Movida - Melbourne

We hopped off a plane in Melbourne on a Friday night and decided to meet up with a friend for dinner. The dining place of choice was Movida. We had no reservations. We simply just rocked up to the packed out restaurant at 9.30pm. "Mind a 30 min wait?" sure- no problem. This is when you know you're in Melbourne - it's OK to start dinner after 10pm.

Sangria

A jug of sangria to start the night as we decided on the range of tapaz (small individual pieces) and racions (sharing plates) to order. My hubby and our friend both liked the sound of the specials a lot - and hence, a lot of the specials of the night were ordered.

First up was the Anchoa ($4.50 each). This was a hand-filleted 'Cantabrian Artisan Anchovy' on a long thin flat crouton with a small scoop of smoked tomato sorbet. This didn't pique my fancy, but my hubby seemed to enjoy it.

Anchoa - $4.50 each

Something that was up my alley was the Croqueta ($4 each). This was super yummy crispy golden deep fried silky croquet with a filling of potato, jamon and egg. Smoothness and tastiness yet crispy and crunchy. YUM.

Croqueta - $4 each

Next one was also my order - Sopa Ajo con Vieira ($6 each). This was a perfectly cooked scallop mimicking an island surrounded a sea of garlic soup. The garlic soup was really really rich yet somewhat light. The scallop was lightly seared yet soft and tender inside. It was perfect combo. Super deliciousness! I could have like 10 of these!

Sopa Ajo con Vieira - $6 each

My friend picked the Agridulce con Pato ($11.50 each). This was a slow cooked duck shank which was crispy on the outside and stringily tender on the inside. This was served with hazelnuts, raisins and onions. Not bad.

Agridulce con Pato - $11.50 each

That was our tapaz dishes. Our sharing plates included the Cecina ($19.50) which was air-dried thin slices of wagyu with a soft poached egg and truffle foam. OMG this was amazing. The egg flavour was strong, get complemented the soft tender wagyu slices and truffle foam greatly. Deliciousness!!!

Cecina - $19.50

One of the specials was the rabbit. Four round columns of rabbit was wrapped in prosciutto was accompanied by melty soft brussel sprouts. This was OK tasting :)

rabbit with brussel sprouts

Another special that we ordered was a white fish served with pipi in a white wine cream sauce. The fish was really soft and tender with a crispy skin. The whole combination was pretty yum.

white fish with pipi in white wine cream sauce

The buttered leek was another special we ordered. The leek was really soft and really really buttery. Super rich and deliciousness.

buttered leeks

Thus far, the scallops were most awesomeness of the night. Something which was on the same calibre was the Carrillera de Buey ($21.50). This was slowly braised beef cheek which was seriously 'fall off the bone' beef cooked in Pedro Ximenez, all sitting on cauliflower puree. The meat was soooooo tasty. The sauce was infused into the meat which was sooooooo tender. Zomg :)

Carrillera de Buey - $21.50

Last but not least, we ordered a dessert on the specials menu - crispy spanish donuts. The donuts were filled with custard. The ball of goodness was deep fried, coming out super tongue-burning hot and super super crunchy. The ball of sweet dough was coated with cinnamon and was served with vanilla ice cream. My spoon could hardly crack into the donut... but - well worth the effort once able to be dugged into.

specials dessert

Finishing dinner close to midnight? Usual for Melbournians... right? This restaurant was well worth the <30 min wait. The flavours here were spot on. Worth a return visit for sure!

Ratings:
Food - 9.5/10
Service - 8/10
Ambiance - 8/10
Value for money - 8/10
Overall - 33.5/40

Movida
1 Hosier Lane
Melbourne
Tel: (03) 9663 3038

Casellula - New York City

On recommendation by a friend, we had decided to dine at Casellula, a Cheese & Wine Cafe in the Hells Kitchen area of NYC. Being quite a small, cozy yet popular cafe, the place was packed full of people and we had to wait a little while outside in the dark and cold.

Nonetheless, when seated, we could see the charms of this place. Cheese cabinet in full display, lots of people chit-chatting over a glass of nice wine. The whole thing made the place comfortable - like your just chilling at a friend's after work.

For the night, we decided to order 2 entrees and 2 mains. My partner's pick was the Spanish white anchovy fillets which were served with fennel fronds and pickled shallots. Small crusty bread accompanied the salty/sour combination which really, kind of opened your appetite to try other things.

