Previously on The Blog About Nothing... in London!

  • stamaria Santa Maria
    Best Pizza in London
  • tapcoffee Tap Coffee
    Coffee time in Warren St
  • exmouthespresso Bean Review
    Exmouth Espresso Blend
  • kurobuta Kurobuta
    Japanese Tapas
  • oddonos Oddono's
    Gelato in Chiswick
  • smokehouse Smokehouse
    Mouthwatering Burgers and BBQ
  • firehouse No 197 Fire Station
    Complete disaster
  • irisandjune Iris & June
    Independent Coffee Shop in Victoria
  • coffeeguide The Not Official London Coffee Guide
    Humble take on the independent scene
  • dumdum Dum Dum Donutterie
    They don't have Cronuts but they do Cros
  • bonanza Bean Review
    Bonanza's Espresso Blend
  • moo Moo Cantina
    Lomito Time
  • chorbizarre Chor Bizarre
    Restaurant with personality
  • squaremilebelen Bean Review
    Square Mile's Belen Espresso
  • ottolenghi Ottolenghi
    Not as good as usual!
  • quantus Quantus
    European cuisine in Chiswick
  • pearlliang Pearl Liang
    About Time for a Chinese
Showing posts with label cbd. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cbd. Show all posts

A day in Sydney [On The Road: Sydney]

He’s a bubble boy
Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld episode "The Bubble Boy")

In my last visit to Sydney before returning to London I had the chance to try a couple new places.

Breakfast at the beach

I loved the coast in Sydney, the beaches have all the facilities necessary including some nice breakfast spots. So in Bronte beach I got to Pure Bronte Pistachio before doing the classic Bondi to Bronte walk.

Menu
Pour some sugar on me!
A nice Benedict eggs, with salmon, ham, and great hollandaise. I never thought ham and salmon can go together but they weren't bad at all. Marisol got avocado on toast with a poached egg, really nice as well. To wash down the brekkie a creamy flat white, nice but not too strong coffee.

Coffee time
Benny reloaded
Avo with eggs
Pure Bronte Pistachio
T: +61 2 9386 9555
Breakfast
Approx Damage: AU$35pp
Area: Bronte
Sydney
Pure Bronte Pistachio on Urbanspoon


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Drinks in the bar with the view

When travelling I always go to the panoramic view restaurant, and in Sydney one of those places is the 360 Bar & Dining. The place is on top of Sydney Westfield Centre. A bar, a restaurant, and buffet with an outstanding view of the city.

Champagne and a view
We got some bubbly and nibbles. Chorizo with capsicum and chilli coulis, quite nice, good flavours. Prosciutto with pecorino, fresh and simple. Finally, a tuna tartare with crispy sourdough. All the food was lovely, and the view terrific.

Chorizo
Prosciutto
Tartare
360 Bar & Dining
T: +61 2 8223 3883
Australian Cuisine
Approx Damage: AU$50pp
Area: CBD
Sydney
Twitter: trippaswhite
360 Bar & Dining on Urbanspoon


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Dinner at the Neil Perry’s Place

I had to go to Rockpool in Sydney. I loved the burger in Melbourne so visiting in another Neil Perry’s place was a must. Two restaurants quite close to each other, we ended in the CMLA Building to try Rockpool Bar & Grill.

Rockpool
Postcard
We got a table in the bar to try the burger. Nice atmosphere, dimmed lights, music not to loud, with house rules similar to London's private clubs, over the bar 2682 diesel Riesling glasses chandelier.

The chandelier
We started with arancini with wagyu bolognese and buffalo mozzarella, excellent execution, the bolognese with the melted cheese was pretty nice. Then a chorizo with pimientos de padron slider, amazing flavour, the aioli with the spicy chorizo flavour was beautiful, in my opinion even better than the brindisa one in borough market.

Arancini
Slider
Finally the burger, the David Blackmore's full blood Wagyu burger with bacon, Gruyere cheese, and Zuni pickles. Great flavour, juicy, perfectly cooked, the bacon was British style, meaty not crunchy but sliced thinner. A great burger!


Burger time
Full Wagyu
Rockpool Bar & Grill
T: +61 2 8078 1900
Australian cuisine
Approx Damage: AU$50pp
Area: CBD
Sydney
Twitter: rockpoolgroup
Rockpool Bar & Grill on Urbanspoon


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More Bits and Pieces in CBD [On The Road: Brisbane]

The dingo ate your baby!
Elaine Benes (Seinfeld episode “The Stranded”)

I still have some posts from Brisbane I want to share. Similar to my previous take on bits and pieces this is quick highlight with hits and misses in my restaurant excursions.

