Tuesday Eats

TimmyC and I made homemade pizza for the first time today. The first one was an oval, the second was more a rectangle, I think we finally got the hang of it by the third. Our favourite pizza is Margherita, what is yours? 
#homemade #pizza #learning 

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The heart wants what the heart wants and my heart and tummy wanted a banh mi roll today. Made fresh and fast, this place is awesome.  
#foodmadefast #banhmi #craving

Don’t mind me. I’m just wafflin’ on. 
#andinthemorningimmakingwaffles #waffles #brunch 

Filipino Pop Up dinner series by Lolo and Lola

Yes! You read that right, Lolo and Lola are doing a pop up dinner series every month and I was lucky enough to attend their inaugural dinner last Thursday as their guest.

I haven’t been to Westside at night and I was happy to see that Lolo and Lola had a marquee set up with warm lighting, cute assigned seating and a menu that made me very excited.I am loving the penmanship.Adobo in four different ways pork, chicken, mushroom and snake beans. When I was browsing the menu, my eyes lit up when I saw adobo and in FOUR WAYS! It was hard to choose a favourite but being a big meat-eater I loved the pork and chicken, although the mushrooms were definitely a close second. If you have never eaten adobo, you need to change that immediately.Sinigang confit of salmon in hot tamarind broth with okra, radish and cherry tomatoes. This was unlike anything I had eaten before. The broth had strong sour notes which really made the tomatoes and radish taste very sweet, while the salmon seemed really rich and fatty without a strong fishy taste. As we ate the salmon, the broth became almost creamy and contrasting flavours weren’t as sharp.Inasal grilled chicken maryland marinated in garlic, lemongrass and vinegar with vegetable atchar salad. I could happily eat this for the rest of my life. The chicken was succulent with a fantastic marinade, while the punchy pickled vegetables kept it all refreshing. A real perfect balance of flavours displaying real skills from the kitchen.Kare-Kare Filipino stew of fork tender beef cheefs, honeycomb tripe and vegetables in annatto peanut sauce. The scaredy cat in me gave away most of my tripe but the happy girl who was enjoying everything so far kept a little bit to try, it had a really unexpected texture as it was super soft and reminded me of bone marrow. The description did not lie, this was definitely tender beef! Unsurprisingly, Lolo and Lola’s stews are always amazing.Check out how tender that meat is.Filipino fruit juice as a little refreshment between courses.Lechon slow roasted pork belly served with garlic liver sauce and petite pomelo salad. Lechon is definitely a must have dish when you have a Filipino event. The pork had a perfect crunchy crackle, the meat was succulent and it was a generous serve that defeated me towards the end. Having pieces of pomelo gave the dish a refreshing touch.Salabat brewed ginger tea with honey. This reminded me of a Chinese tong sui and took me back to my childhood and home cooking.  The tea was perfect on a cold winter’s night. As you sipped the tea, you could feel the tingle of a ginger ‘burn’ on your tongue and down your throat.Bibingka souffle interpretation of the classic coconut rice cake served with salted egg creme anglaise. Luckily we all had a different stomach for desserts and we had no trouble finishing this. I don’t love salted egg but the anglaise had just enough that you could tell it was salted egg without being overwhelming and I almost licked my shot glass clean. The souffle itself had a fluffy delicate texture that was a perfect end to a stunning dinner.

I can honestly say that I loved every dish. Kim from Lolo and Lola was describing how Filipino food is unpretentious and it really was just fantastic food with fresh ingredients and well-balanced flavours.

Since the first pop up dinner sold out in 1 hour and September booked out also, keep your eyes on their Facebook page for their upcoming dinners and get in quick!

Venue: Lolo and Lola

Address: Westside Acton Park, Container 20, 3 Barrine Dr, Acton ACT 2601

Facebook: Lolo and Lola by Waterhouse Bakers

Phone: 0412 929 780

Monday madness

It’s madness alright, Monday madness at Kusina. Half of Canberra is here feasting on all you can eat!#allyoucaneat #filipino #grilledplatter

I am happy to celebrate anyone’s birthday who has good taste in cake. This 9 layered beauty is from none other than @lebonmelange 
#caketower #cake #happybirthday 

The Public Place sneak peek

Look @foodpornjournal I’m awake! 
#beefburger #southside #feast 

Filipino pop up dinner series by Lolo and Lola sneak peek

Bliss is four types of adobo. 
Thank you @loloandlola_canberra I had an incredible time exploring your culture, love of food and wonderful talents. 

