Little Tommy Tucker, Bentleigh by Big Fil

There’s lots to like about Little Tommy Tucker.  I thought the food was good and the layout better, that in spite of being packed to the rafters and noisy it was still a pleasant place to eat.  What really stood out though was the service, with ‘the bearded charmer’ (yes, I do watch American Pickers) providing the friendliest and most efficient café service we have come across in the last four years.

 

We did make a bit of a mistake though.  Normally we are crack of dawn breakfast eaters, getting to where we want to visit around 8am when most of the competition for tables is still asleep.  Arriving around 10 meant that we had to join the queue waiting for a table to become free.  Fortunately the wait was only ten minutes or so, after which we were shown to our spot right in the middle of the room.

 

The menu is interesting, to the extent that we ordered three breakfast items to share.  Even then there were a few casualties, things we would have liked to try but had to leave behind. 

 

First up for the day though was Snooze’s foraged pine mushrooms, served with cottage cheese, rye toast, a poached egg and crunchy quinoa.  Definitely her favourite dish of the day: a nice balance of spices, textures and elements although a smallish serving size and a slightly overcooked poached egg.

 

I went for the Gippsland Sirloin Steak, with chilli fried eggs, English sausage, tomato and horseradish celeriac salad.  For me the element of the dish which stood out were the nicely cooked sirloin steak.  The tomato, the salad, the sausage, the fried eggs, while there were no issues with any of these elements it was something that sounded excellent on the menu, didn’t quite live up to my expectations on the plate.  It’s obviously all high quality produce and treated with care and respect.  But we can’t all like the same things and I found the flavours a little restrained.

 

To finish up we ordered the buttered Dr Marty’s crumpets, with fresh banana, smashed honeycomb, banana custard and Canadian maple syrup.  Nice firm banana, although a little lacking in flavour and sweetness, my favourite element was the smashed honeycomb.  What was a little disappointing though, as with my main breakfast the flavours were more restrained than I really like, maybe some nice leatherwood honey rather than the banana custard.

 

Overall

Overall a very good café that I am sure will be someone’s absolute favourite, even if it wasn’t mine.  A real happening sort of vibe (which not many places in Centre Road have), an excellent fit out and outstanding service, and food that is pretty as a picture.

 

Verdict

Food – 8
Service – 9
Ambience – 8
Price – 7

 

Address

432 Centre Road
Bentleigh VIC 3204
Tel: (03) 9576 5174

Giveaway - WIN a cookbook and sauces from The Spice Tailor

Thank you to everyone who entered the competition :)

The winners are:

• First prize goes to Udana who will share his Spice Tailor meal with his work colleague Daniel.  Because Daniel doesn't like spicy food he will default eating it, which means more for Udana.
• Second prize goes to Mandachic who will share her Spice Tailor meal at a dinner party because she's always been known to add spice to the night.

Let Me Be Frank, South Melbourne by Bureaucrat

For a double birthday celebration, we decided to mix things up a little in this bureaucrat's world.  Instead of lunch or dinner, and instead of a prix fixe or degustation menu, the Lawyer and I decided to do breakfast instead. Also, instead of staying in the east, or heading into the city/Southbank, we went for something that's located between the two geographic locales.

Perhaps I've been a bureaucrat too long but going for breakfast at a cafe and paying, on average, $15-$22 for a plate of eggs doesn't make budgetary sense.  It ain't cost-efficient nor fiscally sound, and I can't help wondering what the opportunity cost of my dollars and cents (and sleeping-in time) would be if I just boiled an egg for myself at home.

Religion usually bores me and, as a kid, I'd do almost anything to avoid going to church.  However, I'm older and probably wiser, so now I can tolerate some religion - especially when there's a cafe attached to it.  Let Me Be Frank is a cafe that's located next to a bluestone church and it's associated with Father Bob Maguire foundation.  We booked a table and on the appointed morning, we all rambled our way into LMBF.  It's a great space - high ceilings, lots of natural sunlight, couches, communal table, original artwork, heaps of fresh flowers and a real warm and relaxing vibe to the place.

To fully wake us up, we ordered a latte for the Lawyer, tea for Beaker...

...and for the rest of us, a pot of fresh soy chai for each of us.  This was pretty fine chai - deep, aromatic and blissful.

