The Boathouse on the Maribyrnong

(Degusted 16^th July, 2011)

We've degusted out in the West a little more than usual lately, and we were impressed with some of the offerings out this way. The food at the Boathouse in Moonee Ponds is one such example. Only a few kilometers out of the CBD, this is another of Gary Mehigan's restaurants –  a sister to Fenix in Richmond. Apart from the pop-cultural link to the owner, The Boathouse has a lot of things going for it – prime placement on the banks of the Maribyrnong river which affords it some pleasant views – and a welcoming, open-plan space inside supplemented by a nice outdoor deck space, which one could imagine would be delightful in summer.

Fish Pie. Served on a thick, chunky wooden board.
This was 'food presentation 101'

The lunch menu has a predominance of pizza options – and these are some serious contenders. The pizzas are the thin-crust, sparse topping type – the authentic kind of pizzas one would expect in Italy.. There are a number of other cafe-style meals to choose from, and you can be pretty sure that with Gary calling the shots, these are not going to be your ordinary “run of the mill” bar snacks.

Service... or lack of.

The service to our table was pretty slack – we were offered water and glasses to start with, but that aquatic refreshment was never topped up, despite draining the reservoir after one round... In addition to this, we had to flag down the waiter every time we wanted anything – there was never any pro-active offers of assistance from them. Disappointing to say the least - and the place was not even full.

Eggplant chips are a must-try.

Food... Excuse me while I stuff my face...

We started off with the famed Eggplant chips- (they looked more like croquettes)- and they were a great balance of crispy fried exterior and that slightly gooey cooked eggplant texture inside. Yum.

When the mains came out, the first impression was that the presentation of the food was terrific. The fish pie looked beautiful and tasted every bit as good as it looked, and most importantly, not too “fishy”. 

The burger and chips – ordered by a friend – was a stand-out for presentation; oozing an old-world rustic charm.  The pizzas looked good – yet they were oozing as well (perhaps a little bit too liberal with the olive oil?). We had the pizza with lamb, mint and and mushy peas – and were more than pleased with it. The pictures speak for themselves, but suffice it to say that the promise of thin, traditional-style pizzas was upheld with aplomb.

How is this for presentation - Burger and chips
- food envy much?

Lamb, Pea and Mint pizza. A little oily perhaps,
but otherwise an unexpected triumph.

Drinks.. stay true to the bean

Hot chocolate looked good, but tasted, ummm.....
a bit like muddy water drawn from the Maribyrnong.

The Soy hot chocolate was – in a word -  a failure. Served in a low-slung “cappucino cup” it looked the part, but really didn't come through with the goods in terms of flavour.

The espresso was, on the other hand, an absolute delight. This shorty was obviously made with good coffee, by a barista who knew what they were doing – the right grind, the right temperature water -  it was all over “just right”. Stick to coffees here we reckon.

An excellent little shorty. Not good, GREAT.

Views of the river from the dining area.

One can imagine that The Boathouse would make a great function venue – especially during summer – when you can take advantage of the outdoor decking to soak up the rays and the views..

There's plenty of parking around the football oval – just bear in mind that the area can be crowded by footy families if there is a game on... then again, why not park your car around the nearby Aberfeldie or Fairbain parks and stroll to The Boathouse along the banks of the river. Very pleasant.

To sum up:

The food was great, as was the coffee. Our hot chocolate was average, and the service was a bit slow (especially considering the dining room was only about 60% full). Location and setting is as good or better than you can expect for a quiet cafe/ restaurant. 

Child-friendly, but no "play area" inside, but a really good playground right outside though - with slides, shade sails etc !

             Out this side of town? you might also like Nosh @ Newport

Rating:  Nom (x1) 
out of the ranking:
Meh                      It’ll Do                   Nom(x3)                              Must go back!

Done and Degusted @ The Boathouse (in Moonee Ponds)

Eggplant chips

Lamb, mushy pea and mint leaf Pizza

Fish pie

Espresso

Soy hot chocolate

The Boathouse
3 The Boulevard,
Moonee Ponds

(03) 9375 2456

PS:

home-made cupcakes,
not actually available at the boathouse...

If we may say so ourselves, the stand-out were the cup cakes... Actually, the Degusters baked themselves and brought along for our friend's birthday, for which the waiter was happy enough to provide a plate for us to serve them on.. 

Cheers, A.M.   :-)