All posts by Keira O'Brien

Meanderings about food, wine, people and places. I'm a 30 something winemaker and wine educator, food writer in hiatus, music lover and changemaker living in Hobart. Via Brisbane and North East Victoria. Also, I really like toast.
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Support Brisbane Restaurants – Qld Flood Update

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Many local businesses throughout Brisbane have been affected by floods.  Some however are still open – if you are able to do so, please support these local business people so that they can continue to pay wages, support growers and suppliers.

This will be updated as more information is available.  If you have information that isn’t included here, please leave a comment.

New Farm – Confit.  Open for business.  Follow @confit_bistro for updates

Pintxo – Open for business.  Follow @pintxonewfarm for updates

Jocelyns – no damage.  Reopening soon.

Fortitude Valley – Cloudland.  Open for business.

Limes Rooftop Bar.  Open for business.

Majo’s, Portofino Cafe, Alibi Room, Home Ground Cafe, Brunswick St.  Open for business.

Tuckeria.  Open for business.

Freestyle, Emporium – Open for busienss.

Tartufo reporting no damage.  Expected to reopen soon.

Anise – Open for Business.

Teneriffe – Claret House.  Open for Business.

Bulimba – Scales & Ales.  Open for business.  Follow @scalesandales for updates.

Riverbend Books & Cafe. Open for business.  Follow @RiverbendBooks for updates.

Most Bulimba cafes and restaurants are still trading.

Hamilton – Baguette, Bretts Wharf, Dandelion & Driftwood all undamaged and open for business.

CBD – The Villager.  Open for Business.  Follow @thevillagerhote for updates.

Bar Barossa.  Open for Business.

Moda Restaurant.  Open for business from dinner 16/1/11.

Restaurant Two.  Open for business from dinner 16/1/11.

Alchemy Restaurant.  Being inspected for structural damage over the next two weeks.

Pig and Whistle, Milano and Jimmys On The Mall – Open for business

Sugar n Spice, Bar Moda both open and serving coffee.

Il Centro, Cha Cha Char, Aria, Bavarian Bier Cafe, Sake, Judes  - no power, still dry.  Not open, but hoping to be back soon.  Follow @ilcentrosomm for updates on Il Centro and Eagle St Pier.

Urbane and The Euro – Possibly some damage to function area in basement.  Hope to reopen soon.

Tank Restaurant – Reopening 17/1/11

Taro’s Ramen - Open for Business.  More details here.

Paddington – Open for Business.

Paddo Tavern – open for trade throughout.

West End – Lefkas still serving locals at last notice

Freestyle, some damage to coolroom.  More updates as they come to hand.  follow @dessertboy for updates

GunShop Cafe – clean up work underway, hope to be open during next week.

Kim Thanh, no reported damage but waiting for power to be restored.   Likely to reopen next week. Follow @bao_la for updates.

South Brisbane – Granada and Jost 154 both dry.  Currently closed.

South Bank Surf Club, no flood damage.  Currently closed.

Woolloongabba – Enoteca and all restaurants in top end of Logan Road at Woollongabba are open and trading as usual.

Spring Hill – Togninis open for business.

Camp Hill – Restaurant Rapide open for business.

Milton – Togninis closed and flood affected.

Initiatives to Support

Australian Wine Trade Flood Relief Raffle

This amazing inititiave was put together by Tyson Stelzer and you can follow @winepress for updates.  At last count, more than $100,000 of wine pledges have been made.

Victorian Restaurants Unite for QLD Flood Relief  Led by Alistair and Erez from Church Street Enoteca, this initiative brings together the Victorian hospitality with the aim of raising $1M during January.  Follow @vicrestunite and @churchstenoteca for updates.

Sydney – Colin Fassnidge of Four In Hand and Franz Scheurer putting together some fundraiser dinners. Email [email protected] for more info. follow @fourinhand and @blues_junkie for updates.

Restaurant Review

Restaurant Review: Wagamama, Brisbane

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This is a ‘pan asian’ chain ‘restaurant’ that specialises in noodles and excels at mediocrity. The atmosphere exudes food court but with an Emo rock/Billy Joel/jazz guitar/chill out soundtrack and similarly schizophrenic service.

