The Town Hall Hotel

Disclaimer: I was invited for a complimentary meal at the Town Hall Hotel

I was having dinner with one of my good friends the other night and he made a comment about really being into chef-owner restaurants at the moment. Is that the right terminology? I'm not sure, but I'm guessing you know what I mean. When the chef is the owner of the restaurant as well, there tends to be a lot more love and personality in the place and in the food. 

Which is what I found when I went to have lunch at the Town Hall Hotel in Fitzroy a few weeks ago, owned by chef Harry Lilai and his wife Michelle and their business partner and manager Stuart Neil.

Located on Johnson Street, between Smith Street and Brunswick Street, it's one of those places I have driven past a countless number of times, but never thought of going into. Oh my goodness, what have I been missing out on?!

The Town Hall Hotel is all old school charm, with a fresh face. I loved how the light just poured in lazily through the beautifully framed and intricate windows. The Town Hall Hotel was split up into quite a lot of areas, but each was beautifully done up. From the more casual front bar, to the intimate dining rooms at the back, one with white walls and dark accents, the other with white table cloth and flowers on the table. 

There was also an awesome wine room, squirrelled away down in a basement like area, which had brick walls just lined with wine bottles. Apparently a lot of cheese and wine launches are had down here…couldn't ask for a much better setting!

You could already tell how passionate Stuart Neil was about the restaurant, while giving a couple of us bloggers the grand tour around the restaurant, keen to point out details, show us extra kitchens (yes there's a second one upstairs next to the function rooms!) and make sure we were kept smiling and entertained. 

With front of house experience that reads like the Age Good Food and Wine guide (Cutler & Co, Momo, Exard, Taxi, the Stokehouse…), Stuart was a most gracious host and you could tell he enjoyed his work. Absolutely meticulous, no detail escaped his eye, and he almost always brought food around to Allan and I first, so that we could shoot it before everyone else got into it!

We started our lunch with hot dates filled with taleggio and wrapped in pancetta. Oh my goodness, piping hot, the dates were soft and sweet which just married with the saltiness and savoury of the pancetta and taleggio. Oh melted taleggio. Oozing taleggio. So naughty but so nice. I had two.

Following that we tucked into chickpea battered oysters with pickled fennel. I was all about the fennel here, although the chickpea batter itself was delicious and kind of nutty, the fennel just brought this to a whole new level, making it bright and vivacious. 

Stuart had picked out some absolutely gorgeous wines for lunch, and we drank very well. Almost too well. I was half worried I wouldn't be able to drive home! The 2012 Scott Fiano from Adelaide Hills was the perfect starting wine for lunch. Light and smooth, with just a little twist of acidity there to keep the taste buds alert. 

I would have tried the bread…but who really has time (and tummy space) when the entrees keep coming out?

Yellow fin tuna crudo with shallots, horseradish, capers and sweet saffron dressing completely seduced the eye with it's vivid magenta hue.  The tuna itself was smooth, but I still just adored how Harry continued to make these proteins so vibrant, adding a bit of contrast to this smooth and sweet tuna with the sharp and crunchy onions. 

I'm a bit sad I didn't get a better picture of the seared beef carpaccio with truffled beef tartare and reggiano shavings. I'm so used to either just having a beef carpaccio or a beef tartare, but not together. The different textures of the beef played off each other very well, and there's nothing like truffles. Nothing. 

Harry's apparently crazy for baccala, and after having it the way he cooks it, who can blame him? I don't know if I can look at another arancini the same way after having the arancini of baccala with salad of parma ham, red onion and witlof here. The smokiness really came through, and it had a rather addictive crunch around the exterior. It kind of tasted like a fancier fish and chips to me, without the chips though. There was also something about the texture I really liked, I'm used to noticing all the rice grains in an arancini, but this was much smoother. Unusual, but delicious. 

Smoked duck breast and onion tart with a duck liver parfait. This was a little bit hard to share, as it's clearly designed for one (glutton) to enjoy all their own with finely sliced slivers of tender duck on top of a thin pastry. It was quite difficult not to swipe the carefully spooned out parfait all onto my plate when it came to me to get my serve. 

