Prix Fixe

I love a good musical. I'm actually seeing Les Miserables at Her Majesty's later tonight, which I've been hanging out for since pre-sale (you wonder why they just couldn't be called sale…) tickets were launched in January. I expect there to be tears of joy.

So when Prix Fixe opened their doors earlier this year, when they described their ticketing system like that of a musical, it just made so much sense. Yes, it's Melbourne's first ticketed restaurant, but fortunately, it's pretty straight forward! 

I won't go into too much detail, since the website is pretty clear, but you simply book a night and time, and number of people and show up and food is presented to you! Just like a musical. A four course dinner is $79, lunch of two or three courses with a glass of wine is $49 and $69. Tres simple. 

Every month, Philippa Sibley changes the menu, giving each month a theme…and this month, it's Vive La France, and all things French, which seems very timely, considering Les Miserables is in town!

I visited with my friend Bruce, after Brad left to Europe, on a blustery night. Located in Alfred Place, it's quiet and inconspicous from the outside, but push the door open and you find yourself in a simply lovely space, that I found quite soothing. Clean, with modern edges (exposed ceiling etc) but it was very refined and composed. 

Although I was there with a friend, I could see it being a lovely date night spot as well, it wasn't a particularly busy Wednesday night, but there were a fair few couples enjoying a glass of red together and a few moments of gazing into each other's eyes. 

We were left with the menu to have a quick look at and decide if we wanted to add oysters or cheese, and also order some wine. 

Only made sense for me to order a Lillet Blanc. French enough non?

I was positively tickled to see that bread is served directly onto the table, a lovely crusty bread that left quite a bit of proof you had taken a bite out of it. 

Our first course positively surprised me when it arrived at the table. It read 'Gougere A L'Oignon - Gougere, onion, Gruyere'…so I had assumed an onion soup (but then I didn't know what a Gougere was). But no! Instead we had a beautiful choux pastry filled with beautifully melted gruyere on top of an onion soup base. 

Aah. Just lovely. Comfort food presented ever so elegantly, there was nothing to dislike about the aromatic and intensely rich onions…although I have to say eating it made me kind of wish I was having it as a soup, because I could only imagine how good it would have been!

The 'Oeufs Bourguinon' was a red wine poached egg with nettle, champignons, escargot, lardons and crust, once again, delicately plated, with a beautiful mix of colours and textures. I was absolutely amazed at the colour they got into the egg (from the wine most assumedly) and even more smitten when it was broken open and the rich orange yolks cascaded over the deep mahogany and vivid green of the nettle. A real dose of eye candy. And not to mention delicious, the flavour of the wine was subtle but elegant and nicely complemented by the the bright nettle. 

And man those bread crusts were so crunchy. So perfectly toasted!

The 'Canard A L'Orange' blushed furiously as it was placed in front of me, another absolutely stunningly coloured dish. Confit en brick, roasted duck breast, a touch of citrus, green peppercorns and caramelised witlof, served with a serve of Parisian mash. 

Wow. I have to say I'm not usually a huge fan of orange in my food (orange chocolate is one of the only chocolates I don't really like), but this was so well balanced! Absolutely nothing to fault here, with tender duck breast, rich confit duck leg and brik pastry that just ever so lightly crunched. The sweetness of the witlof was just perfect as well. 

And that Parisian mash…so smooth and just so, so creamy!

We opted in for an additional cheese course which was a truffle camembert with brioche and fine herbs because it is truffle season after all! Whilst I found the truffle smell and flavour wasn't very prominent, it was definitely one of the best camembert's I've ever had, velvety and light, perfect with the fine herbs it was served with, bringing in a spot of freshness.

Although dessert, the 'Laissez-les Manger Gateau' didn't look like too much at first (it's inspired by Marie Antoinette's hairdo I believe…) there was so much goodness hiding within. Lady finger biscuits soaked in rum, passionfruit curd, milk chocolate mousse and even a almond milk sorbet (or something like that, my iPhone notes say soul ever, so I figure that's the closest thing it could be…), just so much going on! Every bite, another flavour, another texture, something new to find. I loved that it was a cold dessert (since I am very, very partial to ice-cream) and that it was also quite sizeable, relishing every bite. 