Your server asks you if you have been to Wagamama before. Yes, people do make return visits. The place was heaving. This question is really to warn you that your meals will come out in whatever order the kitchen gets them ready in, so in some ways not unlike a more authentic Asian restaurant.

So in no particular order we tried ebi gyoza that tasted only of the dirty oil they were cooked in served with a rust coloured hot-ish sauce, a special of zucchini flowers glazed in a sugary syrup served with a daikon and mint salad dressed in a sugary syrup and served with pumpkin and beetroot fried rice, Thai noodle stir fry which had the decency not to call itself the pad thai it is clearly trying to imitate, tasting mostly of tomato paste and served with a thin, dry wedge of lime, calamari fried to resemble popcorn and the Wagamama ramen  - a huge bowl of vaguely flavoured stock with one each prawn, grilled chicken and tofu with a garnish of raw bok choy.

This chain started in the UK before Masterchef and the televisual onslaught of Gordon, Jamie and Hugh began. It’s now in 15 countries around the world.  Mains are between $16 and $21.

Perhaps in another location Wagamama could be viewed as exotic, however there is no excuse to eat at such a poor excuse for Asian cuisine in Brisbane. I wish I’d stayed in and had a ham sandwich.

Wagamama

Wintergarden Shopping Centre

171 – 209 Queen Street Mall

Brisbane

http://www.wagamama.com.au/locations/showlocation/596

Bar Hopping, Restaurant Review

Restaurant Review: Bavarian Bier Cafe, Brisbane

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Eagle Street Pier is Brisbane’s original and arguably most successful restaurant precinct.  It’s now been trading for almost 20 years, but in the last five it seemed to lose its way.   Pier Nine, the premier spot for seafood and high class fish and chips closed its doors as the Hill-Smith family focussed on winemaking and other interests.  City Rowers became Jade Buddha and Ted Stewart’s Vino’s restaurant and function centre closed after several years of inconsistent trading.  With new owners Stockland coming on board there was talk of a substantial redevelopment of the site which created uncertainty for traders.  Then the ‘global financial crisis’ came and everything got a little quiet and the rumours died down.  Throughout this Andy & Marcia George’s Il Centro and John Kilroy’s Cha Cha Char carried on offering calm and consistency at the centre of the storm.

The opening of Aria by celebrity chef Matt Moran in mid 2009 created renewed optimism for the precinct and now as 2010 draws to a close there is a rash of new venues opening their doors.  I’ll leave it for Stockland’s PR machine to list them all out, but some highlights are the contemporary Japanese Sake Restaurant and Hamptons styled Jude Café, both of which are in soft opening mode.  It’s got to be a difficult time to open a new restaurant with chronic staff shortages affecting many operators.

Let’s get this out of the way:  Bavarian Bier Café is part of a chain.  There’s already a bunch of them trading in Sydney along with Lowenbrau Kellen at the Rocks.  The formula is great German beer, a menu with something to please everyone and young female waitresses with plenty of cleavage on display, without straying into Hooters territory.  If you’re blond haired and blue-eyed, then so much the better. 

The Brisbane venue occupies the plum spot at Eagle Street Pier, upstairs with a 180 degree view of the Brisbane River and Story Bridge.  There’s a number of distinct dining areas with long bench seating for groups, high stools for boozy afternoons or Parisienne style tables for two lining the bottom tier of the indoor dining area with even more bench seating on the wrap around verandah.  A large bar curves around the central atrium with suspended glass racks reflecting light into the indoor dining area.  It’s not quite as spectacular as when 90′s night spot Grand Orbit occupied the premises but it’s a successful design that make the most of the dramatic curves and expansive multi-level space.

Obviously you’ll want to try the beer and schnitzel.  We polished off several Lowenbrau and Hofbrau steins (300ml, 500ml and 1 L all on offer) along with Franziskaner Hefe Weissbier Hell and bottled Paulaner Hefe Weissbier and Franziskaner Kristall Weissbier.  The ‘ladies beer’, a Weissbier with a choice of cherry, peach, banana or lychee flavouring didn’t appeal and the wine list was pretty pedestrian, but it hardly matters since the beer is so good.  Ordering wine here would be like ordering a Thai chicken pasta at the pub.

