Uninspiring pub grub at O'Connells

One thing I miss about living in London is the pubs.  London pubs have a great sense of history and often you can get a really good meal at them.  Most Melbourne pubs have the emphasis firmly on the booze rather than the food but one pub which has consistently set itself apart as a "gastro pub" is O'Connell's in South Melbourne.

O'Connells looks pretty fancy these days

O'Connell's has just been renovated and the menu revamped so my sister's birthday was the perfect excuse to revisit it for a family lunch.  Wood panelled walls painted dark grey give a sense of theatre to the pub and crisp linens and shining glassware signal that you are not in any ordinary watering hole.  The prices of the drinks are also a bit of a giveaway, order anything other than a Carlton Draught ($4.50) and you will find yourself paying a whopping $8.50 for something like an Asahi.  That's an expensive beer!  

There's a parma hiding there somewhere behind the undercooked chips at O'Connell's

There are now two menus - one for the restaurant proper and a more simple bar menu.  We ate outside because it was a sunny day and so were limited to the bar menu.  The bar menu mainly sticks to classic pub grub like burgers, pies and steaks, all reasonably priced.  Unfortunately these classics were not perfectly executed.  The main problem was the accompanying fat chips which came with each meal.  They hadn't been cooked enough and were a pale yellow instead of bronzed, crisp and fluffy inside. 

Inside O'Connell's

The chicken schnitzel ($24) was dry and slightly rubbery and the steak ($28), while perfectly cooked to medium rare with a smoky char from the wood fired grill, was pretty tiny weighing in at 200 grams.

The pie at O'Connell's - sadly let down by the accompanying chips

The best dish on the bar menu was the pie of the day ($20) which was beef, slow cooked until it fell apart at the fork.  Topped with a hat of burnished puff pastry it delivered where the other dishes did not.  While O'Connell's now certainly looks like a serious gastro pub the food at the bar menu doesn't live up to its reputation.  

Essentials

Details: O'Connell's, Cnr Coventry and Montague Streets, South Melbourne (Ph 03 9699 9600) 

Damage:  Reasonable. 

5/10

Itali.Co

Nutella pizza where have you been all my life? Of course I've seen dessert pizzas on menus around town but I had never been tempted to try one until I was invited along to a dinner for bloggers and journalists at newly opened Itali.Co in St Kilda.  All those nutella pizzas I haven't eaten over the years? Big mistake by me.  Huge mistake.

Nutella pizza at Itali Co 

Huxtaburger opens in the city

I didn't ever think I would miss the feeling of being hungover.  That queasy sensation and the pounding headache is no fun at all but it does give you a great excuse for a burger, fries and a coke.  My current state of non-hungover existence meant I had no good reason to rush into Huxtaburger as soon as it opened its doors in the city. But it's testament to Huxtaburger's burgers that I did.  They are still brilliant even when you are fresh as a daisy.

Huxtaburger has opened in the CBD

Nobu

I've wanted to go to Nobu for quite a while but the price has always been a bit of a barrier.  So I was quick to jump on board the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival's Express Lunch deal at Nobu to try out the restaurant for a bargain $40 for two courses with a glass of wine.

Kingfish sashimi at Nobu

Anada

Living in Melbourne a good air-conditioning system is not top of my wish list for restaurants but the past few weeks have made it an issue all of a sudden.  On a normal night I would have loved eating at Gertrude tapas bar Anada.  But on a stinking hot Saturday night in the midst of a heat wave it was not a pleasant experience despite the excellent food.  The restaurant only has two fans and a tiny air conditioner down the back.   With one fan broken even Stephanie Alexander who was eating at an adjoining table was begging for cool air (yes I was star struck).

Jamon at Anada

Acland St Cantina

Could Melbourne be over its love affair with Mexican food? About this time last year it seemed that opening a Mexican restaurant was a licence to print money.  We couldn't get enough of tacos, burritos and of course tequila.  The popularity of the so called "Mexican wave" of Mexican restaurants was such that none of them took bookings and if you had to queue to get in.  But when I headed into Melbourne's newest Mexican joint, Acland St Cantina, I was pretty surprised by how quiet it was.

Nachos at Acland St Cantina

Baby Cafe and Pizzeria

Oh Baby! You've become a bit of a regular thing for me.  I do live close by and I've come to appreciate eating on your terrace in the sunshine as the Church street traffic hums past or sitting perched up at your bar and watching the chefs at work.  I even enjoy using your toilets just to laugh at the learning Italian tape that plays on permanent repeat and which my sister thought was your staff nattering away in Italian.

Prosciutto pizza at Baby 

Candied Bakery

On a sunny Sunday afternoon I decided to take a road trip to Melbourne's newest bakery.  Windows down and tennis on the radio I headed across the Westgate Bridge and... stopped.  There was no driving off into the sunset for me because Candied Bakery has opened up in Spotswood right at the very foot of the Westgate.

