The Stokehouse

The revamped Stokehouse in a word? Exceptional. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't the best food I've ever had - but when you pair quite delicious food with a warm and welcoming ambiance, elegant architecture, reasonable prices, and service fit for a queen, you are bound to have an exceptional experience.

To start with, too many restaurants in Melbourne make you feel as though they are doing you the favour by allowing you to dine at their restaurant. Not the Stokehouse - after rudely arriving half an hour late, instead of being shunned like you'd usually expect from a fine dining restaurant, we were welcomed with a warm smile and informed that we were more than welcome to sit at the bar for a drink before being taken to our table if we needed to wind down. The exceptional service didn't stop there - our drinks were never empty, our food was out in a flash, and all with the familiar friendly banter that you'd expect from the favourite bartender at your local.

The menu is Modern Australian with a large showcase of seafood - including an extensive Raw Bar to start. Whilst everything (well nearly everything) was delicious - each of us had our specific favourites from the menu. Packed full of flavour, the beef short rib wrapped in filo pastry definitely appeared in mine. So too did the sashimi tuna tacos which were fresh, crisp and incredible more-ish.

The Australian beef of the day was cooked to perfection, and the sides of roasted broccoli and the grain salad were the perfect accompaniments.

 

 

The only dissapointing dish of the night was the prawn and bug cannelloni with pumpkin and saffron, and fermented chilli. How can such an incredible sounding dish go so wrong I hear you ask. Unfortunately it did - it was bland, dry and tasted very fishy.



In my view, ice cream is a completely underrated desert - thank you Stokehouse for recognising this and putting an ice cream of the day on your menu. That being said, The Bombe (White chocolate parfait, strawberry sorbet and toasted meringue) and the White Chocolate Rose (Yoghurt mousse, white chocolate shaving, yuzu gelato and rose petals) also looked delicious and will definitely making a feature on my next dining experience.

It's exceptional dining experiences like these that made me want to be a food blogger - which is why the Stokehouse has earned the title of the new fave.

Food: 3/5
Service: 5/5
Venue: 5/5
Total: 13/15
Verdict: The New Fave - put it as number one on the To Do list

Osteria Ilaria

To say that there was a fair amount of hype surrounding the opening of Tipo 00's sister restaurant Osteria Ilaria would be an understatement.  Situated right next door to Tipo (where Du Nord used to be), Osteria Ilaria sticks with the Italian theme of its sister restaurant, but veers away from the traditional pasta and risotto dishes that Tipo 00 is famed for.  Instead, expect to see the likes of pork liver sausage with spiced sourdough and rhubarb, roast corn fed duck with radicchio and hazelnuts and roast pork scotch fillet with apple and fennel crumbs.

On this occasion, to start with we had the zucchini flowers with Jerusalem artichoke and mizuna, and well as the baby octopus.  The zucchini flowers were cooked to perfection and oozed with flavour when sliced open. The baby octopus was another win - easily cut with a butter knife and rich with flavour.

The baby calamari came out looking beautiful - but was a touch on the tough side and needed an extra burst of acidity.  Tasting overwhelmingly like fish, the paccheri with crystal bay prawns and sorrel was also on the disappointing side - and yes I am aware that prawns are a creature of the sea, but that shouldn't mean that the flavour of the entire dish is overpowered by a fishy taste.

For the mains, the whole whiting with pippies and sea herbs was exceptional, easily flaking into large juicy flakes of meat when digging in with your fork.  The nettle gnocchi with blue cheese and almonds was another highlight of the night - plump fluffy balls of gnocchi covered in an incredibly rich sauce.  However, because of the richness of the blue cheese sauce, this is probably one of those dishes which are best shared because even I as a blue cheese lover could foresee myself struggling with trying to get through a whole dish of this myself.

Also, don't feel too bad if you haven't saved room for desert - whilst coming out looking magnificent, the sheep's yogurt semifreddo with pistachio and orange was tasty, but no more so than a serving of Jock's ice-cream that you can get on the way home.

Whilst there were a number of hits, there were also a number of misses and Osteria Ilario didn't quite meet the high expectations I had walking through their doors.  But in its growing pain stages, I'd still say it was worth a try - especially if you include the whole whiting in your order.

