Good times collective #8

I knew this year would be different, in both good and bad ways. Change, however, can be good when seeming bad and vice versa. Good or bad times, there's always plenty of good food to be had.

Tsukemen from Ippudo, Level 5, Westfield Sydney, Sydney

I first discovered tsukemen dipping ramen inadvertently in Tokyo, Japan, and have been a fan ever since. Westfield Sydney's Ippudo, which still features evening queues out the front, recently introduced one variety of tsukemen to their menu.

Served with thicker noodles than their usual ramen noodles, Ippudo's tsukemen is topped with thick, cold cuts of roasted pork, blanched green vegies, ajitsuge tamago soft boiled and flavoured egg, marinated daikon white radish strips and matchsticks of nori dried seaweed sheets.

The piping hot soup for dipping the noodles is a combination of chicken and dashi bonito stocks from memory, and particularly fishy for it. While they only have the one variety of tsukemen, and still the queues, I'll be seeking my dipping noodles elsewhere.

Chef - out in cinemas on 8 May 2014
(Image courtesy of STUDIOCANAL)

I saw a preview of the foodie movie Chef last week, which is out at Australian cinemas tomorrow. Chef is written and directed by Iron Man's Jon Favreau, who stars as a high-end chef. A spectacular scene with a critic sees him reconnect with his family and start a food truck, staffed by himself, a fabulous John Leguizamo and his cute 10-year-old son.

Also starring Sofia Vergara, Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, Robert Downey Jr, and Bobby Cannavale; Los Angeles food truck king Roy Choi of the Kogi food truck consulted on the film, ensuring the cheffy, food truck parts were as accurate as possible.

It's a likeable, feel-good film for anyone in the restaurant or food truck industry, critics and bloggers, food lovers and any kid who's had to work in food. See the trailer here.

Santa Fe salad from The Forresters, Riley Street, Surry Hills

While change is afoot at some of Drink'N'Dine's other Surry Hills venues (Chica Linda opened where The Carrington was previously - review next), the ground floor of The Forresters hasn't altered its easy-going, something-for-everyone approach, including the excellent value $10 lunches.

There is plenty on the not-so-healthy front so I did my best with a Hillbilly apple cider and the Santa Fe salad, which turned out to be one of those slightly naughty salads that you commit to memory.

Featuring three tail-on grilled prawns, red and normal shredded cabbage, tomato, shallots and sliced jalapeño chillies in a lime dressing, the stars of the salad were chunks of pork belly, lightly battered and deep fried to a fatty crispness that obliterated any healthy thoughts.

Anchoa from Movida, Sydney Domestic Airport, Mascot

A flight delay the last time I went to Melbourne meant ample time, for once, to sit in at Movida's newest Sydney outlet in the domestic airport terminal.

There's nothing like a fino sherry to calm the getting-to-the-airport anxiety, along with a bocadillo or two and Movida's signature anchoa tapas with a salty anchovy and capers lying on a surfboard of a cracker, topped with a quenelle of smoked tomato sorbet to combat the salt content and late flight stress.

Duck liver parfait, grilled bread, pickles from Vicinity, Bourke Road, Alexandria

With more openings in the formerly industrial and commercial areas of Alexandria, the expansive Vicinity Dining has its work cut out.

A recent quick drop-in found the coffee to be decent; the duck liver parfait excellently creamy and accompanied well by plenty of grilled bread and interesting pickles; but a simple order for potato fries a little too hard, with pale, limp fries the result of the first attempt (which was then rectified).

Takoyaki from Tamayaki, Dixon Street, Haymarket

I've become a bit of a takoyaki octopus pancake balls snob since learning to make my own and visiting Osaka, Japan. The frozen, deep fried ones just won't do anymore so I was interested to check out the new-ish Tamayaki on the northern end of Dixon Street one evening after drinks, with their broad menu of "giant" takoyaki. 