The one Public

Oh my god! Public is amazing! One of my favourite spots in CBD. Sincerely I could write a long post as everything I tried was absolutely fantastic. Great décor, alternative place, the menu is based on dishes to share, great musical ambience not too loud not silence, high ceilings giving a sensation of space. Top marks, a must go. Awarded one chef hat by Australian Good Food Guide.


Public Bunny
The must try are the KFD, great excellent seasoning the herbs of the battered Duck just brilliant. The prawn and chorizo, the sauce is to die for and a really nice combination. Wagyu just awesome. Ribs are Chinese style, nice flavour just like the ones I used to have back home, however, still they lacked something, probably not marinated enough to develop flavour. Toast and duck egg amazing, this is a must seriously, great flavour, the runny egg perfectly cooked. The skins were actually wedges, so if you are from Texas be aware.


Toast and duck egg
Fried Duck
Public
T: +61 7 3210 2288
Modern European
Approx Damage: AU$70pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Public on Urbanspoon


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The one by the River

Alchemy is a posh dinning, dim lights, nice view of the river. We were a big group but the service was all over the place. We got starters and don't order mains, they started to pour wine and then halfway through they stopped without any reason. Food recommended. Two chef hats by AGFG.


Alchemy
Highlights are the scallops with foie gras and Jerusalem artichoke foam, perfectly cooked nice balance, the artichoke foam was lovely. Fresh natural oyster and sautéed chorizo with tarragon tomato vinaigrette, nice and fresh. Veal blanquette with morel velouté herb gnocchi and truffle glaze, awesome perfectly cooked excellent balance great flavours. Finally the liquid nitrogen nibbles, Tuscan ice tea, honey crumbs, apple and cinnamon, great and fun to watch.


Liquid Nitrogen time
Frozen nibbles
Alchemy
T: +61 7 3229 3175
Modern Australian
Approx Damage: AU$90pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Twitter: Alchemy_Bris
Alchemy Restaurant and Bar on Urbanspoon


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The one Famiglia

Pane e Vino is a friendly, noisy, and simple family style busy Italian in CBD. It was conveniently located at the corner of my hotel. Food was nice, tasty, and good value.


Pane Dining
Try the zucchini fritters, excellent flavour, nicely battered, the tomato sauce was homemade. The gnocchi gorgonzola was excellent, full of flavour. I would avoid the calamari, not my favourite, flavour ok, battered not consistent.


Squid ink risotto
Pane e Vino
T: +61 7 3220 0044
Italian Cuisine
Approx Damage: AU$40pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Twitter: paneevinobris
Pane E Vino on Urbanspoon


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The one with all the Fish

Jellyfish, as you imagine a seafood place. Busy, noisy, hectic, but the food is spectacular. This place was favourite with most of my colleagues, more than 8 daily different fresh fish, you can choose your fish, tell them how to cook it, and then the sauce or sides. They also had an offer on Friday to try small portions of five different fishes. One chef hat by AGFG


Jellyfish
As starter the calamari with chorizo and jalapeños was superb, perfectly cooked, and the flavours were spot on. The scallops are lovely and the boconcini with tomato and pesto was nice, fresh, and a great pesto. I got a sword fish perfectly cooked and the recommended sauce was brilliant.


Swordfish
Jellyfish
T: +61 7 3220 2202
Seafood
Approx Damage: AU$55pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Twitter: JellyfishRest
Jellyfish Restaurant on Urbanspoon


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The one in the Euro

The Euro a really lovely place a bit relax, part of a series of restaurants under the same kitchen and roof including a bar Laneway and a fine dining Urbane. European influences as you can imagine, great service and outstanding food. Two chef hats by AGFG.


Euro
The Moreton bay bug chowder with brioche fennel and tarragon was a piece of art, presentation was spot on, flavours all there, creamy and crunchy textures, the bugs were amazing, the buttered toasted bread created a perfect balance, an explosion of flavours, it is the best chowder I have ever had. Pumpkin ravioli with sage amaretti crumble, and goats cheese was awesome, the pumpkin ravioli outstanding, the sauce a type of purée just great, the crumble gave crunchiness, and the cheese a nice contrast to the sweetness of the dish. Mackerel and chorizo croquettes were full of flavour, work perfectly with the tomato sauce, the fennel seeds, and chilli to die for. Spaner crab linguini with Parmesan, rocket, and lemon, delicate combination, spicy notes from chillies, pasta al dente, lovely.