We chose a pretzel, beef schnitzel and Nurnberger sausages with mash, sauerkraut, onion rings and Lowenbrau jus for lunch along with french fries.  Everything was competently cooked and made with quality ingredients.  I revelled in the flavours of my youth, remembering stealing forkfuls of sauerkraut from the fridge as a kid and the deli next to the fruiterers where my sister and I were given cheese kransky and German sausages to snack on.  The schnitzel filled the plate and was adorned with nothing more than a lemon wedge.  The fries turned out to be chips but they were cooked just the way I like them.   The menu is pretty extensive with salads, starters, schnitzel, mains, house specialties and dessert as well as platters and pizzas.  Pizzas topped with German sausages will no doubt appeal to blokes drinking with other blokes after work who enjoy watching ladies sampling the cocktails and ‘ladies beers’.

Service was a little scattered but then the staff are still settling in.  There was a more than adequate staff to patron ratio when we visited on a wet Saturday afternoon, but getting the bill was close to mission impossible.  After our second failed attempt to get the bill, we got up to pay only to be led on a full circuit of the dining area back to a station metres from our table. 

I’ve already heard someone make comparisons to the venerable German Club opposite the Gabba, and whilst both offer German beers, schnitzel and pork knuckle, they’re two very different animals.  Yes the food is cheaper at the German Club and the beer selection isn’t restricted to stuff made by Anheuser-Busch.  However, the Bavarian Bier Café has great views and a concept that will appeal to tourists, locals and families alike.   As it’s two blocks from my house and has a kitchen that stays open until 10pm every night of the week, I reckon I’ll be back.

Bavarian Bier Cafe

Level 1, Eagle Street Pier

45 Eagle Street, Brisbane

07 3339 0900

 www.bavarianbiercafe.com

Restaurant Review, Uncategorized

Restaurant Review: Mizu, Teneriffe

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I have Anna Bligh and Campbell Newman to thank for discovering this place.  Or more specifically Brisbane Transport’s 199 bus.  It took four years of living in the city centre and the introduction of the GoCard system for me to contemplate that taking a bus to dinner might have its advantages.  This route runs from the Teneriffe Ferry through New Farm, Fortitude Valley, CBD, West End, Highgate Hill and Fairfield, passing at least 50 restaurants and cafes along the way.  As I wouldn’t think of dining without drinking or drinking and driving, this has been a boon for my desire to try more Brisbane restaurants more often.

We visited Mizu by chance on a walk to Teneriffe.  We’d spotted it from the 199 bus, busy on a Tuesday night. The atmosphere here is relaxed and unpretentious with welcoming and competent older Japanese staff looking after the floor.  There’s none of the stuffy formality you’ll find at some Japanese restaurants, no tatami mats and no kimonos.  Mizu is all about enjoying Japanese food informed by local ingredients and climate in a neighbourhood restaurant setting. 

The dining area is simple with polished concrete floors, unclothed tables and seating spilling from inside to a covered outdoor area.  Look above the counter and you’ll see sake bottles labelled with the names of regular patrons, in the best Iza kaya tradition.  The selection here effortlessly trumps Brisbane Japanese fine dining venues and so does the food. (Perhaps overtaken in the last few days by the just-opened Sake at Eagle Street Pier).

We snacked on a bowl of edamame as big as your head and enjoyed a couple of Sapporo beers with our entrees. Distinct courses are a Western concept, but the staff at Mizu happily accommodate our habit for entrees and mains.  The sashimi is presented with artistry showcasing a selection of tuna, salmon, kingfish, scallop, prawn, shredded daikon and expertly prepared wasabi.  The fish is fresh and alive with flavour and colour.  The ‘mizupaccio’ is a Mizu’s own interpretation of carpaccio and is prepared using sashimi quality fish, in this case meaty hiramasa kingfish, sliced thinly to showcase its texture and finished with grapeseed oil, shiso flakes and lemon.  The simple but beautiful rough glazed Japanese pottery further enhances our entrees.  The food is complemented by the quiet and friendly service and beautiful Japanese woodcuts.  A light breeze from the river and another Sapporo – I could stay here all summer.

