Bill & Toni's just fine

The death knell for fine dining has been sounding for quite some time. From unexpected three-hat restaurant closures to refreshed approaches to existing restaurant styles, fine diners are generally not the ones creating the most excitement among the masses.

On a well known street in Darlinghurst, restaurants come and go like the fashions turn. There are also some stayers on the 'Little Italy' of Stanley Street that baffle and then there are others, like Bill & Toni's, that are still going after more than 40 years of trade.

Orange cordial at Bill & Toni's Restaurant, Stanley Street, Darlinghurst

The upstairs restaurant of Bill & Toni's is shabby to say the least, but taking me right back to suburban Italian family restaurants where laminated picture menus feature alongside walls covered in postcards from Italy.

The outdoor balcony looks pretty as a picture, but we're distracted by the arrival of both water and orange cordial at the table. Complimentary orange cordial would have been an absolute treat for me some 20-odd years ago. Now, it's quaint and perhaps a tad unsophisticated, but we're not complaining on a balmy late evening.

There's even less complaint looking at the menu, where prices probably haven't changed in the last decade. A limited selection of pasta as a first dish starts at $10 (lasagna and marinara $12). Mains are all $16. Mains with a pasta side are $18, while a full main with a full pasta are $22. Enough said.

Penne bolognaise

The premise is fairly straightforward: a limited and simple menu; obviously contributing to keeping prices down. The penne bolognaise reminds me of high school lunches: a generous dollop of rich tomato sauce full of minced meat and just slightly over al dente pasta, and of course, parmesan cheese.

Lettuce salad on the side

With the mains comes a rather large stainless steel bowl of torn iceberg lettuce leaves, dressed in what seems like white vinegar. It does the job as a vegetable addition and not much more (even less than my local steakhouse).

Calves liver with onions

There's quite the selection of mains; and everything one would expect too. Calves liver with onion are just that; both grilled and served with a wedge of lemon and home style boiled carrot sticks and green beans. What the dish lacks in flavour it makes up for in quantity.

Scaloppine pizzaiola

Same goes for my main of the veal scaloppine, which would serve four in some restaurants. The tomato sauce had taken on a lot of the flavour from the black olives, while the veal was tender without being overly exciting. It was happy days mopping up the sauce with the basket full of complimentary white bread; fresh and perfectly fluffy for the job.

Indeed, the veal was even good the next day as the huge serving portions meant takeaway boxes were needed. Cheap, cheerful, and hearty servings; true to what it is and has been for the last 40 years, I think Bill & Toni's is just fine the way it is.

Well watered and educated on Cocktail Island

Cockatoo Island was an absolute riot of activity this weekend just passed. With the one-weekend-only booze-fest Cocktail Island, the street art festival Outpost and the balmy weather for just hanging out at The Island Bar, there was every reason to join the masses waiting for a ferry at Wharf 4, Circular Quay.

Crowds enjoying Cocktail Island on Cockatoo Island, 20 November 2011

Part of the Outpost Project on Cockatoo Island

The Cocktail Island event was an uphill walk to the Upper Island part of Cockatoo Island, with masterclasses, tastings and exhibition stands housed in a couple of buildings in the Convict Precinct (apt, really).

Sufficiently warmed after the walk to the Upper Island, we headed straight to the exhibition hall where cocktails could be bought for anything from 3 to 10 Island Dollars (which equated to normal Aussie dollars) from a range of spirited stands and associated fun-loving bar hands.

Cocktail with St Germain, sparkling wine and lemon zest

Cocktails with Hendricks Gin

The West Winds Gin - Australian gin!

666 Vodka served with young coconut juice in a young coconut

Tasting Theatre: History and Future of the Margarita

Upstairs in the Tasting Theatre, we'd caught the start of the Patrón tequila session hosted by Gee David. With decent sized tastes of Patrón Silver and then margarita samples on offer, it was quite interesting to see the mixed views across the room. A few sniffs yielded woody and citrus flavours, as well as gasoline and "a party".

Sample of Patrón Silver (it's a shot sized, 30ml cup)

Sipping the Patrón Silver, we were instructed to hold it if the mouth a while to really suss out the flavours. Admittedly, I never did this in my youth though I guess I wasn't drinking Patrón either. There were flashes of familiarity but on the whole, it wasn't too negative an experience.

The shaken margarita was decidedly better, made with Patrón Citronge; the citrus flavoured tequila in place of Cointreau as per a traditional margarita.

Patrón tequila in the Tasting Theatre

It was an educational session where we learnt that the correct service of a margarita entails two questions: "On the rocks?" and "Salt rim?".

While these are standard for a Tommy's Margarita (more further down), apparently it's not for a traditional margarita which is most commonly served straight up with a half or full salt rim.

I also learnt that National Margarita Day occurs on 22 February every year - so chuck that one in next year's diary (note: buy 2012 diary).

