The Robert Burns Hotel - Spanish food vs Scottish Poet

(degusted 19/9/2011)

Outside the RBH - Smith St. by night

"An unassumingly-named pub with Spanish food is a good twist, and serving tapas in a bar is a sensible pairing against which few would argue. As long as the quality and consistency of food stays high, this face-lifted Spaniard with the name of a Scottish poet might just do alright".

If you were to be asked –off the top of your head - what Spanish names come immediately to mind? What do you come up with –
Antonio Banderas…sure. 
Penelope Cruz… ahh yes. 
Salvador Dali… oh yeah, that “melted clock” bloke. 
Robert Burns? Excuse me – who was that last one?

The name associates more with a Scottish poet than with a tapas bar - perhaps that's why it took considerably longer for us to register that the Robert Burns Hotel (RBH) specialises in Spanish fare. Fear not, however, for if ever there was
a match made in that figment of peoples' imagination they call Heaven, it must be the serving of tapas and the (responsible) service of alcohol at the same location. And so it goes, from this day forth, the Robert Burns Hotel will, to us, now be duly known as the Spanish tapas pub on Smith street, in Collingwood, 'till death or cirrhosis do they part. We hope it will be a long and loving relationship.

Buderim Tavern - Sunshine Coast, QLD

(Degusted 7th Aug, 2011)

Up in the hills, just a 10 or so minute drive inland from Maroochydore, you can reach this lovely little town of Buderim. By day you can get some pretty good views over the southern end of sunshine coast, and cooling breezes make it a pleasant place to be. To capture those views, the Buderim Tavern is perfectly poised (for Victorians, think of The Wheeler’s Hill Hotel). The tavern is predominantly what we'd call a steakhouse or grill. There is no table service as such – orders for drinks and food being made at the bar or the kitchen servery. There is an open plan dining area with windows all along to capture the views– although being night time, we only had the twinkling lights of the urban sprawl below. 

(We came back to Buderim the following day for brunch and took some photos from nearby to the Tavern to see what this view was like during the day. Not bad at all!)

For starters, we went for the Szechuan calamari, which was not really peppery at all – there was a little bit of spice in the crumb on the thin strips of calamari, but nothing like what we expected of a "Szechuan" flavour. Good finger-food nonetheless, but not up to the flavours we expected.

Szechuan Calamari

There were a number of steaks available – rib eyes, rumps, wagyu – ranging from 180 to 600 grams. Several choices of sauce – mushroom, peppercorn, dianne – but we went with the red wine jus, wanting to let the steak shine..

Ordering the wagyu medium-rare, we expected it super-tender and a little red – unfortunately, in our opinion, the meat was taken to a little past medium, which was a shame for such a good piece of meat.. I think most people going to a place like this would be happy with the cooking, but for us it was a bit of a waste of such a good steak -let down by the over-cooking.  The chips that came with the steak looked great, and were good enough, but we've had better (could have been crispier on the outside). The salad that comes with all steaks is a small ceasar salad, which had really nice bacon pieces (mmmm bacon). At our table was our young nephew (a salad-dodger extraordinaire) who demolished his ceasar salad on this occasion – enough said.

Wagyu - sides of ceasar salad, chips and optional mushrooms.
Red Wine Jus (as with other sauces) served on the side.

The other main we degusted was a spiced lamb rump with sweet potato, roast tomato and broccolini. Again, the lamb was a little over-done, though still pink in the centre. In this dish, there was plenty of meat served up, almost too much for one person. Some might say that’s a good thing!  It was an okay dish – nothing incredibly fancy, but certainly good enough to be on the menu in this style of restaurant.

Spiced lamb rump w/sweet potato, tomato and broccolini.

For the price and the style of restaurant, the food was good enough and will probably keep the carnivores happy, as long as they’re not too fussy about the cooking. If you like it “well done” you’d be in heaven here...

Rating:  It'll Do

Meh                      It’ll Do                   Nom(x3)                              Must go back!

Done and Degusted @ Buderim Tavern

Szechuan calamari

Wagyu rump with red wine jus, chips and ceasar salad.

Spiced lamb rump, sweet potatoe, broccolini and tomato

 
(note that the address says Maroochydore, it's definitely in Buderim!)

In the area? You might like to grab some coffee and breakfast at the Chopping Block.

.

Mrs Parma's (Melbourne CBD). The Parma yardstick?

