Rapid indulgence @ Ganache Chocolate

The 'G' is for great!

Powering through Melbourne's best hot chocolate places seems to be a bit of a habit of mine at the moment.

I had Ganache recommended to me by a similarly sweet toothed friend recently and took it upon myself to visit it while on my way back from a client meeting when I *really* needed a sugar hit!

I ordered a hot chocolate with salted caramel and the best way I can describe the experience was that it was like drinking a super smooth chocolate bar with a delicious crisp meringue on the side for some texture!

Really nice, highly recommended!

Steak Frite par Excellence @ Entrecote

Don't make a mistake, get the steak. 

To celebrate my friend K's new job we decided to treat ourselves to lunch at Entrecote, a french bistro bordering on the botanical gardens that we had both heard very good things about. Neither of us were disappointed.

Entrecote starts early in the morning with excellent breakfast options, however the star attraction, which starts at lunchtime and continues late into the night, is the steak frite.

It is their signature dish, and at just on $40 a head, it is very well priced for the quality.

We both ordered the steak frite, and for our $39.90 got a truly excellent, dry aged, porterhouse perfectly cooked and absolutely melt in the mouth tender. It was topped by a simply divine butter and herb sauce and served along side a generous helping of super crispy french fries.

You do make friends with salad when it is this perfect an accompaniment. 

The salad that came with it was equally good, very fresh and beautifully dressed with a tart but not overwhelming dijon dressing and sprinkled liberally with caramalised walnuts.

The atmosphere at Entrecote was great too and the staff (both of ours actually french) were lovely too. The fresh bread with French butter on arrival also helped to get us in the Parisian mood!

Head along next time you have something to celebrate, or if you just feel like a good feed! You won't be disappointed.

Pure Cheese Indulgence @ Milk the Cow

It may seem expensive on the menu, but believe me $50 was a small price to pay. 

This is just a short post to single out my new favourite place for cheese and whisky in Melbourne: Milk the Cow.

I had heard rumblings that it was excellent, and I wanted to check it out for myself.

Heading over to lygon with my friend D, we split one of their specially selected cheese platters along with a few glasses of Michael Couvreur 'Fleeting' 14 year old burgundy cask aged scotch.

The evening would have been worth it for the scotch alone - a beautiful, almost cognac-y drop, bought from a highland distillery by M. Couvreur and aged in Burgundy in casks used for that region's famous Gran Cru. It was one of the finest non-Islay whiskies I have had in a very long while, and I would highly recommend you making a trip to get a glass (you can't get it many other places).

The cheese however, really made the night. We had a range of excellent international and local cheeses - and I will do a full review including photos of my second and third trips to Milk the Cow soon.

However particular highlights were a black truffle infused french brie and a beautiful cognac washed soft cheese that practically melted into the bread. Topped off with dried muscat grapes and high-end quince paste and it was a cheese board to remember. 

Stay tuned for more!

An actually good hot chocolate @ San Churro

Marshmallow Overwhelming!

So as a coda to my post the other day regarding my disappointing Hot Chocolate at Bar Bosh I thought I would share with you an excellent one I had recently.

I am usually not one for chain stores, but the El Grande Marshmallows Spanish Hot Chocolate at San Churro really hits the spot on a cold night, or when you feel like a treat.

Next time you are near by, pick one up, you won't be disappointed: I mean, just look at all those marshmallows and imagine them melting into a pool of delicious, thick chocolate!

Mmmmmmm!

Delicious Ramen @ Shop Ramen

Kimchi in Ramen? Very yes.

So I finally got myself to Shop Ramen on Smith Street in Collingwood and after hearing great things for ages, I wasn't disappointed.

Along with a friend I sampled the chicken ramen, the beef and kimchi ramen and a delicious Japanese +C soda.

Crunchy greens, crispy chicken, perfect noodles. Wonderful.

I had the chicken ramen (delicious broth, tender noodles, wonderfully gooey ajitsuke egg, fresh greens, corn and the most wonderfully seasoned and grilled organic chicken breast) and my dining companion had the Korean Doenjang Beef ramen (same base, egg and noodles as the chicken ramen with spicy doenjang beef, fiery kimchi, and crisp nuts and spring onion).

