Culinary Comments

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Cafe Evolve, Bega NSW: Pictorial

Cafe Evolve

http://www.cafeevolve.com/

For full review, click here.

Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon

$16.00

Omelette with ham

$14.50

Pier One Bar & Grill, Merimbula NSW: Pictorial (Second Visit)

Pier One Bar & Grill

For full review, click here.

Grilled ciabatta bread served with dukkah and extra virgin olive oil

$8.50

Extra virgin olive oil and dukkah

Caesar salad with yellow fin tuna

Sesame Szechuan salt and pepper squid served on Asian salad drizzled with wasabi aioli and fried shallots

$19.00

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Paparazzi, Garran ACT

Paparazzi

https://www.facebook.com/paparazzigarran

Food: 3.5/5
Atmosphere: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Cost: $$

Paparazzi is a quiet cafe located at the Garran shops, and I was pleased to see that it was open 7 days a week for breakfast and lunch. Inside you will find walls of photos dedicated to predominantly 1950s and 1960s pop culture, which gives Paparazzi a unique edge over other suburban cafes.

The coffee is fantastic and I couldn't believe the meal serving sizes - they were huge for the price paid! All the food and ingredients are extremely fresh, and inside the cafe you can find display fridges boasting homemade soups, cakes, slices, biscotti and many other sweet treats.

C.C.B.L.A.T. (Not on the menu, however the staff are happy to meet requests)

Chicken, cheese, bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato and aioli (full serve). Unbelievable!!

Check out all that meat!! So generous!

Egg, bacon and cheese Turkish melt, served with homemade tomato relish (half serve).

Delicious and fresh with no oily drips or mess. Based on the CCBLAT, it would have been interesting to see a full serve!

The perfect bite of par-cooked egg yolk!

Homemade tomato relish. Delish.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Wasabi, Manuka (Pictorial) Instagram Exclusive

Wasabi, Manuka

Food: 4/5
Atmosphere: 3.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Cost: $$

The Hotate Gai was possibly one of the best dishes I've tried this year.

Sake

Wasabi's Sampler - a selection of popular Japanese starter dishes

$19.90

Sushi and Sashimi Platter - combination of the freshest Sashimi, Nigiri Sushi and Maki Sushi served with wasabi, chef's special soy sauce and vinegared ginger

$32.90

Wasabi's Hotate Gai - seared scallops wrapped in thinly sliced salmon served on a bed of Chuka Wakame salad dressed with Sansho vinegarette

$24.90

Scope, Mt Stromlo ACT (Pictorial) Android Exclusive

Scope

http://scopemountstromlo.com.au/cafe.php

Food: 3.5/5
Atmosphere: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Cost: $$

Chicken, pear, potato and rocket salad with honey mustard dressing.

One of the best salads I've had in a while!

Chips served with aioli. The aioli was really delicious!

Steak sandwich.

Moroccan carrot and pecan cake. A little dry.

Brodburger, Kingston ACT

Brodburger

http://www.brodburger.com.au/

Food: 2.5/5
Atmosphere: 2.5/5
Service: 3/5
Cost: $$

I'm going against the grain here, and will probably offend most Canberrans by announcing that Brodburger is extremely overrated. The establishment is not easily accessible, the ordering area is far too small, and parts of the dining area were not well lit.

The beef patty was cooked to perfection, however it was just your average overpriced burger. Honestly? The average home cook could make better burgers at home. The chips were of a cheap quality and the aioli ($1 extra) was dull, bland, and possibly watered down? The tomato relish however was quite nice.