It’s finally getting warmer in Canberra and with it comes all the social activities involving food! Get excited Canberra!
5th November ~ Beer Day Out
For all the beer drinkers out there, Beer Day Out is happening again!
Beer Day Out is going back to Thoroughbred Park in 2016. Saturday Nov 5 will see some of the best breweries Australia and New Zealand have to offer along side some of Canberra’s top eateries.This year we are introducing The Festival Bar which will pour a special beer supplied by each brewery attending. We are also introducing the BDO beer paddle; so you can try even more delicious brews. The BeerDiva is back running her acclaimed beer masterclasses alongside all round TV personality Paul Mercurio who will hosting cooking with beer masterclasses. DJ’s, beer games, trivia and roving entertaimant will round an awesome day of hops and happiness!
12th November ~ The Forage
Its the last one for the year folks, better get yourselves down there. There will be a live dessert demo by Ali King from Zumbo’s Just Desserts
Our next event will be held on Saturday the 12th of November at The Little National Hotel in Barton. Come and join us for the last Forage of the year starting at 2pm until 7pm. Come by for some of THE BEST Street Food, Beverages & Live Music Canberra has to offer.
18th November ~ The Forage will have food on Friday night at the Undercurrent Design Market
The market kicks off 5pm Friday 18 November with live music and a night feast with food from The Forage. The market runs on Saturday 19th November 10am – 5pm and Sunday 20th November 10am – 3pm.
18th – 19th November ~ Food and Wine in the Laneway
If you love wine, you better buy your tickets ASAP!
The Canberra District’s wineries are coming to the heart of the city so that over two evenings you can enjoy the region’s best wine and food without leaving the city limits. The event will be lit with festoon lights, local musicians will provide the soundtrack to the evenings and the great street art in Tocumwal Lane will provide the backdrop. This 18-19 November head to the city to enjoy all the region has to offer.
9th – 18th December ~ The Commons Street Feast is coming!
And boy, the line up looks spectacular! Did you see their butler option? Oh my!
Indulge your senses at The Commons Street Feast in Commonwealth Park this summer. From the 9-18 of December you’ll be able to feast your way through The Commons with some of Australia’s best food trucks, artisan chefs, craft brewers and more.
Canberra will be The Commons national debut feast, opening for dinner each night across the ten days plus lunch on weekends from 12pm.
The Commons is a free event and is open to all ages, with licensed 18+ bar areas on site.
Explore the very best food, wines and craft beer at The Commons this December.
16th – 17th December~ Burgers, BBQ & Beer Markets
I like two out of three of those things! Count me in!
Calling all Burgers, BBQ and Beer lovers, mark Friday 16 December and Saturday 17 December in your diaries!In the City Canberra will be turning Civic Square into a foodies dream – something you won’t want to miss! This will be the first food theme of our new series of food festivals that are being held as part of this year’s Christmas In The City.The Burgers, BBQ and Beer Markets will be under a canopy of Christmas Lights that will be replacing the Lights Tunnel that ran along City Walk in 2015, and will raise vital funds for Red Nose and their important contribution to our community
I also have heard multiple whispers of Goodberry’s opening in Gungahlin(??). It’s all happening in the capital!
Inside the Hofbrahaus is warm and inviting. Lots of large tables celebrating occasions or just indulging in the enormous sizes of beer that they serve, while a live band plays in the background which adds to the European tavern feel.
Langosch Haus-made freshly baked and fried garlic bread, sprinkled with sea salt ($9.50). I would have loved some cheese sprinkled on top but they were still very moreish and were quickly devoured.
Gebackener camembert crumbed baked Camembert cheese served with lingonberry compote ($14.50). You have to enjoy this while it is hot.
Bretzel freshly baked Bavarian pretzel served with butter ($5.50).
Kasekrainer traditional kranksy filled with cheese ($25.50). I love cheese kranksy and this was a good one! Even though I was very full, it didn’t stop me from finishing it with the help of TimmyC.
Rindergoulasch traditional Hungarian-style beef stew on haus-made German egg noodles served in an iron pan ($29.50). My friend really enjoyed this, I think if you want a hearty meal without the huge chunks of meat, this is the meal for you.
Knuspriger schweinbauch oven roasted crispy pork belly on braised red cabbage, served with bread dumpling, bier jus and apple compote ($39.50).