I really enjoyed the experience at Prix Fixe, in the sea of casual dining, long lines and pumping music, where restaurants are almost becoming clubs, Prix Fixe brings back out the white table cloth and softly spoken waiters who comb the tables for crumbs after the mains to bring back some of that old school hospitality. It's not stuffy or pretentious at all, but it certainly feels very classy. 

Each of our dishes was impeccably prepared, and I don't feel like I've seen such high quality food in a while. Sibley's found herself a beautiful niche in all the noise of the Melbourne dining scene and I can't wait to see what's coming up in the months to come. 

Prix Fixe

Alfred Place

90 Collins Street

Melbourne 3000

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Scarvelli Cafe

Diclosure: I was invited to dine as a guest at Scarvelli Cafe

Staying plugged in to the food and wine buzz is fantastic fun, always abreast of what's opening, what's delicious and what are they doing for dessert this week over there? 

But at the same time, because I can be so busy staying clued in on what's coming up, I don't necessarily see what's being hidden underneath all the media and hype and little do I know, that a real great little find could be just down the road.

Such is the case with Scarvelli Cafe, the name was unfamiliar, but it was just down the road from an old favourite of mine, Snow Pony, so when I was offered the opportunity to check it out (and after a quick scout of all the delicious looking photos on their Facebook page), I was quite excited to say yes!

It's an adorable little buzzy space, a little mish mash of eclectic bits and bobs and pops of colour giving it a home spun appeal. Books that sit on planks supported with metal pipes, and a puzzle of crates all tetris-ed together to make shelving. It's super cute.

Snuggling into a seat by the window, we tuck into our delicious piping hot drinks. My soy chai is rich and wholesome. 

The menu reads like a tease, as I end up wanting to order everything on it! Banana bread served with espresso mascarpone and candied hazelnuts, a luxe gluten free museli with puffed grains, toasted nuts, seeds and dried fruit with raspberry coulis, coconut porridge…how is one to choose?! I loved that it was a whole lot of brunch classics, but all dressed up a bit, with just enough difference to get me super excited about the whole affair. 

Brad opted for the sauteed mixed mushrooms with thyme-garlic butter, persian feta and toast, which was one of the prettiest mushroom brunch dishes I think I've seen! Scarvelli obviously prides themselves on their presentation, with hardly a mushroom out of place on the purposely positioned bread. This was just delicious, the mushrooms beautifully seasoned, and the feta providing a beautiful creamy texture. 

I couldn't resist the dukkah eggs, spiced crumbed poached eggs, sitting on a bed of cauliflower puree with pomegranate and pine nuts. Wow. Just stunning! I felt like I should be at a Moroccan restaurant at dinner ordering a main! The poached eggs were perfect, a lovely crunchy crust, with oozy yellow yolks. I swooned upon trying the puree, as it was just so silky, sweet and smooth, I just don't have enough vocabulary to express how good it was! The nips of pomegranate added fun pops of texture and sweetness, with the pine nuts bringing it all back down with it's rounded earthiness. 

Simply stunning.

I was also recommended to get some bread as well (as this dish didn't come with any) and the gluten free seeded bread that I got on the side, was perhaps some of the best I've had! Toasted, crunchy, sesame seeds, yum. It's just the thing for wiping up the cauliflower and oozy yolks.

From our spot at the window, it was fun to watch the locals pop in and out, I was surprised to see how busy it was (without being crazy full like Snow Pony gets), a steady flow of people in and out. It's obviously well loved by the locals in the area. Kids with cool batman hoods, grandma's with their yoga mats under their arms, the young couple with their hyperactive puppy at an outside table; Scarvelli seems to manage to appeal to just about everyone! 

I also tried their pear, celery, lemon and ginger juice (to pretend I'm healthy or something like that). Big thumbs up over here!

As we went to the counter to say goodbye to the manager, I was presented with a couple of their baked goodies to bring home, which are made fresh every morning. I forgot to take pictures…but they were seriously delicious. I had a cookie treat with strawberry Chantilly cream sandwiched in-between, which was surprisingly bold and abundant in flavour, but so smooth, with the short cookie just crumbling into the filling with each bite. Swoon!

I left Scarvelli cafe immensely impressed, and definitely very keen to be back soon, and will probably visit over Snow Pony for the absolutely beautifully crafted brunch dishes, chilled and friendly vibe and smiles. That, and whipped lemon butter with the fruit toast. Mmmmm.

