2010

Another year gone by. I know I have been slack, I can not believe that one month has passed since I last posted.In fact I cannot believe that a new year is about to start. However, I have not been idle in the past month, of course I have been out and about and I will try to sum up my culinary month of December.

WEEK ONE

The month started off dining at The Bank in Yarraville Village. I am not sure of how many people are aware of this but The Bank do quite a good meal. I have eaten here a few times over the last few years and each meal was lovely. Most locals tiss at the mention of The Bank but I Tiss back because I think it is a business that deserves a bit more support. They have specials on weeknights, some incorporating a movie at the Sun Theatre which is just across the road. Give it a go! Let me know if you think otherwise.

The next night I was off to The Middle Park Hotel to Paul Wilson's Gastropub. Paul Wilson took over the kitchens approximately one year ago and has been a consultant on their menu. It's a great pub and set up really well with booths with teles for sports fanatics. When we walked in our dinner guests were not in the dining room yet so the waiter suggested a drink at the bar. He was extremely accommodating and ordered our drinks for us and found a bar table for us. The service was excellent for the rest of the evening. The Food, mmmmmm extremely meaty and pricy. Would I go back, probably not for the dining room but a bar meal yes. The bar meal has Pauls hotly talked about Scotch Eggs on the menu, apparently they are delicous. That's what I would like to try next.

WEEK TWO

In the Next week I had lunch in Northcote at The Breakfast Club. A Groovy little cafe on St Georges rd. A very limited menu, a smart idea for a very small space. Lots of toasties to choose from as well as all the brekkie regulars. I had a mexican bean toastie which was pretty delicious. The tea cosy on the tea pot just about sent me into hysterics because it was perfect. That is the way tea should be served!

The next lunch was at the Kent Hotel in Rathdowne st North Carlton. Another Groovy little spot. Sitting outside on the pavement was a great space for catching up with some old workmates. I ordered the Nicoise Salad and it was excellent. The Tuna cooked to perfection, seared on the outside and rare in the centre. A glass of white wine in hand and I was settled in for the afternoon watching the passing trade.

WEEK THREE

Funki Monkey. New to Yarraville, I was very excited when I saw the menu for this cafe. Gozleme! Anything I read after this has disappeared from my memory. I had to have their Gozleme. I had only had it once before and that was at the Yarraville Gardens Farmers Market. It was delicious! Gozleme is a Turkish pastry that is hand made and hand rolled,filled with spinach and feta cheese,lamb, beef or other vegetable fillings. It is then sealed and pan fried. At Funki Monkey they served it with hummus, babaganoush,lemon and tzatziki. Brilliant! What's more I think it was like $12 for this huge platter that you could easily share with a girlfriend for lunch. At the end the waitress then treated us to some of their home made Turkish Delight, I couldn't have been happier. This cafe is mainly focused at mothers with young children. They have a complete playroom for toddlers with every toy a child could need plus a dvd player(not in favor of this, don't see why our kids need to watch the screen all the time). We sat on the verandah and it was a warm day and it was a wonderful spot to watch Yarravillians go by.

WEEK FOUR

Enter the Indian Influence

Breakfast over xmas saw me at the Corner Shop eating the most delicious Baked Eggs with Eggplant Kasundi. (Kasundi is a hot Indian traditional Relish) On the side, a couple of pieces of toasted ciabiatta and I was in heaven. I thought wow, this is fantastically orginal.
Fast forward a few days and I am at Grindhouse cafe in Carlisle St, Balaclava and there is that word again Kasundi, but this time it is with tomato not eggplant. This time it is being served on the side of the Breakfast Vegetarian and Egg Biryani(Indian fried rice with spices). It is also topped with a freshly cooked papadam and some raita. Again I was sent to heaven. It is fantastic to see our chefs incorporating new ideas into our breakfasts, making another's cuisine into our own. Gone are the days of just Bacon and Eggs, I'm sure in 2011 we will see some more of these inspirational enhancements to our menus. The question is who will lead and who will fall behind.

Looking Forward.

As always I have had my ear to the ground and have heard that there might be a few changes in SKY in 2011.

We know there is a new cake shop in Anderson street coming(Hurray Up)and we might also know that there is supposed to be a new Mediterraen restaurant opening in Gamon St, in the old pet shop. I have also heard that Delizia and Seddon Deadly Sins may have new owners next year. But the big scoop is that the owners of the Corner Shop are opening another cafe in Yarraville. It's in the old record shop by the railway and you can see that there has been a lot of work done on it lately. This is very exciting news for SKY. For those of you who have had difficulty getting a table at the Corner Shop you can now try at their second cafe. Although I have heard that the second shop will not be a replica of the first one and they will be concentrating on take aways.
So as you can see there is lot to look forward to in SKY in 2011. I also hope to improve on my blog with a few photos and some extra snippets and tibits of all things culinary.