Sunday 24 June 2012

Feast, 6010

Feast is like a celebration of nature's harvest. Bowls of roast root vegetables and sprite, leafy greens. Spiced legumes, picked herbs and grainy nuts and seeds; all in wholesome and vivid array!


Feast offer plenty in the way of gluten free, vegetarian and healthy wholefoods. They have the best array of lentil/chickpea/tuna patties and salads around.

Tuna pattie and mix salads

Everything sings fresh, varietal and good for your heart!

Chickpea pattie and mix of salads
There is a bit of room for improvement at Feast. Coffee is passable but would not stand a chance against some of my cafe favourites. Prices don't match up to the experience either - $17-$19 for a pattie and some salad is a bit much. The strangely small, rectangular tables, are a mystery too me too.  I wouldn't recommend bringing a laptop for a working lunch here, for this reason.


On the other hand; the cakes and bakes are fairly special. Delightful selection of sweets, obviously made from scratch. 

Average coffee, sorry

Food: 3.5/5
Coffee: 2.5/5
Ambience: 2/5

Feast on Urbanspoon






Wednesday 20 June 2012

Good Fortune Roast Duck House, 6003

Commonly referred to as "the one with the roast ducks hanging in the window", this Chinese eating house is a Northbridge/William St. and possibly a Perth institution. And one I took too long to try!


Golden, perfectly glazed ducks signal commuters inside. If you find this visual off-putting, taste the duck here and then you will find the sight of bronzed bird carcases extremely inviting.  

 
    
So if you hadn't got the hints yet - order DUCK. And please, please order the Peking Duck pancake. They're like a Chinese version of soft shell tacos. Every element just sings in perfect harmony - the warm lightly doughy pancake bread, the juicy duck flesh, perfectly crisped skin, spring onion, fresh quench of cucumber; all married with the delicious sweet Hoi Sin sauce -BAM! This stuff is gooooddd. $17.50 gets you 5 pancakes. We shared those between the two of us. If you're dining with a group of 5 - I advise you to order a second serve. No regrets.

Peking Duck Pancake

We also got the Salt and Pepper Soft Crab ($24). Our first introduction to the soft shell crab and I was totally sold. I've ordered soft shell crab twice whilst out, since trying it here the other week. Good Fortune make it delicately crunchy, salty and set it on a bed of chopped onions, lettuce and green chilli. Nom! 

Salt and Pepper soft shell crab

The restaurant itself is fairly small but lively and was not short of tables of Chinese patrons chowing down plates of roast duck. There's a large shared table inside and tall hatted chefs hack away at meat carcasses by the window. The lighting is stereotypically bright and the wall decorations included some daggy framed photographs of Joondalup Resort (???) I love the picture of the resort golf course with white ducks on the green. All these elements make for a novel dining experience. Not to be missed.

Peking Duck Pancakes $17.50 for 5
Awesome!

Food: 4.5/5
Ambience: 4/5
Service: 4/5

Good Fortune Roast Duck House on Urbanspoon

Tuesday 19 June 2012

Quinlan's on High, 6160

I was actually en route to another lunch cafe on High Street when the words "Vegie delight" and "$6.50" grabbed my attention. One of the young waiters persuaded me inside and set me up with cutlery, napkin and cold water.

Vegie Delight...with chicken $6.50

Quinlan's on High is staffed by hospitality students, so service is diligent and you get all the little details akin to a fine dining experience - pressed napkins, smartly dressed waiters, complimentary bread and side salad and table centre pieces - without the cost. Some of this stuff and the decor is a bit naff and the menu is a little trial and error but these things make Quinlan's lovable. Lovable like a mutty dog. It's also nice to feel properly waited on when your lunch is the cost of a simple sandwhich.



The best part is that just about everything on the menus under $10. You can get easy thing like wraps, soups, nachos and sandwhiches but they also have daily special board with hot cooked meals like my "Veg Delight" which actually had chicken in it (haha). The dish was a bit confused - one part chickpea curry and one part vegetable Ratatouille...with chicken skewer kebabs - but it tasted pretty damn yummy and at $6.50, you really cannot get picky!

I recommend Quinlan's for a quick lunch in Freo when you want a change form your everyday sandwhich. Excellent value, for sure.

