Camus

Disclosure - I was invited to dine as a guest of the restaurant. All comments, opinions are my own.

“Where are we going for dinner?”

“Camus - it’s French Algerian.” 

Cue funny look from Brad to which I shrug my shoulders in response. 

We don’t often go out for dinner these days, as I’m often out at events all week, or catching up with friends, so by the time Friday or Saturday rolls around, I’m curled up in a foetal position on the couch wrapped around a bowl of ice-cream. 

So when the opportunity came up to visit Camus, despite not knowing what we were getting into, I couldn’t wait to check it out. 

In interviews with the media, Chef Pierre Khodja describes his cuisine as Algerian, with all the spices and flavours of North Africa, but tidied up with French technique.

Located in Northcote, the restaurant is softly lit and cosy, with mouth watering aromas wafting through the venue. The bar at the front is perfect for a first date drink and nibble (well I think it would be, I’ve been off the market for seven years so what do I know?) 

The level of hospitality expertise is obvious, as waiters effortlessly get us seated and keep the pace of the night consistent with a smile and professional ease. 

The menu is not too long, but just long enough that you can’t order everything on the menu, despite every item on it begging to be ordered. 

Don’t get too carried away with ordering though, because you will want to have some space for the bread, which is served with some of the most moreish dukkah I’ve ever had. I cheekily even asked for a second serve of it because it was so good. 

We start with seared scallops, oxtail and preserved lemon and 2 way cooked sardines with checkchuka. I have not had more perfectly cooked scallops, so tender! Both dishes demonstrated a lot of thought and technique, but were also big, warm and comforting dishes overall. 

For mains, we ordered the slow cooked goat with caramelised onions and apricot. The goat was so tender, falling off the bone. Goat meat can be quite strong, but I didn’t find that was the case here, and was very impressed with the pairing with apricot. These must’ve been stewed for a while, so naturally sweet and soft, which balanced out the meat very nicely.

To accompany the goat we ordered macaroni and cheese with cinnamon, caramelised onions and corn. Label me smitten - I think this might be my favourite macaroni and cheese in town. I find a lot of mac n’ cheese you find at american diners are more about the richness, with macaroni soft, and the overall dish just walloping you with creaminess - not at Camus. 

I was impressed that the macaroni was still al dente, that there was still texture to the pasta,  and the cheese. Oh goodness! It didn’t just have a creamy mouthfeel, it tasted like beautifully rich and matured cheese which I loved. Could, would, eat two plates of this by myself. 

The local roast carrots with caraway and honey were also a sheer delight, beautifully tender, and the sweetness of the honey really coming through and elevating the natural sweetness of the carrots as well. I’m such a sucker for a good roasted carrot. 

To finish, it of course had to be the Turkish delight shuffle with pistachio baklava and halva ice-cream. The soufflé came out flawlessly, airy and light, with a light hand on the rose water, so it wasn’t overwhelming. Would have a second serve of the halva ice-cream in the future as well (if they’d let me). 

I had a serve of Algerian mint tea with dessert, which may initially seem like a lot for $8, but the pot you receive is ginormous! I really enjoyed the tea, which was a little sweeter than your usual straight mint tea, and another flavour I can’t put my finger on, but it’s a little richer overall. I wished I could’ve sipped on this all evening - but I was so full! Definitely recommend ordering to share - unfortunately Brad’s not a big tea drinker. 

Camus is a wonderful and refreshingly new addition to the Melbourne scene. From service, to food, everything made for a wonderful mid-week date night spot. 

Camus

61 High Street 

Northcote

 

Bistro Thierry

The older I get, the less I enjoy going out drinking for birthdays, and instead, intimate gatherings seem to be more my thing. This counts for birthdays that aren't mine as well! 

When Sarah celebrated her birthday this year (which seemed to stretch for a month…!) she organised a lovely lunch at Bistro Thierry with a little group of us. French food has a tendency to come with a price tag…but not at Bistro Thierry if you're going for the $35 Prix Fixe lunch menu. 

Such a steal of a deal!