#filipino #food #westside

Tuesday eats

Home made butter chicken curry with TimmyC’s mango lassi. It might have taken two days to make that butter chicken but it was well worth it. We also had hot roti bread to mop it all up. 
#homemade #curryweather #lassi #mangolassi

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

I was making fun of TimmyC that we were going to somewhere called ‘Dinner by Heston Blumenthal’ for lunch despite having booked months ahead. It wasn’t until I read the definition of the ‘dinner’ on the wall did I realise that maybe dinner didn’t mean what I thought it meant.Drinks~

Cider gimlet Calvados Domfrontais, acidulated butter, cider cordial ($24.00).Peter Pipe’s pickled lemon lemonade lemon juice, lemon brine, lemon sugar, soda ($14.00). My mouth is watering just thinking about this drink again. Man it was intensely lemony and tangy.Complimentary~

Bread and butter.Starters~

Meat Fruit mandarin, chicken liver parfait and grilled bread ($38.00). This was spectacular, visually and texturally. This seemed like the obvious choice for a photo but I really enjoyed tasting this even though I’m not a huge fan of pâté like objects. The mandarin gel covering was subtle and melted away almost at an instant when it hits the tongue. I was completely blown away by how creamy the pâté tasted and the airy light texture, which was a sharp contrast to the crunchy grilled bread.This is truly a work of art.Rice & Flesh saffron, curried kangaroo, red wine and amaranth ($38.00).Savoury Porridge garlic and parsley butter, grilled abalone, pickled beetroot and fennel ($36.00). The texture of the oats along with texture of the fennel reminded me of the snail porridge from Fat Duck. TimmyC said he thought that some of the elements of the dish seemed odd but when you put everything together, it all paired perfectly.Mains~

Slow Cooked Pork Belly Spelt, lardo, baby turnip & Robert sauce ($58.00). I have never had pork belly that was as white as the clouds that tasted like a Christmas ham. It was absolutely incredible. Even though I was thoroughly enjoying my main, I leant over and helped myself to the pork belly.Chicken cooked with lettuces grilled onion emulsuion, oyster leaves and spiced parsnip sauce ($58.00).Specials~

David Blackmore Waygu (marbling score 9+ 200g) served with mushroom ketchup and triple cooked chips ($120.00 yes you read that right). I know what you’re thinking, if a ‘special’ is so special, why isn’t it on the menu? The only reason that it isn’t usually on the menu is because the steak isn’t always available so now that it was, I jumped at the chance!

I think there is nothing more sad than when a steak sits alone on a plate but seriously – this needed nothing else because it was perfect just the way it was. I didn’t even eat the mushroom ketchup and triple cooked chips after tasting them (I hear you all gasping!). It was the nicest steak I’ve ever eaten; it was well seasoned but the meat itself was very flavoursome and it almost didn’t require chewing because it melted in your mouth. The only downside is that it has ruined me for other steak.That marbling- WOW!The triple cooked chips were really crunchy.Desserts~

Tipsy cake spit roast pineapple with a freshly baked brioche ($32.00). When the waiter was describing how the pineapple was prepared by spit roasting while being basted in an apple salted caramel sauce, I was sold! What really surprised me about the dessert was the amazing freshly made brioche; it completely blew me away. I spent a lot of my time sniffing its intoxicating scent, it reminded me of stepping into a bakery. The brioche is finished off with brandy and Sauternes cream which was like an amazing bread and butter pudding on another level. I would have this every day if I could.Want a bite?The beautiful pineapples slowly being spit roasted while being basted every now and then.Chocolate bar passionfruit jam and ginger ice cream ($30.00).The Lamington cake raspberry jam, toasted coconut, rum and vanilla ice cream ($30.00).A little something something~