With cutesy manga cartoon branding and chain store style, the freshly made takoyaki take about six minutes to cook, and are then dressed with sweet, brown takoyaki sauce, Japanese mayonnaise, katsuobushi dried bonito flakes and nori seaweed.

Being a little larger in size than what we know as standard in Sydney, Tamayaki's four-in-a-serve takoyaki are a little airy and hollow inside, and while the scallop filling was amazingly sea-sweet, the traditional octopus option delivered some very chewy octopus pieces.

El Loco salad from El Loco, Foveaux Street, Surry Hills

I look forward to the day one of the El Loco venues becomes my local again. With (relatively) cheap tacos, that awesome hot dog, and slushie margaritas, El Loco is a guaranteed good time.

The El Loco salad is a "healthy" option beneath the teepee (or twig sculpture?) of tortilla chips and shower of queso fresca cheese. This one had grilled prawns with shaved fennel and radish, cabbage, coriander and spring onions in a likeable El Loco dressing.

Different is good and the good times will keep on coming; you just have to make sure you're making them happen.

Good times collective #6

We're off and running in 2013, and straight back into the thick of things. There's a sense of reserved optimism this summer and I get the feeling that it's a prelude to a pretty massive year to come - hang on for the ride.

Pomegranate froyo with mango and lychee pearls from MooBerry, King Street, Newtown
(Disclosure: Food, booze and shoes is acquainted with staff at MooBerry)

It's the summer of froyo. The hot days so far are proof that the boom in frozen yoghurt, or froyo, operators is scarily on trend.

I don't know whether it's a short-term or even seasonal fad but I do know the cool, refreshing feel of the fruity pomegranate froyo with fruit and lychee pearls is my summer in a cup.

Biscotti froyo with Oreos and macarons from MooBerry, King Street, Newtown
(Disclosure: Food, booze and shoes is acquainted with staff at MooBerry)

On the other end from the fruity froyo scale is the all-out dessert approach: like biscotti flavoured froyo with Oreo crumbs and miniature macarons that are as cute as they are decadent.

Chicken burger with chips from The Grounds of Alexandria, Huntley Street, Alexandria

Ten months on and the crowds keep queueing up at The Grounds with no signs of waning. Personally, If I'm hungry I can't really manage a 30-minute wait so it's a good thing that they've introduced a more substantial takeaway menu on top of cakes and coffee.

I have no issue diving into a juicy fried chicken burger for brunch in the garden, especially with The Grounds' very good thick cut potato chips and aioli on the side.

Quinoa salad from The Grounds of Alexandria

The healthy among us can look to the menu of salads including this one of quinoa, kale, pumpkin, sultanas and more. A little on the sweetly-dressed side, it was a generous serve that made an interesting dip for the chips.

Bloody Mary at The Forresters, corner Riley and Foveaux Streets, Surry Hills

The jar-sized Bloody Mary at The Forresters must be Sydney's best dressed. Garnished to the point of being a salad, this vodka and tomato juice cocktail has to be healthy on some level, with cucumber, a pickled onion, cherry tomato, artichoke and rosemary all taking pride of place.

Sunday roast - roast beef with roast vegies at The Forresters

The Bloody Mary joined the weekly changing Sunday roast, complete with roast vegetables, gravy and sauce. Just be wary of potentially dry roast beef which chewy and dry, was clearly overcooked and probably kept on some heat source for a little too long.

Chicken nuggets from The Forresters

There wasn't much more satisfaction from the chicken nuggets, which were battered breast fillets smothered in a tomato and onion sauce. The unseasoned chicken has nothing on Maccas, I'm afraid.

Baked eggs with beans at Vicinity, Bourke Road, Alexandria
(Disclosure: Food, booze and shoes is acquainted with staff at Vicinity)

I've heard that Vicinity stopped serving breakfast recently, which is a shame as it was a great, airy spot with outdoor seating that is really made for brunching - and Sunday afternoon drinks.

I'm not sure which direction the venue is moving towards but the breakfast I did sample there needed tweaking. The baked eggs with beans in a tomato-ey sauce looked more like poached eggs dumped on top of some tasty home made beans, served with a huge slice of barely toasted bread.