Food: 3/5
Ambience: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Value: 5/5

Quinlan's on High on Urbanspoon

Monday 11 June 2012

Red Cray Seafood & Grill, 6104

I'll get straight to the point - Red Cray is probably my favourite seafood restaurant in Perth. The seafood is always cooked perfectly and supremely fresh. Consistency is excellent. The dishes aren't the most inventive but they're still quality. Red Cray is a restaurant that would please a gourmand snob (aka yours truly) as well as it would a foodie simpleton.



In addition to the excellent people in the kitchen; the floor staff en pointe too. Everyone greets you as you enter and acknowledge you as you leave. Wine glasses are kept topped and tables are laid with acute attention detail.

Seafood platter $75
Garlic butter prawns






















The decor only 'attempts' at stylish, but there is still a quiet elegance about the place at night. The location is less than desirable- on Great Eastern Highway, which makes parking a bit of a hassle, but I like that this area doesn't attract the same hoity-toity clientele (or prices) that seafood restaurants in the coastal suburbs bring. Red Cray is comfortable classy.

King Snapper, broccollini, vine roasted tomatoes and croquettes $32
Steak special...can't remember what exactly but it was ridiculous!

Booking is essential at Red Cray - they have quite a reputation. I also recommend for food, treat yourself and order the shared platter, $75: garlic prawns, chilli mussels, natural oysters, fried calamari, scollops, battered fish, grilled fish and chips. Unbelievably good value. The platter defeated two grown men at my table. I think I could get through this with the help of three girlfriends, to give you an idea. 

Fish of the day
If you don't like seafood there are plenty alternative options too, but you really must order seafood!

Food: 4.5/5
Service: 4.5/5
Ambience: 4/5

Red Cray Seafood & Grill Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Sunday 10 June 2012

Cafe 55, 6160

A satisfying power lunch for under $12 in Freo? Hello, Cafe 55

The name says; 'predictable coffee shop', but what you'll really find are tasty Asian style lunches for the time deprived. Steaming bowls of Pho, $11 (go so well with Winter) and fresh, tangled 'Buns' (Summer choice). Western transation: rice noodle soups and salads.

 


Also for lunch you can grab a ready-made Asian salad, rice paper rolls ($6.50) and simple, yet sustaining three component Viet meals, like lemongrass chicken or pork cutlets served with a mound of steamed rice and chopped salad.

 

I give the rice paper rolls about a 6/10 but you can't go wrong with a brothy Pho or a creamy Cafe 55 Laksa!

Food: 4/5
Ambience: 2/5
Value: 4.5/5
Service: 4/5

Cafe 55 on Urbanspoon

Saturday 2 June 2012

Piccolo's Corner, 6007

I adore this lovable breed of cafe. Corner delis-cum-cafes just ooze cuteness, character and privacy. Especially when they're situated in a quiet, leafy suburban street like this one.


Piccolo's until recently was Charlie's Corner; a step-up from a local convenient store that served barista coffees and tea. The new owners have maximised the small square of land and given it a pretty fix up. There's an all day brunch menu with a couple of inspired options such as "Smashed Pumpkin with pesto and poached egg on toast" as well as some lovely cakes and savoury tarts. Piccolo's make a tribute to the milk bar confections from old Charlie's in an attractive display of glassware. 

Self-service candy  
Woolwich St.

I tried a slice of moist orange cake on my first visit and yesterday I had a slice of Spanakopita - a Greek savory pastry filled with spinach and cheese. The Spanakopita was lightly lemony and topped with some nutty basil pesto. My friend spoke fondly of her smashed pumpkin breakfast. You can see much love goes into the cooking.

Smashed pumpkin, egg, basil pesto on ciabatta

I was also very pleased with my better-than-token side salad of baby spinach, grape tomatoes, pear and parmesan.

Apple, celery, ginger juice
Spanakopita and side salad























The food is good but the greatest privilege at Piccolo's Corner is it's serene location and charming courtyard. A perfect place for a quiet coffee, whether you're alone with some reading material or are plus one.

Courtyard

Orange cake
Short mac with a cheeky marbled marshmallow

I read another blog that called this cafe "very Perth".  She is so right - Piccolo's is perfectly, picturesquely Perth.

Food: 4/5
Ambience: 5/5
Service: 3/5


Piccolo's Corner on Urbanspoon

Friday 1 June 2012

Source Foods, 6000

In a word: fresh. In two words: wholesome and fresh. In three: hearty, wholesome and fresh.