My ramen was fantastically flavoured and perfectly ballanced. A lovely winter warmer for the cold June night that surrounded the hip little shop on Smith street. The chicken was a particular highlight, the spices and the crisp, caramelized exterior were just divine, and was a far cry from the cardboard-esque chicken schnitzles you get on many fast food ramen bowls these days. I really enjoyed myself.

My dining companion thought their bowl of the beef and kimchi flavoured ramen was also excellent, and tasting some of the toppings, I tended to agree.

+C gets an A+!

 
I also really enjoyed the can of +C that i got to wash my meal down with. It tastes like a tangier, more lemon rich, Solo, with a similarly low level of fiz. It also apparently contained my daily dose of Vitamin C, so I wasn't arguing with it. Well worth a drink if you're looking for something to go with your meal!

All in all, Shop Ramen is recommended. Head along if you get the chance.

 

Dassai Sake @ Kumo Izakaya

Dassai 23 - The best Sake you will ever drink.

So recently, Snow Crab Nebula got a real treat when we were invited by Dassai Sake, an ultra premium offering out of Japan's remote and mysterious Yamaguchi Prefecture to try three of their Sakes at the absolutely fabulous Kumo restaurant in Fitzroy.

This evening was full of food, fun and the finest Sake I have ever tasted.

And I mean fine both in terms of its incredible Quality, but also the fineness of the rice used to make it.See sake is rice wine, but unlike wine made from grapes, you can't just press the grapes, ferment it and hope for the best. Rice won't ferment unless it Is milled (that is ground) And then seeded with a special kind of mold to extract sugars.

The finer you can mill the rice, the better this process works, And the more impurities you get rid of. So a really fine mill produces a really good sake.The mill rate of a sake, or the percentage out of 100 of the original rice that is left after milling, is therefore very important.Now a good premium sake might have a mill rate of 80.

 

Dassai's finely milled rice results in amazing Sake.

Dassai sake put their mill rates in the name of each kind they make, and their number *start* at 50 and get better from there.The difference between Dassai and a normal sake is therefore incredible.

 

We got to sample the interesting Dassai 50 Sparkling, the exceptional Dassai 39 and the absolutely amazing Dassai 23.

Dassai 50 Sparkling - Better than a Moet IMO.

Starting with the Dassai 50, a sparkling 'nigori' or 'cloudy' Sake. This was probably my least favorite of the three on offer, but was still amazing. It was described as the champagne of their range, and the bottle and Gundam Wing esque future cork in it gave it a Moët by way of Mikasa vibe.

 

Dassai 50 Sparkling - A revelation in the glass: "Can this really be Sake?"

 

The liquid that came out was milky white (because of the fine rice particles still in it) and fizzy. It looked sort of like Calpis soda but it tasted like a rich, astringent, white wine. It had only a little of the sweetness of the other Dassai sakes, but it cut through a fiery meat dish like a katana through flesh. 

 

Dassai 39 - My personal favourite sake.

 

Next up was the Dassai 39. This one was a revelation, it was far smoother and sweeter than the 50, but was robust enough that it went well with richer dishes than the far more delicate and nuanced 23. The taste of the 39 was almost candy sweet, but surprisingly, was not at all cloying. Its nose was all spun sugar and fresh berries. The taste was so clean and pure, and yet strong enough that the fried dishes and meat that came with it did not overpower it. Sign me up for several cases!

 

Finally there was the Dassai 23. It was like nothing else I have ever had. The nose was all melon and rich summer fruits, but the plate was so subtle and nuanced that it almost felt like a crime to do anything but sit and sip it in quiet contemplation. The 23 was a drink that stood out for me among anything that I have ever had. It would convert anyone, even the most hardened of wine snobs, to drinking sake, and really should shoot to the top of the 'must try' lists of everyone reading this.

Getting a bottle might be hard though, as for any of Dassai's exceptional bottles, prices start high and availability is super low. Do yourself a favour and try any or all of them if you can.

And thank you to Kumo, Dassai Sake and Sake Master, Samurai and exceptional host Andre Bishop for an amazing night.

 

A review of the fabulous Kumo, where our dinner was held, will follow shortly. 

Quick Coffee @ Rubber Duck

Cremalicious.

Regular readers will know that I love a good long black, and I had one of the best I've encountered in a while at Rubber Duck this morning.