Not to be outdone, Bubba Chuck got a hot chocolate in a takeaway cup (just like a grown up!) with her kiddies' breakfast burger - bacon, egg on a brioche bun w salsa.  She wolfed this down 

I went vegetarian and got the avo and feta smash w quinoa and corn salsa on sourdough.  I loved the use of quinoa to up the protein levels for the dish.  Great savoury tomato salsa, too.

Mother Hen and Mr Strong got the Hungry Frank for two.  Your choice of eggs, homemade baked beans, good quality ham (proper porkiness), grilled toms, avo, mushies, wilted spinach, hash brown on sourdough. It was epic and totally delish.

The Lawyer got the adults' Breakfast Burger w bacon, egg, cheese and salsa.  While all the dishes were pretty good value, this was a steal at $8.50.

Beaker went for the Healthy Frank - sourdough, poached eggs, fresh toms, herbed cottage cheese, lean bacon, avo and wilted spinach.

Verdict
Food – 8.5
Ambiance – 8
Service – 7.5
Price – 8

Overall
We all really enjoyed our breakfasts - quality, fresh produce is used and you can tell by the flavours.  Quite generous serves and well priced too.  As much as we all liked our breakfasts, we were all really keen on coming back to try the lunch menu.  Definitely a keeper and definitely will be coming back.

Address

Let Me Be Frank

217-239 Montague St  

South Melbourne 3205

Telephone: 0433 419 683

Adelaide Pho, Adelaide (SA) by Big Fil

Given its slightly off the beaten path location I was surprised at just how busy Adelaide Pho was.  I mean, just after 12 on a Thursday afternoon and we were lucky to get the last table for 2 in the place. 


Appeared quite a diverse crowd too, students, office workers, and members of the local Vietnamese community looking for a taste of home.  Tables turned over fast though, and even if full at worst I doubt we would have been waiting more than 10 minutes for a seat.

Inside it's pretty minimalist, red painted walls, fairly plain tables and chairs, just a few decorations on the wall.  It makes no pretense to fine dining but has a bit of a buzz to it, of happy diners munching through assorted rice and noodle dishes, or of slurping up their bowls of pho.


When available, something which I always like to order in Vietnamese restaurants is the grilled quail.  For me it's one of those true tests of a cheapish Vietnamese restaurant, at its best crisp, juicy and full of meaty goodness, but if not done right dry and unappetizing.  Served quartered the quail was mediocre, average rather than either good or bad.  Not too dry, fairly good flavours, but to be honest there are better available.


Better was my pho.  In what wouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows me it was the combination pho for me, nicely pink slices of beef, some sliced beef sausage, and while not as much as I'd have liked a few pieces of tripe and tendon.   The soup had good flavour, the noodles were nicely done and not overcooked and sloppy, the serve generous.  Nothing spectacular about it and I would have preferred some of the fillings a touch more generous but good, honest and filling.


My favourite dish of the day through was Mrs S' combination pork on rice.  As it wasn't my lunch I only got a sample rather than the full deal, but the roast pork was good with a nicely crisp skin, and the accompanying egg properly fried so that the yolk could be mixed in with the rice.  Best part of the dish and the day though was the delicious fried pork chop, which was wonderfully moist and tender.

Overall
Friendly, quick, cheap and tasty, overall the food and service were good, the atmosphere that of a cheap and happening place where the most important thing is the food.  Just how I like my pho houses really.

Verdict
Food - 7.5
Ambience - 7
Service - 7.5
Price - 7

Address
199 Waymouth Street
Adelaide SA 5000
Tel: (08) 8212 0997

Oriental Spoon Story 2, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

Oriental Spoon Story 2 on Elizabeth Street is the offspring of fairly popular Oriental Spoon on LaTrobe Street.  I’m not sure what their rationale was to open its second shop just meters away from the original shop. 

In any case, there are differences between the two.  On the whole, Oriental Spoon Story 2 has less lunch time deals than Oriental Story and seems to be a little bit pricier, too (by an extra dollar or two).  So with further ado, Mr S and I both opted for a rice dish, which we thought were some of the better value dishes on offer.

Banchan was brought to the table, which was a nice touch - I wasn’t expecting this as they don’t have this at Oriental Spoon.  The rice dishes are presented on these novelty shovels.  I got bulgogi beef with rice.  Lots of fluffy rice with quite a reasonable amount of tender beef and spring onions. 

