Ria Sari

Ria Sari, sitting at the gutter along Barkers Road. You’ve probably driven past it dozens of times but never ever thought about it. And I don’t blame you. The shopfront is certainly not flattering, neither the aged and neglected lino, heavily utilised tables and chairs draped by faded plastic tablecloths often found at your grand’s place.

But the smells and the sight of the food from Padang (the city of West Sumatra, Indonesia) that’s richer than a Trump makes one turn a blind eye to the décor. On rice, sample the range of curried fried egg, sambal hard boiled egg, fried fish, curried beef and stewed vegetables amongst others. Not only might it clog an artery or two, it’ll also singe the tongue courtesy of the chilli and spices. Quench the thirst with what could be mistaken as tadpoles but is actually basil seeds and sugar syrup in a classic ice cream sundae glass.

Returning to Ria Sari, I wouldn’t think twice.

3 / 5 yums!
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Where? Barkers Road, Kensington, NSW
What? Under $10

Melbourne Dining Scene Update

As there has been a lack of posts lately I thought I'd pipe up with a little something. Our main contributor has been MIA, hopefully not for too long!

As an update on the Melbourne Dining Scene, I've had the privilege of eating at a number of various places mostly great - no pictures but quick updates!

- Bistro Guillaume: I’ve been lucky enough to visit this place twice since it’s opening, and both times definitely been impressed. There is a definite opulence with the surroundings, juxtaposed against a mainly simple (read Traditional) French menu. Highlights include; scallops with the cauliflower veloute, the most extravagant fish and chips in Melbourne, and the mushroom risotto. Deserts, aligned to the rest of the menu – kept simple, however unfortunately not as memorable. (9/10/08)

3.5 / 5 Yums

- Cummulus Inc: When will us Melbourians get sick of these hidden alley way food serving bar venues? If they continue along the same lines as Bar Lourinha, Movida, and now Cummulus – hopefully never. Owned by Andrew McConnell of Circa & 312 fame – the menu centres around small dishes designed to share. There is an obvious focus on procuring great produce with whole menu sections devoted to freshly shucked oysters & another devoted to smallgoods – both worth trying. Even better in my opinion are the dishes in the small/large dishes section – my only regret is that I couldn’t order everything in these sections. A must have is the Cured Ocean Trout with liquorice and apple – easily one of the best things I have eaten this year. Restaurants like this add to the reason why Melbourne is the best city in the world. (13/10/08)

4 / 5 Yums

- Rockpool Bar: Some say that Andrews in Albert Park make the best burgers in Melbourne. For traditionalists, they could be right – but like most things, innovation & tweaking eventually makes things better (I guarantee they make Spag Bol here better than 95% of the mothers in Italy – contrary to what any arrogantly ignorant Italians tell you). The burger here is made with minced Wagyu, gruyere cheese, along with the other usual additions this burger is definitely the best I’ve had (better than Vue/Andrews/Urban Burger/Maccas). The full restaurant menu is available – the steaks are another highlight, along with the 4 tastes of the sea and the Mac & Cheese. Other highlight: Desert – strawberry salad with pannacotta and rose granita should not be passed up. (14/10/08)

3.5 / 5 Yums

- Ezards: My 4th visit to this Melbourne institution came with the heightened expectation of being completely blown away on my previous three visits. Would it live up to expectation or would I be completely let down? All I can say is that this place not only lived up to my expectation but cemented the place as my favourite restaurant ever. Ranked only 26 in the Australian Gourmet Traveller Guide – in my opinion the experience at Ezard surpasses what I have received at VDM and Tetsuya (4th and 3rd respectively). I won’t go through the big flavoured 8 course degustation – but the classics (Oyster Shooter & Duck) and the subtly changing support cast (Seasame Pannacotta with Sashimi, or Blue Swimmer Crab Sandwiched between two pieces of Toro) continue to delight. There were no low points to the restaurant, the service friendly but professional and unpretentious wine service, suggested to meet taste and budget. Ezard continues to go from strength to strength and I hope that it sticks around for another 10 excellent years. (15/10/08)

5 / 5 Yums

Redoak Boutique Beer Cafe

Flying first class from Canberra to Melbourne. Truffles stuffed with foie gra on Tip-Top multi grain for breakfast. Porsche laptops. The common? It’s all a bit excessive. Just like getting sloshed on beer that’s won more awards than a Lord of the Rings trilogy. Skull raspberry, blackberry and chocolate brews, or more normal stuff such as pale ales, pilseners and lagers.