T Burger

Source are champions of the low food miles concept and I love it. All produce is bought from the nearest source possible (Ah, I just got the name now!) and meals are reproduced as close to their original, raw form. Yes there's lots of colourful vegetarian and vegan options but the dishes are hearty and you wont notice they're removed of meat (the bean quesadilla is a little bit awesome!). Don't be mistaken - Source are not exclusively vegetarian; they make some mean beef burgers too!


My favourites at Source are the Satay Tofu burger and the T Burger. The T stands for tempeh - a less processed version of tofu, derived from soybeans. The texture of the unprocessed soya beans give it a hearty and satisfying taste. I just love this burger! Stacked high with mixed lettuce, grated carrot, fresh tomato, roasted beeteroot and the best caramelised onions; this monster is then wedged between two soft, organic buns and some homemade hommus. It is one of my favourite lunches. This burger is on the menu ever day.


T, dissected

The satay burger is rarer to come by, but you can get it on Friday nights when Source lives its double life as a burger bar. These burgers are my favourite of all the burger joints I've tried in Perth (I've tried A LOT), mainly because they're just so fresh and overflowing with nutritious produce.

Satay Tofu Burger - you wont want it to end

Breakfast is also delicious as well as quite generous for the price. Coffee won't knock the socks off a connoisseur but its certainly nothing to complain about either!

Vego breakfast - toast with hommus, tomato, shrooms, spinach and great home style beans

The services is genuinely friendly, the cafe is drenched with light and the furnishings pared back and raw - much like the philosophy on food. The cafe has passed through a few different owners since its foundation but quality has't waned. If anything, it's gotten better.


T Burger

I love Source.

Food: 5/5
Service: 4/5
Ambience: 4/5

Source Foods Cafe on Urbanspoon

Rochelle Adonis, 6003

Rochelle Adonis is  swank high tea for the contemporary lady of leisure. Whilst the chandeliers, flower arrangements, traditional teas and vintage crockery have persisted; the edibles do not conform to a conventional English High Tea one bit. There is not a scone or quiche Lorraine in sight. The kitchen rotate a set-menu selection of 4 savoury and 4 sweet nibbles with a palate cleansing interlude. It's $45 pp and includes unlimited tea and coffee.


So just what magnificent treats can you expect from this modernized High Tea? Be delighted. To start we had some delicate cucumber and dill sandwiches, crusts removed/ Naturally.

                       

The savoury dishes comprised 1. A very fancy dolmades  served with a saffron aioli; 2. Asian mushroom money bag on a small bed of Asian style salad of mint, coriander, chilli and lime; 3. Warm creamed pea soup shooter and 4. Pork belly morsel served on pork rillette, wafer thin dried apple and some sort of quince tasting jelly. The pork was my favourite.

Clockwise from left: dolmades, pea soup shooter, pork and mushroom money bag


Bridging savoury to sweets was a refreshing scoop of watermelon and strawberry sorbet served in the most regal of silver spoons that looked as if made specially for this purpose.

Watermelon and strawberry sorbet

Rochelle Adonis is famed for her desserts and you might recognise some of her cabinet goodies from the counters at Cantina 663 and other cafes in the Highgate/Northbridge/Mt Lawley area. To sweets is where the most dedication is given.

Take home confections
The Dessert tier....

Served in an Asian soup spoon was a magical wedge of coal covered pineapple with possibly an Earl Grey? mousse. Of the flavour I can’t be sure, but one thing is for certain – it tasted amazing! Like a pandan/coconut flavour infused into a voluptuous cream.


The next was a sort of ‘Eton mess’ style pot with flavours of the Middle East – cardamon, pomegranate and rose – gorgeous!


The least impressive of the sweets was the layered chocolate cake. On its own I would have thought it quite excellent but it was overshadowed by the other sugary masterpieces.


The most delectable thing to reach my lips was this piece of heaven – the peach gallete. Perfectly puffed puff pastry with baked peach and a wicked burnt honey cream – I could have eaten 5!

Ooooh yeah baby. Peach galette with heaven cream

Unfortunately the action didn't match the goods. Our waitress was cold and abrupt and the palpable stress seemed to flow from the kitchen to the table. I would have benefited from some ventilation throughout the space too! This said, I would happily endure a sweaty, high-strung service for those heavenly sweets again!

Food: 4/5
Service: 2.5/5
Ambience: 2.5/5


Rochelle Adonis on Urbanspoon