Mr S got spicy pork. Similar to my beef, Mr S liked his dish enough but didn’t otherwise make an impression on him.

Verdict

Food – 6.5

Ambience – 6.5
Service – 7
Price – 6.5

Overall

The food is reasonable but nothing exceptional.  I don’t have any against the food at Oriental Spoon Story 2 but with so many Korean restaurants around, I don’t think I’ll be coming back anytime soon.

While the décor is clean and light, it feels a tad clinical sitting in the restaurant… perhaps it’s because you look out straight onto Elizabeth Street.  There’s definitely a better vibe and warmth at the original Oriental Spoon – which feels more like a restaurant.

Service is okay but nothing exceptional, either.

Address

Oriental Spoon Story 2

291 Elizabeth St 
Melbourne  3000  
Telephone: 9043 5199

United Latino Cocina, Adelaide (SA) by Big Fil

Hmm.  I always seem to be very much in two minds about food in Adelaide.  It's somewhere I lived for nearly 30 years and that I visit at least twice a year, so I have had the chance to see the food scene develop here.  My own view is that until maybe 2 or 3 years ago it was very much in the doldrums, particularly in the low and mid-range end which I usually frequented as an impoverished student or funds restricted visitor.  Recently though it has made a definite resurgence, and is much improved both in range and quality.  One example of this resurgence is United Latino Cocina, a nice newish Mexican restaurant which demonstrates that there is more to Mexican food than crisp shelled tacos and soggy burritos.


Located down a side alley on the southern side of the mall, United Latino is a sister restaurant for Lucky Lupitas.  It's a bit of a bold statement having dined at each once only, but of the two I thought the food was better here. 


Amongst the smaller dishes Hungry Pete was impressed with the Elote, grilled corn with chipotle mayonesa, lime and dry cheese.  If all you have tried before is the usual grilled corn with salt or butter it's likely to be a bit of a revelation but I thought it was ok rather than great, and could have used a more powerful punch in the flavours.


Similarly I liked both of the tacos we ordered, without being overwhelmed.  To me the better of the two was the carne asada, a soft corn tortilla filled with grilled beef, onion, guajillo puree, lettuce, cabbage slaw, crema and salsa verde.  Generously filled with nice tasty tender beef and salad, in what seems an unusual criticism if anything the filling was too generous and would have been better spread over a second taco.  Having quite so much filling made it a bit messy and difficult to eat.


Same issue with the fish taco.  Once you combine a generous serving of snapper, pineapple salsa, mayonnaise, slaw and shredded lettuce it became too large to comfortably eat wrapped up in a tortilla, and resulted in a case of excess liquid which if you weren't careful would just run down your arm.  I mean it's definitely good quality but it could have used a second tortilla, or next time I'd try to eat some of the filling before wrapping it all up.


Where I thought the food shone though was in the mains.  The Arroz con Pollo, a chicken thigh with cumin, black beans, rice, some salad and lemon yoghurt was beautifully cooked, and for me was better off from having used the thigh meat rather than the breast (the thigh has a stronger, more robust flavor than the breast which I prefer).  The cumin was used generously without being overpowering, the rice was light and delicate.  The pineapple and tomato adds a zing which lightens up what could otherwise be a heavily flavoured dish.  Generous in proportion as well.


My favourite though was the Costilla de Res Ahumada, a smoked and slow cooked beef rib with rice, pepper slaw and chipotle bbq sauce.  To me the best cuts of meat are those still on the bone and when you slow cook it you end up with a ridiculously tender, delicious piece of meat.  When dividing the rib for sharing with Hungry Pete it wasn't necessary to cut the meat with the knife, which was used to simply hold everything in place while I used the fork to pull the meat off the bone.  Without a doubt the dish of the day and what I would immediately order on a return visit.

Overall
Combining some good to very good food with a minimalist industrialist fit out and respectable service, it's no wonder that United Latino Cocina is popular with the lunchtime city crowd.  Arriving for a late lunch we were in fact lucky to grab a seat at the communal table, and it was only around 2 that other tables started to become more freely available.  Given the pricing it's starting to edge up more to the mid-range than cheap eats end of the market, but definitely a good and interesting addition to the Adelaide dining scene.

