Tag Archives: Canberra

100—Random9 Art exhibition | Black Pepper | Oblivion | #bestblogs13

On Friday evening Bron invited me to an art exhibition opening. The art was created by Randon9 which is a Canberra-based artists’ collective. 100 examines Canberra in a historical, political and cultural context. The exhibition is being held at the Belconnen Arts Centre at 118 Emu Bank.

It was an interesting exhibition. The BAC is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm. The Patron is Mr Jon Stanhope the former ACT Chief Minister. If you like art, it’s worth going to see and experience.

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Okay just a little rant here. One of the disappointing things about the BAC is the recent poor maintenance of its outside appearance. The yellow straw bundles each have a pavement embedded spot light shining up. Of the five or six bundles and lights only one works.

Yellow “straw” bundles at the Belconnen Arts Centre are street lights at night, although not now with only one working

This has been a deteriorating situation for nearly a year. They have evening exhibitions so I assume the managers are aware. Perhaps there is a conflict between the BAC and territory and municipal services (TAMS) It would be good if it could get fixed. Rant over

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After taking a look at the art we walked around to Black Pepper for dinner. We hadn’t booked but given it was around 6.30 pm we figured we had a good chance to score a table. When we arrived the restaurant was pretty bare and we got a nice table in the corner by a window.

The day in Canberra had been very cold and windy. We’ve really changed from summer-autumn to autumn-winter. It wasn’t quite bone chilling but the wind chill was very unpleasant. Inside the restaurant was cosy and warm even though it didn’t start to fill with customers until after about 7 pm.

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The dinner menu is relatively new and looked pretty good. It can be downloaded from the Out in Canberra site.

For an entrée we chose to share the Panko crumbed brie cheese for $13. It consisted of Japanese crumbed and fried brie cheese with orange and fennel salad.

Brie cheese

This was delicious and sharing half each was more than sufficient

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For mains, Bron chose the Swiss potato roesti stack for $15.50. It was layered with Napoli sauce, Swiss cheese and grilled eggplant, served with broccolini and gazpacho vinaigrette. I didn’t capture an image of it.

I chose the Scotch fillet and horseradish for $26.50. The Scotch fillet was served with garlic mash, horseradish cream, red wine jus, greens and game chips.

Scotch fillet

I like my meat rare. The beans were really squeaky on my teeth so I swapped them with Bron’s broccolini.

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The dinner menu was pretty good. I think Bron’s potato roesti was good value for money. My steak was nice but I’m not sure it was worth $26.50. It’s certainly better than what I’d get at a pub or bar but I would think between $18 and $22 is how I’d price it. The entrée was good but I’d probably be happier if it was priced at around $12.

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Afterwards we watched the ANZAC test match between the Australian Kangaroos and the New Zealand Kiwis. I was so happy to see military bands used to play the national anthems. One of my pet peeves (well it’s more than a peeve it’s a hatred) is the use of pop stars to sing our national anthem. More often than not (I kid you not) they mangle the anthem into their individual interpretation as part of their artistic expression. I can’t stand it. Not only is it painful on my ears, it’s disrespectful to our nation. Apart from a military band, my preference would be for a school choir to sing the national anthem. Channel Nine offers excellent coverage of Rugby League matches in Australia. Before the match a minute’s silence was observed for the death of Ross Livermore. Mr Livermore was the heart and soul of Queensland Rugby League (QRL) for 31 years. Queenslanders, especially lovers of the XXXX Maroons owe so much to Mr Livermore and what he did for Rugby League in Queensland and Australia. Needless to say it is very sad when such a great person dies. The Australian Kangaroos wore black arm bands in memory. It was shocking to hear louts in the crowd disrupt the silence with jeers and noises as a sign of disrespect. It’s a pity the ACT Police were not called in to remove the louts and cowards. Rest in peace Mr Ross Livermore. The game ended in an Australian victory.

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So this morning we needed breakfast. Out of convenience we ventured back to Black Pepper. I couldn’t help but notice a patron sitting near us.

My daughters tell me Crocs are a crime against fashion, I think mismatched socks do not help in the fashion stakes.

Fashion Fail

There’s a hole in the right heel too

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I didn’t want a huge breakfast but I did want something that would keep me going all day.

Poached eggs and a side of hollandaise sauce

The Black Pepper hollandaise is to die for

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This afternoon after a trip to Costco (optometry appointment for me) we went to see Oblivion IMDB and Google+. We’d seen the shorts for this movie while watching Top Gun at the Darling Harbour IMAX theatre over Easter.

I won’t be a spoiler for this movie suffice to say I enjoyed it. I’m a fan of a lot of science fiction, especially simple action genre science fiction. I’m a huge Star Trek fan and am eagerly awaiting the new Star Trek movie. I know Tom Cruise cops a lot of flack as an actor. I haven’t watched all his movies and probably won’t. I really enjoyed Top Gun, I enjoyed the Mission Impossible franchise and recently on a flight to the USA I watched Jack Reacher and enjoyed it. A Few Good Men and Taps are also favourites. I know there was a lot of controversy about Tom Cruise in the starring role for Jack Reacher. I understand Jack Reacher is portrayed as a giant of a man which Tom Cruise isn’t. Without having read the books, I can’t really criticise. I did enjoy the movie.

I would recommend Oblivion to anyone who likes science fiction that doesn’t require a lot of thought. There were a couple of question marks for me in terms of inconsistency but not enough to put me off. We also saw this movie at Hoyts Belconnen in their Xtremescreen cinema. The experience was really very good. Watching an action movie in the Xtremescreen cinema is very worthwhile.

