, if they had used foie gras, the dish would have been elevated to my hall of fame! Although of course, the cost would probably have tripled. It is easily my favourite dish of the meal, and possibly this trip.

Then I had a great swordfish on potato mash - crispy skin and exterior, tender and flakey meat on top of fluffy and light mash.

DH's beef was not wagyu, but it was very tender and delicious. It was really very good, tasty and richly succulent.

We then shared a tiramisu, which was divine. Smooth, and creamy. It was so good, that we couldn't resist taking a big bite each, before taking this photo.

We couldn't finish our wine, and brought it back to the hotel to drink with the cheese that I had bought earlier that day. I bought a brie, a crumbly goat's cheese and a blue cheese. Lovely. Especially with the wine!

Piazza Vittoria

I went to Victoria Market with Baby on one of the days that DH was busy. It was a lovely market, with fresh produce and deli meats, dips, nuts on one end, and trinkets and handicraft and other things on the other end. I didn't venture into the handicraft section. I just bought organic veg to cook Baby's porridge,some lovely fruits like mango, strawberries and blueberries and some nuts and nougat.

Then Baby and I adjourned to Piazza Vittoria (Victoria Plaza) just across the road for some Italian. I ordered the cannelloni (a rolled pasta filled with spinach and ricotta) smothered in cheese and tomato and then baked). It doesn't look like much in this picture but it was delicious.

Mini Restaurant (side street off 137 Flinders Lane)

We stumbled upon this place whilst searching for a restaurant featured on the in flight magazine on the way to Melbourne. And boy was it good!

It was a basement type restaurant, as many restaurants in Melbourne are.

And, it served modern Greek cuisine. This was my favourite restaurant.

We shared some starters:

panfried cheese with lemon and some yoghurt dip. It was hot and cheesy and delicious. The lemon and yoghurt added a little sour tang, so that it wasn't too overwhelming.

The tuna carpaccio came with some tart dressing, with sugar crystals on it, so it was a harmonious paring of very interesting tastes and textures. Fresh fish, sourness, sweetness, and the crunch of the crystals. DH liked this one a lot.

The prawn was, to me, quite asian. It was rolled in bee hoon and fried, like some of our dimsum things that you get at Chinese restaurants. The green dip was made with coriander, cumin and some other spices that may have been exotic to Australians, but were comfortingly familiar to this Singaporean.

The grilled quail was tasty, a bit like bbq chicken wings, I've tried this in Hong Kong many times, but DH has never eaten quail so he was keen to try.

My main of pistachio encrusted lamb rack was fantastic. I decided on this upon stepping into the restaurant and seeing many diners tucking into this delicious looking dish. And it tasted even better than it looked. The lamb was very tender and tasty and the pistachio bits on top were crunchy and yummy. The veg with yoghurt dressing was light and delicious. The mash at the bottom was couscous I think, a little grainy, creamy and tasty, and everything went very well together.

DH's main of spatchcock (a little speckled chicken, so I am told), was okay, tender and tasty and was served an a bed of tasty spinach. It however paled in comparison to my yummy lamb.

All the photos above were taken with my trusty Nokia camera!