Schweinshax’n huge Bavarian pickled roasted pork knuckle on a bed of sauerkraut and mashed potatoes with haus-made pork jus and German mustard ($43.50). A gigantic pork knuckle with all the trimmings. My friend didn’t finish this but he made a large dent.
Bratwurst the classic world famous German pork sausage ($25.50).
I really enjoyed the casual warm atmosphere of Hofbräuhaus and it was conveniently located in the city. There are a lot of places in eat in Melbourne but if you feel like German food, I would recommend coming here.
Grill platter grilled pork belly marinated with sweet BBQ sauce + grilled chicken marinated in lemongrass, garlic, soy
Again I would definitely recommend booking, this feast only happens once a month and man, the restaurant was packed when we arrived. I didn’t know what to expect and no one really explained anything to us, I just knew that there wasn’t going to be any cutlery which meant I had to tie my hair up, clean my hands and wear something with lots of patterns so you couldn’t tell how much food I dropped on myself.
It is hard to concentrate on anything when there are so many sweets.
I could have 10 of these cream cheese puffs right now!
So many samples, so many amazing flavours.
Ivan was really generous and let us try so much and it was all definitely worth trying.
From pierogi to bigos to placki, you have to order it all!
Keen to add it to my birthday dining list, TimmyC booked weeks in advance so we didn’t miss out.
Cooler months Five courses ($110.00 pp)
Pear and cheese. This reminded me of a sheep milk cigar I had at MoVida, the outer layer is chewy and sweet which offset the tartness of the cheese.
Kangaroo and Acacia jerky This was really tough jerky (but I guess most of them are), but the kangaroo flavours were subtle which is good because I don’t usually enjoy the strong aftertaste of kangaroo.
Tasty Dory roe fish smoked roe with charcoal lavosh bread, garlic oil and salsa verde. I could not believe how much I enjoyed this. When I ran out of lavosh bread I started slathering it on the rye loaf.
Mains~
Whipped potato, hen yolk and cabbage buds confit hens yolk, whipped potato, garden Brussels sprouts and egg white pearls. I was really surprised that the cabbage leaves were more sweet rather than bitter. The whipped potato was light in flavour and texture which went well with the rich yolk and refreshing cabbage leaves.
Peek-a-boo, there is the egg yolk!
Pastured fed beef cooked over coals beef cooked over coals with leeks and potato. My favourite things on a plate. The beef itself had lots of flavour but the leeks and potato it to another whole savoury level. I would have preferred a bigger portion but that’s just me being selfish.
Dessert~
Beverages~ I ordered the non-alcoholic juice pairing which was really good and I loved how complex the flavours were ($50.00pp?).
1/2 chicken, chips, garlic, soft drink can ($12.90). The chips were freshly fried, topped with chicken salt (by request) and were very addictive. The garlic was so good I wanted to put it on everything. Unfortunately, the chicken wasn’t freshly cooked (it had been sitting under heat lamps), the breast was dry and the limbs were a bit overcooked. It is a shame because the place smelt really good. Maybe I’ll have to go back during a peak period and get a fresh chicken.
Have you been to this place?
Grazing~
Entree~
Seared scallops, bacon relish, apple and radish salad ($24.00). A perfect combination of juicy scallops and bacon with a little bit of sweetness from the apple. Definitely my pick of entrees if I didn’t want to try a bit of everything.
Pasta~
Main~
Butchers weekly choice cut (Sirloin) cooked to your liking served with watercress, cafe de Paris butter and onion rings ($40.00). I would have much rather a lightly dressed salad if they insisted on greenery but instead they chose watercress and a lot of it. I really enjoyed the onion rings, they were well crumbed and crunchy without being overly oily. The steak was okay, I didn’t think it was well seasoned but that’s where handfuls of chips between each bite came in handy. I think I had food envy from the people who ordered the pork belly.
Slow cooked duck leg, Centennial Pinot Noir sauce, crumbed beetroot gnocchi, Tuscan cabbage and bacon ($37.00). 
Sides~
Desserts~
Trio of chocolate mousse ($16.00). I felt that the milk chocolate mousse was so light and silky, it quickly became my favourite amongst the trio, although the dessert as a whole was visually stunning. It isn’t a large dessert for the price but my friend and I still had to share since the entree and main sizes were ample.
