Eat'aliano by Pino

Authentic Italian eatery, Eat'aliano by Pino, has recently opened its doors to Windsor. With its exposed ceiling, hanging plant boxes, open kitchen and wines and meats on display, the décor is chic modern, meet authentic Italian, with a setting so trendy it could easily belong in an episode of The Block.

Whilst the menu itself has many of the Italian culprits, in a clever twist, the mains change daily to make the most of fresh and seasonal produce.  The cocktail list is also a must go-to, with the cocktails changing seasonally.

To start with we tried the Panzerotti vegetariani (fried pizza dough stuffed with friarelli and mozzarella) and prosciutto crudo D.O.P.  Whilst the Panzerotti vegetariani didn't look overly inspiring, it was actually my favourite dish of the night. The light and crispy fried dough contrasted beautifully with the warm and gooey mozzarella centre - topped off with a fresh and flavoursome tomato sauce, these little parcels were an absolute delight.

In an enchanting touch to the night, the Margherita Pizza arrived with a story behind its name - in 1988, during Queen Margherita's visit to Naples, chef Raffaele Esposito and his wife created a pizza resembling the colours of the Italian flag (tomatos for red, mozzarella for white and basil for green) and named it after the Queen.  Unfortunately the pizza was not quite as enchanting as the story. Whilst the tomato sauce was bursting with fresh flavours, with such a thin crust, by the time the pizza arrived at our table the dough had become soggy.

The veal shank was the perfect example of good simple food made delicious - with only a few elements on the dish, the produce was cooked well and the flavours were the stars of the show. The meat was tender and fell off the bone, the gravy rich and flavoursome, and the mash was so smooth it was almost the consistency of butter. 

Unfortunately the desert was on the dissapointing side. The tiramisu, whilst by no means awful, tasted as though it had been sitting pre-constructed in the fridge for a couple of days and definitely was not a highlight of the night. 

Offering fresh, seasonal produce, and with staff as warm and welcoming as the venue, I'd highly recommend keeping Eat'aliano on your radar if looking for an Italian eatery in Windsor. 

Food: 3/5
Décor: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Total: 11/15
Verdict: Like - get around to trying it at some point.

 

122 High Street, Windsor

 The New Fave dined courtesy of Eat'aliano

Ponshu Kiroro

After a string of bad restaurants, I was starting to lose faith in the Melbourne food scene (did I just have too high of ?!?). But then came along Ponshu Kiroro - offering delicious Japanese fusion cuisine, this quaint little restaurant situated on Katherine Place has become the new fave.

The venue itself is casual-elegant with a drool worthy menu offering twists on the usual Japanese culprits. For instance, edamame is a staple on most Japanese menus, but Ponshu takes it to the next level, stir frying the beans with chilli and garlic.

The "Three Addictive" consists of three components - fried chicken, pickled cherry tomatoes and marinated salmon.  The chicken was juicy and well seasoned, the marinated salmon fresh and full of flavour and, surprisingly, the sweet and juicy cherry tomatoes were my favourite component on the plate - absolutely delicious.

The raw tuna parfait, however, was my favourite dish of the night. Served atop a bed of bean curd rice and seaweed rice, it was a little bowl of happiness.  The "Juicy Kurobuta Pork Belly" was also delicious and melted in the mouth - the perfect showcase of simple but elegant flavours.

For desert, we were recommended the Sapporo Snowman Monaka. The red bean paste and ice-cream were delicious and the dish was very cutely presented - my only (minor) criticism was that the apple tasted chalky. 

Overall, with its incredible food, fantastic service and inspiring menu, Ponshu Kiroro is definitely the new fave.

Food: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Venue: 3,5/5
Total: 13.5/15
Verdict: The New Fave

The New Fave dined courtesy of Ponshu Kiroro

 

Seamstress

I have never been one to mind spending money on food - indeed, I would probably have a house deposit by now if I didn't spend hundreds of dollars feeding my food addiction each week.  However, I only don't mind splashing out the cash if the food is worth the price that you're paying for it and, dissapontingly, with Seamstress this wasn't the case.