The crema was devine, the flavour was rich and bold, but without overwhelming. The beans they had chosen were of the rich, chocolate-y variety, and they had extracted every last drop of goodness from them, while leaving the bitter behind.

I tore through it, and it left me wanting more. I'll be back and you should go!

Cocktails @ Goldilocks Bar

Corpse Reviver No.2, #2.

People had been telling me to head for drinks at Goldilocks for quite a while and now having been, I can say it was worthwhile heading 'into the woods' to experience.

Accessed by a discrete elevator on Swanson Street, you enter into a dark, wood paneled, bar with nary a big bad wolf in sight.

Just lovely waitstaff who were super knowledgeable about the drinks on offer.

I ended up with my go to choice, a 'Corpse Reviver No. 2', which is a hard drink to make without having it taste like sour, hard lemonade. Goldilocks acquitted themselves very well with it however.

My party said the same sorts of things about their cocktails, and we went back for seconds and thirds!

Recommended - the drinks are much better than at Toff in Town which is right next door.

Hot Chocolate @ Bar Bosh

Knoxious.

I was over East this weekend, somewhere I rarely am anymore, and needed to pick something up at Knox Shopping Centre.

Getting rained on and feeling cold, I ducked into Bar Bosh for something to warm me up. It wasn't exactly and unpleasant experience, but you would surely only go there if you had no other choice, Which, fortunately for them, and unfortunately for me, when you are at the cinemas at Knox, Bar Bosh is your only non-franchise coffee option. 

My Hot Chocolate was perfectly adequate, although at 4.50 (a dollar more than any of their coffees) it was nothing special. Getting two marshmallows was nice however.

I'd say I wouldn't be back. But really, if I'm at Knox again and need a hot drink, I won't have much of a choice.

"Oh you went to Fasta Pasta as a kid too?" @ Vapiano

"It's like the 90's all over again, but, you know, with smart cards."

Here's a joke for you: Vapiano.

Oh wait, no, sorry, too soon. Here's a joke for you: Two management consultants walk into a too-faux-hip-for-good-food pasta bar and spend all of their meal discussing the merits of the process design behind how they make your food.

Not a very good joke. Not a very good night.

Vapiano seems to be the first of what I am sure the owners hope will be a Grill'd esque chain of 'made as you watch' pasta bars nation wide. You go up to the server (replete with David Foster Wallace-esque official uniform bandanna) and select your sauce and pasta combination, get up-sold some bread, and then wait. Some time, and potential awkward small talk with a cashier who is also cooking your dinner, later... food! Really bad food! Meanwhile a long queue of disgruntled customers is forming behind you because each transaction takes 10 minutes.

It is a nightmare of business process design - it takes a whole bunch of good ideas and combines them infuriatingly. For instance, at the door, you get issued with a charge card. You use this to order your food. It serves no purpose that pay wave couldn't have solved for cheaper. This is the definition of the Vapiano business model.

They are doing Fasta Pasta, again, only it isn't the 90's any more, and people, you know, people like flavour now.

Now, fasta, to the Pasta.

Not gluten free, nobody cared about gluten at Fasta Pasta in the 90's, so why should you?

The dishes had names, they were forgettable, so as we described them to each other: I had the "tomato-y one with no salt and lots of cheese because of a cheese up-sell" and my dining companion had the "creamy, spinach-y one with some cherry tomatoes and, oh look, a prawn".

To go into detail would be to recount a litany in boredom. However, the short version is - the pasta was well beyond al dente and into 'raw' territory. The sauce was uninspired and desperately under-seasoned. It was also somehow almost entirely salt free despite being chock full of mozzarella ($1 up-sell).

My dining companion didn't hate his, but he didn't think the noodles themselves were all that great. And that about a place that makes its own pasta and sings its own pasta's own praises everywhere you look.

Don't go. You won't enjoy it. Invest though, people will lap this stuff up.


 

On a scale of 1 - 10, where 2 is Airport Food, a 3 @ Sweetie & Moustache Dessert Lounge

Last call for all passengers traveling to flavour...

So I am going to refer to Sweetie & Moustache as S&M throughout this review, because they basically asked for it.