Green and gold at Vicinity, Bourke Road, Alexandria
(Disclosure: Food, booze and shoes is acquainted with staff at Vicinity)

The 'green and gold' breakfast dish was actually quite a good, healthy option: more large-slice bread with mashed avocado, broccoli, watercress and a poached egg.

I keep meaning to return for lunch or dinner, but I'll also be watching their morning offerings with interest - after all, a big year is going to need a big breakfast.

Queenies: Jamaican me hungry

The chopping and changing in Surry Hills restaurants continues with the rise and rise of focused, themed eateries.

An ambiguous, middle-of-the-road bistro can hardly compete with the likes of modern Spanish tapas, authentic Mexican or fun-filled Jamaican - the latter of which is found at Queenies; the transformed upstairs floor of the renewed The Forresters pub and restaurant.

Coconut daiquiri at Queenies, Corner of Foveaux and Riley Streets, Surry Hills

Boasting "pan tropical specialities", the Queenies menu is designed by Drink and Dine Group's executive chef Jamie Thomas who is also responsible for eats at The Carrington, The Norfolk and soon-to-open Santa Barbara in Kings Cross (where Piano Room used to be - Thomas spills that it will be a "USA-sian barbeque" style menu).

Invited to sample Queenies' Jamaican food offerings, it was a feast littered with jerk hot spice mix and all manner of new ingredients and flavour combinations that gave unique insight into Caribbean cuisine.

The cocktail menu features various tropics-inspired drinks, such as the quite sweet coconut daiquri of white rum and probably Malibu liqueur, served in a margarita glass with a chilli salt rim.

Pickled cucumber

We were started on drinks (including 440ml cans of Jamaican Red Stripe lager) and some chunks of lightly pickled cucumber, daintily spiced and garnished with toasted coconut shreds - the latter which are scattered regularly across the menu.

Prawn, mango and ginger bammy

The tortilla-esque bammy is served much like a taco: a flavourful protein and vegetable filling with a flat bread which in this case is made of ground cassava.

The grilled, thick bammy isn't heavy or stodgy as it may look, and is a filling platform for some whole, grilled prawns, sweet sauce, mango and coconut shreds.

Pulled pork and pineapple bammy

The pulled pork bammy is served with a pineapple and coriander kind-of salsa, where the ripe fruit pairs exceptionally well with the tender pork, while radish and coconut slivers add further freshness.

Coconut soft shell crab

A basket of soft shell crab received a welcome reception, served with "hotstepper" sauce which Thomas explains is pretty much a Thai nahm jim chilli dipping sauce.

The crunchy batter isn't particularly strong in coconut flavour but is sure to satisfy Sydney's soft shell crab obsession.

Curried oxtail patties

It was chef Thomas himself who highlighted that the curried oxtail patties bore a strong resemblance to the oxtail empanadas at Spanish-themed The Carrington, but then, Jamaican food does take inspiration from a very wide range.

These hot, golden packets were my favourites from the snacks portion of the Queenies menu, filled with juicy, yielding oxtail meat and vegetables, and with not too much of a noticeable curry aroma.

Calypso coffee ribs

The snack-sized serving of pork ribs looked incredibly tender from appearances alone. They get that way after a 48-hour water bath at 65 degrees Celcius, to then be basted in a sweet barbeque marinade with just hints of coffee bitterness.

Bbq jerk corn with coconut

The corn on the cob on a stick was a pretty sight, though not the neatest to eat. Coated with more shredded coconut and I think a jerk mayonnaise, the barbequed corn was an unexpectedly sweet offering.

Hellshire ceviche - snapper, avocado, mango and chilli

The advent of mango season is making me very happy indeed, and the sweetness it added to the snapper ceviche was right on the mark for a summery starter.

The sliced, lime juice-marinated snapper was fresh and tinged with not hot chillies, coriander and avocado, eaten Mexican tostada style on tortilla chips, where every crunchy mouthful was a party of sweetness, zing, spice and creaminess.