There’s enough interest in the mains offered at Mizu to have you returning regularly with sushi and sashimi, substantial salads, two course bento boxes, agemono and yakimono.   Agemono courses at Japanese restaurants are often greasy Gaijin pleasers, and whilst tonkatsu, tempura and kara-age all feature here, the quality of the ingredients and cooking elevate them to a higher plane.  The simply described ‘prawn and mango’ perfectly sums up Mizu -fresh local sweet prawns cooking in light, crisp tempura batter, expertly seasoned with saikyo miso sauce arranged in a salad of mizuna and ripe mango slices with a judicious slick of Mizu’s own dressing.  Steamed koshihikari rice, real miso and tsukemono pickles complement the menu.

Mizu also offers what may be Brisbane’s only traditional Japanese breakfast.  Okonomiyaki are Japanese style  pancakes which are a favourite for many Aussies who’ve visited Japan and Mizu version doesn’t disappoint.   Loco moco is the Mizu breakfast ‘man meal’ with rough minced wagyu steak, fried egg, sukiyaki sauce, sesame, steamed rice and misu.  The breakfast bento box is a great way to sample the traditional Japanese breakfast constituents with grilled miso marinated black cod, agemono octopus, perfect kare-age chicken with sea salt flakes, sunomono and Japanese pickles, miso and rice.  Quality sencha and genmai-cha green teas are served in traditional Japanese teapots and small cups.  Matcha, a sort of green tea latte, hort blacks, cappuccino and flat white are available too.

Mizu further commends itself to regular visits by welcoming BYO wine at a very reasonable $4 a head corkage.  I reckon you could have alot of fun matching wine with this menu.

After trading successfully for four years and building up great regular patronage, Mizu doesn’t need your support.  But you’d be mad to miss out on its authentic but unpretentious Japanese food.

Mizu Japanese Eats

2 Macquarie Street

Teneriffe

07 3254 0488

Lunch and dinner 7 days a week

Breakfast Saturday and Sunday from 8am – 11am

Fully licensed and BYO Wine

Takeaway available

Mizu Sushi Cooking School

Restaurant Review

Oliver & Co, South Brisbane

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The urban renewal of South Brisbane and West End continues apace and Oliver and Co is the second incarnation of a deli/cafe/restaurant space within the SW1 development which also houses Era.  It started as Fresh on Melbourne, which failed to find an audience in South Brisbane, possibly due to the lack of residential density within walking distance.  Give it a few more years.  Oliver and Co offers a deli items, pizza, cafe style lunches and breakfasts, coffee and a few other bits and bobs as well as Queensland wines from Jimbour Station.

This is a good place to perch and watch the passing parade on weekends and I’m told it does great burgers, but only on weekdays.  We visited for breakfast on a couple of occasions.  Coffee is Espresso Di Manfredi, but the technique of the barista adds nothing to what is a well balanced blend.  Breakfasts of eggs benedicts (sic), omelettes and other standards are good rather than great.  Oliver & Co is comfortable enough but is let down by irritations like cheap bendy cutlery, under-seasoned food and confused service – is it table service or do you order at the counter – we couldn’t get a straight answer.  Simply plated, unfussy breakfasts use good quality eggs, smallgoods and artisan bread although bizarrely it appears to be pre-toasted which has the affect of making it seem stale.  If you want salt, pepper or butter then you’ll need to hunt them down yourself, they’re not offered when your meals are delivered, and neither is water.

The footpath dining area has well spaced tables and the atmosphere is undemanding.  If you’re looking for somewhere shady to spread out the papers and graze on weekends, then Oliver & Co is a good choice.  Prices are low, consistent with the lack of service.  It could be so much more with just a little bit of care and effort.

Oliver & Co Gourmet Groceries & Deli

104 Melbourne Street

South Brisbane

Walking distance from South Brisbane Station and plenty of parking downstairs.

Restaurant Review

Restaurant Review: The Chelsea, Paddington

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The well written menu is an underappreciated art form.   Service can be absent, the décor pedestrian but a great menu takes you into the chefs world and allows you to share the quality of their produce, their technique and their passion with you the diner.  A great one will leave you flummoxed as to the best dishes to choose and politely salivating in anticipation of what’s to come.  A poor menu – such as one I read recently with more than 65 unappetising dishes, and not even near Chinatown – will see you downing your first drink and hightailing it outta there. 

