MoVida Next Door - the making of my October Dish of the Month

You may remember my Dish of the Month from October, a crumbed Spanish anchovy on a disc of impeccable fresh curd from MoVida Next Door.

Even after writing about it late last year, I couldn't stop thinking about making the cheese myself, it sounded so easy but I knew, as it is with things like this, it's all in the technique.
If I was going to be able to make it I'd need a good mentor and I knew just the people.

So as the perfect excuse, I called the incredibly hospitable people at MND and asked if they would show me, and how nice are they... they agreed, in fact Michael and Dave were charming.
This video is a joint project between myself and the passionate people at I eat I drink I work, of whom I've know since I was a featured blogger last year.

I had so much fun planning and filming this, I hope to do some more in the future.

I hope you find this as inspiring as I do...,

...oh and a little disclaimer, my sincerest apologies to the people of Spain and all Spanish speakers around the world... my pronunciation of the dish even makes me wince!

MoVida Next Door

I'm loathed to do it from a point of view of balance on my little blog, but the truth has to be told.

My Dish of the Month for October is an inspired tapa from MoVida Next Door. The reason I am so torn is because my very first dish of the month, back in September last year was from MoVida, before the little brother next door was born.
I hate the imbalance of two dishes of the month from the same group of chefs, but the food tells me it was the best that month and trust me it was fantastic. So I can't deny it...

October Dish of the Month - Cantabrian anchovy with fresh curd from MoVida Next Door
A crunchy, golden breaded, anchovy served on top of a disk of fresh curd (so perfect you could still see the drainage hole marks from the mould) a sprinkle of chopped parsley and a drizzle of olive oil $4.50 each

PDC and I dropped in for a bite, late last month, just before I went across the road to have a look at the über savvy Greenhouse by Joost.

We had been warned by experienced Next Door addicts, to be there very early and be prepared to wait for space - even a 6pm. So there we were, at 6 on the dot and managed to secured the last free spaces for what I am sure would have been the rest of the evening.
We managed to eat our way through most of the offerings but the anchovy and fresh curd has been lingering on my mind ever since.
So much so, I just had to phone and ask some questions so I could give you the full run down (this is definitely a first for Eating with Jack).
I spoke briefly with Dave Roberts the head chef at MND and was very pleasantly surprised to learn that they make the fresh curd every morning in the kitchen. Just normal pasteurised cows milk (though he said they would like to use sheeps milk in the future) and a little rennet left at 38C in moulds and then voila, fresh curd. Topped to order on a rustic looking plate with the fried Spanish anchovy.
Next time I'm ordering two, actually maybe three!

If you haven't been to MoVida Next Door yet, you really must.

Dish of the Month - August and September

Well, here we are again...

A hiccup in my blogging world has lead me to combine August and September dishes of the month. This really needs to stop I know, but I'm none the less glad to share this with you, belatedly.

Dish of the Month, and probably dinner of the month, for August belongs to Cumulus Inc.

I had a mammoth 4 hour experience there grazing at the bar, watching the chefs, sipping wine, chatting to friendly faces and just loving the space.

I could include any number of dishes; from the broad selection of interesting charcuterie, to the salt cod soup, the sows ear silk purse or the as-boozy-as-you-can-bear rum baba. But the loving care that the shucked to order oysters received, has to make them extra special.

August Dish of the Month

Oysters at Cumulus Inc
Carefully, a wiggling shucker breaks the seal into the oysters briny home, pops the top off with a slip of the knife and they are ready to go. Plated with a cheek of lemon and perhaps a little swipe from a tiny artists brush to remove any shell remnants, you can watch them twitch as a squeeze of lemon juice dresses them before the plunge of your oyster fork.

The night we dined, I tried all 6 that were on offer, the Moonlight Flat angasi were the stand out. The menu lists that these have been identified as nearly identical to the celebrated French Bélon oyster. Meaty, iodine flavour with firmly textured flesh and a large white adductor muscle.

September Dish of the Month

Gravadlax at Gills Diner
An incredibly generous portion of house cured salmon, cured Scandinavian style with salt and sugar, also known as gravlax. Sliced thinly and served with a salad of picked soft herbs, some sliced cornichons, a lemon cheek and a quenelle of herby crème fraîche.
Clean, bright salmon flavours perfectly seasoned and utterly moreish, just the thing to accompany the fantastic house made breads.

I still have not gotten past the entrees at Gills, the portions are just too generous and we love the selection of sharable dishes.