Everyone really enjoyed all of their courses but for me it didn’t live up to what I remembered it a few years ago. I don’t know if they have changed chefs, but the food wasn’t as good even though it still stands for a stunning backdrop for a wedding (the main dining area is always set up for a wedding as it is a popular choice for a venue). The service was very attentive and friendly. Though they made several mistakes on the bill, they were more than happy to adjust it.
Pierogi – Polish dumplings in bacon and caramelised cabbage ($13.00). We chose ‘pork and chicken’ and ‘cheese and potato’ dumplings. I loved the added touch bacon and the caramelised cabbage but a dollop of sour cream would have been awesome. I preferred the pork and chicken between the two dumplings flavours.
Crunchy kale new season kale crisps with slivered beetroot, crumbled goat cheese and plum dressing ($13.00). Technically it was described as ‘crispy kale’and crispy it was but it was cooked beyond being edible. As soon as I saw this, I knew the kale was over done and would be terrible and I suggested that my friend take it back but he just ate some of the goats cheese and avoided the kale leaves.
Blintz and mushrooms mushroom ragout with re-fried potato blintz and sour cream ($13.00). I found the blintz a bit bland by itself and it definitely needed the sour cream and the delicious mushrooms. It was nice to share this with others but I wouldn’t order just this for my main.
Veal schnitzel Polish style pan-fried, crumbed in sourdough rye, served with mashed potato and beetroot salad ($17.00). I didn’t mind the schnitzel but in comparison to other dishes, I probably wouldn’t order this again.
Pork knuckle mash, baked apple, caramelised cabbage and salad ($24.00). Don’t be put off by its size, it is mainly bone; most people should be able to finish it easily. I liked the tender meat and the baked apple was a nice pairing. It is definitely a hearty meal during the colder months.
Ricotta fritters cinnamon tossed ricotta dumplings with chocolate soil and mulberry sauce. yum ($10.00). We all decided that we had enough room to squeeze in one dumpling each (conveniently there were 5 doughnuts and there were 5 of us). I was really surprised how light and fluffy they were and probably could have had the whole plate to myself. It wasn’t until after we finished eating the dumplings did we notice that there wasn’t any chocolate soil but it didn’t need it. These were definitely worth ordering!
Served hot and fresh, I think you could convince anyone to stay for dessert with you.
The next time I come back, I would order the pierogi, pork knuckle and ricotta fritters.
Full menu available Thursday to Saturday
First came the ‘stuzzichini’ or finger food and then the food never stopped coming. It was truly an Italian feast.
Stuzzichini
Assortment of bread rosemary or garlic Tuscan flatbread sea salt schiacciatina with Sicilian extra virgin olive oil ($9.00). This was beautiful bread served warm. There was enough flavour on the bread already but I really enjoyed dipping my pieces into the EVOO.
Zucchini flower stuffed with buffalo ricotta and served on a pea puree ($6.00). The zucchini flower was cooked perfectly leaving a crisp delicate batter over the flower encased with a well seasoned ricotta filling, all without bring oily.
Suppli stuffed with asparagus and tallegio cheese ($16.00). During my first bite, I thought the filling was a bit bland and I wished it came with more sauce but the second bite- BAM! I got hit with a strong taste of cheese. Tallegio is a stronger cheese than I’m used to with a sharp taste and I’m not sure everyone would like it.
Beef carpaccio truffle oil, testun barolo cheese and micro herbs($19.00). I love a good beef carpaccio; it is a fine line to balance the flavours of the beef, oil and cheese. There was a lovely flavour from the oil but it almost over powered the beef and the cheese.
Swordfish carpaccio with pomegranate and fennel. The first thing I could taste was the delicious oil and then it had a subtle dish aftertaste. I liked that it was paired with the sweetness of pomegranate but I found all the flavours were too subtle for me and I preferred the beef.
Pizza ~ are currently only available on weekends
San daniele tomato, fior di latte, proscuitto crudo, rocket, shaved parmesan, and cherry tomato ($26.00). This was the first pizza that I tried and I fell in love. I really liked the base, the way it was cooked and the mozzarella was perfecto.
Capriciossa tomato, fior di latte, ham, artichoke, olive and mushroom ($25.00). I loved the flavour combination but I think I preferred the saltier notes in the San daniele with the proscuitto and parmesan.