Lunch at The Chelsea was an entirely spontaneous decision, and as such there were no real expectations.  The Chelsea offers the casual diner a sun dappled outdoor dining terrace and a bistro style dining room.  A very talented designer is responsible for the interiors which combine a quartz veined dark marble bar, bevelled mirrors, brass cornice rails, bentwood stools. bottle green leather banquettes with cork topped tables and large flower arrangements.  It works because while every detail is considered, it doesn’t seek to follow trends and complements the Victorian era building in which it resides, rather than mimicking it. 

The menu works too.  It’s approachable, concise and deliciously well constructed.  You’ll want to order one of everything, starting with the excellent Leavain bread served with pistachio dukkah, lemon and olive oil.  Seasonal and local produce is the star of the menu at The Chelsea with a pork belly and squid salad studded with cashews, golden shallots, nham jim, coconut shavings and Darra’s finest coriander sitting comfortably with reginette pasta with roasted asparagus pesto and lemon and a full flavoured Darling Downs sirloin.  A roast onion tart served with watercress and goat curd made a great starter and was all the better for the goats curd not being truffled as described on the menu.

The wine list here is concise but fits The Chelsea perfectly, again designed by someone with talent.  Given the underutilised stools at the marble bar and enjoyable casual atmosphere, I’d like to see more wines by the glass.  The house branded The Chelsea by Astrolabe Sauvignon Blanc and The Chelsea by Teusner Barossa Shiraz are a cut about your average ‘house wines’ and the whisky list by Queensland Malt Whisky Society life member Lance Currie offers a neat selection of Scotland’s finest.

The informal but professional service is well judged to suit the mix of patrons and menu is both appealing and unpretentious.   The Chelsea offers seemingly effortlessly good food, looks and service, thereby achieving the holy trinity of casual dining in Brisbane.

The Chelsea

www.thechelsea.com.au

Shop, 61 Petrie Terrace

‘The Barracks’

Paddington

Phone:  07 3367 1288

Tuesday to Saturday 7am til late

Sunday and Monday 7am til 4pm

Restaurant Review

Restaurant Review: The Euro, Brisbane

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Before it was The Euro, this space was Serengeti, an odd mish mash of Singaporean-Chinese chefs doing a pasta and foccacia cafe menu with authentic mee goreng available to those in the know.  The fitout was left over from a chain cafe and featured stained glass and cheap prints of Paris.  Noisy and bustling, and was a great place to grab a quick meal and gossip, provided you understood how to navigate the schizophrenic menu.

In the same amount of space next door was Urbane MKI, even in its original incarnation one of the sexiest restaurants in Brisbane.  I was lucky enough to thoroughly enjoy a degustation and matched wines on its last night before the builders were called in.  What has emerged from these combined spaces is a very special group of venues.

The Euro is a brasserie which even if it served porridge would be remarkable for its exciting and cohesive design.  Warm timbers, exposed heritage brickwork and angular, coloured lighting and glass provide a sophisticated back drop for a drink at the bar, a meal and a glass of wine or extended culinary adventures.  The sophistication extends to small details – stemware and cutlery well above ‘brasserie’ standards, well orchestrated service and an impressively stocked bar and bar staff to do it justice.  The wine list steers clear of safe expense account options, but rewards with some interesting and judiciously priced wines. 

One of the principles of the venue was to source great produce, including whole carcasses from top producers, organic and heirloom vegetables and handmade smallgoods.  Bespoke 56 day dry aged AACO wagyu beef  and organic yearling is at the centre of a menu that manages to be unfussy and innovative at the same time.  Kym Machin’s passion and technique is evident in dishes like a deconstructed chicken pot au feu and the quality of the produce matches this in dishes like carpaccio of wagyu bresaola with slow cooked pullet egg, truffled potato and parmesan and milk fed veal, served simply with lemon, aioli and slaw.  Past hits have included a very enjoyable bolognaise, mulloway pastie with almond mayo and a risotto of roast pumpkin and gorgonzola.  The menu is seasonal and changes regularly.  Kym’s passion doesn’t appear to lagging as each new menu is even more appealing.