I can't wait to get back to both of these Melbourne dining institutions in the making. No doubt with the current economic woes, casual dining spots like this - were you can feel comfortable having as much or as little to eat as you like - will become even more popular to the detriment of the formal experiences.
I for one, will not stop dining out but will probably be a little more tempted towards the accessible end of the market then the fancy end. I think dining out has become cultural for many Australians and giving up a key social part of the week will not happen, it will just become a little more informal, laid back and in line with the dining experiences of Cumulus Inc and Gills Diner.

Dishes of the Month - June and July, opps!

The end of June got a little crazy and well here I am with Dishes of the Month for both June and July. Funny enough, they are both steeped in French tradition yet could not be a world further away from each other.

I should explain...

A trip to Healseville in the middle of June, was as always an opportunity to eat at the Healseville Hotel were I have a enjoyed many fantastic meals over the years. This time was no different, if anything I think it was the best yet.

The dish was actually dessert and as I have mentioned before I not much of a sweets person yet I'm a sucker for a tarte Tatin. A classic French upside down baked tart of apples, this was a quince version with fruit from the local region.

June Dish of the Month

Quince tarte Tatin with almond milk sorbet -Healseville Hotel

Slow cooked fragrant quince baked with a soft almond frangipane and a crispy puff pastry base served with a scoop of a nutty and light almond milk sorbet

My Dish of the Month from July was from Dalat, Vietnam. Now, I usually strictly eat the local food when on holidays but recommendations lead us to the cutiest little French bistro and the most amazing artichoke of my life.

July Dish of the Month

Poached artichoke (yes, as simple as that) -Le Cafe de la Poste, Dalat Vietnam

I took a bit of a educated gamble ordering this, I knew that lots of artichokes were grown locally, they were everywhere at the market, so hence in season and the Dalatians take artichoke very seriously as they have a local artichoke tea. The artichoke was very traditionally prepared, perfectly poached so the leaves can just wiggle off and served with a side pot of red wine and mustard vinaigrette.
The eloquent way to eat the artichoke is to pull off the leaves one by one with your fingers and dip into the dressing and then scrape the flesh off the leaf with your teeth as you bite in. As you slowly eat, -this can take some time- you will reach the middle and the main fleshly part that should be eaten with a knife and fork. The best artichoke I have ever eaten.

Everything old is new again - Sunnybrae Restaurant

Life is cyclical…

Kitchen gardens were once a necessity to supply food to hungry dining rooms, now they are clever marketing tools capitalising on our desire for fresh S.O.L.E. food.

Collected rain and spring water provided sustenance to regional areas, now it’s bottled and sold as a fashion accessory.

Going to a friend’s home for dinner was a special occasion, now we dine at fancy restaurants, as we can’t remember how to cook.

Seasonality is an old fashioned term that existed before the days of air freighted food that supplies goods all year round from far away places.

Family style platters of real food were prepared with love, now restaurant a la carte and degustation are kings - or worse - the fast food epidemic.

Meals use to be inexpensive and yet high on quality, now meals can be either very expensive and high on quality or inexpensive and poor on quality.

This is the reality of food today; yet everything old, can and is becoming new again.

Sunnybrae at Birregurra is a perfect example of this.

I had the pleasure to dine at the reopened Sunnybrae a couple of weekends ago and experienced the old fashioned hospitality of George Biron’s restaurant and home. With excited anticipation of the trip, I spoke with a few friends whom had dined at Sunnybrae in the 1990’s before it had a 7 year hibernation, to try and get a feeling for the experience; it seems very little has changed.
Visiting George’s blog, you get a warm, passionate insight to him as a chef and restaurateur, this was my motivator for the day trip to Birregurra, in person George completes the picture, he does not just offer words on a website.

The food at Sunnybrae was (more than) generous and refined. The menu consisted of five courses, plus house baked bread served with Georges own just-pressed olive oil and some local olives. The experience is low on the need for decision making; perhaps a chat about different main course options if you like, or otherwise it’s wild rabbit with beetroot and pomegranates, and pick your dessert/cheese course and your done. The handwritten menu changes regularly and is filled with the fruits from the Sunnybrae garden and the surrounding region, it's seasonal and classically respectful.

The meal is a set price of $66 per person, a price that George feels is fair and right, and that I think is too little for such a banquet. I doubt that many people would blink an eye, if that learnt that the price was $99, the sense of value would still be strong. This more than reasonable price is obviously obtainable from a combination of having your own property and the desire and know how to develop the garden to produce fresh food or use basics to add value at the table. Most people charge money for the advantages that their skill and experience brings, Sunnybrae seems happy to share the love.

