the crusty sandwich

Noah Kalina Photography/Interiors

An amazing portfolio of Restaurant interiors. There is a few horrors but mostly they are all spaces I would like to experience food and beverage in.

a beautiful era

Belle Époch – Brisbane

I don’t know where to start with this review. So I will start with the good.

I have been to the Belle Époch Patisserie many times for one of the best coffee experiences to be had in Brisbane. Not only is the coffee good but they do the best jam filled doughnuts I have ever experienced. Crispy sugary coating, a golden crust filled with real jam that explodes over the cheaks.

So with that in mind I had been keen to try the dining room out. When my partner suggested we treat our selves to a meal there I jumped at the chance.

I will cut to the chase.

Entree. 

Friture de calamars
Fried Calamari served w Rocket
Salad, Limes & Gribiche Sauce 

$12.00

At twelve dollars it was the cheapest but I ordered it because the test of a chef is a good crispy Calamari what ever language its in. I am glad I didn’t order my first choice.

Foie Gras de Canard, Pomme Rôtie à la Chartreuse
Seared Duck Foie Gras, Roasted Apple w Green Chartreuse 

$37.00 

At thirty seven dollars I would have gone to pieces if it was any where near the quality of my calamari. It would be fair to say I have had better calamari from the local surf club. Sauce was bland, calamari chewy and over seasoned. And my absolute pet hate. A dry wedge of lime.

For my main.

Le Cassoulet Toulousain
Famous Meat & Bean Dish from the South of France. Braised
Toulouse Sausage, Duck, Lamb, Smoked Pork Belly, White Beans$

37.00

Where do I start… With the beans. Crunchy. Should be creamy and melt in the mouth. Dried up lamb. No pork belly. Sausage, average at best. No duck but kindly replaced with rabbit leg which was cooked well.

Service was attentive.

Girl friend didn’t rave about either of her courses.

We didn’t stay for dessert instead we went to Freestyle Tout.

Fantastic. My bread and butter pudding, was just that. My partner who doesn’t often have dessert said she was coming back!

Both venus are located at Emporium 1000 Ann Street, Fortitude Valley Brisbane.

sono restaurant

Last night Aj and I had the pleasure of dining at Sono Restaurant Portside Warf Brisbane.

The whole experience was fantastic right from making the booking.

As soon as we entered the front door we were made to feel like we were the only people they cared about.

We were shown to a table that afforded us some privacy while also allowing us to view the entire dining area.

I would let you know what we had but my English is bad enough so that makes my Japanese awful and their website is horrifically unfriendly, they were no doubt sold to by some web developer. Its a shame because it is about the only part of the experience that is not tackled with the beautiful Japanese minimalism.

50 dollars a head saw us eat plenty with 3 glasses of Rose.

Some prior menu knowledge will ease your experience here as they really do let you take control of the speed. When we had finished we were in no way hurried off so we payed the bill and moved to the bar which was a fantastic end to the evening.

I highly recommend and we will be trying their lunch menu soon.

reviewer

Its no secret that chefs are not biased towards restaurant reviewers, we don’t favour one over the other. Truth be told we hate them all equally. Their only qualification being that they can write an article and read a menu. So with that in mind I am going to dispense with all the rubbish that has crept into reviews recently.

eg.

“the duke had the [insert some over complicated dish here] while the blonde declaring herself tired from doing nothing all day said she felt like [insert some boring rabbit food here]“

‘The Duke’ p leaassseee!

Best breakfast in Auckland goes to Landreth & Co.

Best Breakfast in the North Is. Velocity, Whitianga. Its a shame it may be changing ownership.

Followed closely by the ‘sidetrack cafe’ Mt Maunganui.

No fuss Italian goes to Sal Rose.

Best kept secret in Auckland Mazuran’s Ports.

Most consistent long black coffee goes to Trinity of Silver in Mt. Albert. (A quick google turns up nothing proving that this little gem is probably not cool enough for ‘the duke or the blonde’ to be seen at let alone review. I could be wrong.) Allpress coffee.

Winehot. Where do I start? I don’t, just go there and let the barman choose for you. Best Pate I have had since Shirely sold ‘The Deli’ in Newmarket.

Nice winery/restaurant Marsden Estate Kerikeri

A tasty Indian = India Village Restaurant 598 New North Rd. Morningside, Auckland. (Across from Winehot.) $2 Kingfishers, Cask wine and BYO.

It is what it is, goes to the Noodlebox. Mt Albert.

Best pie in Auckland. The Fridge (I will cop some heat for that call) A friend has declared their corn fritters the best she has eaten – I believe her as she eats a lot of corn fritters.

Most tasty ‘tapas style’ menu goes to Didas Wine & Tapas Lounge 54 Jervois Road, Ponsonby, Auckland. (I have yet to see true tapas in New Zealand)

Cartel midweek for a Scotch. I have had some friends crawl out of this bar in the wee hours of the morning on more than one occasion. Ask for the pistachio nuts.

Sammy Woo’s there is something cool about eating food out of and old car yard. Oh the Duck!

Good Pizza – The Pizzeria. On Dominion Rd. Keep your eyes peeled its small.

Best BBQ in Auckland – Mine and Shaun’s. Close second Mike and Belinda’s.

Worst Burger – Burger Fuel. What a tasteless con!

Stay tuned Brisbane/QLD I am in your yard now and look forward to only telling you about the good experiences not seasoned up with a bunch of reviewer fluff. 

Please note. All of the above are my own opinions and are in no way the opinions of anyone who I may know or work for.