Attica (Riponlea) 03/201

We're pretty lucky people. We've eaten at eight of what are regarded as the top 50 restaurants in the world - some of them several times. Furthermore we've also eaten at five of the next 50. We have not been to Attica for a while, currently ranked 33, (32 in 2014 and 2015) Last time I went Sandra was unwell and could not join me. Not so this week. 

A lot of the old favourites have gone and it is largely a new menu. Not only is the menu new but also the dining area has been renovated with a thick black carpet and light, more homely walls. 

There is also a new partition and bar all of which help keep the noise level down.  

The menu has an Australian emphasis not only with the meats, pork  jumbuck (lamb) kangaroo marron features too, and also with exotic fruit such as quondong.  The menu, which is available on the internet, is not informative. Even the pic's do not come near to doing the food justice.

Here are the dishes we had.

Cooks leaves 

This moorish dipping sauce came with a small vase containing three different flavoured edible leaves 

The whole thing was delicious.

Aged Santa Claus (Christmas) melon

Another surprise, the melon had been marinated and became semi translucent, very sweet and firm.

ETTNB

Hidden in here was a small tomato with a little flavouring - I don't think it was an errant bug!

Smashed Avo on toast

About what you would expect.

An imperfect history of Ripponlea

Black pudding reminds us of the English, the chicken pie with jellied chicken soup reminds us of the Jewish influence and my history lets me down for the last one. 

Gazza's Vegemite pie

Tasted like vegemite too but not oppressively. 

Chewy carrots

As promised with a beaut. avocado dip

Pork neck

Lance Wifen's mussel

An old favourite.

Beef on the Bone

As promised.

Aromatic Ripponlea broth

A very clear broth but the flavours were bland.

Those were the 'small tastes'

Wattleseed bread came with a flavoursome dip sprinkled with crisp saltbush leaves, butter and Murray river salt too.

Salted Red kangaroo and Bunya Bunya (You could substitute eggplant if you didn't want to eat Skippy)

All parts of the pumpkin

A poor pic of pumpkin cooked in a variety of ways with crunchy pumpkin seeds, and (I think), sunflower seeds

Marron and grilled lettuce

The marron tail was under the lettuce.

Jumbuck, waxflower oil dessert oak

I don't mind if things don't taste what they are to but this didn't taste of anything except it had the texture of stringy meat - my least favourite dish of the night.

Backyard spider

A sort of spider.

Pineapple and anise myrtle

This was cute.

Little cones made up of long thin strips of apple curled around a dob of yogurt, flavoured with tiny crunchy balls of finger lime,

Whipped emu egg with sugar bag

The emu egg shell was filled with a zablione style dessert covering a soft chocolate

Attica Cheftales

A couple of fantales, presented in a glass chicken, with quizzes about chefs. 

All the early dishes were unusual, stimulated interest in what was to come and very enjoyable. the kangaroo the lamb and the pork were a bit disappointing.  there was an emphasis on citrus on to many of the dishes which also detracted from the quality of the meal. Desserts looked nice but the emu egg was a bit pedestrian. 

Nevertheless a vey good meal.

 Score:17.75 /20

Okami (Caulfield North) 03/2017

Okami is one of half a dozen 'all you can eat' Japanese restaurants around Melbourne. The Caulfield venue has been open for about 18 months. It is in a small shopping strip next door to Limors. Whilst Limors has survived decades their neighbours have not fared so well mostly only surviving two or three years. 
Decor is plain with a display of Japanese dolls in the entrance window.

 Table settings are basic,
 

 in a large room with a bar at one side.

 Although Okami believe that fresh and healthy are the keys to success in Japanese restaurants I think presentation is extremely important. In this area I think they could have done much better if they had a more attractive range of crockery, although the food on the dishes was well presented.
This is what we ate:
 Chawan Mushi

This is a savoury egg custard, served warm, it was excellent.
Seafood Tempura

The batter could have been finer.
Katsu Chicken

A nice dish.
Fried Rice

Tasty but very hard to eat from our small dishes, especially with Japanese style chopsticks. 
Chicken Karaage