Milk-fed lamb for main course

Succulent salad - served with main course

Upside down spiced cumquat cake for dessert

We drank rainwater from the property and enjoyed some served sparkling, as promised, from retro soda siphons, we also byo’ed a special bottle of Champagne to share and selected from the list of local wines – again very well priced – no balancing act going on here, with the wine list subsidising the menu.

My favourite dish and actually my May Dish of the Month (a tad late!) is the
Spanish-style ham with spiced tomatillos, avocados and limes – Sunnybrae

The ham was curiously gorgeous; soft, nutty and delicate, as good as any I have eaten in Australia, yet the flavour combinations of the salsa blew my socks off.

The South American combination of ripe avocado, lime (and zest?) and the pickled tomatillos was always going to be good but this was amazing, slightly textural, slightly creamy, slightly tangy, just delectable.


A day trip to Sunnybrae is an experience that I hope all passionate foodies get to experience, it’s an old fashioned country restaurant offering modern, enchanting food in the surrounds of a large property (with a sadly dry lake), with friendly staff and a great cook. For me it’s a shame that it's such a drive away but I have since learnt about the possibility of taking the train (and a walk to and from the station), something that I think would be perfect in the right weather and look forward to doing this once it warms.

Being at Sunnybrae refreshes my mind about what pure hospitality is all about - a little taste of this, a splash of that - a desire to share, both time, skill and love of good food. Some old things do become new again, but usually only the good ones.

Welcome back Sunnybrae.

A little 'pick me up'

As the winter-like weather intimidates us into staying close to home, it's of perfect solace if your local is as cold-weather-agreeable as mine.

Rustic Italian food, hearty serves, an open fire place, friendly staff and a changing, inspired wine list, oh and the best thing, I can easily walk there. Carlisle Wine Bar is my true local, I've written about it before and dine there often - especially in winter.

So it is with a happy heart that I share my April Dish of the Month.

Tiramisu - Carlisle Wine Bar

Dessert is something that a rarely order in a restaurant, I usually greedily get through an appetiser then entree, main and sides before cheese, so dessert just doesn't stand a chance, but on Monday evening instead of venturing out into the chill, we procrastinated with a serve of tiramisu.

A generous set mound of the mascarpone, coffee and booze soaked savoiardi combo was served with a dusting of good cocoa powder and a coffee essence. The tiramisu had been made traditionally in a large pan and scooped with a large kitchen spoon and dolloped onto the plate. Its texture was marshmallow like with a coffee hit on the palate and a tingle of alcohol.
An absolute bargain at $10.50.

Just enough to happily set us out onto the street for the brisk walk home.

Gorgeous Dish of the Month

I've been a bit spoilt in March with a huge amount of contenders for Dish of the Month.

For a while, I thought it would have be the addictive gamberetti from Giuseppi Arnaldo & Sons then there was the possibility of the elegant flathead fillets with peas and yabbies from Circa, the Prince, yet in a careful reflection of my dining escapades for March I can't go past this refreshingly, modern broth from Attica.

March Dish of the Month

Pork broth with baby squid, homegrown shoots, vegetable shavings, basil seeds - Attica

As part of the Tuesday evening 'Chefs table tasting menu', this dish was a beautiful reminder of my lunch at Mugaritz last year.
The dish reflected a lightness of touch that allowed the components to shine. With the broth poured at the table and the goggly-eyed basil seeds peering back at me, I sipped and reunderstood the smarts of a chef that does not need to use cloying fat to disperse lasting and intriguing flavours on my palate.


Attica is one of the hot dining rooms 'a la minut', so book ahead and see why celebrity chefs from around the world are raving about it. Stephanie Alexander and Patrizia Simone dined the night I did and Michel Roux and Gilles Choukroun, in Melbourne for the Food Festival, dined the week before. But don't worry if you can't get in just yet, the food that chef Ben Shewry is preparing is personally honed not fad-ish, I'm sure he will be wowing us for some time to come.

Smiling Thais

When I first visited Thailand, I loved the cute cheeky smiles that all the locals shined my way.

At Spice I am in Surry Hills, Sydney, both the owners and the diners are smiling; the owners because this is how busy it was at 6.10pm on a Sunday evening,