Located in Toorak, Bistro Thierry is quite charming, with dark walls and French memorabilia and motifs hung up liberally on the walls. It's quite proper, but not stuffy, with a lovely dose of light brightening up the space. I loved that the tables had white paper over the top of the table cloth, which I'm sure is more for practicality than anything, but it certainly brings a more casual atmosphere. 

We were fortunate to have a round table for the 7 of us, perfect to have some serious banter about the hot topic of the moment…the Real Housewives of Melbourne! Oh come on…we all have our trashy delights…

The Prix Fixe menu at Bistro Thierry consists of two courses, and a glass of wine (which many of us swapped out for tea or coffee). I was immediately impressed with the sheer selection of entrees and mains, 7 of each, which mostly featured classic French dishes (French onion soup, Salad Nicoise, minute steak), but with a few slightly modern additions as well (panko crumbed salmon cakes). 

Daisy and I decided to each get an entree, two mains and a dessert between us to share (although for $8.50 for an extra course, we really should've gone for another dessert…)

Overall, we were all very impressed with our meals that day, classic caesar salads went down a treat, fresh and crunchy, and our country style pate served with cornichons and rocket was a nice and light start to the meal (although I was tempted to get the pan-fried lamb brains). The rocket and cornichons were so crunchy and provided a lovely contrast in texture.

For my main I had to go for the timeless beef bourguignon, braised in red wine with onions, mushrooms and mashed potato. 

Will admit, I thought the serve looked a bit small when we first received it…but wow. Talk about flavour and texture, and meat that's falling apart at the touch of a fork. Talk about rich and hearty, and mashed potato that's sitting at the bottom just swimming in gravy. Small, but incredibly decadent!

The minute steak was a popular option, and everyone who ordered it was beaming over how perfectly the meat was cooked and the mountain of fries that came with. I might've eaten half of Daisy's serve of fries. Maybe.

To wrap up, whilst some went for creme brulee, Daisy and I opted to have the tart tartan, a warm apple and caramel tart with calvados scented ice cream. Once again, it initially looked a bit small…but proved to be quite mighty. When they say 'caramel' tart, they're not kidding, with the apples absolutely drowning in a thick, rich and very moreish caramel, liberally poured all over the plate. With a scoop of ice-cream? Perfection. 

Bistro Thierry proves that classic can still be casual and enjoyable, and the $35 lunch makes a nice way to test the menu out (which they execute amazingly) and certainly has me wanting coming back for more. 

Bistro Thierry 

511 Malvern Road

Toorak 3142

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Le Flaneur - Dinner Service

Disclosure: I dined as a guest of Le Flaneur. 

Le Flaneur is dressing up for the evening. 

Put away the coffee cups, pull out the wine glasses. Have your bread that's been toasted to perfection, lightly brushed with butter, that's been sprinkled with chopped black olives. Seriously delicious. 

Yes, Le Flaneur, which I have written about before, having enjoyed their charming interior and darling brunches on numerous occasions, are now open for dinner on Fridays and Saturdays. 

I visited with Brad, Allan and his friend Agnes. Even though Brad and I much closer, we were surprisingly the later party to arrive, although Allan had perfectly pre-empted our arrival and had gotten a bottle of red for us to share. Allan knows what he's doing!

The menu is small and changes every two weeks, with a handful of entrees, two main options and two dessert options, you'll fortunately not have any problem deciding what to try, as you'll simply just have to get everything! I mean, that's what we did! And although by now, you won't be able to eat what I have, I hope it gives you an idea of what you could potentially expect!

The house cured salmon bellinis were fresh and surprisingly very zesty, with a nice hit of lemon in the creme fraiche. I enjoyed the smooth and chunky cuts of salmon, it was lovely to have something to sink your teeth into and really get a mouthful of freshness. The fish roe on top added a pop here and there in the mouth, a playful little texture. I don't think this would be everyone's thing, as the zest was quite strong in flavour, but I thought it made for a nice fresh start to the meal that woke up the palate.