Desserts here are a must.  I’ve just spotted a chocolate and px sherry trifle with chewy pumpkin seed caramel on the new menu, reminding me of one of the best things about The Euro.  Pastry chef Shaun Quade was recently nominated for Gourmet Traveller’s Best New Talent award and even if you have no room for dessert, at least order the petit fours.

One of the things that makes The Euro special is the sure hand of Andy Buchanan, one of the venue’s owners, along with Drew Patten who presides of Urbane’s dining room.  Along with Kym Machin, they have created four very special venues – Urbane, The Euro, Laneway Bar and private dining room SubUrbane.  Whilst they’ve clearly surrounded themselves with a talented team you can’t help but admire their focus and daring.  That the patrons are loving it signals a new maturity in the Brisbane dining scene.

The Euro

179 Mary Street, Brisbane

Phone:  07 3229 3686

Adventures

Adventures: Terroir, East Village – New York

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I am deeply conflicted about Terroir, a wine bar with branches in both New York’s TriBeCa and East Village.

On the one hand I wish it were downstairs from my apartment, so I could visit whenever I pleased, to partake of excellent bar snacks and work my way through all 54 pages of the wine list.  On the other, I am glad it is a long flight away in a country I try and visit no more than once a year, lest I absent myself from my business and relationship in order to become a devotee of Paul Greico and his altar to wine, slowly draining any accessible funds along with each glass.  I am resolved however that Terroir could only exist in New York.

Terroir is a small, buzzy and instantly comfortable wine bar that you would probably not give more than a second glance if you weren’t looking for it, as we were.  In fact I was somewhat obsessed and lucky that my patient husband was good enough to indulge me.  It works as a place to drop in for a few drinks after work or a place to gather with wine nerds and enjoy rare and very special wines.  The atmosphere is warm and welcoming and you’ll sit at the bar or a communal table where you’ll strike up conversations with a variety of people who love wine.  I do not recall the specifics of what I drank – a slightly sparkling German Riesling to start, many other things afterwards…… the passionate staff are willing and competent accomplices in whatever exploration of the wine list you wish to make and it makes sense to put yourself into their hands.  We shared a ‘combo platter’ of charcuterie and cheese which is available in three sizes – methuselah, salmanazar and melchizedek.  Whatever size you get this is very good value and full of excellent wine friendly food.  The food is by Marco Canora, also chef at the very excellent Hearth restaurant, a few doors from Terroir where we later had easily the best dinner I’ve eaten in the US.  Again, the staff at Hearth was knowledgeable, passionate and accommodating of a request for some Australian wine, resulting in a Betts & Scholl 2002 Grenache from the Barossa Valley.  It may seem sacrilegious but sometimes after extended travel you wish for something familiar. 

We visited during Terroir’s ‘Summer of Riesling’, a celebration of Riesling where the only white wines available by the glass were Riesling.  A fantastic idea!

In case you think that Terroir is an elitist place for wine snobs, here are some gems from the menu and wine list:

“Cheese – The Other White Meat, Ask Any Belgian Monk”

Lyrics for ‘White Wine In a Box’ – a wine themed reworking of Justin Timberlake and SNL’s ‘Dick In A Box’ and ode to Lindsay Lohan rolled into one.

A full page missive calling for street fairs to be banned: “Because while street fairs generated $1.6 million for NYC last year, Street Fairs cost us $2.4 million in police overtime.  Because all the tube socks Street Fairs sell have holes in them.  Because a chicken kabob on 3rd Avenue and 22nd Street tastes exactly like 3rd Avenue and 22nd Street and that is not the terroir we are looking for.”

(in the middle of around a dozen pages devoted to rieslings) “Acid is our Friend!  Like a date with Lady Gaga.  Or an audience with Hugo Chavez.  Or a dance with Kathy Lee Gifford.  ………We are generally afraid of acidity in wine.  But damnit People of America…we desperately need acidity in our lives…to cleanse the streets of blowhard millionaires from Buffalo, to drown the stupidity of the 6th Congresswoman from Minnesota, to act as an enema against the overcrowded hallways of K Street.  We desperately need ACIDITY.”