Picnic area on Cocktail Island

Back outside, the wind had picked up but not so much as to disturb the happy pinickers making the most of the free Mount Franklin sparkling water and a place to sit. After the quick start to the day's drinking and with plenty more to go, food was on the mind somewhat with one stall offering burgers, pies and other fine drinking fare.

Free popcorn at Cocktail Island

I don't know who worked out that popcorn and cocktails are great friends, but they sure are. The balancing act of sweet drinks and salty snacks works a dream, and we scoffed the bag full of buttery popcorn in moments, just ahead of a provocatively named tour led by Jason Crawley, Creative Director of Mixxit.

Seven Drinks to Try Before You Die at Cocktail Island

Seven tastes of classic cocktails is fair enough; all within 30 minutes through dark passages into themed bar areas was a different matter. The first cocktail took the tour group back to the Prohibition years with The Greyhound made of Russian vodka and golden grapefruit juice on ice.

A little too easy to drink, the bitterness of the juice makes this an ideal pre eating drink. With a salt rim, and sometimes gin instead of vodka, the drink becomes a Salty Dog.

The Official Mixer's Manual - first published circa 1934

The Last Word cocktail is made with gin, maraschino liqueur, lime juice and green chartreuse, and it's from here that things got a little hazy. I recall thumbing through a rare cocktail book and then heading into the next tiki themed bar area and even Crawley mentioning that Australia's best tiki bar was in Perth.

I remember a Mai Tai creamy in flavour (Cruzer rum, lime juice, orgeat, triple sec and vanillar) before being lumped a with a full serve of The Blinker, consisting of Jim Beam Rye Whisky, golden grapefruit juice and grenadine.

Final themed bar of the Seven Drinks to Try Before You Die tour

All through the tour, Crawley was an endless fountain of knowledge, with so much infomation spurting out that my not-so-sober self still managed to retain a few.

In this last themed room, we sampled a Mint Julep which for me was sweet enough to hide the Maker's Mark bourbon, and a Blood & Sand with Scotch cherry liqueur, sweet vermouth and orange juice.

Jason Crawley, Creative Director at Mixxit

I'm pretty sure it had something to do with all the mixing of drinks and moving about different rooms/venues/eras but I was pretty happy all the cocktails despite being triple parked at the end when (keeping count?) there was still one drink to collect.

Cognac Punch - 1920s style

All cocktails we currently drink are essentially a form of punch with something added or removed. Called the "founding father" of all mixed drinks, it makes sense as punch dates as far back at 1576.

Cognac Punch (right) and Blood & Sand (left) cocktails

Our final drink of the tour was the Cognac Punch, ladled out from a boat by a 1920s styled server. I'm sure everyone who left the tour had at least two cups in hand and may have had a little trouble walking a straight line (or was it just me?). The moment seriously called for food and a pie later, we were ready for more.

ABSOLUT Flavour Akademi Master Class with Ben Davidson

The Master Class room was filled for the Absolut session and with a couple of bottles of vodka on each table, it looked like it was going to be a corker session. Kind of needing to sit, we instead headed back upstairs to the Tasting Theatre and found comfy seating and the Chivas Regal tasting.

Age Matters tasting session by Chivas Regal, Royal Salute and The Glenlivet

Five samples of Scotch whisky including one clear (unaged?) one that tasted of burning. It was a learning curve for me, but tasting older whiskies as we went along the burning eventually subsided and there were actual flavours to appreciate.

The Chivas Regal 18- and 21-year-old whiskies were getting pretty fine indeed, and rather warming as a light sprinkle of rain started outside.

"Slàinte mhòr" - a Gaelic toast to health

Most fun was probably learning a new toast, in Scottish Gaelic at that, especially as most in the room probably weren't entirely sober. With glasses raised, we shouted "Slàinte mhòr" (sounds like "slohn ja vor") as host James Buntin's father did before a tipple.

The day was getting long but there was no missing the final session in the Piazza Tasting room; a pretty old sandstone building yet an entirely appropriate room for tequila tasting.

Julio Bermejo - creator of Tommy's Margarita

Here, we were educated by two of the industries finest tequila minds: Julio Bermejo of Tommy's Mexican Restaurant and the World's Best Tequila Bar in San Francisco and Phil Bayly of Cafe Pacifico in Surry Hills.

Phil Bayly of Cafe Pacifico

There was plenty of talk about agave plants and its honey-like nectar, and getting what you pay for when it comes to tequila.

Bermejo is the Ambassador of Tequila to the US for the Mexican Government and, wait for it, the creator of Tommy's Margarita. He started serving this version of the margarita - with 100% agave tequila, agave nectar and lime juice sans an orange liqueur - at his father's restaurant Tommy's in the 1980s. Just don't forget to serve it on the rocks with a thick salt rim.

Julio Bermejo

Through the talk we sampled cakes baked with tequila; both quite dense cakes and the flourless chocolate one completely memorable; fudgey yet with flavours of tequila - in a good way. That was in between tasting 100% agave blanco tequila and then shaking up a Tommy's Margarita with Bayly and Bermejo as assistants. Too much fun is an understatement - but then again, it is tequila.