The mussels marinieres were so, oh just so, so sweet, and so fresh. I just kept reaching for mussel, after mussel. The sauce was just beautiful, not too heavy but so incredibly moreish. 

We were all a bit surprised by the size of the risotto and were commenting on how we could quite comfortably have it as a main. A medley of colourful vegetables, this was quite creamy, rich and heavy, so it was just as well that we were all sharing!

I honesty don't remember who got which main, as we were swapping the around so much, but for both, we all thought that they were quite generous with the protein portions. 

Take for example the duck breast served on very generous spoonfuls of soft wheat polenta with an apricot reduction and broccolini. It too me a while to get through all the meat! And how lovely the meat was, blushing pink and so tender, with crisp skin. I adored the apricot reduction, which was so sweet and fruity and an unexpected addition as you don't really see it on the dish, or just assume it's a bit of the jus. 

The poached ocean trout with bouillabaisse, rouille jelly and shellfish was also quite generous with the proteins, with two healthy portions of trout. I feel like trout's not something you see on menus very much at the moment, and I should probably educate myself more as to why, but it's a fish I do actually quite like the flavour of and it was refreshing to have something different. Whilst I do love a bouillabaisse, and was a little sad not to see it as a soup, when reduced and quite a bit thicker, it did make for a lovely sauce that just wrapped everything up quite nicely. 

We were naturally wiggling in our seats with excitement for dessert and we weren't disappointed! 

Chocolate fondant flavoured with raspberries and tonka beans, is expected and perhaps a little typical, but never unwelcome. Especially when it's soft and gooey and all ganache like inside and it just makes you melt on the inside as well with joy to see it. Or me anyway. Maybe not Brad so much. It had a lovely deep cocoa flavour, with a touch of raspberry to pick it up a bit.

Although I do usually favour desserts of the chocolate kind, the carrot cake with orange blossom creme fraiche, surprisingly spoke to my taste buds more. Soft, light and fluffy, with only a subtle hint of orange blossom (I'm not usually crazy for orange in desserts) and a crackle or two of the caramel net over the top, I think overall I found this dessert a little more exciting with more elements to it.

In all, it was a lovely and quiet meal in a rather relaxing environment, with good company. Brad and I calculated later that the meal would have probably cost around $55 a person for food, which I think for the portions and quality was pretty good value. Although I've enjoyed Le Flaneur as a brunch spot, I do feel that with dinner they are taking it to a much higher level and letting the chef get his fancy knives out to play with for a little while. 

And really, why not add a little French twist to your week every now and again. Even the waiter had a French accent (which Brad gave me evil eyes for swooning over) and you'll always have something fresh and different every time you visit. 

Le Flaneur

5 Church St 
Hawthorn, VIC 3122

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Tefal Heritage Masterclass at Bistro Guillaume

Disclosure: I attended the masterclass at Bistro Guillaume as a guest of Tefal

Champagne on a Monday morning?

Only when you're hanging out with Guillaume Brahimi of course! 

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to spend my Monday morning in Bistro Guillaume and attend a masterclass, alongside media and other bloggers, inspired by Christmas in July, with the man himself and also check out Tefal's new heritage range…I mean, how does one say no? Oui, oui, all the way!

It had been a while since I was last at  Bistro Guillaume, and that had been for dinner, so I loved being in on a bright sunny day, where the windows did the space so much justice…but we didn't get to enjoy for it long. 

We were soon guided down a hidden set of steps at the back to the kitchen sanctuary, where all the food prep was done. I was amazed how big the kitchen was and how clean it was as well! One could only imagine what it might be like in the midst of preparations for a service. 

Brahimi was the most wonderful host, so jovial, full of laughter, full of stories. Apparently the above goggles are used for chopping onions! When you have to get through 60kgs of onions a day…I can understand why!

Speaking of onions, we started our masterclass watching how to make a very classic French onion soup. Apparently in France, onion soup is something that's eaten at any time of the day, but in particular, late night and early morning. Brahimi paints us a picture of a bustling French market, lively at 3am in the morning, with people sipping on their white wine and drinking their onion soup at the bistro.