Just when we thought the experience was about to end, we were given an extra little something sweet before we left. Chocolate ganache with carraway seed biscuit– the ganache was extremely soft and smooth and the biscuit was the perfect accompaniment because it offset the sweetness.We found the service to be very attentive, efficient and friendly. I wouldn’t wait for a special occasion, just come here and experience fantastic food.Venue: Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

Address: Crown Towers Melbourne, 130/8 Whiteman St, Southbank VIC

Phone: (03) 9292 5779

Website: www.dinnerbyheston.com.au/

I was out and about and I came home to the delicious smell of apple tarte tatin. TimmyC you’re a keeper. Let me hold you a little longer because I can still smell scent of butter and sugar on your shirt. 
#frenchcooking #homemade #appletartetatin 

Handbag essentials

Last night as I grabbed a handful of chocolate and dumped it into my handbag before heading out to see the Canberra Youth Orchestra, I realised I had dumped them into a black hole. Never to be seen again. 
Today I sewed some snack bags, so chocolate, ham and other handbag essentials will be within reach. 
#handmade #handbagessentials #food

Hungry logic

There is no logic to a hungry person. I couldn’t be bothered to drive to spitshack but I’ll roast a pork belly and make gravy to satisfy a craving. #hungryhungryhippo #hungrylogic #porkbelly

Munich Brauhaus – The Rocks

Continuing on with the European theme even though we had literally been eaten all day, my friends and I were still excited to try Munich Brauhaus on The Rocks.

We were very lucky with our timing and were able to catch Vivid on Australia’s iconic landmarks. To aid with digestion, we happily walked around Circular Quay to make our way to the Rocks. The area was buzzing and Munich Brauhaus was not immune, in fact there was a line up at the front and we didn’t know how long the wait was going to be but I optimistically joined the line and within 10 minutes we were seated with another group on a long table.

Inside had a great warm atmosphere and it transported us away to another country. Despite being ridiculously busy, service was prompt and so were the food and drinks. I think it is a great testament to an establishment when they have enough staff and are not overwhelmed when packed to the brim.

Drinks~

Lowie (500mL $12.90).

Good pickins apple cider (500mL $12.50).

Starters~

Brez’n Bavarian pretzel Haus made with cultured butter ($4.50). Oh my goodness, a warm pretzel with a good butter is hard to beat. I was in love.

Knoblauchbrot garlic rye bread with radish cream ($8.50). It was ridiculous how saturated the bread was with garlic butter but the richness is balanced out by the radish cream. A good starter to share with friends.Mains~

Hühnerbrust Vienna style crumbed chicken breast ($29.00).Oktoberfest teller Bavarian tasting platter. A showcase of our handmade products crafted to perfection with original Bavarian recipes. The best offer for a Bavarian sized appetite for one. Crispy pork belly, Haus sausages, schnitzel, sauerkraut, red cabbage, creamy mash, granny smith apple compote, bier jus ($34.00). It is true, two of us shared this and could not finish the plate but to be fair, we had been eating almost non stop for the whole day during our Gourmet Safari. I enjoyed everything on this plate, everything was really well done and  superb. The surprising element that I loved was the bier jus, I could smother that on everything! This was a lovely way to experience a bit of everything.Sides~

Sauerkraut ($7.00). Because you can never have too much sauerkraut on the table.

Mashed potato ($7.00). Really smooth and the perfect accompaniment to all the meat.

Mushroom sauce ($3.00). I didn’t know if I’d like the bier jus so I ordered this but I really didn’t need to.
By this point, we knew there was no room for dessert (for now) as we couldn’t  finish our mains. I think I would have been fine if I didn’t go on a food tour all day but the portions are very generous and satisfying. There was traditional live music, the staff were dressed in costume and if you order schnapps, a really skilled waitress manoeuvres her way through the crowd with a really long paddle. I would happily come here again, I really loved the food, the service and atmosphere.

Venue: Munich Brauhaus

Address: Cnr / Playfair & Argyle St, The Rocks, Sydney NSW 2000

Phone: (02) 9247 7785

tbt

#tbt to when I was eating pan fried homemade dumplings from @rarelyseen some dumplings had a truffle surprise! Yum yum! 
#homemade #dumplings #ineeddumplingsrightnow