Before moving on to the pasta dishes, we changed our wine gear to the reds. The 2009 Umani Ronchi San Lorenzo Rosso Conero DOC instantly won Allan over with it's soft plummy palate. Soft on the tannins, we wondered if it have enough structure to go with food…which it certainly proved to as we moved into carbohydrate central. 

Generously sized tortelloni of pumpkin and leek, prosciutto, lemon button and fresh ricotta made for a rather surprisingly light pasta treat. Zesty is not usually an adjective I would apply to any savoury carbohydrate, but it goes very well here. Zesty and sweet (thanks to the pumpkin). The pasta itself was quite structured and gorgeously al dente. It was also a tiny bit cold by the time it got to me, but we had a pretty big table and therefore a lot of people to get around!

Although we had one zesty pasta dish, Harry didn't hold back on the cool Autumn afternoon we were having and sent us straight into comfort food land with the risotto of porcini with confit garlic and truffled pecorino. Ah. I died. Multiple times. 

I kind of wanted to keep the plate to myself, but that's not very ladylike I suppose. Beautiful texture, I kind of need to go back for this. More garlic and truffle goodies please.

The creamed baccala with white onion over soft polenta is probably as close as it gets to The Town Hall Hotel's signature dish. This my friends, is perfect for the upcoming colder months. You can't really tell when baccala turns into polenta, and end up with just spoonfuls of warm and creamy goodness, with a smokey and salty edge. Pure comfort. 

So I haven't had a chance to tell you about Harry yet. Harry is an absolute gem. Twinkle in the eye, generous grin, big hearty laughs and all the passion in the world for his cooking. When he wasn't in the kitchen, preparing another round of food for us, he was at some spare chair at the table, leaning back with a glass of wine and merrymaking with the rest of us, making sure he got around to everybody to check how the food was. 

I love watching a chef work on their food, so I snuck over to watch Harry plate up an osso bucco dish (oh yes) and when I commented that it's the perfect dish for Autumn, he very easily convinced me that everybody should just have braised dishes all year round and that he would always have one on the menu, despite the season, as he absolutely loves them. He also groaned about editing a menu, complaining over the many ideas that were always in his head, that he would love to share with his customers, but also be cautious of overwhelming them at the same time. You can't help but smile. 

For the record, Allan and I did comment that the menu read very well, easy, non fussy, didn't have to read anything twice. This is something totally underrated these days! 

And before I forget (although really how can I?) the osso bucco milanese with saffron risotto and gremolata, casually lying about in a gorgeously hearty stew, just flopped off the bone and melted in the mouth. I was quite enamoured with the saffron risotto as well, which was just so bright in flavour and sweet.

Oh man. We're full. 

But there's still dessert. 

Stuart comes over to our chairs, kneels down to our level and informs Allan and I the following: the chef is preparing the tiramisu, bombolone and a surprise dessert that he won't tell me…do you still want the chocolate pudding?

And, literally, even before we had a second to think: So that's a yes? Okay I'll let him know. 

And to the kitchen he went. That, my friend, Is a clever man.

While waiting for dessert, Stuart also poured us a little dessert wine. The 2012 Peregrine 'Charcoal Creek' Riesling was one of the tastiest dessert wines I've had recently. It was delicate and sweet with lots of stone fruit flavours, not too sticky or sugary. My kind of thing. 

A coconut panna cotta with pineapple and lime salsa, gracefully glides onto the table. So delicate and elegant in flavours, it is an absolute treat after the rather filling food we've been having. It's a very Italian style panna cotta, or so Henry tells us, in that it sort of melts into liquid on the tongue, instead of having a bit more density, achieved usually with more gelatin, that is a little more common these days. It was kind of like a pina colada in dessert form!

The hot chocolate pudding with citrus compote and malted ice-cream is naughty. So naughty. Piping hot, the centre is literally just molten dark chocolate, which wraps itself around a spoonful of ice-cream and transports you to sugar heaven. This was great as it wasn't too sweet, with a real emphasis on good dark chocolate. If you're a chocolate addict, with a thing for the dark and handsome, take note of this darling.