Food: 2.5/5
Service: 4/5
Venue: 3.5/5
Total: 10/15
Verdict: Like - get around to trying it at some point.

Kirk's Wine Bar

 

 

Kirk's Wine Bar is a little slice of Italy on Hardware Lane off Little Bourke Street. Offering both indoor and outdoor seating (with heating for the colder months), it has a wine list to die for a food menu that will make you drool.
Kirk's kefalograviera saganaki is definitely a highlight on their menu - crisp on the outside, soft, gooey and rich on the inside, the dish is beautifully balanced with the tartness of the pickled onion and the sourness of the lemon slice which has the additional touch of a sprinkling of fragrant paprika.



Whilst a plate of raw meat isn't a preferred dish for everyone, Kirk's beef tartare is definitely one of the best I've ever had. The meat itself just melted in the mouth and paired beautifully with the saltiness of the caper berries and the creaminess of the egg. Definitely a dish worth dreaming about.



The calamari wasn't quite as a success though.  Whilst the protein itself was cooked well, and the lemon had the signature touch of paprika, the pieces of calamari tasted like a mouthful of flour and oil and something had obviously gone wrong with the frying that evening.  The croquette of the day, which in our case was pumpkin arancini balls, was also another disappointment on the menu. It's not that the dish was terrible, but the arancini balls were verging on bland and could have done with some more seasoning.

 

Also, don't be surprised if the service is verging on rude, and you don't get offered a glass of wine until 20 minutes in.

Whilst I'd go back for the beef tartare alone - it definitely doesn't make the favourites list.

Decor: 3/5
Service: 2/5
Food: 4/5
Total: 9/15
Verdict: like - but only because of the delicious wine and the steak tartare!

50 Hardware Lane, CBD, 

House of Hoi An

Move over Saigon Sally and Hanoi Hannah, there's a new Vietnamese eatery in town. Situated slightly off the beaten track in Windsor, with its abundant display of colourful lanterns, eclectic furniture and graffitied exterior, you'd be forgiven for thinking that you'd made your way to Hoi An in the middle of the Tet Festival.

Bought to you by internationally renowned chef and restaurateur Ms Trinh Diem Vy, House of Hoi An's menu is (unsurprisingly) Vietnamese inspired, and contains the likes of 'Hoi An Street Food', 'Hoi An Celebration Food' and 'Daily Food from My Family Food', being a selection of memorable dishes that Ms Vy grew up eating as a child.

House of Hoi An's Chao Tom ('roll your own' shrimp mousse on sugarcane) definitely couldn't be accused of being your average rice paper roll - a popular traditional Southern dish available throughout Vietnam, the dish is made from marinated shrimp, wrapped around thin pieces of sugar can, grilled and served with rice paper, rice noodles, fresh herbs and sweet and sour dipping sauce.  Whilst slightly on the messy side, the textures and flavours on offer when the soldiers are all rolled up are definitely worth getting your hands dirty for.

For those who find some Vietnamese salads too sweet - the Pomelo Salad with Chicken is the salad for you.  Balanced out by the bitterness of the pomelo, this salad is beautifully complemented by the texture of the accompanying prawn crackers - who needs a fork when you can scoop up your salad with one of these crackling little bad boys.  And if you're looking for a dish that is punching with flavour - don't go past their Ga Nuong La Chanh (BBQ Chicken and Lime Leaf) - BBQ chicken thighs with lime leaf and herbs, served with rice and salad.

Whilst I love my wine more than most - a dining experience at House of Hoi An wouldn't be complete without trying some of their home made Vietnamese 5 Spiced Tea - sweet, fragrant, and punching with flavour, it gives most teas at T2 a solid run for their money.  And this post wouldn't be complete without a special shout out to Tin, our server on the night.  His absolute passion for the food and the overall restaurant shone through in his service, and his warmth and kindness made the whole experience an absolute delight.

With its fragrant and fresh flavours, delicious food and incredible service, I look forward to heading back to House of Hoi An soon.

Food: 4/5
Decor: 4.5/5
Service: 4.5/5
Total: 13/15
Verdict: love get around to trying it soon

The New Fave dined courtesy of the House of Hoi An