Scarvelli Cafe

143 Whitehorse Road

Balwyn 3103

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Charlie Dumpling

I'm sometimes a bit shy with making suggestions for meals with my friends. Take a weekend or so a go when I discovered my beloved Squeeface (known to others as David) was in town, down from Sydney for the weekend, and we decided to go out for lunch. 

David's previously been a bit reluctant to spend money on food that traditionally is the best when it's cheap ie. Mexican, Chinese etc. etc. which made me a bit apprehensive to suggest Charlie Dumpling…but I did any way, and warning David it was what I dubbed 'hipster Asian'. 

Fortunately he's warmed up to going out to just about anywhere (although I think he'd still get pretty cross at $5 tacos, since he did spend a lot of time in California…) and on a very wet Saturday afternoon, after hunting around for parking we slipped into Charlie Dumpling on High Street to warm up. 

I had read reviews that Charlie Dumpling could get very tight and squishy on space, which I could certainly imagine, but during lunch, when just a smattering of people were seated, it was very comfortable, and I was surprised how much I liked the space. A bit quirky, and not overly dressed, with nice little pops of pink, which I thought was rather adorable.

Although this picture I spied out the back freaked me out a tiny bit…

We both got cosy on the bench side of the table, a sensory lab coffee for him and a cup of lemongrass and ginger tea for me. A nice break after a few boozy nights!

Although dumpling is in the name, Charlie has quite a lot more to offer as we discovered.

I was stunned by the gorgeous presentation of the kingfish sashimi, fennel, ponzu and horseradish dish. Looking more like a bouquet of flowers than a dish of raw fish. More than looks though, it was utterly delicious as well, the fish smooth and delicate, with light and bright complementary accents from all the garnish. Nice and refreshing way to start the meal!

But if the kingfish was a light way to start the meal, our next small bite brought it crashing back down to decadence. Charlies fried chicken ribs with five spice honey and kewpie mayo. 

It sounds good. 

Tastes even better.

My parents have long been cooking chicken ribs as a fun and easy kids treat at parties, but this was the real adult version with intensely light and incredibly crunchy batter that you could probably hear someone chewing from the other side of the room. Drizzled with that beautiful spiced, sticky, sweet, honey glaze and rolled in kewpie…bliss. I was very, very tempted to order a second serve which the waitress had warned would happen!

On to the actual dumplings! I was quickly swayed to order the chicken with ginger, cabbage and crispy skin, the cabbage acting as the dumpling skin. This was nice, but not as amazing as I hoped it would be, as the skin wasn't super duper crispy (like the chicken ribs were) and cabbage skin just didn't appeal to me incredibly, although the chicken was well seasoned and well flavoured with a nice hit of ginger.

On the other hand, the panfried beef gyoza with red curry was absolutely one of the best things I've put in my mouth recently. A dumpling that's just right for winter, piping hot, and packed with rich decadent flavours. A slight crunch to the skin from the fry, a big hit of beef and then that curry sauce, oh my, so much flavour, so thick, so moreish. Definitely wanted another serve of these as well!

But really, the reason I wanted to hit up this 'Asian Hipster' spot, was for the dessert dumplings that I had been checking out on the menu…frequently. I'm a bit of a menu peeper. I can't help it!

Although sorely tempted to order two desserts, we settled on the milk chocolate dumplings with raspberry-chilli sorbet. 

Just yum. So many levels of yum. The fried chocolate dumplings, which we ate like lollipops, were soft and slightly gooey with a rich cocoa flavour. The sorbet was all fruit on the front of the palate, with a nip of sneaky heat coming up the back later. Smitten. Smitten, smitten, smitten!

I left, so happy and so impressed. I was certainly more than estactic with what I got and thought that for around $35 a head, we had one of the tastiest feeds I've had recently, with such a vast variety of flavours and textures. Sure, Charlie Dumpling is a bit trendy (for dumplings), but at least it's all completely delicious and doesn't compromise at all on quality. 

So uh. Why don't you all go to Chinatown and I'll just eat all these really tasty dumplings and chicken ribs for you? Sound like a deal?

Charlie Dumpling
184 High Street
Windsor




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