Dai and Dal's LBQ MKR BBQ

Where? Little Beer Quarter (Wellington CBD, Wellington, New Zealand) Map

When? Saturday December 6, 2014

Who? Mana

Food Style? Laotian

Little Beer Quarter have been hosting teams from New Zealand's version of My Kitchen Rules over the past few weekends, each of them using the barbeque to cook up an extravaganza on Edward Street. This week, Dai and Dal, the two Laotians, were on the roster, so Mana (also of Laotian descent) pulled me along for a squizz. He'd met the two before at a party and knew I'd be interested, so I was super keen to see what the fuss was about and have a chat. Unfortunately, only Dai was there but the quality of the food was still top notch. They partnered with Yeastie Boys to produce a menu full of great South East Asian flavours.

Starter

Grilled Prawns Marinated in Chilli, Garlic, Yeastie Boys White Noise and Lemongrass, served with Mango Salsa
The prawns were succulent and grilled so perfectly, with that lovely aromatic garlic and chilli shining through. I was a bit confused by the mango however; it wasn't the tangy, sour green variety common in Thai Mango Salads, nor did it have that delightfully sweet flavour so characteristic of mangos. It felt like it wasn't quite ripe. The idea, however, was there and I could see potential. I have had some excellent mango salsas before so I wondered if perhaps that particular batch of fruit just wasn't ready for use. I asked Dai about this afterwards - trying not to sound like a dick - and she agreed. Still, a very simple but flavoursome dish that's easy to do at home. I must try this one day.

Mains

Tom Khem - Caramelised Braised Pork Belly with Coconut Rice Balls, Cucumber Salad and Nam Jim
I opted for the smaller portion so I could also enjoy the prawns as well; Mana had the large plate, which came with an extra piece of the pork and more coconut rice balls. The pork was wonderfully soft and melted in your mouth. It was perhaps a little too salty by itself, but balanced out nicely with the cucumber and the coconut rice balls. I was so impressed by the intricate textures of the coconut rice balls; it was just so satisfying crunching the coconut bits in my teeth, and yet its simplicity and plainness fit the rest of the dish so nicely. I'd never had anything like that before, so I asked Dai if it was a Laotian thing. She confirmed that it was, and Mana piped in to say that his mother used to make something similar too. Good stuff!


Me, Dai and Mana at Little Beer Quarter
Dai never stopped smiling while we were there, and she was such a warm and bubbly personality to talk to. More than anything, I think her food is a reflection of what kind of person she is, and I love that food can telegraph personality like that. I had a really good chat to her after the meal and expressed my gratitude, but forgot to ask where Dal was. In any case, Mana and I left quite satisfied with the food, but it's a shame that these MKR teams are only there for a week!

Posted by Jeremy at 10:30am on Sunday December 7, 2014 :: 1 comment ::

Pravda Cafe

Where? Pravda Cafe (Wellington CBD, Wellington, New Zealand) Map Menu

When? Monday November 24, 2014

Who? Damon, Jordan and Christine

Food Style? European Bistro

Tucked away just opposite the Hare Krishna restaurant in the Old Bank Arcade is Pravda Cafe. The entrance is small and unassuming - the interior, however, boasts a large dining area almost invisible to the street. In our first Fine Dining Club Event since Wellington on a Plate and Damon's return from his magical adventures in Europe, we decided to give this a go, being only a block away from the PikPok offices.

Entree

Pravda Charcuterie Board - a selection of cured meats with condiments
The waitress was unable to point out each of the different meats to us, and I have since forgotten what the full description was on the menu, but I do remember the red meat in the top right corner next to the tomatoes being chorizo. The platter was simple with some toasted bread crisps on the side; I felt like Prefab's Berlin Breakfast did a far superior job with their bread and meat selection. It needed some hummus or cheese to really bring everything together.

Mains

Steak of the Day - Black Angus rib eye sir loin with duck fat fondant potato, creamed spinach and horseradish crème fraiche
To be perfectly honest, I was a bit disappointed with the presentation when this first came out. The plate looked uninspiring and a bit boring, and lacked the personality or flair I would expect from a $38 main meal. The token cherry tomato was a little bit stingy, and the duck fat fondant potato - as amazing as it sounds - didn't really meet expectation at all. It didn't have the wonderful aroma that the ones from Logan Brown have. That being said, the steak was pretty good, but not good enough to invoke passionate superlatives from my food vocabulary, however. The creamed spinach and horseradish creme fraiche were a good combo that augmented the flavour of the meat until the last bite, but otherwise, it was a pretty average experience. If you do decide to go here, I highly recommend the hand-cut fries with truffle oil, truffle mascarpone and parmesan - this was the clear winner on the night.