Spanish White Anchovy Fillets

The entree of my choosing was the chistorras in a blanket. Super yummy sausages wrapped in a soft tortilla like pastry and topped with slices of raddish. Not bad... but so far, the dishes were quite small - leaving me wanting.

Chistorras in a Blanket

The first main was the seafood taco. Lots of seafood - calamari, squid, prawns - with red cabbage slaw and a lime cilantro dressing. I have to saw, of the night, this was my least favourite. Not because the flavours of the seafood was wrong. But because the "taco" wasn't really to my liking. Although I am a fan of soft tacos, the consistency of this flour wrap just didn't seem right.

Seafood Taco

My partner's favourite of the night was the Pig's ass sandwich. Super yummy ham thinly sliced, with 5-spoke tumbleweed and fol epi cheese, pickles - all pressed together in the toasted turkish-style bread, with super yummy chipotle aioli on the side. Kind of like an upscale ham and cheese toasty :)

Pig's Ass Sandwich

Being a tapaz style cafe, it was kind of weird seeing food in normal proportions once again (as opposed to American sizes). I have to say, I miss American sizes - but only when it super yummy good food.

Ratings:
Food - 7.5/10
Service - 7/10
Ambiance - 8/10
Value for money - 6.5/10
Overall - 29/40

Casellula Cheese & Wine Cafe
401 West 43rd Street
New York
Tel: (212)315-2121

Azafran Tapas - Surry Hills

Azafran Tapas

My friends moved to Surry Hills not long ago and as Eatability can tell us, there are many many places to eat in this vicinity. For this particular night, we had decided on Azafran Tapas, a small cozy Spanish eatery.

We had decided on 7 plates to share between the 4 of us with a selection of seafood, vege and meat dishes.

One of my favourites of the night was the kingfish ceviche ($18). The citrusy cured kingfish was piled on top of a layer of blood orange chunks with another layer of avocado salad underneath. Blobs of pickled cucumber and crab meat decorated and artified the dish. In all, I found this really fresh and really refreshing. Whilst there was subtle sourness from the citrus and the pickled cucumber, a certain tanginess, and sweetness from the seafood bits which may actually sound like an odd mix of flavours, it worked really quite well together.

Kingfish ceviche - $18

Another dish was the Jamon Serrano aged 18 months with extra virgin olive oil drizzled on top ($12). The dry cured ham was thin but bought along with it quite an intense flavour hit. What I would have liked is perhaps some breadsticks with this LOL.

Jamon Serrano aged 18 months - $12

There was also the potato sofrito ($10). Chunks of potatos intermixed with roasted tomato and mushy red capsicum and finely diced spanish onion. The glob on top was smoked paprika and saffron aioli. This was pretty average - just potatoes with aioli, a combination which can't really go wrong.

Potato sofrito - $10

Another winner for the night was the scallops ($21). Presented nicely, the scallops were cooked to perfection. Lightly seared on both sides but definately not overcooked or rubbery. The other round thing next to is was the smoked chorizo. It was quite a good thickness for a good bite of chorizo. On top of the beautifully cooked scallop was the red pepper confit. The scallop and the chorizo were both sitting on top of a dallop of corn puree. Mmm... deliciousness!

seared scallops with corn puree - $21

Another dish we ordered was the pan fried garlic and sherry wild mushrooms ($9). A mix of different mushrooms made it interesting, with some mushies being more intensely flavoured than others. But all in all, the mushrooms were pretty ordinary.

pan fried garlic and sherry wild mushrooms - $9

Dish number 6 was the leek and manchego cheese croquettes ($15). Four golden brown mushy cheesey croquettes sat on top of stringy apple and celery. Drizzled on top was a cider vinaigrette. Interestingly mushy, the leek taste was really really subtle but the apple salad was a huge shout out and slightly overpowering.

leek and manchego cheese croquettes - $15

The last and biggest plate of the night was the lamb tasting plate ($29). This was a huge plate of a trio of lamb stuff (yes - I don't eat lamb). There was the braised lamb shank filo cigar on one end with some small yoghurty looking paste on top, the lamb cutlets with a bed of warm eggplant and tomatoish salad on the other end, as well a a roast lamb loin with chorizo coins in the middle. My company said that it was OK. I guess that means unspectacular?