and at 7pm when we left,

and I hear you ask, why are the diners smiling?
Well the fabulous and truly spice balanced food. Yes, it is hot, as hot as I believe a Thai family would cook for itself, no mucking about, no fake flavour 'balances'; just fresh fast and cheap Thai food.
I am a lover of Thai food and have eaten widely across Thailand, yet always had the trouble of trying to convince the Thais that we really did want the food as they would eat it, they were mostly too accommodating, yet, though they are incredibly hospitable at Spice I am there is no 'accommodating' when it comes to the menu.
A young couple next to us, sipping BYO crouchen riesling, were warned that the jungle curry they ordered was hot, sure no problems was their response, yet when it was delivered and they were crying with chilli pain and laughing at each other, they realised that Spice I am is no usual Australian Thai restaurant. It is the real thing.
We ordered a selection of dishes; the Thai vermicelli salad with prawns, cuttlefish and pork was glossy with a dressing of hot, sour, sweet and salty flavours. The noodles were nicely textural and it was all freshened up on the palate with loads of green herbs, particularly holy and common mint, Thai basil and coriander.
These types of salads are best eaten without hesitation, no wine, no water or conversation, time is your enemy. If you stop and let the dressing ponder on the palate you will be sorry, the chilli will creep up on you and it will be difficult to start again. I made the mistake. Forgetting my 'Thai salad technique' and I needed a moment or two to recover. The only expression possible is a smile and a teary eye, I loved it, but it was not the dish of the night, or my dish of the month, that accolade goes to a special that evening.

February Dish of the month

Crispy baby snapper with green papaya salad and cashews

The flesh had been scored and slightly loosened from the bone, well seasoned and fried. The kitchen had done a great job before cooking so it was very easy to remove the meat from the bones. It was topped with the shredded salad and served with a shot of nam jim dressing to pour over the top.
The remarkable thing was that the skin and scored flesh remained crispy even under the weight of the salad, yet cooked well with softly flaky meat and a crispy tail to nibble.

I found Spice I am to be an absolute winner on most fronts, its only let down was that it is so popular that the waits can be inhibiting to people wanting to dine at usual times (not Nanna time like me that evening!) and that the tiny shop front dining room was far less glamourous than I had imaged and totally BYO so we were at the mercy of a dodgy pub bottle-o for our selection with dinner.
But to quote PDC "I can't name the last time I spent $60 bucks in a restaurant and enjoyed it so much".
Enough said. Smiles all round.
Jack

Double up, Dish of the Month

If your savvy about food in Melbourne, it's likely that you have heard of Tempura Hajime, and are either desperate to get a reservation or a very patient happy diner.

I'm one of the very happy diners but I didn't have to be so patient.

I've dined at Hajime on four occasions now, each time the menu has changed a little - and I do mean little - yet it's the constants that win me over. I dined there the first time back in March last year when it was about 6 weeks new. I loved it so much I went back again a few weeks later just to check I hadn't drank too much shōchū and blurred my perception -and it was better.

Each time Daisuke and Noriko have made me feel even more welcomed into their little dining space.

So without a moment of hesitation, Tempura Hajime is the holder of not one but two equally deserving Dishes of the month for January

Tempura eel in Teriyaki sauce and
Sea urchin roe stuffed tempura scallop

Sorry, just couldn't pick between the two.
I'm a huge eel fan usually smoked with any number of accompaniments, so I know a good piece when I see it. The eel at Hajime wasn't smoked, just delicately flavoured and in the lacy tempura batter that we love and then a dip in Dai's pot of teriyaki sauce. The sweetness balanced the goodness of the intense fish oils of the eel and the batter the necessary textural factor.

We already know how embarrassed I get taking photos in local restaurants, so I hope you can forgive my very poor image of the stuffed scallop, yet I think it helps you get an understanding of this morsel.

A large deep sea scallop, split and filled with sea urchin roe, the flavours are not light hearted, intense fishy and with a slight grainy texture two pieces is not enough.

One gorgeous memory I take away from my last visit to Hajime, was listening (it's hard not to when there is only twelve seats!) into a Hajime virgin couple. They were loving it, so much so that when the oyster was served the man just had to have another so asked if they could have a couple more as they were happy to pay whatever the extra would be. The sweetest response was returned, along the lines of "...I'm sorry we only have twelve for our twelve seats, I don't have extras".
This sums up Tempura Hajime in my mind, it's all about the quality, they are not there to make a quick buck and were absolutely horrified when they received 500 calls in just one day after The Age review.
I'm not usually patient enough to book ahead, but for Tempura Hajime, I can make some concessions.
Jack

Insalata Caprese instead of coffee?

Shopping in the city with all the other crazys, just before Christmas, I was washed out by a sideways thrusting tropical style storm. The car was at least a kilometre away and definitely too far away to be bothered about the possible parking ticket in the torrential down fall. So I slipped into the side of the GPO and to a table at the Federal Coffee Palace.

I know they have great coffee here and that was my intention until I remembered seeing a gorgeous Caprese style salad in someone elses bowl a few months back. I had food envy at the time and decided that today, despite the very coffee friendly weather, I wanted to eat the FCP version of the Italian flag for myself.