From “The Architect of Wine Silence” on Anne-Claude Leflaive of Domaine Leflaive  “A rare few can elevate wine to a level where one doesn’t even realise grapes or man was involved; only terroir can be experienced…….The architecture of these wines is profound.  Silence can be the only result when faced with such perfection.”

Greico’s immense passion is stamped all over Terroir, his opinions illuminate and expound the virtues of the myriad wines offered.  If you are in New York, forget Momofuku, forget Per Se, forget the rest and get your arse on a stool at the bar at Terroir. 

Note:  I am most distraught that the fabulously entertaining wine list is now a mere 35 pages and no longer includes political commentary about Obama, Greek economic woes and contains only about a third the total number of rants.  Importantly I think there is still just as many wines.  After my visit, I commented on Twitter to @TerroirNY that I had contemplated slipping a copy of the wine list into my hand bag – to which Greico replied with a link to the wine list and a suggestion that I should ‘Print wine list, make hand bag’.  The reality is Terroir’s wine list provides enough material to make luggage requiring several valets.

Restaurant Review

Restaurant Review: South Bank Surf Club, Brisbane

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Warm sun on your back, a gentle breeze, great company and a cold beer in your hand.  The stuff the great Aussie weekend is made of.  Myth or reality?  The statisticians reckon we work longer hours than any other nation in the developed world.  Perhaps a permanent Great Aussie Weekend is what we’re all working for?

South Bank Surf Club is built on this Aussie weekend myth – and allows you to experience that feeling in bite sized chunks, manageable by even the most solid workaholic. 

Like South Bank itself, South Bank Surf Club is a fairly inorganic venture – TV Chef meets Night Club Operator on the site of a former vendor of cheap hotdogs and cinnamon donuts overlooking a public swimming pool.  There’s no surf, except for when a fat kid jumps into the deep end.  For the record, the consulting chef is Ben O’Donoghue (Surfing the Menu, etc – at least he’s not pimping a supermarket) and the backers are Karatzyna Group (Family, Cloudland, The Press Club etc) and South Bank was once the business centre of Brisbane before being left to rot as cheap industrial space, a fish market and a place to acquire an STD.

Despite this unholy marriage, South Bank Surf Club has claimed one of the best locations at South Bank and elevated the standard of dining available in this tourism precinct.  I’ve often been mortified to think that visitors to the city might leave thinking that the ‘cuisine’ offered at South Bank was indicative of what Brisbane offers.  The prices here are just high enough to keep the rabble out without being unfair.  They also allow the kitchen to source quality ingredients with a focus on freshness and simplicity.

I’ve now visited South Bank Surf Club at least ten times, mostly because its is at the mid point of the six kilometre walking circuit I try to complete daily.  This is both a blessing and a curse.  But still, I choose to stop at this venue over the many other eateries for good reason.  The venue offers a great mix – fresh, vibrant food that suits local produce, well sourced local seafood, beachside basics like oysters, fish and chips and steak sandwiches, cold beer on tap and a short but well compiled wine list.  Coffee is by Campos and staff are friendly and welcoming if perhaps lacking a good floor manager to get things humming along.

Today I sampled vanilla and vodka cured ocean trout which glistened with tiny bursts of lemon, capers, fennel and dill and some delicate olive oil.  A winner at $12.50 with a glass of 2009 Mitchell Watervale Riesling at $9.50.  Fish and chips featured a couple of beer battered fresh Mulloway fillets with chips and tartare sauce.  This dish is better than pub fare and good value at $21.50, but let down slightly by food factory chips.  Big Helga beer is available on tap at the moment for $5 – certainly better than a XXXX at the pub.  A Caprese salad of heirloom tomatoes, buffalo curd and herbs rounded out our meal. The steak sandwich with bearnaise sauce, Hervey Bay scallops, salt and pepper calamari with crisp curry leaves and lime mayo and chicken ‘snizzer’ have all been great of previous visits.  Some of the portion sizes are a little mean, I’d personally prefer to pay a couple of bucks more and leave truly satisfied. 