Small pieces of crispy fried chicken.
Prawn Gyosa

A little doughy but still crisp, moist and tasty.
Deep Fried Calamari

As described but quite soft with no crunch at all.
Vegetable Harumaki

These prawn spring rolls could have been filled with anything, or nothing. I did enjoy the crisp batter and the touch of sweet chili sauce.
Egg Plant Salad

This half a centimetre thick slice had not much egg plant and even less salad. What there was of it was quite nice.
Sushi and Sashimi Platter

Rather ordinary. The rice was a little too sticky.
Green Tea, Sesame and Vanilla Ice Cream

Comment: This place offers very good value for good eaters at $32.8 for adults, $29.8 for seniors and $18 for kids 12 and under. They also offer BYO wine and have some beers, wines and sake at reasonable prices.
The word Okami means wolf in Japanese. Unfortunately the Japanese wolf became extinct in 1905. We hope this modern incarnation does not follow in their footsteps.
Score:13.5 /20

Romeo's (Toorak) 03/2017

This long standing Italian restaurant is very popular with locals, and for good reason. They serve unpretentious sound meals provided with efficient and friendly service starting from breakfast until late at night.
We really only wanted to have a flounder - again.
There is a choice of side dishes and we selected a couple of salads. A Greek salad with fetta,

 and a mango and walnut creation.

The flounder was served with a choice too - I chose mash but could have had chips or vegetables.
The fish was nicely prepared, the lemon butter sauce excellent, tartar was also available.

It was, to use the expression of the print journalists, a 'go to dish'
Nothing fancy, nothing tricked up, just a really good meal in a warm and friendly atmosphere and the price was just a tad more than the equivalent dish at the Rosstown Hotel Bistro but so much nicer.
Score:13.75 /20

Rosstown Hotel Bistro (Carnegie) 03/2017

 

We used to come here quite frequently and I am surprised that we seem never to have reviewed it. We especially liked their grilled flounders which were substantial, and the self serve salad and dessert bars. It's a pub restaurant and used to have the typical large blackboard with the menu options over the kitchen servery where orders were taken and one took a table number.

 

That's all changed although the room is as before there is now a number on each table and orders are placed at the bar. 

 

Drinks are also ordered at the bar on a separate tab to the food. A waitperson 
then delivers the dishes to the table.
We started with a mushroom soup which needed the addition of the greater part of a glass of water to get the salt level down to acceptable. Even the crunchy bread was salty.

It did have some mushroom in it - I could see it but I couldn't taste it.
The main act was the traditional grilled flounder, described in the menu as big, perhaps to justify the $39.50 price tag. It came with one side salad, vegetables or chips.
 

Regretably it also came drenched in a sweet, fresh tomato sauce, with an extra little pot if you wanted it. We had asked for tartare which was forgotten. When we did get it it was also surprisingly sweet too!

Vegetables were crisp, which I like and very coarsely cut which I don't like. The medium size fish was good but spoiled by the unavoidable dressing. Chips were unexceptional.

I stole a snap of a hamburger at the next table.

Topped with onion rings that looked pretty good, I didn't ask though. Unfortunately the Bistro did not live up to expectations. In fact, for us it was an awful meal and prices are only little below those of much much better restaurants. The Hotel of the Year award is undated, I wonder when they got it. It certainly is no gastro-pub.

Score: 13/20

Masons of Bendigo (Bendigo - Central. Victoria) 03/2017

When I called to reserve a table for one they told me that there was only one table for one and it was already reserved. I said OK I'll be happy to sit at a table for two. They did not laugh. Anyway I called when I arrived in Bendigo and, although fully booked they had a place at the bar which was fine with me. It occupies a simply furnished long room with a bar and open kitchen taking up most of one side, where chef's work really hard to get food out on time,

and ceiling high shelves offering a range of high end products. 

I was particularly struck by Persian Fairy Floss imported from Persia. Stuff that would have sold for the equivalent of, perhaps, 50 cents when I was a child now sells for over $24 here. It's clearly a free market. The identical product sell at the upmarket supermarket Leo's in Kew for less than $11!! They're proud of their achievements, featuring a Tourism award at the end of the bar.

The menu at Mason's is extensive, with "Savoury Bites" and larger dishes described very fully with a range of fairly exotic ingredients, many with Japanese emphasis such as green sicho salad, sichimi mayonnaise, soy bean butter, smoked miso butter and other Asian specialties.
Bread and butter, which were both delicious, as is so often the case, came early.