I found the simple presentation of the tiramisu endearing. No fuss, no muss, just simply rustic tiramisu. Cream, sponge, coffee, it's surely hard to get this wrong? 

And lastly (no I'm not sure where we found all this tummy space) a generous serve of the bombolone made it to the table. Custard filled Italian doughnuts with orange blossom and honey ice cream. Sugar dusted, fluffy with a kind of crumbly texture, these were warm and soulful. The honey ice cream was a great pairing with it. 

Allan and I slumped back in our chairs and although the offer of tea and coffee (to aid with digestion) was a tempting one, I unfortunately had emails awaiting me at work. Although Harry did invite us to stick around, drink a bit more and wait until dinner to start all over again...!

I was extremely impressed with this little gem in Collingwood, that I very embarrassingly didn't care to notice earlier. It'd make a lovely place for a cosy date, or for a casual, but nice night out and caters well to bigger groups as well. The only thing that's a downside for this gorgeous little gastropub (can I call it that? I think so...) is that parking can be a bit tricky during lunch, but there are some 2 hour spots down the side streets, floating about if you can get one!

I felt as if I was leaving Stuart and Harry's home as I got my coat on and my car keys out. A beautifully lit home, with hearty, wholesome, but creative food as well and good company. I vow to be back for more baccala arancini and delicious wine from that winelist...!

The Town Hall Hotel

166 Johnson Street

Fitzroy

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A Weekend in Sydney - Day 2

And now, we continue my weekend-long adventure in Sydney, with one of my best friends, Ben. If you missed day 1, to give a quick summary, there were macarons, whiskey and desserts that were better than sex. But not really. But sort of. It's a paradox!

Day two in Sydney was going to prove to be a sweet one. Literally and metaphorically. After a slightly rough night of sleep (I wonder if I overstimulated my brain with videos of goats that scream like humans?), Ben and I headed over to Flour and Stone at some ungodly weekend morning hour to make sure we got there bright and early. We had our morning planned out, and we were gonna stick to it. 

Despite this…we could not find any parking. Seriously. Sydney, I thought Melbourne was bad, but you're kind of worse and your carparks are ridiculously expensive as well. Not happy.

So instead, we illegitimately parked in front of Flour and Stone, just long enough that we didn't get a fine but enough time so that we got to ogle over and pick up some goodies. 

It was such a cold and blustery morning, and I felt a bit sorry for the poor little terrier that was obligingly waiting for it's owner. I don't know about you guys, but I would feel so guilty doing that to my dog!

I really don't think much needs to be said of Flour and Stone. If you haven't heard of their legendary lamingtons and other array of delicious baked goods, then you must have been hiding under a rock. Where there is no instagram. And no bloggers from Sydney. Or bloggers from Melbourne who visit Sydney and bring back sweet treats. I mean. Really. That's a pretty bleak world you're living. 

Although tempted with sweet treats such as an intricate apple tart, that looked like a giant flower, and almond croissants and chocolatey goodies, we ended up picking up a few things (including the famous lamington of course) to eat a bit later. 

After that it was off to Paddington, where we stopped by Micky's Cafe for breakfast, as Ben had heard some decent things about it (or something of the sort). I was kind of impressed that the breakfast menu was offered until 5pm…I couldn't think of anywhere in Melbourne that did that!

Although the cafe was lacking a little bit in personality (although there were some cute movie quote references floating around the place) and service at 9am, when there were only about 2 or 3 tables, was a bit slow, I was actually fairly impressed by breakfast itself. 

Ben had the corn fritters, with avocado, tomato and ricotta, which were modest and tasty and I…well…I got a massive serve of Huevos rancheros, with chilli beans, eggs, cheese, avocado, jalapenos salsa and sour cream with a tortilla. I actually really loved this, elements of richness but with a lot of fresh and bright flavours still. Tomatoes, avocado, hearty scoop of sour cream. And cheese. Cheese. All of the cheese. Did I mention cheese? The jalapeno kick was just brilliant. Totally warming and filling…I actually pretty much ate the whole thing myself because Ben doesn't like eggs.

