Heirloom - Melbourne - review

Name: Heirloom

Address: Citadines Hotel
Ground floor
131 Bourke St
Melbourne 3000 VIC
(03) 9639 1296

Food: Japanese, French
Average price: Entree: $4-$27, Main: $28, Dessert: $15-$17

Complimentary: 
We ordered: Mother's Day 5course menu  - $55 per person
Salmon Blini
house cured gravalax, buttermilk blini, whipped fraiche, salmon caviar

Dill chevre on crisp toast

This was nothing special, just crackers and cheese.

Warm Truffled Potato and Leek Vichyssoise
slow cooked egg, persillade

This was a lovely soup with lots of flavour and a smooth texture. The egg was lovely for me, though some others would have preferred a runnier yolk. Overall everyone enjoyed it.

Wild mushrooms, quinoa, sage and pearl barley

This was lovely, earthy, salty with great textural differences. I liked the addition of sage.

Terrine de Campagne
umeshu jelly, prune puree, petit herb salade

D liked this.

Rare Seared Yellow Fin Tuna Loin
piperade, black olive crumble, crisp basil

Both Mr.M & S didn't enjoy the flavour combination.

Gnocchi with diced vegetables

The gnocchi was extremely soft, doughy and unpleasant to eat. The veggies were nice enough but just diced veggies, overall I found the dish boring and didn't eat much of it.

Roast Beef Tenderloin
Bourguignon garnish, pomme puree, red wine jus

White Choc and Tofu Blancmange
dark chocolate sorbet, chocolate brownie glace, poky biscuits

Simple and unoffensive dish. The blancmange was akin to a panacotta except it was a touch softer with only hint of sweetness. The chocolate sorbet and sweet glace were lovely and the malt chocolate crumbs added nice texture as well as a slightly salty element to dish which I enjoyed.

Tea & biscotti

Cost: $220 for four Mother's Day menus.

Service: Young but eager. Our waitress kept our water topped up whilst another described our dishes as they came. They were also accommodating to one late diner who they quickly caught up to us.

Atmosphere: Industrial chic meets Japanese zen. I really liked the juxtaposition of concrete and metal against the wood and bamboo plants. The splashes of red and hanging fairyesque lights complimented the style well.

Parking: Limited street parking but plenty of paid underground car parking right next door.

Website: www.heirloomonbourke.com.au

Hours: Mon-Fri 6.30am-late
Sat-Sun 7am-late

Would I return: Yes - good food for a cheap rpice in a nice setting.

Izakaya Den - Melbourne - review

Name: Izakaya Den

Address: Basement
114 Russell St
Melbourne 3000 VIC

9654 2977

Food: Japanese

Average price: Entree: $10-$15, Mains: $15-$33, Dessert: $5-$12

Complimentary:  Nothing.

We ordered: Sweet Corn Kaki Age - $7

We ordered two servings of this as I had heard many good reviews. I am glad we did as I could easily have eaten two plates of these. The fritters had the perfect amount of corn-to-batter ratio and were wonderfully crispy with sweet, juicy corn kernels. What elevated this dish from good to yum though was the green tea salt- there should have been more! There simply wasn't enough to properly season each fritter with.


Greens, fried bean curd and dashi - $10

There was a touch too much broth for my liking as it made the dish more akin to a soup, but I wasn't given a spoon. The dish was salty and savoury and overall pleasant enough.

Pork

Mr.M ordered these, he said they were ok, but nothing special.

Dessert: Black sesame brulee - $10

I am not sure whether this was a win for me...The texture of the custard and the crack of the brulee top were great, but the black sesame flavour in a creme brulee was odd for me, I'm not sure why. The others seemed to enjoy it.

Cost: Around $40? for three savoury and one sweet dish.


Service: Good. Despite having no pen or paper the waiters got all of our orders correct and the food came out fairly quickly. Our water was never topped up though. Before eating you are given a warm hand towel to wipe your hand which is a nice touch seeing as though some of the food is made to be eaten with fingers. The menus are written on wound up scrolls and water is served in plastic cups with Japanese anime figures.

Atmosphere: Hard to find hole in the wall. From the outside there isn't much in terms of obvious signage to inform you that down two flights of stairs in a cavernous nook wedged between two buildings is a restaurant. The tiny corridor is taken up largely by the bar with some sofas and wooden crates acting as tables in the front half, with some actual tables in the back. It is a very tiny space, very dark and you are very close to your fellow diners. As they didn't take bookings for small groups the only space we could get was sitting on some crates with one wooden box as our table. As you can imagine it was quite awkward to eat as we were all juggling plates and cups as there wasn't enough space for three on the crate. Forget about finding a place to put your handbag. The noise level was also quite loud.


Parking: Ok - street parking is very limited but there are always underground Paid carparks.

Website: www.izakayaden.com.au

Hours: Tue-Fri noon-2pm
Tue-Sun 6pm-midnight

Would I return: No. The food was decent but I felt too claustrophobic in the cramped interior to be able to enjoy myself and the food properly.

The Peninsula Hotel - Hong Kong - review

Name:  The Peninsula
Address: Salisbury Road, Kowloon
Hong Kong

(852) 29202888

Food: European, Cantonese, Northern Chinese, Japanese, French,

Average price: $250HK for Traditional Peninsula Breakfast and$268HK for Afternoon Tea.

Complimentary: Water.

We ordered: Four servings of the Afternoon Tea Platter.

This was perhaps the nicest afternoon platter I have ever had. Nothing was stale, dry or tasteless. My favourite items were the gorgeous scones studded with plump sultanas and the miniature chocolate tarts oozing with passion-fruit curd. Even the boys ate everything, right down to the pink marshmallow topped strawberries.

I also wanted to put in a mention for their Peninsula breakfast which has been my favourite hotel breakfast to date. I particularly loved their Bircher muesli. Here's a few snapshots.

Bircher muesli with berries, pancakes with apricots and syrup, fruit salad, eggs with bacon and potatoes, mixed Danish pastries.

Service:  Balanced. The service was attentive without being obtrusive. The staff were efficient, friendly and the food came out quickly.


Atmosphere: Colonial glamour. The floors are marble floors with large patterned rugs in the eating areas. The Lobby is filled with gilded columns, large potted ferns, ornate ceilings and gorgeous paintings all in neutral warm tones. The seats are dark wood with a royal blue fabric. Despite having a rather luxurious design and staff to open all doors for you  the atmosphere is rather relaxed and mellow.

Parking: Limited - take a cab or train.

Website: http://www.peninsula.com/Peninsula_Hotels/en/default.aspx#/Hong_Kong/en/

Hours: Daily 7am - 12:30am (for the Lobby), 2pm-7pm for afternoon tea

Would I return: Yes - for breakfast.