This is also a great place to have a leisurely breakfast on the weekend.  Again, freshness is at the fore and there are a few unconventional but winning combinations like the Surf Club Classic featuring grilled Gold Coast tiger prawns, quality bacon, a corn and herb hotcake, a deep fried free range egg, oyster sauce and some fresh red chilli for $18.50.  It would be great to also see a more conventional ‘man meal’ breakfast option on the menu.   The small selection of desserts are also good and indulgent and the cheese platter I sampled on a visit for dinner was one of the best I’ve had anywhere.  Queensland wines from the Granite Belt and South Burnett also make an appearance along with a good list of cocktails.

Given the fitout of this venue took many months, it’s clear a lot of money has been sunk into the venture.  The downstairs bar is well kitted out and my guess would be that there are 150 seats in the venue between the piazza area at bar level, a wrap-around verandah cum private room at the rear and the upstairs terrace.  From what I’ve observed, it’s not quite getting the rousing reception you hope for as a restaurant owner.  Possible reasons are that it’s a little out of sync with the average South Bank visitor in terms of menu and price point and its up about a dozen stairs.  The multi-level dining and bar areas mean there’s no ‘threshold’ to cross into the venue and often no-one immediately greeting and seating patrons.  I think South Bank Surf Club misses a trick here as I’ve observed a high bounce rate of patrons having a look, starting up the stairs and then leaving.  I do hope some of the creases at this venue are ironed out so that it can find the loyal audience it needs to be a permanent fixture at South Bank.

Restaurant Review, Uncategorized, Uncommon Consumption

Restaurant Review: Taro’s Ramen and Cafe, Brisbane

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Here in Brisbane, Japanese food has become ubiquitous, the go-to ethnic food for when you’re after something tasty and relatively inexpensive.  Sushi places are in every food court and in the CBD there’s at least one for every city block, often more.   At the ‘fine dining’ end of the market there’s Sono, Oshin and very soon Shaun Presland’s Sake which will open at Eagle Street Pier in the next few months.  Shinichi Maeda, formerly of Wasabi at Noosa (and Sunshine Beach before that) will be head chef at this new location.

The Brisbane CBD generally suffers from a lack of choice when it comes to mid-priced, casual restaurants.  The sort of ‘come as you are’ place with a short menu of simple unfussy food, a good wine list covering the basics and warm, friendly staff.  The stuff of my fantasies.  And oddly, the stuff that neighbourhood restaurants in Japanese cities are all about.  Which is why Taro’s is my new favourite place.

Every claim Chef Taro makes about his food is spot on.  They really do have the best Japanese curry in Brisbane.  And that’s not even the main event.  The tonkotsu ramen is made with an amazing stock, lovingly made by simmering Bangalow pork bones for 16 hours.  Taro’s handmade noodles are delicate with just the right amount of bite.  And it doesn’t stop there.  There are five ramen dishes with variations on stock, sweet bangalow pork slices, beautiful organic nori that crackles and sparks with iodine, house made char sui, pickled ginger and mustard greens, perfect soy eggs and crunchy bamboo shoots.  The deeply earthy and smoky chilli oil is also highly recommended. 

For a mere $1.20 more than the food court, you can try ‘the best chicken curry in town’.  Chef Taro delivers.  Again, Bangalow pork bone stock forms the base, the curry sauce is deep and complex without the acid after taste you’ll find in the food court version.  It is accompanied by expertly prepared japanese rice and your choice of chicken, pork, veggie croquettes or prawns and a topping of sweet lotus root pickles.

For now I’m addicted to the ramen, but I’m keen to grab a few friends for Chef Taro’s sweet pork shabu shabu.  After a long wait Taro’s now has a liquor license and small but well considered list.  For example, you can have an Asahi for $6.80 or a bottle of Bridgewater Mill 2008 Chardonnay for $33.

The casual dining area is comfortable and one of the CBD’s best kept secrets, stretching out onto a cool and private outdoor terrace.  Even the way the tables are set and the beautiful Japanese handpainted bowls and spoons demonstrate Taro’s passion and attention to detail.  Staff are friendly and welcoming and as Taro points out, paid at or above the Award.  Yet another point of difference over the food court ‘competition’.

Taro’s is open Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner.  For just over $20 you could do worse that a cold Asahi and a bowl of Taro’s beautiful ramen.