I honestly don't think I've had this much tequila since my teens and I must admit, my behaviour has improved vastly since those days. I didn't try to crash the after party at Island Bar, but rather sensibly joined the other Cocktail Islanders straggling onto the last ferry off Cockatoo Island.

The trip back to Circular Quay was definitely vocal, but I think showed that everyone, water bottles in hand, had a great day of drinking and learning about the cocktails on the island. See more photos of the day at my Facebook page.

Food, booze and shoes received media admission and Island Dollars for Cocktail Island courtesy of The Cru Media - thanks for keeping us well watered and educated.

Little northern Chinatown in Chatswood

I had no idea that Chatswood had become a little mini northern Chinatown. Almost any Chinese outlet one would find in the city's Chinatown are in Chatswood, plus more with somewhat of a northern bent too - fitting really.

Indeed, there are two New Shanghai Chinese Restaurants in Chatswood in fairly close proximity, which in itself seems a little odd. The fact that they are located in two polar opposites of shopping centres - the luxe Chatswood Chase and not-so-swish Lemon Grove Shopping Centre - is even more strange.

Crab xiao long bao from New Shanghai, Lemon Grove Shopping Centre,
Victoria Street, Chatswood

We find ourselves at the somewhat 'lesser' of the two outlets one hot afternoon for a late lunch. Seated right beside the glass windows to the dumpling kitchen, we have prime view of xiao long bao soup dumplings being filled and pleated, as well as shallot pancake dough being weighed fastidiously and then rollled flat, encasing chopped green shallots.

Service is brusque, even for a Chinese restaurant, but it's not long before food fills the table. The crab xiao long bao have a detectable seafood taste but aren't really so different to the standard pork ones. The dumpling skins hold well and are hard to fault, while the soup is still the best part of the experience.

Pan fried pork dumplings

While an open kitchen encourages clean work areas, which I'm all for, it also means little restaurant tricks that are perhaps best left out of diners' view are, unfortunately, in full view.

I had my fingers tightly crossed that the plate of pan fried dumplings that emerged from the microwave were not headed towards my table. No such luck, and I tried as best I could to eat them without prejudice.

It may well have been all in my head but I struggled with the tough outer skins while taste- and heat-wise they were acceptable. A healthy dousing with both vinegar sauce and chilli oil helped but the overall enjoyment of the dumplings had been marred from the start.

Sichuan style sauce stir fried with pork mince and served with dry noodle

I often find myself deferring to the usual orders at northern Chinese restaurants - it's so hard to resist certain dumplings and for others, Sichuan style noodles with a spicy bean sauce and minced pork. This serving was not too spicy despite its imposing hue, assisted by the refreshing juliennes of cucumber.

Sichuan spicy pork noodles mixed

It's not such a pretty sight when mixed through and messy to eat too, as most good things are. The sauce-coated, just-cooked noodles become extremely slippery and dangerous for any white tops. Indeed, after the meal we even found sauce splatters on the glass of the kitchen window beside us.

Stir fried spinach with garlic

I'm always a little baffled with the price of straight vegetable dishes at casual Chinese eateries. I understand that a plate of spinach could well be three bunches worth, but at about double the price of a plate of dumplings, something doesn't quite add up.

In this instance, there definitely could have been many dollars worth of garlic in the dish as it was absolutely loaded with diced garlic amongst the tender spinach leaves and stems. A good dish for colds and vampire repelling.

Post lunch, walking around probably with a garlic cloud above, it looked like northern Chinatown has integrated seamlessly with Chatswood. The crowds at Asian dessert house Zen Q were proof, nestled into the Westfield at street level and doing brisk trade on the hot afternoon.

Mango shaved ice with  fresh mango, mango jelly and mango ice cream from Zen Q,
Westfield Chatswood

The lengthy menu is abundant in options: ices, puddings, toppings, bread-oriented desserts and even something with tuna salad. The heat called for something cooling and the bowl of mango variations seemed to fit the bill.

The squishy eat-in seating, designed to fit as many bodies into the small space as possible, meant I was basically sitting on top of someone next to me as my mango dessert arrived. The sprinkles took me back to times of frozen party pies and sausage rolls, but at least the mango ice did its job in refreshing.

It wasn't overly sweet either while the mango ice cream was the most subtle of the lot. The small helping of fresh mango cubes was the best component while the slightly chewy mango jellies were fun but few and far between.

Fruit soup with ice cream

I have no idea what this is, let alone a name, but put nicely it looks like a mixed fruit soup. I have other, more graphic descriptions for what I think it looks like, but I've learnt that they're best left out. Fruit salad mixed with ice cream doesn't do it for me at the best of times, let alone in soup form.

We scoff and dash at Zen Q, but not before peering quzzically at couples and groups attacking loaves of bread dressed in everything from fruit to cream to more of those sprinkles. Bread with dessert is a fairly alien concept to me but being the the Chinatown of the north, perhaps next time I cross the Bridge I'll have to do as the Romans do.