(degusted 15^th July 2011)  

 If you want a decent, well cooked parma, with a range of toppings choices (and even if you’re a vegetarian), you'd be mad not to go to Mrs Parma's at least once if you’re out and about in the Melbourne CBD. We have a lot of faith in Melbourne's food scene, so we would not rule out the possibility that there are better parmas to be had elsewhere, but those on offer at Mrs Parma's were pretty damn good.

The Parmageddon - Chicken Parma with chilli sauce.

The humble “Parma”. It's a relatively simple concept: take a slab of chicken or other meat or equivalent substitute, flatten it, cover it with crumbs, cook and smother in sauce and cheese. Bake until cheese melts and goes a little brownish. Serve with chips on the side (do NOT place the chips under said slab of crumbed meat or equivalent). Salad is optional and probably won't be eaten by a true “parma-phile”.

The concept is straightforward – and mastered comprehensively by Mrs Parma's – a little gem at the top end of Little Bourke street. With it's neighbours being some fine-dining heavyweights, like the Flower Drum, Grossi Florentino's, Longrain, & Gingerboy to name a few at this end of town, Mrs Parma's holds its own by doing one thing extremely well – consistently good parmas. Just as well, given the name (which for some reason whenever I hear it I can only think of “Mrs palmer and her 5 daughters”)…

Dining area at the back - looking forward to the bar.

On our visit on a Friday night, we were welcomed into what is essentially a typical pub-style scene: post-work beers flowing around the bar, and a cluster of tables beyond for the super-early or those with bookings.

The bar stocks a selection of craft/ micro-brews and has a good range of both permanent and special items. I tried a ‘limited time only’ dry hopped topaz from Hargreaves Hill  – of which they only had a single keg.  It was really nice, had a slightly fruity nose and a refreshing flavour with a good hit with a sharp hopsy finish that lingers, in a good way. A very pleasant drop to start off the evening.

Build your Parma

There are lots of options  - chicken, weiner schnitzel, or eggplant as the base – then 10 different topping suggestions – including vego options. You can of course also modify the toppings to suit. Next time, we will give some chorizo and jalopenos a try.
A re-visit to try out some new combinations are already scheduled to happen - updates soon!!

Our companions  on the night (regulars at Mrs Parmas) modified
their parma with a good scattering of Jalopenos. Thumbs up from them..

Menu has non-parma options, too

Toppings options for your parma.. You can mix and match if you like ;-)

Vegetarian

Yes indeed, there are vegetarian options here. The eggplant parmagiana with the pumpkin, feta and basil was a really good, solid alternative if you’re “that way” inclined. Even the obligate carnivours were impressed and would happily substitute this for a meat version. The eggplant was not ‘gooey’ as such, so some might say this was undercooked – however this slight resistance to the tooth was actually what made it so good as a parma.

Eggplant Parma with pumpkin, feta and basil.
Even meat-eaters would be happy with this one!

Parmageddon

As soon as The Degusters see anything advertised as “the hottest '<insert dish>' in Melbourne”, we consider it a challenge. Such was the case with the Parmageddon – apparently the hottest parma in Melbourne. This may indeed be true, but perhaps is just a reflection on the general low level of chili tolerance in this city. For us, the chilli sauce (with FOUR different types of chillies, no less) did not pose much of a challenge... It did not even elicit as much as a mild brow sweat - more of a Bunsen burner than the raging inferno we were expecting.. We should have asked for the kitchen to load up the Parmageddon with a few handfuls of jalapeños to warm it up some more (which they do supply either as a side dish to allow you to add your own as you go, or they will add it to your parma when they make it).

The chicken was real chicken – clearly a good quality fillet (not a processed mash of offcuts a-la Maccas nuggets), and the size of the feed was sensible – and realistic. We've seen monstrous schnitzels elsewhere in the past, which are more comical than anything else – where do chickens grow so big as to be able to supply a breast fillet 50cm in diameter!? The meat was moist inside, the crumb was crispy (both keys to a well-cooked parma), and there was the right amount of sauce and cheese topping off the schnitzel. The quality of the servings across all plates at our table of 8 settings was consistent; everyone at the table was impressed with their food.

Chips. Don’t forget the chips.

For the table, we were served only two bowls of community chips. When they were placed on our table we were all channelling Oliver Twist – “please sir…” … you know the rest. These two bowls, however, held some really good chips – not the best I've ever had, but still pretty good chips (the best chips we had ever degusted were served at Raze Gourmet Burgers in Mooloolabah QLD - unfortunately we believe they are no longer open – big sadface). After all the fuss, we didn’t actually finish the chips, so I reckon they’ve titrated the optimal quantity per person.