Seamstress has long been on the Melbourne food and wine scene. Set across three levels, there's a bar at the top, a more formal dining in the middle and a function space down below.

The waiter we had was exceptional - recommended a brilliant bottle of wine, guided us through the menu and saw to our every need. The food, however, was not so memorable (or indeed it was, but not in a good way).

To eat we ordered the sticky duck betal leaf with balinese sambal and dried shallots ($15), the mapo tofu, shitake and enoki mushrooms ($15), Cantonese style BBQ chicken, maple bacon, lettuces and szechuan dressing ($25), braised short rib ($26), Asian herb salad ($10) and steamed rice ($5). 

The duck betal leaves and the beef ribs were by far the most disappointing dishes of the night. Firstly, query whether there was actually any duck in the betal leaf which had an overwhelming taste and texture of moist breadcrumbs.  And the beef ribs? Well, they were so tough that at first we thought there was a bone through it.  On figuring out that no, it wasn't a bone, just a tough piece of meat, we cut through to find a rib so dry that the meat had turned grey.

The BBQ chicken was also dissapointing.  Whilst the meat was tender and juicy, the dish mainly consisted of bones and the flavours were one dimensional. 

The Asian herb salad was okay, but was lacking in any sweetness, sourness and/or spiciness - the beloved trademarks of many Asian dish. The rice was good - ok, I am grasping here for something good to say - but it was good rice!

Another positive of the night was the flavours in the mapo tofu which was the stand out dish of the night.  But even then, the shitake mushrooms were too chewy for my liking. 

Often I will go to a restaurant, dislike the food, and STILL finish my plate as I am so hungry. But In this case, the food was actually so bad that most of it was left behind.  And for a $48 a head JUST FOR FOOD, ridiculous! I don't know how Seamstress earnt itself such a great rating on Zomato - those diners obviously had a different dining experience to me.

Food: 1.5/5
Decor: 3/5
Service: 4/5 - such a pity the food didn't match the service!
Total: 8.5/15
Verdict: don't bother
 

El Sabor

 Whilst the Mexican food trend is 'so yesterday', to me, a good Mexican restaurant will never go out of fashion. El Sabor, a Mexican Cantina located in North Melbourne, is one such restaurant.

Reservations at El Sabor are possible, but definitely not necessary - for a Thursday night the restaurant was practically empty. This, of course, was a concern at first - I mean, if this place was any good, where were all the people?? But luckily the food didn't disappoint.

To eat we shared the large nachos with beef, white and blue corn chips, cheese, guacamole, sour cream and salsa brava ($16), the chicken fajitas ($25), the beef enchiladas with Mexican rice ($22) and the quesadillas with cheese, chorizo and mushroom ($15).

Nachos can often look incredible but taste disappointing - El Sabor seemed to have the opposite problem. Whilst the nachos came out looking quite grey and dismal, they were actually bursting with fresh and vibrant flavours.

The enchiladas and the fajitas suffered from a similar infliction - a far cry from a Mexican fiesta, the dishes came out looking dry and lifeless.   But just as with the nachos, each element of these two dishes (down to the Mexican rice beneath the enchiladas) were just bursting with flavour and the proteins were cooked well.

The biggest disappointment of the night was the quesadillas.  Whilst none of us could put our finger on the strange taste which had engulfed the rest of the flavours, it almost tasted like gas and ruined the entire dish.

Located in the perfect spot for a quick dinner before heading to the Comics Lounge, El Sabor is definitely worth returning to.
 

Food: 4/5
Décor: 3.5/5
Service: 4/5
Total: 11.5/15
Verdict: Love - get around to trying it soon
 

Juicy Bao

Juicy Bao is everything a good dumpling house should be - clean, cheap, quick and easy - and serving absolutely delicious food.

The dumplings here are so fresh that you can watch them being crafted by the dozen in the makeshift kitchen set up by the restaurant's front door.  But not only are they fresh, they are incredibly cheap - for $25 you will be rolling out of Juicy Bao's doors (and did I mention that it was BYO!).