S&M is going for some strange Studio Ghibli meets 'pan-european cafe as designed by a committee of MEPs' pastiche vibe. And they achieved the low bar they set for themselves with a chequer floor, a London phone box and a pair of nutcrackers the size of my dining companion.  This appears to be the only bar they surmounted however -  as my guest commented when I asked her how her sticky date pudding was: "If this was an airport, it would be ok I guess."

The second fork was for sharing. The proffered tasting was politely declined.

My thoughts on my uninspiring caramel late crepe cake were similarly lackluster. I finished it, but I wasn't proud of having done so. Neither should S&M for having served it to me.

Strangely, I do sort of recommend the place - there is something so amazingly off-putting about the whole experience that it really should be tried.

Just don't expect to be able to board a plane if you finish your cake.

Suspicious canele @ Patricia

No dice. Not nice.

Please don't get me wrong - oh darling staff and baristas at Patricia - I love your coffee and will continue to come wait in your justifiably long lines as often as I can. However, and its a big however, you need to up your game with regard to your pastry suppliers.In particular the canele!

Canele in Melbourne can be a bit of a problem - first of all, they are almost always too blonde and not crisp, second, they are quite obviously often made in silicone rather than copper molds. This is true of the canele at Bistro Vue and at Cumulus Inc. and unfortunately its true of those at Patricia.

They don't come cheap at Patricia either - $4 for a large - and the quality just isn't there.

Go to the South Melbourne market and you can buy a better class of canele for less, and I suggest that is exactly where Patricia should start sourcing theirs.

Anytime Ramen @ Menya Sandaime

One word. Amazing.

I've seen Ramen, Ramen you people wouldn't believe. Tastebuds on fire near some Anime figures. Chopsticks glitter in the dark near the Gyoza plates. 

All these noodles... available... at any time of the day or night.

That's right Melbourne, the Bladerunner-esque nightlife of never-sleeping, neon-lit, Tokyo has reached us in the form of Menya Sandaime. This 24/7 Ramen shop is part of an international chain dedicated to recreating the feel of Tokyo's back alley Ramen bars. Having been to some of those, the vibe certainly matched, and so, might I say, did the Ramen.

William Gibson eat your heart out...

I got the spicy Tonkatsu Ramen (very intense tonkatsu-miso broth, marinated egg, bok choy, spring onion, ramen noodles and thick cut belly pork) with an accidental - but very much appreciated - doubling of my belly pork and egg. I was not disappointed.

I'll start with the soup - amazing. The flavour (and the heat) was intense, but perfectly balanced. I'm not sure how it ranks on the tradition scale - compared to say Hakata Gensuke - however it was just about the best I have had in Melbourne. 

The noodles with it were also great, the right mix of chew and texture, and nicely cooked.The egg and vegies were fine - I could have gone with a little more flavour in the egg, but nothing at all to complain about.

The start of the show, however, was the pork. It was just fantastic. Finely flavored, perfectly rendered, and then grilled to give it an amazing, tacky, caramalised coating. It was the best belly pork I have had in a bowl of Ramen since the good old days when Don Too used the proper stuff.

I cant wait for my next trip, I highly highly recommend you grab a bowl of fabulous Ramen at Menya Sandaime. 

Breakfast Overload @ Oasis Bakery

Too much breakfast.

Oasis Bakery is a business that has just grown and grown in recent years. Starting as a tiny hole-in-the-wall supplier for middle eastern breads and specialty foods (many made in house) it has become a veritable empire with a vast store selling specialty foods from around the world, as well as a full bakery, desert bar and eatery.

Over at their flagship North Road store to stock up on my favourite cheese pastries, I decided to tuck into their 'full Turkish' breakfast. For just $19 this was a veritable feast, although in some aspects it followed the 'don't mind the quality, look at the volume' approach of some discount buffets.

For my money I got merguez sausage with spiced, semi-scrambled eggs, fresh labneh with pita bread, ful medames (a spicy Egyptian  bean dish), salad, olives and fried haloumi cheese.

In order of best to worst: the ful medames was delicious, serve it in a big bowl with some crusty bread and some of the equally excellent labneh and I would have been happy for the day; the labneh by itself was great, really fresh and tart, but the pita bread that came along side it was a bit stale and lacklustre - today's bread please Oasis!; the olives were really nice, as was the salad; the haloumi was well cooked but unusually salty and just a bridge too far calorie wise; and finally the eggs and merguez - ummm, really not great, and not a lot more to say. The eggs were entirely one note, chili-spice but with none of the nuance or flavour. In addition the sausage was very musky and so rubbery that I found it basically inedible.