Getting drunk comes at a cost. So instead of choosing the dishes or tasting menus that force you to drink beers which enhance the morsel’s flavours of the chook, cow, fish, get food from the bar menu that helps reserve cash for more prized alcohol later.

Get toasty with the Redoak’s version of Guinness Pie. Oatmeal Stout is used in the braised beef ragout, stewed down with eggplant and Swiss cheese to a rich, creamy consistency. Baked puff pastry protects the contents, garnished with parsley and halved cherry tomatoes. If you haven’t passed out from the bier, there’s also the very Deutschland sausages of Kransky, Stuttgart & Nurnberger, pan fried atop a disc of mash and a tangy sauerkraut Rauch jus.

They say eating is cheating, and what’s more you’re only wasting precious stomach space to food. But hell, if you’re going to eat, might as well eat as cheaply as you can in a place that demands coin for the elixir that aids the escape from reality.

2.5 / 5 yums!
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Where? 201 Clarence Street, Sydney, NSW
What? Entrees - $18, Mains $26, Desserts $10, Tasting Plates $20, Bar Menu $12





Left to Right : Oatmeal Stout Pie, Trio of Sausages

Pondok Selera

Dixon Food Court, the Johnny Rotten of Chinatown food courts. It’s dark, dingy, rebellious and steadfastly refusing to conform to those around who have upgraded with the times. Though just like in Asian countries, sanitised places do not always produce the best food.

Pondok Selera quietly trades in a shoebox serving over the heated counter Indonesian/Malaysian dishes with rice for $7.50 or freshly cooked on request. Its take on the Nasi Lemak, whilst has the mandatory coconut rice, deep fried shallots, fried crunchy anchovies, sliced cucumber, hard boiled egg and a pungent sambal as condiments, the meat components leave plenty of room for improvement. The curried drumstick chicken provided appeared to be suffering from muscle atrophy, and a bit more understanding that hungry souls need more than just 1.5 bite sized piece of coconut cream heavy rendang beef.

1.5 / 5 yums!
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Where? Dixon Food Court, Hay St, Haymarket
What? Under $10

Onde

Ok… so you’ve made it to the second date. That is the result persistence, personified by a phone call the morning after the first date (which I’m told is a cardinal sin) which went unanswered, followed by religiously on the hour messages left on voicemail and sporadic texts inquiring about their whereabouts and safety because they hadn’t picked up. But a call back finally comes after a week of silence, though since they’ve already got plans on Friday, Saturday & Sunday, the quick Wednesday night “catch up but got an early start” after work dinner will have to do. And you’ve got just the place in mind, much like the first date…

So your friend eventually finds you on the corner of Liverpool and Victoria, where you’ve been waiting for ½ hour wondering if they’ll ever come. A short stroll down to Onde, the cozy, smart, contemporary French influenced diner. Peering inside though the glass walls to see the place that could very have been featured in Ikea’s catalogue of Winter 2002 without an empty spot. Being the diligent “date” planner, one would have booked if they could but unfortunately, it’s a first come first served policy or take a ticket and wait for your number to be flashed on the electronic screen kind of establishment. Just before that cold sweat of disappointment arrives, the partner speaks: “A place this busy… must be good… I don’t mind waiting.”

Waiting at the nearby Green Park Hotel, the host eventually calls through tin cans to return to the nest for some food. About time, because the delicate zucchini flowers, stuffed and fried in a slightly oily batter served with rocket, a slice of lemon and shaved parmesan wasn’t going to wait any longer and neither was the partner. Thai inspired discus shaped crab cakes, plate blotted by a basil sauce with fennel salad sank quicker than the hopes of a once optimistic Romeo. Fried squid, amongst a bundle of slithered tomato, rocket and a creamy aioli was a mini revival for entrees.

Mains of fish of the day, a lovely piece of crispy skinned white sacrificed for the consumer came with a lentil vinaigrette providing character absent in the hopeless romantic. Perhaps the only sausage to see any light would be the pork and fennel kind, succulent and juicy, fried and charred nicely on the outside with fresh witlof, sautéed pear til mushy for fruity sweetness and roast potato. Duck cooked in its own fat, tasty and extremely soft, caramelised apple a perfect match for the meat though unfortunately the person sitting opposite didn’t think the same way about the would be Casanova.

Dinner, like the date didn’t go quite as planned. A few hiccups and maybe not the right time. They definitely won’t take calls or call back, but that’s alright, plenty more fish (and restaurants) in the sea.