Insalata Caprese is all about produce, the best fresh mozzarella, ripe tomatoes and basil with generous seasoning and grassy extra virgin olive oil.
This version at FCP was true to the tradition, it had all the characteristics and was so pretty I just had to share with you. I don't think they had a chef in the kitchen that day, they had a food stylist, I just could not pick a thing in the elegant presentation of this dish. I've recently seen less care put into the presentation of three hat restaurant food (sorry, yes, and I will post on it!)

So December Dish of the Month
Caprese salad - Federal Coffee Palace

I did also have a coffee, quickly as the rain had finished and I was sure the intuitive parking inspectors were on their way to my car, and I was glad I did, the perfect Melbourne experience.
Jackie

Dish of the month ...and a whinge

I've held out making this post until what has ended up being late. Not because of lack of dining experiences but because of wanting to hold out for what should have been my best opportunity for a fabulous dish of the month, dinner at Jacques Reymond.
I dined there very late last month and was disappointed to find that I could not list any one of the 9 dishes I saw that night as one worthy of the title... perhaps more needs to be said in other post, but it wasn't bad just not, I guess, me. Gosh sounds like a bad breakup excuse!!

So I therefore I get to nominate a traditional yet inspiring, 'Dish of the month' from dinner at Comme kitchen a couple of weeks ago.
I've raved about this intimate dining room before, about their Frenchy-Spainsh food, that has me bubbling with dining excitement as I read the menu (very rich coming from someone who writes menu descriptors for a living...!, or perhaps chef Simon Arkless has gotten into my brain??)
Comme truly offers, and supplies some of the best food in Melbourne.
The dish actually was ordered by PDC, but I used some of my best negotiation skills, to secure as many tastes as reasonable possible. Essentially it was a pot of brandade served with some pretty little farga olives and some impossibly thin and crispy croutons. On the palate it was a combo of warm and fluffy textured salt cod mixed with a rich potato, garlic and olive oil combo. The finished product was a sophisticated dish, perhaps best for sharing (lucky that, and yes that was one of the excuses I used!) that looked somewhat unexciting but was a marvel of the lightness of touch and considered balance.

November dish of the month
Brandade of salt cod, Spanish farga olives, croutons - Comme, Melbourne

Jack

Ladro is still hot...

Unfortunately for readers of this blog, I am often too vain to take photographs in Melbourne restaurants, which was the case at Ladro last weekend. I just can't bear it to drag out my camera and make all the waiters look at the tourist taking photos, generally, and I know this is a bit of an oxymoron for a food blogger that loves restaurants, I think cameras don't belong in restaurants.
When I worked as a professional waiter and would be asked frequently to take a group shot of guests, my cheeky line would be, "Well, I can't guarantee you will have heads... " hehehe
Anyway thats my excuse for not having any photos from Ladro.

Ladro must be in its 3rd or 4th year now and I have to say that it is as 'hot, hot hot' as it has ever been. Great food, interesting well priced winelist and smart, passionate service (and Geoff, my favourite waiter...!)
I'm very fond of classical flavours and was excited to see stracciatella soup. Whenever I see it on a menu, I have to order it. A classical rich chicken broth with whispy bits of egg white, parmesan cheese and parsley. The Ladro version was a classic and as I would expect a perfect example of what I love about the place. Simple, elegant and produce driven.
Love it.

October dish of the month
Stracciatella - Ladro

Jack

Dish of the Month

My dish of the month
Yes a new feature, inspired by PDC. I'm known to make rash statements, "like this is easily the best dish we will eat tonight" (when we have barely started entrees) or "it's new world pinot, maybe NZ", (when I have only smelt the glass), so when I remarked last week end that this was my dish of the year, PDC urged me to start this as a monthly feature, to see if I was right... he's tricky isn't he!

So here it is, my pick for September.

Tom Cooper smoked kingfish with pinenut sorbet - MoVida

This dish was a special, but it was very, very special. The elegantly smoked kingfish was dressed with a creamy pinenut dressing, some oil and a scattering of micro herbs and pinenuts, and then the component that made the others sing, a quenelle of creamy, nutty pinenut sorbet.

Tom Cooper is a legendary Melbourne smoker. An expat Canadian that moved here when our food scene was much less sophisticated and has worn a few different foodie hats in his time, but now he smokes things. When I say things, mainly hand pin-boned fish but also the odd tomato, and the odd handful of salt (god knows how he does this). The key thing about Toms smoked products is the attention to detail, care and passion, this is the highlight of my dish at MoVida. The gentle smokey flavours that meld with the others on the plate to create a dish of contrasts and complements.
Jack