All in all, I would probably say order the individual items you want, or a range of other dishes, rather than going for the full breakfast. It is a serious quantity of food and not all of it is great. Oasis overall is, however, well worth a visit.

 

The best omelet ever @ Cheeky Monkey

The aforementioned amazing omelet.

I went to Cheeky Monkey on Swan Street for the first time a few days ago and I am now sad that I haven't been a regular five-ever. The omelet that I had there for brunch was perhaps the best I have ever tasted and the coffee that came along with it was excellent too.

My omelet gave me the choice of three high end ingredients from a long list and I chose Meredith feta, Christmas ham and organic spinach. It was a good combination, expertly prepared.

The omelet itself was cooked in a deep pan, that gave it a size and shape roughly approximate to a quiche. There was none of the thin layer of egg lazily wrapped around a few soggy ingredients that you will sometimes get served. This was the deep dish, Chicago style, pizza of omelets. The egg was golden brown and delicious, the ham came in enormous, beautifully smoked, chunks and the freshness of the feta and the spinach really lifted the whole ensemble.  

The accompanying coffee (still pretty awesome). 

The sourdough rye that came along side was fantastic, and I really appreciated the strong (yet delicately flavoured) long black that arrived to help me wash it down.

Highly highly recommended, you owe it to yourself to go!

Coffee and a Jaffel @ Naked Espresso

Amazing coffee.

I had heard fabulous things about the coffee at Naked Espresso on Little Bourke and when I ventured in there on a cold July morning I wasn't disappointed. The tiny shop is an oasis of rich coffee smells and the sizzling of Jaffels in the grilling iron. I ordered my standard long black and it came complete with a perfectly expressed layer of rich, thick, crema and the requisite mineral water shot. The flavour was light, but still had the kick I need from my black coffee.

Adequate jaffel.

Along with the coffee I ordered a turkey, brie and cranberry jaffel. It was OK for the price - relatively reasonable at 9.50 for a sit down dish - however it was nothing outstanding. Thinly sliced turkey, generic brie and some very christmasy cranberry sauce on a nice wholegrain. I cleared the plate, but I wouldn't race back for the food.

If you are looking for a good cup of coffee on Little Bourke however, I would rate Naked Espresso well above their key rivals from down the road Brother Baba Budan.

Quick Sandwich & Cajun Chips @ Smokestak

A solid lunch - smoked.

Smokestak isn't a genuine Texas BBQ. Smokestak isn't Meatmother. But you know what, because it serves a tasty, meat packed, smoked pork and ham cuban w/ fries for only $11, Smokestak also isn't a place you should pass up.

I have walked past Smokestak several times over the last few weeks, always intrigued by the delicious smokey smells emanating from this hole-in-the-wall establishment, but never having the time to wait in the queue. Finding a spare moment earlier this week, I ducked in and ordered their Cuban Sandwich (smoked pork shoulder, Virginia ham, swiss cheese, pickles, mustard and mayo) with a $1 upsell of cajun fries.

The sandwiches they serve are packed full of fillings, and are grilled (both inside and out - to guarantee maximum cheese meltage) as you watch. The chips they come with are freshly made, and seem to be timed to come out of the fryer just as your sandwich reaches temperature. 

My cuban and chips combo was no exception. The sandwich was full delicious meat - the pork was melt in your mouth soft and very well spiced. The ham was high quality with none of that 'wrapped in plastic for too long' taste that you get in a lot of sandwich meats. All the flavours work together and the overall result is quite nice. My only complaint is that, even with the mustard, it has very little kick. I know that is how Cubans are meant to be, however I think I have been spoiled by the devilishly spicy version served by the Spring Street Grocer. 

The chips were also excellent, doused in a great cajun spice mix, and super, super crunchy! You'd be crazy not to take the upsell offered by their very enthusiastic staff. 

All in all, recommended. I am not sure if Smokestak is a franchise yet, but given the popularity of BBQ at the moment, I wouldn't be surprised if it became one soon.