2.5 / 5 yums!
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Where? 346 Liverpool St, Darlinghurst, NSW
What? Entrees $14, Mains $25, Desserts $10





Left to Right : Zucchini Flowers, Crab Cakes, Fried Squid Salad, Fish with Lentil Vinaigrette, Pork and Fennel Sausages

Nobu

Just as the tennis public heralded the arrival 21 years later after the fusion between Mr and Mrs Federer with all that elegant play, so did the food world rejoice when it was introduced to a young (now not so young) Japanese man by the name of Nobu Matsuhisa. With the backing of Al Capone and the all the hype of a Sex in the City movie, the celebrity chef brought “IT” to the most important southern state in Australia (apologises Tasmania) to be along side other food goliaths. “IT” being the uniquely Japanese and Peruvian influenced cuisine at his self-titled restaurant, Nobu.

The venue is low key, no frills, down to earth, much like the racquet superstar, with it’s red and chocolate hues, solid wood finishes with more of the tree appendages fencing the walls. Play singles matches on the cozy little tables that won’t fit much other than your choppers and the dish for your shoyu or be a knight at the round tables that invite players to share it around.

Swiss Maestro precise backhand slices of jalapenos bite off the surface of the lightly soy dressed whitefish sashimi that proves to be a perfect 15-love start. Beef seared quicker than a 1st round encounter against the world number 1 then thinly bladed is smothered in a lemony soy yuzu dressing garnished with chopped spring onion and flakes of garlic. New Style Sashimi from an old stager comes takes goodies from the sea such as scallops and prawn, served nude with only chives providing the same coverage as a Wilson natural gut string, sprinkled with sesame seeds and its oil for a bit of nuttiness and a citrus soy dressing. The balance of flavours impeccable, it really is an on the run Federer backhand whistling down the line in food form. As impressive is the lobster ceviche, the chopped crustacean meat sits on a leaf the colour of Wimbledon’s centre court, again lemony zing evident amongst a drop shot winner deft chilli paste. A messy mound of artichoke salad with its wheat noodles provides a pleasant change of ends to the warmer dishes.

Roger control of the ball is also found in the tempura. Sea urchin is lightly battered, fried to the point where not only the outer shell is crispy but also the little creature inside is heated to a warm gooeyness. Though this is no match for the Nobu signature that’s the Express at 23, the peak of its powers. Unleashing like a cross court forehand, the meaty steak of black cod that’s been soaking in a sweet white miso is baked til the fish is service line white, then grilled with a heat equal this his ground stroke so that the top caramelises to a fine crisp. Drizzle with lemon to completely change its flavour, an oversized novelty cheque bonus to go with this grand slam title dish.

Be prepared to open up the wallet, it’ll cost you an scalped ticket to the Oz Open’s women’s final. But with the extremely professional, informative and well drilled ball kids in black at the helm, Nobu, with all its grace, it’ll earn big prizemoney as well as a legion of fans to rival tennis’s ballerina.

3 / 5 yums!
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Where? Crown, Whiteman St, Southbank, VIC
What? Small dishes $16, Mains $30









Left to Right : Whitefish sashimi, Beef Tataki with Yuzu Miso, New Style Sashimi, Lobster Ceviche, Artichoke Salad, Sea Urchin Tempura, Black Cod Miso, Sushi and Sashimi Platter

Asian Night Noodle Market

It’s that time of the year again. No not when the ladies attempt to destroy the doors on the Lonsdale Street entrance of the Melbourne CBD Myer at the crack of dawn for the boxing day bargains or when the blokes decide to clear out the underwear drawer of garments which have lost their elasticity to be retired as grease cleaners for engine parts. It’s Sydney’s October Good Food Month and one of its most popular events, the Asian Night Noodle Market held in Hyde Park’s North. With every year, the setting becomes more and more spectacular, with streams of red paper lanterns lining the air above, colour changing globe light features and the hypnotic lounge music. With booze available and plastic chairs to make oneself comfortable, or the patches of grass in the surrounds, make it a night out under the stars with some grub from the south east. It might not quite be hawker style or hawker quality, but there are plenty of choices as the stalls do their best with their hands tied due to equipment restrictions. With almost every country covered, you’ll either have to have a number of stomachs equal to a cow to sample them all or return on other nights.

2.5 / 5 yums!
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Where? Hyde Park North, Sydney, NSW
What? Dishes under $10





Left to Right : Char Kuay Teow, Chicken Satay, Satay Sauce, Mussels, Salt and Pepper Soft Shell Crab