Drinks:

Cheeky Rascal Cider. We tried the Cheeky Rascal strawberry and apple cider. It was a nice, sweet cider that had a delightful stawberry flavour. Very refreshing and we have already recommended this drink to others who like a sweet drop. A top-notch effort from this Mornington Peninsula winemaker, Robello Wines.

Beer: As mentioned above, we had the dry hopped topaz from Hargreaves Hill. Much enjoyed, and it impressed us greatly.

Special thanks to K & J (Tza Tza!) for organising this visit. You guys rock.

A final thought:

Chicken Parmas... on paper they are a simple dish. Why then all the fuss about finding a good one? The question should be why do some restaurants get the parma so wrong? Perhaps because their cooks have never eaten a truly excellent parma and so, don't know how bad their own offerings are (I'm thinking of Just Degusting's experience at the pub on crown (blecgh) and a recent re-visit to Hoo Hah kitchen). We reckon Mrs Parma's could be the yard-stick against which others should reference their own efforts.

Rating:  Nom(x3)

Meh                      It’ll Do                   Nom(x3)                              Must go back!

Done and Degusted @ Mrs Parmas

-Chicken Parmageddon (Melbourne's hottest parma - according to Mrs Parmas)
-Eggplantwith roasted pumpkin, feta and basil.

Hoo Hah Kitchen at Kooroora Hotel, Mt Buller

A really good, hearty feed!

After a few hours (trying) to be stylish skiing or boarding down the Mount Buller slopes, one does work up quite an appetite. Even if you're not falling over (er, I mean skiing), just withstanding the elements up on the mountain are taxing.. So it's just as well that you can refuel yourself without having to de-robe excessively- it really is straight out of the bindings, and into the dining (room) here at the Kooroora Hotel. 

 

Gotta love hoo hahs.

The hoo hah kitchen, within the Kooroora pub markets themselves as cooking up large homely meals for hungry skiiers, and our experience proved that they do live up to their own hype. 

Poutine!!

Yes indeedy, this Canadian masterpiece of chips, gravy and cheese is well and truly available here at the Hoo Hah kitchen: in this case, also supplemented with bacon (and we all know the famous saying from the film Jerry Maguire: “You had me at bacon”.. or was that “at ‘hello’”? … Well, it should have been bacon).

Poutine.. Looks innocent enough, but bacon, cheese and gravy lurk tastily underneath!

Go in for one, but get a cheesy, bacony bunch. Nice..

I’m led to believe that poutine originates from Montreal, that the cheese needs to be fresh cheddar cheese curds, and the gravy should really be Velouté (‘velvety’ sauce – really just a thickened stock with flour and butter).  Whether the chef follows such traditions or uses the ingredients available on hand does not really matter. What matters is the eating – and Ay Carumba this is good stuff. The stringy molten cheese, obviously drawn through the chips when the hot gravy was added, holds multiple chunks of bacon and chips together, so you just can’t help it that every time you pick up one chip you get a big mouthful that is hearty and rich– Oh Joy!!

If I can get the kitchen to myself for a weekend I think I might have a crack at making my own, and with the suggestion of my co-worker, maybe even cook up and chop some kransky’s into it too!!   Leave me a comment if you would like to come over and try some !!

The ‘bowl’ of lamb soup was – in the best way possible - more like a bucket of thick and chunky stew – excellent and so incredibly satisfying.  The flathead was well cooked – nice big pieces, and most importantly the batter was light and crispy – not much residual oil. With flathead being one of my personal favourite types of fish, I really enjoyed this dish.

Lamb soup - huge serve, and beautiful flavour..

Crispy flathead fillets - usually my favourite, but outshone this time by the Poutine.

I realize that most people will not get up to the Mt Buller summit just to try a bowl of Poutine, but I would heartily suggest that if you do happen to get up here, do yourself a favour and pop into the Kooroora to get your hands (and mouth) on a couple of Hoo-Hah’s - their dishes, that is.

Rating:  NomNomNom!

Meh                      It’ll Do                   Nom(x3)                              Must go back!

