The Market Hotel

The Market Hotel on Clarendon Street has all of the makings of a good local pub. Offering a sports bar, lounge bar and rooftop garden, the venue is absolutely incredible.  With its indoor palm tress, string lights and vertical gardens, you'd be forgiven for thinking you had been whisked away to a tropical jungle.

To eat we ordered the steamed mixed dumplings with a kinging chilli oil and wakame in a soy broth, the "Parma" which was a crumbed prosciutto chicken topped a herbed tomato sugo sauce and buffalo mozzarella and the pan fried gnocchi with tomato water, crispy bacon, cherry tomatoes and spring onion.

Being a pub, I didn't have the highest hope for the dumplings, but I was pleasantly surprised. The fillings were delicious and full of flavour, and the overall dumplings were cooked perfectly. Definitely a dish I would order again.

The gnocchi itself was also cooked perfectly and tasted homemade.  However, the tomatoes tasted tart and acidic, which overpowered the rest of the dish.

The Parma was by far the most elegant parma I have ever seen.  However, it was probably more aptly described as a  chicken schnitzel with roasted tomatoes on top, which, whilst delicious, was a disappointment when you're expecting more of a traditional parma smothered with cheese and sauce.

One thing that the Market Hotel's menu is missing is a desert menu - a pub meal for me just isn't complete without a finale along the lines of a warm and oozy sticky date pudding.  Nonetheless, with its incredible venue, live music on Friday nights and incredibly friendly staff, I will definitely be back to give Market Hotel another shot.

Food: 2.5/5
Venue: 4/5
Service: 3/5
Total: 9.5/15
Verdict: like - get around to trying it at some point

160 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne

Higher Ground

Higher Ground  is the latest member of the Top Paddock/Kettle Black group.  Adding some much needed flair (and good breakfast options) to the legal district, the two levelled venue almost has a New York loft feel - think a bright open space with vertical gardens and exposed brick walls. 

 

The menu itself features the groups' famous ricotta hot cake, with maple syrup, seeds and grains, cream, seasonal fruit and fresh flowers.  Higher Ground's version of it certainly didn't let the team down.  Coming out looking as pretty as a picture, the hot cake was warm and oozy, and the seeds and grain give it the required textual crunch.  


For me, I couldn't go past the Benedict Eggs with dry cured ham, emmental béarnaise, sourdough and vinegar powder.  Now as my followers would know, eggs benny is one of my go-to breakfast items, so the expectations were high...and luckily this one didn't disappoint! Not only was it the most elegant eggs benny I have ever seen, it was incredibly rich and delicious.

On the occasion that we went (I should note that I've heard from friends this is not always the case), the service was commendable. I was offered a coffee whilst waiting for my friends (a small gesture, but surprisingly uncommon during breakfast peak hour), our water glasses were never empty and it took them under 10 minutes to serve us our meals. Higher Ground - I will definitely be back soon.

Service: 4.5/5
Venue: 4/5
Food: 4/5
Total: 12.5/15
Verdict: Love - get around to trying it soon.

650 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne

Miss Chu - South Melbourne

Miss Chu epitomises everything I love about Melbourne's Asian food scene - fresh, cheap, quick and absolutely delicious.

Owning three stores in Melbourne (and a few scattered across NSW) the vibe of Miss Chu's venues is a bit like the Tiki Room in Disneyland (if anyone's ever been?) - bright, funky with a distinct Tiki Hut feel. The way they take your order is also a point of difference - providing each table with an order sheet to be filled in, you just tick the boxes of the food you're after with the pencil provided and away you go!

For me, when visiting Miss Chu, I can never go past the prawn and scallop dumplings and the steamed rice crepes with pork and wood ear mushroom (or, as termed by the Vietnamese, banh cuon). The prawn and scallop dumplings are always packed to the brim with delicious chunks of prawn and scallops, and the banh cuon balances textures and flavours like an absolute pro. Almost the Asian version of cannelloni, the banh cuon manages to the mix the sweet with the spice, the fragrant herbs with the meatiness of the pork mince and wood ear mushrooms, and the silky smoothness of the steamed rice crepes with the crunch of fried spring onions.

On this occasion we also tried the salt and pepper calamari - another win on their menu. Tender on the inside, crisp and flavoursome on the outside, these little morsels were absolutely delicious.

Also offering delivery, Miss Chu is an excellent option if you're in the mood for some Vietnamese.

Food: 4/5
Venue: 3.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Total:11/15
Verdict: love - get around to trying it soon

Hochi Mama

There's been many a time when I've been waiting in the cold for a seat at Rice Paper Scissors, staring enviously at the patrons of it's next door neighbour Hochi Mama walking straight into their doors.  But after dining at Hochi Mama the other day, I was quick to realise why it's so easy to get a seat.

The venue itself is funky, and the service was incredibly friendly and attentive, but unfortunately the positives stop at about there  To eat I opted for the chicken pho. Whilst the chicken was juicy and tender, the overall broth lacked any flavour - indeed I wouldn't be surprised to hear it was just boiling water poured over the traditional herbs and veggies. My friend who ordered the Southside Chicken Curry provided me similar feedback, saying that her curry whilst very citrusy, it lacked any substantial flavour.

Whilst it wasn't a terrible experience, with so many other delicious Vietnamese restaurants in Melbourne to choose from, I won't be running back to Hochi Mama.