Pushcart chicken wings

The not deep fried chicken wings are a relatively daring move in a city covered in fried wings. The trimmed drumettes were basted in a sweet sauce similar to the ribs' marinade and seemed pretty simple compared to some of the more ambitiously authentic dishes.

Sweet potato fries with spiced mayonnaise

The sweet potato fries are textbook specimens; thick cut and all sweet fluffiness on the inside. They're served  in a fantastically heavy black bowl with a yellow, spiced mayonnaise that's barely necessary.

Goat curry with okra, sweet potato, toasted coconut and dirty rice

My recommendation would be not to gorge on all the snacks (do as I say, not as I do) if you plan to hit up a few main dishes, which all sound deliciously tempting.

The goat curry, a very traditional Jamaican dish, was aromatic and creamy with coconut and hints of spice, while the tender, well-flavoured lamb-like goat meat came off the bone incredibly easily.

Dirty rice with coriander, spring onions, mint and allspice

The bottom of the curry bowl also had some of the awesomely-named 'dirty rice' but we had an additional bowl for good measure.

Cooked to a firm softness, almost Indian style, these individual grains of rice were tossed through with a healthy helping of coriander, chopped spring onion and mint leaves: an ideally herbaceous side to soak up the rich goat curry sauce.

Jungle slaw - cabbage, radish, coriander, lime, jerk mayo

While the rice was a unique side dish, I was smitten with the jungle slaw of sliced cabbage, radish, coriander and mango, in a zingy lime dressing. It was the ultimate refreshing salad that was just the thing with lots and lots of meat.

Bbq jerk chicken with jungle slaw

The barbequed jerk chicken comes with a side of the jungle slaw, balancing its dark, sticky grilled jerk seasoning coating.

Comprising various parts of a whole chicken, the flesh is impressively tender and moist for a grilled bird, while the sweet, spiced coating gave all new, hot perspective to finger-licking good chicken.

Jerk pork neck served with sweet potato fries, jungle slaw, salsa and bread rolls

Given the feast already laid out on the table, there was some disbelief that the jerk pork neck also arrived; itself a full main offering for at least two hungry eaters.

It's served with bread rolls for a DIY bun session: shred some pork (which seemed to be spicier than the chicken's jerk seasoning), add some slaw and cucumber salsa, with sweet potato fries on the side and you've got a full-blown Jamaican slider fest.

Kingston Kreme doughnuts

In normal circumstances, dessert would just not be a consideration for me after so much food already. But with the kitchen conspiring against me, we were presented with hot, sugar-coated doughnuts in an egg carton.

The doughnuts themselves had a bit of spice to them, while the jerk custard was certainly an unusual dessert offering alongside chocolate sauce.

Piña colada dessert

Our other dessert was a piña colada sundae of sorts, with cherry coulis, coconut ice cream, super juicy compressed pineapple and shaved coconut. The coconut ice cream was divine and this is the sort of lighter, not-so-sweet dessert that's right up my alley.

Some of the decor at Queenies

The decor at Queenies, like most Drink and Dine venues, is fun and a bit kitsch with an inexplicable white tiger head, fake fruit and flowers, and wooden bowl light features about the walls. The Jamaican music adds plenty to the restaurant's casual and relaxed atmosphere while the food menu is familiar enough to be undaunting.

So, be prepared for an absolute tropical feast fit for a king, or indeed, Queenies, when you walk upstairs at The Forresters. Many thanks to Jamie Thomas for the hospitality - even just looking at the photos now, Jamaican me hungry.

Food, booze and shoes dined as a guest of Jamie Thomas and Queenies.

Seeing The Forresters for the trees

The latest ownership change at The Forresters in Surry Hills (once renowned for its $5 steaks) has seen the pub take on an Italian bent, thanks to the same guys behind the revamps of the Norfolk, Flinders, Carrington and Abercrombie pubs.