Bug Chowder
Pumpkin ravioli
The Euro
T: +61 7 3229 3686
Modern European
Approx Damage: AU$80pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Twitter: TheEuroBrisbane
The Euro on Urbanspoon


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The one fancy Italian

Il Centro is a bright white Italian restaurant, good beer and wine selection, the beer I got was ice cold just how I was used to have it before moving to England. The owner Marcia Georges is Greek by heritage but Italian by heart you can have her ebook for free. The daily specials were in an old fashion blackboard with the waiter taking it to the table. Two chef hats by AGFG


Specials
My favourite their signature the sand crab lasagne, it was brilliant. Nice flavours, a huge portion for a starter. The scaloppine di vitello with carbonara fettucini was a nice dish, I loved the combination of meat with pasta, the carbonara was perfect, the scaloppine not as good as the pasta, the parmesan bread crust was nice, but overall a bit bland they didn't offer Parmesan cheese for the pasta which is a no-no for me. I wouldn't mind a bit more of pasta as it was superb.


Lasagna
Odd enough the starter was a bit oversize then the main was normal size, so both dishes were quite similar in size.

Il Centro
T: +61 7 3231 6090
Italian Cuisine
Approx Damage: AU$70pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Twitter: IlCentroRest
Il Centro on Urbanspoon


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The one Belgian [Closed]

The Belgian Beer Café, a classic Belgian style pub, old memorabilia, posters of Belgian beers, great selection of artisanal and boutique beers. I got a quack, just the glass where is served is worth try it. The pink elephant much better, the wine aged one didn't like it not my kind of flavour.


BBC
Moules and fries it is the way to go. Fresh and pretty good ones, I got the Roquefort combination, not too overpowering the flavour, fries nicely done.


Kwak time
Moules
Belgian Beer Cafe
T: +61 7 3221 0199
European Cuisine
Approx Damage: AU$50pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Belgian Beer Café on Urbanspoon


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Just Two [On The Road: Brisbane]

August seventeen, nineteen-ninety-two. The same dress! She never changes! Oh my god. She's got to have hundreds of these dresses 

Jerry Seinfelde (Seinfeld episode “The Seven”) 

Restaurant Two, located in 2 Edward Street, with 2 chef hats from Australian Good Food Guide, probably you’ve already identified a pattern here. The place is amazing, high ceilings, wood floors, modern, minimalistic, and the building The Old Mineral House is Heritage listed. A modern Australian menu, created by chef David Pugh, and an excellent wine list. 

Two
Sofa
Our Table
We went a big group and share some starters. To start we got an amuse bouche, the duck pheasant and game terrine, really nice, good start to build up. 

Terrine
For starters I shared with a colleague a selection of 3 starter. Soft Shell Crab Tempura was amazing. Perfectly battered the soft shell crab, and great flavor with the tomato, the crushed avocado, and a lemon mayo that was to die for. Then Hervey Bay scallops, really nice, good balance, perfectly cocked, a touch of wasabi cream creating a nice the contrast with the chicken wing confit and Eggplant, nice balance, unbelievable that chicken wings and scallops work fine together. The third starter was the ocean king prawn saute and chorizo, another success. Excellent flavour, best of the night for sure, the piquillo pepper and chorizo giving Spanish flavours, in combination with the saffron arancini, in herb and garlic cream to complete the dish.

Soft shell crab
Scallops
King prawns
Also had the chance to take a couple bites of another starter, the Noosa Spanner Crab risotto with lemon foam. It was amazing, the presentation spot on, and full of flavour.

Risotto
Pan roasted lamb rack and braised shank with Indian spices, smoked eggplant, baba ganoush, tomato chutney, onion, and rocket. A perfect ending for the meal, the shank was spectacular, tender, a great dish.

Lamb
A beautiful meal in a lovely place

Restaurant Two
T: +61 7 3210 0600
Modern Australian
Approx Damage: AU$70pp
Area: CBD
Brisbane
Twitter: RestaurantII
Restaurant Two on Urbanspoon


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