lamb tasting plate - $29

For dessert, we opted for their blackboard specials - 3 scoops of gelato or icecream for $10. There were 5 flavours to choose from - the chestnut, strawberry and red wine, pineapple and orange blossom, poppy flower and olive oil. Olive oil?!?!?! Well, we had to try. We ordered all the flavours between the 4 of us. The olive oil icecream tasted kind of like the asian white rabbit lollies mixed with honey. Not olive-oil-like much at all. The poppy flower was also nice but again, just a smooth sweet flavour. The pineapple and orange blossom one was one of the best gelatos of the lot. Refreshing and refreshing and refreshing. The pineapple flavour was the one which stood out. Mmm... yum. The chestnut flavour was also quite good. However, it was really really chestnutty. Crazy chestnutty with chestnut bits and crunchy toffee chunks throughout. Intense chestnut flavour. The last but not least was the strawberry and red wine gelato. This was very strawberry flavour but it wasn't too awesomeness.

trio of icecream and sorbet - $10

In all, this Spanish restaurant was small but cozy. Food was good and interesting - better than most other Spanish tapas places I think. Definately should give this place a try - especially the scallops and kingfish. YUM :)

Ratings:
Food - 8.5/10
Service - 7/10
Ambiance - 7.5/10
Value for money - 7/10
Overall - 30/40

Azafran Tapas
555 Crown St
Surry Hills
NSW 2010
Tel: (02) 9319 2976

Cantina Bar + Grill - Darlinghurst

Cantina Bar + Grill

We visited Cantina Bar + Grill for a friends birthday. For a group booking of 8, we were forced to choose from one of three banquet menus. This was fortunate and unfortunate as it meant that we didn't have to spend hours pouring over the menu and deciding what we want, but also, we couldn't order some items that we really wanted to try (eg. paella).

Nonetheless, the $40 set menu was ordered and whilst we were thinking of ordering items on top of this menu, the nice friendly waiter advised us to wait til we were 1/2 way through the courses before deciding (wise advice). Lo and behold, we were stuffed by the set menu alone and additional items were not required.

So the first course of this set was a dip plate served with grilled olive sourdough bread. If you have been following my blog, you would know I am a picky eater. Hence, of the four dip choices, I tested the white bean and the chickpea, but left the beetroot, pumpkin and eggplant ones alone. My company, on the other hand, thoroughly enjoyed these dips and smashed it completely.

Dips with olive sourdough bread

The next to arrive on our table was the baby spinach salad. Comprised of baby spinach, roast pumpkin, goats cheese, grilled capsicum and pinenuts, it again, contained some forbidden items. Nonetheless, just the baby spinach and the pinenuts were tasty and flavoursome enough for me! The salad was definately one of the favourites of the nite, with my friends wishing there were more goats cheese~

Baby Spinach Salad with pumpkin, goats cheese, capsicum and pinenuts

Pan-fried haloumi served with char grilled marinated red peppers were absolutely delish! The soft, almost mushy, capsicum complemented the solid texture of the cheese well and the aromas were a great mix. Definately a dish worth trying.

Pan-fried Haloumi with red peppers

The chickpea salad looked amazing when it was first placed on the table. Chickpea mixed with cucumber, peppers, tomato and manchego cheese piled the plate. It didn't take me long to realise - chickpea is only nice in moderation. It is so completely completely filling. The texture of chickpea is so floury and dense - you really cannot eat lots of this (or else it becomes quite bland).

Chickpea Salad

Next came the potatoes (Patatas Bravas). These cruchy golden cubes of potato were soft and fluffy on the inside. Topped with onion, garlic and tomato sauce, they surprisingly bought along a touch on the chilli side - yet were absolutely delish! (maybe I'm just biased as I love potatoes).

Potatas Bravas

The most most awesomeness dish of the night were the pan-fried mushies. Tossed with garlic, parsley and jerez, every mushie was super soaked with flavour which just exploded in your mouth (or maybe that's just the oils). Health-issues aside, these were just super super tastey!!!

Pan-fried mushrooms with garlic, parsley and jerez

The dusted calamari served with chilli and lime mayo probably could have been a bit better. They weren't bad - but they were not spectacular. Crunchy and slightly chilli, at times I felt as though I was just eating batter as the calamari were so tiny.

Calamari with chilli and lime mayo

Grilled Spanish Chorizo lay ontop of romesco sauce. Being slightly oiled out by this stage, I decided to taste the chorizo withough immercing it into the oily sauce. The chorizos were... umm... normal? Just like any chorizo you would expect at any other spanish place.