I know. He's weird. We still manage to be friends somehow. Maybe because he is a totally sweet guy though and actually let me pop by a White Suede warehouse sale that was going on nearby for nearly an hour. No complaints, no worries, he actually came in and poked his nose around at the dresses for a bit. Wonder if there's a way to transplant this shopping behaviour into Brad?

$100 spent, one silk dress and two silk tops later, we drove across town to Balmain to visit the one and only Zumbo. Of course. Although cakes, and delicious smelling breads tempted all the senses, I only had eyes for the macarons, that came in a rainbow of colours and an orchestra of flavours. Malt milkshake? Popcorn? Cola? Finger buns? Yes, yes, yes. I'll have all of those please.

With all our sweet goodies in hand, we then returned back to Ben's place so that he could run a few errands, and do a bit of study (he was preparing for actuary tests or something. Ew. Numbers). 

Whilst he was out dropping off some laundry and picking up some mail, I discovered that Ben pretty much had the absolute perfect kitchen bench for shooting. Diffused natural light, light wood with nice woodgrain through it, surely it's the home cook photographer's wet dream or something?

And so I proceeded to shoot our 'lunch'. 

I much preferred Zumbo's macarons over the ones I had had at Laduree the day before. Whilst consistency varied between the macarons a bit, with some shells being soft and some a bit firmer, and some macarons with more filling than others, the flavours were the key characteristic to take note of here. You didn't go to Zumbo for perfectly executed classically French macarons. You went to have the cool punky and experimental kids of the macaron world. 

I went ape for the popcorn flavour. Ben was a bit weirded out, I was totally feeling it. 

The leek and gruyere tart from Flour and Stone was delightful, Ben decided it was too eggy for him, but I loved how light it was, for being a cheesy tart. 

We also bought the fig tart, which I thought was nice, but not overwhelmed by (feel like I should have gotten the apple tart instead…) but both Ben and I absolutely fell head over heels for the pannacotta lamington.

We understand Flour and Stone lamington lovers now. Truly, we do. And I am also incredibly jealous that I'm not in Sydney now. Because truly, every other day I would surely be popping by the little bakery and stocking up on these rich, smooth, moist and just sinful lamingtons. Lots of coconut, creamy pannacotta soaked lamington with berry jam sandwiched in-between. 

Ben declared it to be the best lamington he had ever had. I'm not so familiar with lamingtons, but I would say it's the best I've ever had too!

I think the almond croissant was from Flour and Stone too, which was nice, but kind of hard to get overly excited about after having the lamington. 

Ben had also bought an apple cider and garlic bread from Zumbo's, which he sliced and toasted, which just the best idea ever. When toasted, subtle tendrils of garlic aroma would float across from the other side of the kitchen, in a quiet announcement that it was ready for consumption. Spread room temperature butter over this and die over the garlic, the crunch and the chunks of apple. I thought it was a weird combo on paper, but it worked together so well.

Yeah. Lunch was pretty awesome. 

Lots of tea had to be consumed to offset all the sweetness and keep us awake as I blogged and he studied through the afternoon. 

Just before dinner, my tummy started getting a bit grumbly, so we popped out to grab some frozen yoghurt from Wow Cow, just around the corner from Ben's. There's seriously frozen yoghurt everywhere in Sydney. Melbourne just seems to be in it's youth with it, but it's well and truly established in Sydney. I counted about 4 places in our short walk to the station!

A small serve of pomegranate fro-yo, sprinkled with chocolate flakes, in my belly (which I loved as it was deliciously tangy) and then it was on the train and over to Porteno to line up before opening…

…which I will save for another time, as really, Porteno needs a whole post just to itself….

Flour and Stone

53 Riley Street

Woolloomooloo

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Micky's Cafe

268 Oxford Street

Paddington

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Adriano Zumbo

296 Darling Street

Balmain

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