Posted by Jeremy at 7:59am on Tuesday November 25, 2014 :: 0 comments ::

El Matador

Where? El Matador (Wellington CBD, Wellington, New Zealand) Map Menu

When? Thursday November 20, 2014

Who? Bobby, Angela and Kenny

Food Style? Argentinian Asador Grill

Bobby and Angela had finally made the trip to Wellington to visit, so Kenny and I took them to El Matador. I always have a good time at El Matador; there's a wonderful smokey aroma from the burning wood just in the corner of the kitchen, visible as you enter the restaurant. It's intoxicatingly good and lingers even as you leave the restaurant. You walk home smelling delicious, so if this doesn't suit you, dress appropriately.

There's no doubt that South Americans are good with steak, and if the smell of the premises isn't an indication of how appetising the food is, the presentation of a huge platter of meat covered in their famous chimichurri is sure to get you salivating. We decided to share their steak plate and some tapas dishes on the side.

Cauliflower, red pepper and egg bake with pecorino and paprika

A good, hearty dish full of flavour. The egg in the description may make it seem like a quiche; it's more like a cheesy oven bake with boiled egg on the inside.

Broad beans with cream, bacon and cos lettuce

Grilled beetroot with watercress and preserved lemon and mint vinaigrette

Probably the healthiest option of the four plates we chose. The beetroot was naturally sweet and the vinaigrette balanced that with the sourness so well. It was a fresh, zesty interlude from the cheese, carbs and meat on the table.

Baby potatoes, olives and baby spinach with salsa verde

Steak plate: parrilla-grilled flank, rump, sirloin and ribeye with chimichurri

We ordered ours medium-rare - perhaps could have asked for medium as the meat is quite thick and wouldn't have minded it being a little bit more cooked. Nevertheless, the meat is incredibly aromatic and succulent, and the chimichurri is simply delicious and accompanies the steak so well. It provides that extra tang when your tastebuds become saturated with the taste of meat. The recommendation is to share between two or three people, but this fed the four of us quite well with all our sides. Well satisfied with the meal, and always a pleasure eating here. Steak just simply makes me happy.

Posted by Jeremy at 7:31am on Tuesday November 25, 2014 :: 0 comments ::

Milse

Where? Milse (Britomart, Auckland, New Zealand) Map

When? Saturday September 20, 2014

Who? Mel and Mike

Food Style? Dessert

I had heard a lot of great things about this fancy dessert place in Britomart, so still a little hungry from the Orphans Kitchen meal, Mel and I headed down to Britomart to see if we could get a table at Milse. Forty-five minute wait, they said - no problem, I said! We ended up rescuing my workmate Mike from the Green Party's election night party and bringing him to Britomart with us. The entire ordeal of driving from the waterfront area to K Road, finding a park, navigating through the greenies, grabbing Mike and heading back down to Britomart pretty much filled the waiting time, so when we got there, they had three seats for us. The place is quite tiny and cosy, seating at most maybe twelve people, but they are moving to a bigger place in the near future.

As we were lead down the corridor, I noticed the rows and rows of amazing pastries and colourful desserts in the takeaway cabinets, and I knew I would be in for a good time. Our seats were right up against the bar, looking directly into the kitchen and preparation area where the chefs were assembling their desserts. This was probably half the experience - seeing the meticulousness and care that goes into creating artforms like this. The three of us chose a dessert each and opted to share amongst ourselves.

My Choice

Valrhona Ivoire 35%: Lemon, Olive Oil, Thyme, Almond
The lemon and thyme sorbet was the central focus of this dish, and was accompanied by the soft white chocolate frozen foam at the top, and olive oil slices throughout. It was absolutely amazing, a perfect balancing of sweet and sour that sent shivers up my spine. The almonds and biscuit added some depth to the textures. This was my favourite of the three we ordered that night, and luckily so, because it was my choice.

Mike's Choice

Valrhona Kalingo 65%: Jasmine, Hazelnut, Caramel, Kiyomi
Wonderfully rich and totally smitten by the caramel, hazelnut and chocolate flavours prevalent in the dish, but ever so slightly confused by the jasmine and mint presence. It was nice, just very odd.

Mel's Choice

Kumquat: Kumquat, Lemon, White Chocolate, Cardamom
The objective here is to present the kumquat in several different textures and with matching accompaniments. There's kumquat cheesecake and dehydrated kumquat, with the lemon gel and lemon sorbet, the white chocolate ganache and the cardamom crumble. Brilliant citrus flavours and complex textures, but just didn't have that wow factor that the Valrhona Ivoire had.