From Central Station, The Forresters is the third pub you'll see heading up Foveaux Street, and requires quite a serious uphill hike past the Merivale-owned Excelsior/El Loco. A quick bevvy at the rather dodgy KB's - the first pub - might be needed to steel the nerves of the stiletto-heeled up that incline.

The Forresters dining room, corner Foveaux and Riley Streets, Surry Hills

I'd never been to The Forresters regularly in the past, even when it was one of the work locals, but this revamp has seriously upped the ante.

In addition to the front bar and booth-lined diner style room, there's an outdoors-y section and a newly opened third level for "sit down dinners"; although the same menu of Italian hits is available throughout the venue.

Even when sharing among three, the one-page menu of snacks, salads, rotisserie of the day, pizzas, pastas, mains, sandwiches and sides makes choosing an appropriately sized meal a little difficult.

Smoked mozzarella arancini

Easy enough to share are the arancini of smoked mozzarella served on a river of a tomato-based sauce. Well sized and perfectly golden, the forks in the tin cans on the tables are deemed the cutlery of choice for the arancini, although we could have gone with either the knife or spoon as well.

Smoked mozzarella arancini

While some of balls didn't quite ooze with melty smoked mozzarella, the smoky flavours were certainly present amid the creamy risotto; although some of the rice was on the undercooked side and crunchier than desired.

Poppers - pork and sage stuffed fried peppers

I'd never imagined that the battered and deep fried combination of capsicum and pork mince with sage could be so eye-openingly scrumptious; helped along with a flavoured aioli of sorts.

These, designed to be 'popped' into the mouth in one go, had some quality filling and were unexpectedly juicy - most likely with juices from the cooked capsicum - hence, the unglamourous shove-it-in-in-one-go approach.

Balsamic ribs

The quite-generous portion of ribs from the snacks part of the menu was a pleasant surprise, and it was these that had the table in a finger-licking lull. Beneath the tangy glaze was a familiar array of spice flavours, giving depth to the soft pork that nudged easily off the bone.

Pizza with nduja, tallegio and mashed potato

We skipped over the $50 Pay Day pizza option (with lobster, truffle and truffle salami) and went with one of the white based options (as opposed to tomato's red base). While I was immediately drawn to the nduja salami paste topping, I hesitated at the carb-on-carb action that was mashed potato on pizza.

The bubbled and burnished thin pizza base had been spread lightly with a layer of creamy mashed potato; dotted with not-quite-enough nduja bits; and then sprinkled with Spanish onion and tallegio cheese.

With cheese melted all over the creamy mash, it was actually an ideal combination that didn't feel too heavy and which smoothed out the quite spicy hits of the nduja. That's a win for carb-on-carb.

Salt cod parmigiana with Italian slaw and potato salad

Less of a win but most alluring to my fellow diners was the salt cod parmigiana, served with sides of lightly dressed cabbage slivers of Italian slaw and creamy, dill-heavy (just the way I like it) potato salad which also come as sides with the daily rotisserie plate.

Looking every bit the classic parmigiana with a golden crumb, tomato sauce, melted cheese and diced parsley, the thick fillet of salt cod was, unsurprisingly, salty and a bit dry, and unfortunately not much more.

Lemon tart thickshake (left) and tiramisu knickerbocker glory (right)

It may have been a couple more bottles of the reasonably priced Italian Falesco Est! Est! Est! di Montefiascone white wine before we contemplated desserts. With just two options on the menu, the choice was easy - both.

The lemon tart thickshake was the one that intrigued me, and the lightly citrusy, airy and creamy, pastel yellow concoction did not disappoint, especially with its biscuit crumble garnish. The tiramisu knickerbocker glory was essentially a tiramisu in a tall glass, albeit a very well made one with a decent coffee hit in the sponge fingers.

As we departed the dining room through the still-packed front bar, it was clear that the cool pub vibe had been instilled almost immediately in the venue. And despite some menu misses, we would have to see The Forresters for the trees and hike back up that darned hill again for poppers, pizzas and lemon tart shakes.