On this occasion we ordered the pork and prawn wontons with chilli and peanuts ($9.80), the stir fried noodles with seafood and XO sauce ($14.80) and the vegetarian Xiao long bao ($11.80). The pork and prawn wontons were the dish of the night - offering a suite of spice, flavours and textures - I'd highly recommend ordering this dish!

Busting with flavour, the stir fried noodles came a close second (and would have come a clear number 1 if the seafood tasted just a touch fresher). 

We couldn't go to Juicy Bao and not try their bao, so the vegetarian Xiao long bao were added to our list. For me, I found them to be a touch boring as they were filled only with spinach. Whereas my friend (who is vegetarian, so one could say is an expert on the matter) absolutely loved them and said that they were some of the best veggie dumplings she's ever had.

With its great food, value and service, Juicy Bao is definitely on my recommendation list for dumpling houses in Melbourne. 

Food: 4/5

Venue: 3.5/5

Service: 3.5/5

Total: 11/15

Verdict: love - get around to trying it soon

Tim Ho Wan

Hong Kong's dumpling house Tim Ho Wan is one of the world's cheapest Michelin Star restaurants. So you can just imagine Melbournites excitement when we found out that a Tim Ho Wan (well several) were coming to our shores.

Unfortunately the CBD restaurant didn't quite live up to the hype and high expectations, with only two dishes being worthy enough to claim the title of worth going back for. 

In terms of the venue, cleaner and shinier then it's China Town counterparts (mainly to do with it being new), the venue consists of a large beige room full of cheap plastic tables and chairs crammed in close together. Service is quick (mainly because you are made to complete your order whilst waiting outside in the shivering cold) but don't expect your drinks to come until you've almost finished all of your dishes. 

But onto the world famous food, the highlights of the night were the pork buns ($7.80 for 3) - deliciously sweet and sticky on outside, rich and flavoursome on the inside - best pork bun I've ever had, and the wasabi prawn dumplings ($7.80 for 3) - an interesting but successful fusion of Chinese and Japanese cuisine.

Pork Buns

Wasabi Prawn Dumplings

The prawn dumplings (4 for $8.20), pork dumplings (4 for $7.80) and egg white Spring rolls (3 for $6.00) were nice, but I've had better dumplings from China town for less than half the price. 

Prawn Dumplings

Pork Dumplings

Egg White Spring Rolls

In terms of the low lights, the vermicelli roll with BBQ pork (3 for $7.50) and the turnip cake (3 for $6.00) had no flavour, and the spinach dumplings with shrimp (3 for $7.80) mainly tasted of raw garlic. 

Vermicelli Roll with BBQ Pork

Turnip cakes

Spinach dumplings with shrimp

Whilst offering the best pork buns I've ever had, for the wait, expense and otherwise mediocre food, sorry Tim Ho Wan but I will not be back. 

Food: 2/5

Decor: 2/5

Service: 2/5

Total: 6/15

Verdict: don't bother.

Glovers Station

The biggest draw card of Glovers Station in Elsternwick is its venue - transformed from what once used to be a service station from the 1930s, the cafe which prides itself on using locally sourced organic produce is bright and spacious on the inside with a courtyard for brunch in the sun on the outside.

Using only seasonal produce, Glovers Station changes its menu monthly to make the most of the local produce in season.  On this occasion i ordered the smoky beans with mozzarella, pesto and corn purée.  The dish came out looking magnificently drool worthy and he flavours of the beans, pesto and corn purée worked beautifully together. However, I wouldn't have called the beans "smokey" as it lacked any smokiness flavour (or any big flavours) and the couple of tiny dollops of mozzarella were completely lost in the dish.

Whilst I loved Glovers Stations' concept of using only organic local produce and my dish was "nice", unfortunately on this occasion it wasn't a dish that I would run back for.  At least next month there will be a new menu to look forward to!

Food: 2.5/5
Decor: 4.5/5
Service: 4/5
Total: 11/15
Verdict: Like - get around to trying it at some point.