Verdict
Food - 8
Ambience - 7.5
Service - 7
Price - 7

Address
14-16 Francis Street
Adelaide SA 5000
Tel: (08) 8232 0674

Shizuku Ramen (by invitation), Abbotsford by Bureaucrat

While Victoria Street in Richmond is synonymous with Vietnamese cheap eats, Shizuku Ramen is leading a change with its impressive range of fusion Japanese share plates (lobster slider, Shoyu maple raw blue crab, grilled kingfish wings and wagyu beef king oyster mushroom, to name a few), killer ramen (including, a ramen burger) and craft beer. 

With a funked-up re-mixed Phil Collins in the background, sleek black décor and gold statement lights, Shizuku sets the scene for something that’s way more enjoyable and pleasant than the linoleum floors and plastic chairs get up of its neighbours.

A pot of green tea warmed our cold bones.  And to whet the appetite, we were provided with soy sauce seasoned popcorn, which is so much better than regular butter-salted popcorn as the soy sauce imparts that lovely umami flavour to the popped corn.

Guided by the friendly staff, we started our lunch with the cha shu souvlaki.  It’s filled with tender char-grilled pork belly, cucumber, leek, chilli mayo, sichimi wrapped in a thin pancake.  It came with a side of pickled root vegs.  Despite the presence of the chilli mayo and sichimi, it wasn’t too spicy – rather there’s a nice gentle kick.

As ramen is their speciality, we simply had to try it.  There’s about fourteen types of ramen to choose from.  I got the Shoyu ramen.  A generous bowl of piping hot ramen in the most delicious, flavoursome, soul-warming broth.  We were told that the broths are typically slow cooked for over 10 hours to get their rich, deep flavours.  The ramen itself is unlike any of that icky manufactured stuff that you buy in the shops.  This ramen was pleasantly chewy and had a nice texture to it.  It came with thinly sliced marinated cha shu pork belly, a perfectly soft-boiled egg (so golden and just a hint of gooeyness in the yolk), tender bamboo shoots, seaweed and spring onions.

As Beaker’s on a health mission to eat more fermented foods, she got the kimchi ramen.  Her broth was different in flavour to mine (more meaty in flavour), and her ramen came with kimchi, cha shu, chives and egg.  She quite liked her ramen.

Verdict

Food - 8
Service – 8*
Ambience – 7.5
Price – 8*
* Scores are notional as we were guests of Shizuku Ramen.

Overall

Shizuku Ramen offers more variety for diners out for a meal on Victoria Street.  While I’ll be coming back to try more of the ramen, I have to say, the star of the bowl is the broth for me.  You just can’t get that depth of pure flavour anywhere. 

Of note is Shizuku’s excellent online booking process which is simple and gives you confidence – they send you a text and email confirmation and reminders for your booking.

Address

Shizuku Ramen

309 Victoria Street

Abbotsford 3067

Telephone: 9995 8180

Cupcake Central, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

Mmm…cupcakes.  There’s just something about cupcakes.  They’re dainty, pretty and just irresistible.  Give me a perfect, glossy cupcake anytime – I much prefer them than macarons or a hand-made chocolate truffle…I even prefer them over my much-loved custard-filled doughnuts from Walkers.  I love the buttery, light-as-air texture of the cake itself; the soft, creamy, sugary icing (ideally buttercream, fresh cream or similar – no plain icing sugar mixed with water, please); the small delicate serving size that belies the calories and foodie bliss it can bring.

 

Make no mistake, I lurve cupcakes.  So it’s quite a feat that I haven’t blogged about cupcakes on the blog.  As much as I love them, they love my waistline a bit too much (and being gluten intolerant takes the fun out of it a bit).  So really, the fact that I’ve taken so long to blog about cupcakes is testament to my will power of not indulging in one every time I felt like one (with a strong cup of afternoon or earl grey tea – served with a dash of full cream milk and no sugar).

 

With a branch of Cupcake Central near my work, it was inevitable that I’d get cupcakes from there.  And so in the last few weeks, my resolve had crumbled.  Their siren song of cake + icing + pretty colours has claimed its victim.  I finally caved in and bought a cupcake one day… then a few days past… and I just had to buy another one… and another one… and another one…

 

One of CC’s best sellers is the red velvet cupcake cake.  A pretty dark shade red, the cake is quite moist and I loved the sour cream icing.  This is definitely one I’d have again… and again.