Done and Degusted @ Hoo Hah Kitchen
Poutine
Lamb Soup (stew!)
Flathead (and more chips)

The Pub at Crown - Crown Casino (underwhelming :-/ )

Underwhelming Dinner at The Pub @ Crown

(degusted 24th June, 2011)

Summary: If you’re stuck for a meal you could do worse than ordering a few of the good starters here at Pub at Crown, but there are so many better pubs in Melbourne (within walking distance) that you really should get your pub-grub elsewhere.

Normally I would avoid eating at these “mass produced meal places” that obviously bank on the captive audience of casino patrons, rather than having to compete "out in the street" with others on levels of quality and service. However, as a result of hunger, circumstance, and since I'd had a couple of "not bad" meals here way back when (I was perhaps a decade younger), I was not completely against dipping my proverbial toe into this water(ing hole) for another try.

Starters - It’s a shame we didn’t just eat the starters and leave it at that.

Seafood Chowder -
Really yummy, hearty soup for a cold winter's night.

Seafood chowder was really enjoyable- full of flavour, seasoned well (perhaps a little on the liberal side with the salt, but good to my taste), and contained a several recognisable ocean-dwelling species (good to see). Nice bread to dip into the soup made this a dish I would actually have again.

The other starter degusted was the seafood tasting plate, which was advertised on the menu as oysters, prawns, smoked salmon, green-lip mussels and marinated octopus, (but sans explanation from the waiter, was delivered to the table with Moreton Bay Bugs in lieu of the mussels and octopus). Prawns juicy, oysters fresh, salmon moist, and a full bug (cut down the middle) that was tender and well cooked. Accompanied by pesto-coated toasted bread, this starter was unexpectedly good, albeit not as advertised.

Seafood Tasting plate - All good here.
Note the photographer got in a little too late to catch all the oysters intact.. :)

Mains. A pub cannot be forgiven if it can’t get the basics right.

Grilled Calamari Salad

Grilled calamari salad – served up a fair serve of calamari on this dish, cooked right, nice and tender. In fact, credit where credit is due - the chef got the calamari cooked just right. Now, normally I would simply expect everything to be cooked ‘just right’, but considering my chicken parma quality (see below), I think (unfortunately) the quality of the calamari was the exception, rather than the rule.  

And now to what should be a pub staple - Chicken Parma. It wasn’t cheap, so one would expect something half decent. Let me preface my review by saying that in my humble opinion, the cardinal sins for cooking and presenting a parma are:

-Cooking a soggy schnitzel, and

-Placing the chicken on top of the pile of accompanying chips..

Chips started life as potatoes, living underground before liberation and conversion to chips. Please Mr(s) Chef, Let them be free, don’t hide them under a Parma, especially not a soggy one... Booo!! Hissss!! 

Did I mention the parma was soggy? – And the meat component was thin.. It had that  're-heated from frozen in the microwave' taste & texture for which nobody should be expected to pay twenty-odd dollars. It did take up a fair amount of plate real-estate (see the photo compared to a $20 note), but I would have preferred quality over quantity in this case, and for the simple parma to have failed so miserably reinforces my resolve never to eat in a casino-run eatery, unless it’s 6AM and I feel like a 3-course meal and Maccas is closed for some reason…

The disappointing Chicken Parma... Unfortunately, quantity over quality here.
Big enough to feed a family of 4, but I reckon they'd all be complaining...

A glimmer of hope?
The seafood tasting plate was the saving grace, and combined with the respectable effort of the hearty seafood chowder, gave me enough motivation to actually write this blog post (although the very average service and lack of explanation regarding the tasting plate content substitutions should not be forgiven). The quality of the seafood items really contrasted with the lack-lustre ‘pub meal’ Parma, and suggests to me there may be several cooks out back, not all of whom are actually any good... I was half-expecting to be asked to vote Red team or Blue team*, so amateur was the parma effort…

Ranking:  - Meh.  

Meh                      It’ll Do                   Nom(x3)                              Must go back!

  If you’re stuck for a meal you could do worse than ordering a few of the good starters here, but there are so many better pubs in Melbourne (within walking distance) that you really probably should get your pub-grub elsewhere.

Done and Degusted @  Pub at Crown

Seafood Chowder

Seafood Tasting plate (w/ bugs instead of mussels and octopus)

Grilled Calamari Salad

Chicken Parma w/ chips and veg

 

* Red team Vs Blue team is a pop-cultural reference to ‘team challenges’ given to competitors on the amateur cooking television ‘reality show’, MasterChef Australia.