Helloooo honey joy cheesecake

Trocadero

I'm going to start at the end when I'm writing about Trocadero.  I know it's a little backwards of me but the desserts are really so brilliant at this new brasserie style restaurant that they deserve top billing.  Whatever you do make sure you don't over order and run out of room or run out of time for dessert as it is so good it should be compulsory at Trocadero.

Chocolate pudding with milk toffee ice-cream at Trocadero

Three best places for Vietnamese street food in Melbourne

The sort of food you buy on the side of the street in Vietnam and eat sitting perched on tiny plastic stools is pretty popular in Melbourne right now.  I'm not talking about your traditional Vietnamese restaurants along Victoria street in Richmond or out in little Saigon in Footscray, but instead the new wave of stylishly decked out no bookings places where people queue out the door for rice paper rolls or a soft shell crab salad.  They're a modern take on hawker style food and it seems like Melbourne can't get enough of them.  Here are my tips for the best places to go:

The Builders Arms

If you remember The Builders Arms back in the day you will be pretty surprised by its transformation.  Its the most recent addition to Gertrude street by the prolific McConnell brothers, this time it is Andrew behind the new look pub.  No longer a true boozer the place is all polished up although the bistro itself is pared back and very minimalist withe the only real decoration being some neon installations on the walls.  The new look comes at a cost and you get stung on the drink prices but the food is top notch quality and offers an interesting twist on the usual pub food.  

Fish pie at The Builders Arms

Stokehouse Cafe reopens

There's a Josper in Melbourne! Josper (pronouced H-osper) is a Spanish super hot charcoal oven.  When I left London they were the latest thing with top restaurants like Hawksmoor and Heston Blumenthal's Dinner featuring Jospers and now we have one in Melbourne thanks to the extreme makeover which has been given to downstairs at The Stokehouse, now called the Stokehouse Cafe.

View from Stokehouse Cafe

Hutong Dumpling Bar

It's all about the dumpling at Hutong Dumpling Bar.  Walk in the door and through a glass window you can spy the chefs forming rows and rows of perfectly pleated dumplings.  It's impossible not to order some of these little beauties and any fanaticism about dumplings all becomes clear when you try Hu Tong's xia long bao (XLB for short).  The gossamer thin wrappers ooze hot soup when you bite into them ($11.80).

Captain Melville

Bushrangers are back! Captain Melville is the newest place in the city housed in Melbourne's oldest pub.  The old bluestone building was most recently called Mac's hotel but has been reinvented as Captain Melville, named after one of Victoria's most notorious bushrangers.

Slow cooked lamb in brik pastry at Captain Melville

Bess Richmond

Everyone needs a good local restaurant.  It needs to be the type of place that is a short walk or drive away and you can turn up without a reservation with a good chance of getting a table.  It can't be too expensive so that it doesn't have to be a special occasion to head there.  Since moving to Richmond two months ago that place for me has been Bess.

Angel hair pasta with seafood at Bess

Rockwell and Sons

It's Wednesday which means the week is halfway through and also its fried chicken day at Rockwell and Sons, one of the newer addition to the Smith Street restaurant strip.  The restaurant is stripped back and bare with exposed brick walls and bare tables, it looks a bit like a bachelor pad where nobody has bothered to finish decorating or to put up any photos.

The spread for fried chicken Wednesday at Rockwell and Sons - Picture thanks to Joyce at Mel Hot or Not

Brooks of Melbourne

Ignoring the increasingly casual dining scene in Melbourne and the city's penchant for no bookings Nicholas Poelaert has opened a proper, old school restaurant complete with white linen tablecloths.  Brooks is located in the heart of the city in the glamorous basement restaurant which once housed Greg Malouf's MoMo and Jamie Oliver's Fifteen.  

Chicken parfait at Brooks

Ladro

Most Thursday nights I spend collapsed on the couch with a glass of wine watching reruns of Modern Family.  But last night I had a very active Thursday and spent my evening at Ladro checking out their new menu by new chef Niko Pizzimenti before heading off to see Mumford and Sons' Melbourne gig.

The entrance to Ladro in Greville Street

Seoul Soul

I was pretty excited when Seoul Soul opened its doors on Victoria street.  What could be better than a decent Korean barbecue restaurant in Melbourne? Bring on the kimchi and bibimbap.  My first impressions were also good with the slick interior design immediately setting Seoul Soul apart from its neighbours. Architect turned owner Insu Kim has given the tiny restaurant an industrial feel, with white tiled walls, raw concrete floors, wire light fittings and table top grills dominating the restaurant.  

Kimchi at Seoul Soul

Virginia Plain

It's funny how your experience paying the bill can make such a difference at a restaurant. I've been to Virginia Plains, the latest restaurant to open in Melbourne's Flinders Lane dining hot spot, twice now.  I came away with a bit of a different take on the place both times mainly because on my first visit to celebrate the launch of the new website and TV show Love To Share, the kind people at Love To Share shouted the bill (check out the show on Saturdays if you haven't already), while on my second visit with a group of my girlfriends I paid for myself.

Scallops and black pudding at Virginia Plain