Naturally all the pots and pans in the kitchen are Tefal, and Brahimi explains how loyalty is important to him, he's been using Tefal pans since he was 15, when he was apprenticing in Robouchon's kitchens! 

As we're prepping the pots and pans, he points out the red spot in the centre that goes completely red when the pan is 180 degrees, so that you know for sure when your pan is hot enough to get a nice sear on a piece of fish, or something of the sort.

I found it interesting that Brahimi uses veal stock for his onion soup, specifically, he uses veal osso bucco, as you need some of the meat and fat from the animal to get some flavour in there!

We're generous with the gruyere on the croutons, which makes for just a little spot of decadence in the comforting flavours of the onion soup. Just sublime, so rich, so creamy…I was almost full after just the soup, to which Brahimi looked at me with the most appalled face I'd seen! Time to get the food blogger pants on clearly!

Brahimi loves to focus on local, his table butter coming from a Victorian butter factory in weekly batches…that's how freshly made it is! He's passionate as well about focussing on the smaller, but specialised producers, as to him, that's the only way to progress to better quality…everything!

For his chickens, which he loves, he gets his birds from Maggie Beer's daughter, who raises free range chickens in the Barossa Valley and has been for years. One interesting thing I learnt was that you cannot break the bone of a free range chicken, if they've been brought up properly. 

Like any good Frenchman would, the chickens are liberally rubbed with butter then roasted in Tefal's Heritage roasting pans, which are much lighter than I expect when I get my hands on one, as they look quite sturdy! The tip here for roasting chicken is not to add salt at the very beginning, as it will dry up the skin and make it go brown very quickly, salt your roast chicken about three-quarters of the way through roasting instead!

Our chickens, which were gorgeously juicy, were served with a gorgeous and warm tomato, onion and balsamic salad as well as a serve of the most incredible 'Pommes Fondant'. Here the potatoes are cut to about an inch and a half thick and lovingly bathed in butter and a bit of chicken stock, and finished in the oven. It almost melts in your mouth, as it's just so soft and creamy. I could have almost just eaten those alone!

It was a pleasure to have Brahimi join us at the table as we ate, he talked about his family life (did you know Brahimi plays water polo in the ocean on Sundays?), travelling life (in one year he managed to accumulate 380 boarding passes or something!) and was questioned about what the deal was with Bennelong, in which he was very frank, tolerant and honest. 

I don't have a lot of pictures of dessert, as I was in the dessert team cooking it in the kitchen! Let me tell you, commercial stove tops are hot, real hot! As I was stirring a bit of caramel and butter around pineapples, I couldn't imagine what it would be like to spend most of your hours in here, with all burners on, with a lot of other people doing prep as well! Felt like I was getting a facial with all the heat and steam! 

So if you didn't guess already, dessert was a roast pineapple with coconut sorbet. Again, in the French style, there were generous dollops of butter, and a bit of sugar to caramelise with the pineapples. It was actually quite amazing to see Brahimi demonstrate how 'non-stick' the non-stick pans were. The caramel just lazily slid around the pan, a rather lusciously viscous and bubbly concoction, any other pan and I can only imagine how much of a mess it would be to clean up!

Despite all the sugar and butter, the pineapple made for a rather reasonably light dessert with it's bright acidity that cut through the sweetness. The coconut sorbet was delightfully refreshing as well. 

In fact, I was so impressed with dessert, I attempted it that night at home with pears. I ended up burning the caramel a bit, but managed to salvage some of the pears and topped the lot off with ice-cream. Quite a treat, and very comforting in the cooler weather. My mum has also since used the Tefal Heritage grill pan that we were gifted, which has resulted in beautiful steaks and perfectly seared fish for dinner on multiple occasions, I really need to play with it a bit more myself! 

To wrap up, visit Bistro Guillaume for their beautiful onion soup, and if you'd like to pick up some Tefal Heritage goodies yourself, the range is available exclusively at Myer stores. 

Bistro Guillaume

Crown Entertainment Complex

8 Whiteman Street

Melbourne