 

In an attempt to treat myself but be good at the same time, I got the gluten-free and vegan-friendly cookie dough cupcake.  For a GF cake, the flavor of the cake fairly resembled a cake made out of regular wheat flour but it was a bit denser in texture.  However, I didn’t care for the cookie dough filling – it tasted and had the texture of cookie dough but it’s just not my thing.

 

The salted caramel is one of my favourites.  It has a gooey inner of salted caramel, which isn’t too sweet.  It has a nice hint of saltiness.

 

While I’m not a fan of lemon cake, I got the lemon meringue cupcake because I love meringues.  A bit of gooey lemon curd in the middle, and the meringue was ever so slightly chewy.  This was a nice cupcake but it wasn’t anything special for me. 

 

I’ve never come across black velvet cake before, so I was intrigued with what it would taste like.  However, this the most disappointing one for me – it’s essentially a plain cake dyed black and flavoured with almond essence and flaked almonds.  I’m not a fan of almond essence so besides a few bites out of this cupcake, I left it.  I was expecting something more exciting than almonds for something that’s called black velvet cake.

 

Verdict

Food – 7.5
Ambience – 7
Service – 7
Price – 7

 

Overall

I quite like the cupcakes at CC.  They have a pleasing cake to icing ratio, and the cakes are buttery, light and moist.  Each day, there’s a range of about eight cupcakes to choose from… so there’ll always be a flavor that you just need/want/must try.

 

Address

Cupcake Central
Level 2, Dining Hall
Melbourne Central SC
Melbourne 3000
9077 4542

The Grain Store, Melbourne CBD by Big Fil

The Grain Store felt like a hybrid, part café part mid-range restaurant, combining some of the best elements of both into what was a very nice breakfast experience. Located in a pretty obscure part of the city, down towards the Spencer Street end of Flinders Lane, it had taken quite a while for any of us to make it down here.


It wasn't because we hadn't heard much about it, after all late last year it was very much the it place of the Melbourne café scene.  It's not even if as if we hadn't tried to visit, with one previous unsuccessful attempt just before Christmas resulting in failure when they were closed for lunch that day for some reason I can no longer familiar.  It's just that there are so many fantastic places for brunch around Melbourne that you can't get to places as quickly as you'd like.

 
Anyway, despite a fairly ordinary exterior The Grain Store has one of the nicest fit outs I've seen.  With its white tables and light grey chairs, colour provided by the pumpkins and assorted sandwiches and cakes at the front, nothing feels overdone but that everything has its place in contributing to the whole.  Picture perfect in a minimalist sort of way.


The menu is impressive, offering an interesting range of slightly unusual dishes.  For example, a smoked salmon omelette and truffle crème fraiche with winter fennel, chipotle romesco salsa, rye crostini and crispy quinoa.  Picture perfect when it arrived at the table, what most impressed me about this dish was not all the accompaniments but the omelette itself.  Light and fluffy, its best feature was the delicately flavoured flaky salmon, a far cry from the normal thin strips provided in most locations.


The other dish tried was a bit out of the ordinary for me, a Portobello mushroom and gruyere potato rosti  with poached eggs, hazelnut hollandaise and sunchoke chips.  While I was a little disappointed in the rosti, which was less crisp than I prefer, the mushrooms themselves had a deliciously meaty texture and flavor, the eggs were perfectly poached (as is the norm in Melbourne) and the sauce rich without being overly heavy.  While it probably wouldn't be the first thing I'd order on a return, that’s more to do with my personal preferences as the dish itself was very nice.


The rage of post breakfast desserts isn't as impressive as some other cafes, but I was intrigued by the notion of a mandarin and mint muffin (Triple MMM).  It didn't look much at the counter but wow, one of the best muffins I've ever had.  Slight crunch on the outside, moist and soft on the inside, the interest combination of flavours complimented each other perfectly.

Overall
Very nice place to eat, great service from the staff and some of the best brunch options going around town, what's not to like.  Well, to be honest the serving sizes are not the largest, and the price is a bit higher than most brunch options.  However, if you are in the mood for somewhere just a little more upmarket, The Grain Store is your place.

Verdict
Food - 9
Service - 8.5
Ambience 8.5
Price - 7

Address
517 Flinders Lane
Melbourne VIC 3000
Tel: (03) 9972 6993