As we ate, we watched more desserts being prepared in front of us. The one that caught our attention was the carrot cake dessert - it had a giant frozen orange ball filled with cream, and that looked the most spectacular. Definitely one to come back to so I can try everything, and also look at taking away some gifts too! Again, I ended up talk to the lady at the front counter and just really appreciated her passion for what she did and the way she talked about the food. I mentioned I was from Wellington and talked about Louis Sergeant, and that itself sparked a fresh new conversation about patisseries and delicious things. Absolutely blown away by the fantastic presentation and solidly enjoyable desserts, it's easy to see why Milse is so popular.

Posted by Jeremy at 8:48am on Sunday October 12, 2014 :: 0 comments ::

Orphans Kitchen

Where? Orphans Kitchen (Ponsonby, Auckland, New Zealand) Map

When? Saturday September 20, 2014

Who? Mel

Food Style? Contemporary

I always enjoy my foodie excursions with Mel, she shares the same excited tone of voice when talking about food as I do, and for some weird reason, she enjoys how my face goes from a pensive "I'm thinking really hard about the complex flavours in this dish" to an ecstatic "oh my goodness this is amazing". Mel recommended this place to me, and I had heard good things about it, so we gave it a go. We were greeted by a man with a very fine moustache, which made it feel just like the Wellingtonian hipster scene - I later learned that this was Josh Helm, one of Orphans co-owners. We sat down and chose the Chef's Menu - a six course sampling menu.

First Course

Trumpeter Fish, Pear, Witloof and Pomegranate
It's a little difficult to see, but the fish is sitting just near the pear on the right. What stood out to me in this dish is how beautifully sweet the pomegranate seeds were, a fantastic complement to the fish. The witloof and pear were delightfully crispy, and the fish had a really nice bite to it.

Second Course

Piper, Radish, Shallots, Watercress and Olive Oil
The piper reminded me of sardines - similar texture, the meat kinda breaks away quite easily and it had heaps of small bones strewn throughout the fish. Not particularly a fan, but I think the simplicity of the dish won me over. The ingredients were fresh - the radish being especially crispy and sweet.

Interlude

House-baked Ciabatta with Burnt Butter and Ash Salt
The only other restaurant where I have taken pictures of the bread is Logan Brown in Wellington. Not only was I blown away at how soft and heart-warming the bread was, I was amazed at the concept of "burnt butter". It had a wonderful caramelised flavour to it, with some great smokey essences that were brilliantly highlighted by the ash salt. It was seriously the best bread and butter combo I've ever had.

Third Course

Braised Venison, Beef Brisk, Rainbow Chard, Feijoa Chutney and Mash
The venison is wrapped inside the chard and I didn't have the heart to take a second picture of the dish with the leaves opened. The meat is incredibly tender and the feijoa chutney was an interesting addition to the plate - it was perhaps a bit too sweet for me or felt misplaced. The beef brisk was much like jerky, but the thin strips there made it feel more crispy than chewy.

Fourth Course

Beef Skirt, Kale, Red Cabbage, Black Garlic
This was absolutely delicious. The black garlic dollops on the side were incredibly tasty and I could not get enough of that stuff onto the beef, which like the venison, was incredibly tender and beautifully cooked. The kale was crispy and light, and I loved the crunchy texture that it brought to the dish.

Fifth Course

Yam with Kawakawa Mayonnaise
Just some good, wholesome deep-fried carbs with a rich sauce.

Dessert

Kawakawa Marshmallow, Kiwi Fruit Sorbet and Malt Crumb
I loved the presentation of the dessert. The kiwifruit flesh is replaced by the icy sorbet and is coated by the fluffy marshmallow. Mine was a bit too frozen, and it was a little difficult to dig out - Mel's seemed fine though. The malt crumb took the edge off the tartness of the kiwifruit and gave the dessert more body.

Fantastic meal overall. Each dish they brought out was accompanied by a short spiel about the dish's ingredients, and I appreciated the way the waiting staff presented their little excerpt. I mentioned to one of them that I was from Wellington and talked a bit about Wellington on a Plate, and I said the culture at Orphans reminded me of the philosophy that many Wellington restaurants have. It's about the food and the local produce, and what's in season and what's fresh. The flavours are so varied and eclectic yet they've been brought together in ways I wouldn't have imagined would gel, and I really enjoy being challenged like that.

Posted by Jeremy at 8:09am on Sunday October 12, 2014 :: 0 comments ::