My first course, out of a selection of 15 very interesting looking offerings, was hand dived Port Phillip bay scallops, cauliflower,Goulburn trout, Yarra Valley salmon pearls, saltbush.

Artistically presented it was an extremely pleasing start to the meal giving a wide range of flavours and textures on the one plate. The scallops were a little small and not really the hero of the dish with so many excellent competing ingredients.
From the 10 larger dishes I selected the spit roasted Camboer goat shoulder, smoked hommus, freekah tabouleh, wild figs, tzatziki.

Another piece of art on a plate the shoulder sat on a bed of freekah and hommus and was guarded by a couple of crisp maple leaves on each side. A bit hard and dry on the outside the goat was succulent and very tender under that hard exterior. This came about because it had been slow cooked overnight and then roasted "on demand". The down side of this style of cooking is the loss of texture during the slow cooking process. The richness of the dish was slightly relieved by the figs but I felt it needed more of them, there were only two, or perhaps something like pomegranate. Close to being a fine dish, for me it just missed the mark.
It would be unfair to judge this restaurant too much on the basis of a look at the menu and two dishes and I hope to come back to it to try something else before too long. It looks like it has serious potential as an excellent restaurant. 
I also supported the local industry, just a little, with a pleasing glass of Shiraz from the Heathcote area! 
Score: 14/20

Ôter (Melbourne CBD) 032017

I don't much care for basement restaurants that rely on you knowing their address to find them without the aid of signage. The last one we went to, a few months ago, was the Michelin star Kyo Ya in Manhattan. ( http://1001dinners.blogspot.com.au/2017/02/kyo-ya-east-village-manhattan-012017.html ) I was very uncomfortable until I found the entrance there but it was well worth it. 
Ôter also has no signage. It is a French word with a general meaning to remove or take away although it can be used in many senses as can the English expression for example in arithmetic 10 take away six equals four or in making nonsense of something, taking away the sense of it and so on. In gastronomy I find it a bit of a stretch perhaps being used in the sense of getting down to the basics, taking away the unnecessary. Make of it what you will. Certainly the venue is pretty basic and so is the table setting

and furniture.

Menu's are very hard to interpret so, as usual we chose the chef's choice of five courses ($95)
Bread was excellent, served with radish, Murray river salt (I think)and butter. 

Our first course was mussels with leek and sea weed. A tiny serve, the mussels cut into small pieces, it was rather bland. $4 on the menu, as was the next dish.
Chicken wings and hot sauce. 

 

Another tiny serve, the mouthful of chicken, one per person, was succulent and the sauce not palate destroying hot but oh so little. 

This was followed by Red Emperor crudo, buttermilk in dill oil. Clearly Japanese influenced but failed to excite. The fish had not been sliced the way a Japanese chef would do it and the dill was almost undetectable in the oil. 

Next we were served braised eggplant, almond gaspaco, I always thought that was a Spanish soup, with espelette pepper. 

This was a truly boring dish with no almond taste at all and only saved a tiny bit by the crunchy texture of the little bits of sesame biscuit on top. 

The next dish was flounder with spinach, lemon puree and champagne cream.

This tiny fillet, you could easily get eight of them of one fish, was served belly up to two of us and belly down, black skin, to two of us. The texture of the fish is different on each side and we should have all had the same thing. It was nicely cooked but the champagne sauce did nothing for it. Just OK but again a small serve.

Korobuta pork neck, confit celariac, lardo

also came with an indifferent sauce. The neck was tasty and I enjoyed it although others at the table were indifferent.

The last course was an opera cake which we had to share, two slices for four of us! 

It was the best course of the meal but a mean serve.

Service was pleasant but our waitress could not make herself understood and we had to resort to looking at the menu so see what we were eating.

Tea and coffee, they only have espresso or long black! came in two parts - one coffee arrived 10 minutes after the other drinks!!

Wines are heavily marked up. We did enjoy a Dalwinnie 2013 shiraz ($120)

Comments. Unfortunately, for us Ôter left out a lot to be desired. There was no Wow factor to be found.
Score: 13.5/20