Food: 2.5/5
Venue: 3.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Verdict: Don't bother, there are much better Vietnamese venues in Melbourne

Tall Timber

Tall Timber is everything you'd expect from a popular Melbourne breakfast café - a delicious menu featuring micro-herbs and edible flowers, coffee that's spot on, and about a 20 minute wait for a table. Unfortunately, on the day that I visited Tall Timber, this meant waiting outside in the cold, wind and rain whilst waiting for our table - luckily the food was worth it!

Gone are the days that a plate of eggs benny meant the traditional spread of English muffin, leg ham, poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. These days you're more likely to see artisan bread topped not only with the traditional hollandaise and poached eggs, but with also the likes of pulled pork, micro herbs, crumbled crackling, fresh apple and more. Tall Timber's version consisted of slow cooked pork shoulder, champagne poached apple and poached eggs on sourdough, topped with apple cider hollandaise and maple bacon. The eggs themselves were poached perfectly and the pork was juicy and flavoursome - but I did find the tiny piece of maple bacon  a bit useless - it would have been better if it was crumbed so it added texture to the dish - and I know that yes, I could have crumbed it in my fingers myself, but who really wants to get their fingers that sticky and greasy at the breakfast table.

My friend ordered the shaksuka which I was luckily enough to try. In my view, the key to a good baked eggs is perfectly cooked eggs in a rich, well spiced vibrant sauce -  on all three categories,Tall Timber hit the mark

Whilst I probably wouldn't opt to visit Tall Timber during peak hours on a cold and wintery day (the wait outside is rather depressing!) it's definitely a delicious little gem in Richmond I look forward to going back to.

Food: 4/5
Venue: 3.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Total: 11/15
 Verdict - like, get around to trying it at some point

 

Uncle - Collins Street

Seeing as I wasn't the biggest fan of the food at Uncle in St Kilda, I wasn't walking into their new venue down the Paris end on Collins Street with the highest hopes. But luckily, I was pleasantly surprised. 

To start with, just like its sister in St Kilda, the venue is incredible - dark, with eclectic splashes of colour and greenery - the venue epitomises the Melbourne laneway vibe.  The menu is Vietnamese inspired, serving up all of the usual culprits from banh mi to bao, but also having some more interesting items such as tongue and cheek wrapped in bean curd skin, and crispy pigs' ears banh mi.

 

However, on this occasion we were a little less adventurous and went for some of the more classic dishes. To  start with we had the wok tossed edamame with beer nuts and chilli sauce, and the raw king fish with longan, sesame, wasabi peas, soy and coconut foam. The nuts were a nice touch to the edamame, and the beans were well seasoned. 

 

 

There was no question that the Kingfish was fresh, having the consistency of butter, but the wasabi peas was an odd addition - giving the dish an element of "chalkiness".

 

 

Finally, to stay on trend with the whole pho obsession I seem to have going on, at the moment, I ordered the chicken pho and, even though it's hard to convey in a photo being such an ugly dish, it was delicious. The broth was fragrant, the chicken tender and it was packed to the brim with vegies and noodles.

 

 

Overall, an enjoyable experience and a trendy little addition to Melbourne's CBD. 

 

Food: 3.5/5

Service: 3.5/5

Venue: 4.5/5

Total: 11.5/15

Verdict - love, get around to trying it soon

Flower Drum

Going to Flower Drum is a bit like going to your favourite grandma's house - it's warm and welcoming, the furniture is comfy, your waited on as if you are the only person in the room and some the dishes, well, even though you can tell they have put in a massive effort, are a little outdated. 

The venue itself is on Market Lane in China Town. With its huge round tables mounted with Lazy Susans, rich red décor and even an orange telecom pay phone near the front door from the 1990s, it definitely feels as though you have stepped back in time. But one thing that never goes out of fashion is impeccable service, and that's exactly what Flower Drum had. Almost like a well rehearsed ballet, at least a handful of waiters would come at once to serve your food, fill your wine and partake in some friendly banter. 
 

The dish of the day for me was the baked crab shell cooked in turmeric sauce with onion and garlic. Indeed, it was probably up there with one of the best dishes I have ever had in Melbourne. Whilst it was nothing special to look at, this little rich and creamy crab was just oozing with flavour. 

And do I even need to discuss how amazing their signature is. It's no secret that Flower Drum's peking duck pancakes are often coined the best in Melbourne, and it's not hard to see why as they carve up the duck freshly in front of you and somehow manage to get a crispy peice of skin in each pancake. 

The spring rolls were another highlight. And I know what you're thinking...how good can a spring roll be when even the food court at Crown can do a good job at it. But with its light, crispy and flaky coating. and flavoursome filling, this spring roll definitely took it to the next level. 

The Sang Choi Bao and the King George Whiting were nice, and the protein in these dishes were certainly cooked well, but the overall dishes weren't exactly inspiring.

 

Never trying pearl meat before, I knew it was a luxury item and is obviously served up by Flower Drum to impress its diners - and indeed, it was absolutely delicious. The prawns, however, were so over cooked that they had become chalky. 

 

The fried ice cream was also a miss - the crust of my ice cream was soggy and it was quite floury. 

 

With some delicious dishes, its impeccable service and its old school charm, even though there were a few misses on the menu, it was easy to see how the Flower Drum is a Melbourne institution.

Food: 3/5
Venue: 3/5
Service: 5/5
Total: 11/15
Verdict: Love - get around to trying it soon