Regina margherita tomato, buffalo mozzarella, parmesan and basil ($20.00). Just when I thought the San danielle was the best, I then tried the classic marghertia; the most simple pizza and this was my absolute favourite hands down. Every ingredient had to be at its premium because there wasn’t much to hide behind. I would have loved a little more even basil placement though.
Pasta
Now I love cheese more than the next person but man this was intense. I’m glad that I only had a small portion because the cheese flavour almost became monotonous and I am most surprised that I’m saying that (TimmyC would be shocked). I think I would have loved it if it had pieces of speck or some cured meat to go with it. These wheels of cheese are replaced every 3-7 days.
House made ravioli with spinach and buffalo milk ricotta in burnt butter and sage ($28.00). I am usually sold on anything in a burnt butter sauce with sage and I would easily order this next time I’m here.
I wish there was a tad more sauce to this pasta but I loved the crispy sage leaves.
Squid ink seafood pasta. The chef had been working on new dishes for the upcoming winter menu (to be released soon) and this was one of them. After all the heavy rich cheese dishes, this had a refreshing chilli bite and I really enjoyed the crunchy texture on the top. They import what they think is the best squid ink pasta from Italy but I think the star of the dish was the accompanying seafood.
Dolci
The two ‘gripes’ that I’ve heard from others about Molto Italian were about the prices and about the noise. I know that Canberra’s dining scene can seem more expensive on an international scale as well as interstate, but all along the Kingston foreshore it seems to be next level. I had written my impression of each dish before including the prices from the menu in my blog, but I felt that the prices were fair considering their import the best produce in their opinion to ensure quality authentic ingredients. We were lucky enough to have an early start before a busy lunch period but I didn’t notice a noise problem. This might be at night when the foreshore gets crazy busy.
I would not have enjoyed as many dishes if I was coming with friends unless I invited 5+ people. Through this invitation, we were able to taste a large variety of the menu as well as preview some upcoming dishes from the winter menu and I am able to say that I enjoyed almost all the food that we were lucky enough to experience. I am excited to go back and try their upcoming winter menu.
Mains~
Crispy Ayam battered marinated chicken thigh tossed with garlic and aromatic salt ($18.90). This dish was like addictive fried pop corn chicken. I would have preferred a little more garlic and aromatic salt but that didn’t stop us from devouring the whole basket.
Gulai Bebek Balinese style yellow duck curry with lychee and Asian vegetables ($21.90). Not my usual go to curry but I really appreciated the curry sauce which had lots of depth to its flavour. Let’s face it, I just needed a good sauce to dip my roti into.
Kangkung Pelencing (seasonal) stir fried water spinach with garlic and chilli ($15.90). I love water spinach but ooooh lordy, this was HOT! I’m not the best to gauge chilli heat as my tolerance is low (albiet getting better) but even my friend who loves hot food struggled. Needless to say that most of the dish was left as it was too hot for our palette. I ate a lot of rice after every mouthful.
Roti pratha Indonesian style bread, cooked to order and good compliment for curries (2 pieces $5.00). The roti was hot and flaky and went perfectly with the curry just like the description promised.
Food came out rather quite promptly and the service was friendly. I was last here almost a year ago for my birthday. I had a banquet with the 10+ people I was dining with and we all had different favourite dishes but we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
Flat white (I don’t remember the price) and Caramel thickshake ($6.60). I didn’t have the greatest thickshake experience the first time, especially when it came highly recommended by a close friend but I was willing to give it another shot. It came in a tall old school metal cup which kept it cold throughout our meal. Smooth, thick and sweet just like a good thickshake should be. Even though we were both full, TimmyC and I drank every last drop because we didn’t want to waste it. YUM! When I get thickshake cravings, I know where I’m going to go!
Breakfast served all day~
Sriracha should be at every cafe.
Pig pocket tortilla pocket filled with scrambled eggs, mozzarella cheese and a bacon ($8.40). I know small things amuse small minds but I loved the fact that the house made baked beans version of this dish was called a bean bag. SQUEEEEEEE! So cute. This might not seem very complex or interesting, but it was exactly what I felt like eating. There are a combination of sauces on the table to help make it to your liking.