Grilled Spanish Chorizo

Lastly, there were the meatballs which were made of lamb and pork and topped with garlic and tomato sauce. I can't really say much about these (as I don't do lamb) but the feedback I got from my friends was that it was filling.

Lamb and Pork Meatballs

In all, after my past experiences at banquet menus, I was genuinely surprised that it was a decent meal! The food was good and it was enough for my company of eight to walk out of the restaurant holding our stomachs. Our waiter was nice and friendly (I wish I could say the same for the manager). But in all, it was a chillaxy vibey spanish restaurant serving tapaz style food which left us full and satisfied.

Ratings:
Food - 7.5/10
Service - 7/10
Ambiance - 7/10
Value for money - 7/10
Overall - 28.5/40

Cantina Bar + Grill
245 Oxford Street
Darlinghurst
NSW, 2010
Tel: (02) 9357 3033

Comme Kitchen - Melbourne

I was quite decently excited when my partner said that we were going to a one-hat restaurant with his flatmate and his girlfriend. And that they seemed to swear by the quality of the food at the place.

As we walked into Comme Kitchen, a laid back yet sophisticated ambiance seemed to resonate throughout. However, the ambiance also meant bad quality photos for me and my phone-camera.

Comme Kitchen

My company remembered the restaurant as being a traditional, entree-main-dessert type restaurant and were pleasantly surprised when the waiter recommended ordering dishes to share, probably around 3 tapaz-style dishes per person. Unable to convince my company to order more than 1-2 dishes each, below is the selection my partner and I shared.

The first to come was a small appetiser - air dried tuna with shaved fennel ($7). It was presented so nicely and somewhat delicately, the strong and almost overpowering taste caught us unaware. I think that the lemon-flavoured dressing is meant to detract the overpoweringness of the dish, but fails to do more than add a zesty flavour to it (which isn't a bad thing I suppose).

Air-dried tuna, shaved fennel, preserved lemon dressing - $7

Then came our vegetables - asparagus, potato, bacon and egg ($15). I quite enjoy asparagus and potato, and egg. And my partner quite enjoys bacon. So together, it wasn't a bad combination. However, the dish did, as my partner noteably pointed out by dipping the content in the Bourride sauce (coming up), lack a bit a taste. At least it was no where near as overpowering as the last dish!

Saute of asparagus, pink fur apple potatoes, house cured bacon, pullet egg - $15

Then came my wonderful choice of dory fish with Bourride sauce ($17) which subsequently became the highlight of my partner's evening. The fish was cooked well (not excellently, not badly) and the sauce? To die for. "I'll eat this sauce with anything" were the words which came out from my partner's mouth. And it was a nice sauce - light yet creamy, tasty yet not overpowering, and in general, is just a delicious sauce which really probably will go with just about anything!

John dory fillet, white asparagus, pancetta, sauce Bourride - $17

After such a delectable dish, I was expecting many good things from our last order - rare Wagyu blade in bone-marrow, parmesan, garlic and lemon sauce ($21). I can't say I was disappointed, but I was far from being blown away by the dish. Given the amount of time it took for this dish to come after receiving the fish and vegetables, I did expect more. But, it was simply average, or a little bit better than average. Being rare, it wasn't the 'melt in your mouth' texture, but the sauce (again it's the sauce) did seem to bring a nice touch.

Rare roast Wagyu blade (500 day grain fed), bone marrow, Parmesan, garlic, lemon - $21

In all, the Dory fillet (or rather, the Bourride sauce) seemed to make it for this restaurant. According to my company (who were never once disappointed with this restaurant), this new tapaz-style dining was a disappointment. There used to be a 'to die for' lamb dish which is a standard the new tapaz-style lamb dish is miles from achieving. Well, my company refuses to return to the restaurant until they change back to the traditional type of dining. But I guess for those those who enjoy a chillaxing evening sharing lots of food, this is the restaurant to be. As for whether or not it deserves to be a one-hat restaurant... well, the service could be better, the timing of the dishes coming out can definately be improved... but other than that, the Bourride sauce (to die for) probably pushes into the one-hat zone. However, this is a one-off experience for me being a Sydney-sider. It will be interesting to see whether the quality of the sauce can be kept (or whether it'll just slide into the averageness of the other dishes).

Ratings:
Food - 8/10
Service - 7/10
Ambiance - 8/10
Value for money - 6/10
Overall - 29/40

Comme Kitchen
7 Alfred Place
Melbourne, 3000
Tel: (03) 9631 4000