Standard two free range eggs (scrambled, poached or fried) with bacon on sourdough toast *with butter on request ($14.00). It is funny that this is called ‘standard’ because this is one of TimmyC’s standards for breakfast at a cafe. He asked for fried eggs and also requested butter.
Hot and sour soup ($5.80 per serve). My eyes widened when they lowered this bowl on the table. It was enormous! I asked Serina ‘I thought you only ordered two serves?’, she responded with ‘I did’. The waitress explained that the chef wanted to give us more but would only charge for two serves. I loved that the soup was full of lots of ingredients and most of us easily had two bowls. If it was a tad (chilli) hotter and you added a few drops of chinese vinegar like you’re supposed to, it would have been perfect.
I took a photo of the serving bowl next to my bowl so you could see how big it was.
Shanghai pan fried pork buns (10 pieces $14.80). This was the one dish I was determined to order after seeing photos from 
The filling inside the buns.
BBQ duck spring rolls (2 pieces $6.80). We were told that this was a popular menu item and I can see why. A crispy hot spring roll filled exclusively with delicious duck meat complimented by the hoisin dipping sauce. These would make a good starter, maybe I’ll order these next time before I sit down and even look at the menu.
Fried handmade noodles with black pepper beef ($15.80). People were starting to get full but 
I had a much better experience at Yat Bun Tong this time around because of the selection of food. I will definitely be back to eat more pork buns and eat more noodles.
Kolokithokeftedes zucchini, feta and fresh herb fritters, lightly fried, served with tzatziki (3 per serve $14.00). I found that these really lacked salt and flavour even though there were supposed to be feta in the mixture, which is a real shame considering how amazing the bread was. They were served hot but my friend had a suspicion that they were reheated rather than made fresh.
BBQ seafood plate BBQ King prawns, salt and pepper calamari, oysters mornay and kilpatrick, grilled baby octopus and prawn cutlets ($35.00). I think the only down side was to try and eat everything as fast as I could to enjoy the meal while it was hot. I started off with the oysters, the mornay wasn’t that cheesy and I felt that the kilpatrick could have done with more sauce but the grilled baby octopus and calamari was delicious while it was hot.
Lamb souvlaki plate two grilled lean lamb fillets skewers marinated in Greek herbs and spices served with chips, greek salad, tzatziki and Greek pita bread ($27.00). I tried the lamb while it was hot but I felt it was a little chewy and obviously the cooler it got, the tougher the meat became. The chips were really good and the salad balanced out all the meat and carbs. Even though I was very full towards the end, I couldn’t help but eat pieces of feta smeared on that awesome pita bread. I told the waitress to take the plate away before my friend would have to roll me out of the restaurant.
A few things were a bit of a hit and miss but I did really enjoy parts of this meal, I hope they were just having an off night with their lamb. I love Greek food and I want to love this place but I feel that something was missing with the food. Having said that, the service was fantastic and food came out so fast, we were very impressed.
Pepper Lunch is bringing Japanese DIY Teppan to Canberra! Meals come out on a 260C hot plate and you cook the meat to your liking. Here is their ‘how to guide’:
Curry chicken pepper rice (a la carte $11.20). I really loved the curry sauce and I’ve decided that the next time I go, I’m getting something with that sauce!
Shimofuri ‘porterhouse’ pepper steak (a la carte $16.90). 
Giant rib eye steak (a la carte $24.90). This steak was noticeably bigger than the porterhouse but it was in the ‘giant’ section of the menu. I found this steak really delicious and ‘melt in your mouth’. It is on the more expensive end when compared with other menu items especially if you make it into a meal. 
You can make any a la carte menu item into a meal which includes one regular drink and one regular side for $4.90.
All the sundaes have the same ice cream base but they are covered in different toppings. There are four flavours: chocolate nut crush, caramel swirl, green tea delight and black seasame; they currently don’t have the black sesame flavour yet but they ensure me it is coming. I really enjoyed the caramel swirl and I really wanted to love the green tea delight but the flavour was so subtle, it was almost non existent. I hoping they adjust it and it will be better in the future.
It was getting toasty warm inside the restaurant between all the people and 260C plates, so I imagine the restaurant will be a popular place to be this winter.
They are really trying to ensure that things run smoothly with the restaurant having a soft opening for the next few days to train staff and slowly ease their way in before trading normal hours (see below).
TALES OF A CONFECTIONIST 