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Tonight Bron is cooking up a storm, I’ll blog about that tomorrow. If you want a sneak peek though, follow me on Instagram | Facebook | Twitter for a glimpse of what she is cooking tonight.

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One last thing, I’m thinking of a rating system for restaurants based on two non-food criteria. If I remember I will offer a dunny rating and a napkin rating. I believe a good rest room (toilet or dunny) should be specific for gender (preferably not unisex), have urinals set at adult height and not just pædiatric height, pedestals with out swinging doors (for emergency situations), have paper towel (cloth for the really posh ones) and/or a Dyson air blade or XLERATOR™ air dryer. I’ll elaborate on this in future posts. For Black Pepper it gets a four out of five dunny score. For napkins I prefer cloth napkins over paper. My ranking would be fail | pass| excellent. My napkin ranking for Black Pepper is fail.

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Belconnen Arts Centre http://www.belconnenartscentre.com.au/
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/dxrLf

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Black Pepper http://www.outincanberra.com.au/blackpepper
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/2uxsW
The marker is in the wrong position. I’ve moved it and Google is reviewing my suggested move. If they agree the marker will show the correct placement in the future.

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Costco http://www.costco.com.au/index.shtml
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/NtGyt

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The ANZAC Test Preview – How the Kangaroos Will Win (thearmchairselector.com)
PAN-FRIED SWEET POTATO & SAGE LEAVES GARNISHED WITH OLIVE OIL & CINNAMON SERVED WITH GRILLED GRASS-FED BEEF SCOTCH FILLET SEASONED WITH ROSEMARY – Oh so fragrant, tasty and nutritious! (powerfoodsfitness.wordpress.com)
Thai to die for | The best Canberra restaurant experience in some time (garydavidlum.com)
Cold and disappointed (kiwiincanberra.wordpress.com)
Pho Viet Review 2 | The Aldi Expressi Coffee Machine | Back with Bron | My week in Instagram (garydavidlum.com)

2 Yummy in Belconnen | Not 2 Yummy for Yummy Lummy | Laksa and Duck | #bestblogs13

7 Replies

The other night while at Sanur’s Balinese Restaurant we noticed another restaurant named 2 YUMMY.

We noticed the interesting Chef’s recommendations

2 YUMMY Menu

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As much as I wanted to try (and I (or DrOffal) will try) Mountain city hot intestines and Intestines in black pepper sauce, we were keen for a nice laksa.

On Saturday night we went back to get some takeaway

Sorry about the poor photography

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The barbecue pork laksa was really good

I’m glad I’ve discovered a local place to get a decent laksa. Winter in Canberra is pretty cold so a nice hot laksa is so good to have.

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So was the “Super tasty boneless duck” from the house specialties.

This was really tasty and the skin divine

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2 YUMMY is definitely a worthwhile place to visit and eat. We’ll be back.

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2 YUMMY www.2yummy.com.au
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/vJ2lA

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2 YUMMY menu
Banquet menu PDF
Suckling pig banquet menu PDF

Sanur’s | Max Brenner | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My week in Instagram | Different foods | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My prize meat tray | Thank you @2CC and Elite Meats | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My Easter | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Rockpool on George | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Chicken rissoles | Elite Meats @2CC | #bestblogs13 | The Castle (garydavidlum.com)
two laksa and two drinks for a whooping RM15 (jangankesana.wordpress.com)

Lunch at Ricardo’s Cafe | #bestblogs13

5 Replies

Yesterday Bron and I had lunch at Ricardo’s Cafe at the Jamison Shops in Macquarie

I had a caramel milkshake to start while Bron had a latte (no latte picture)

This was lovely and thick with a good caramel flavour. Not too much and not too little.

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We shared a smoked salmon fritter meal

Three fritters. One each and one split down the middle. It was a good size for two.

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We then shared a caramel mousse

This was amazing. So light yet so full of texture with the salted peanuts and pistachios. The peanut brittle cap was brilliant. The base was also crunchy and not gooey. We cut it into two halves and shared.

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Cut in half

So you can see all the happy mousse goodness.

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Ricardo’s Cafe is a gem in a suburban shopping centre in the north side of Canberra. I hope it never changes.

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Follow me on Twitter | Like me on Facebook | Follow me on Instagram

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Ricardo’s Cafe http://ricardoscafe.com/
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/Dp0Sr

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Sanur’s | Max Brenner | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Rockpool on George | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My Easter | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My week in Instagram | Different foods | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My prize meat tray | Thank you @2CC and Elite Meats | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Chicken rissoles | Elite Meats @2CC | #bestblogs13 | The Castle (garydavidlum.com)
Third Time Lucky…….#bestblogs13 (duffythewriter.wordpress.com)

Chicken rissoles | Elite Meats @2CC | #bestblogs13 | The Castle

16 Replies

As a kid growing up in Brisbane one of Mum’s regular dishes was salmon rissoles. If you’re not from Australia or New Zealand you may not be familiar with what a rissole is. The wikipedia entry is pretty reasonable. I know for Mum’s salmon rissoles the main ingredients were tinned pink salmon and mashed potato, as well as bread crumbs and lots of finely cut vegetables. One of my favourite Australian movies is “The Castle” which contains so much that is typically Australian. As a result when the producers tried to adapt it for an American audience various words had to be changed, i.e., meat loaf instead of rissole (alternative versions).

Anyway, I’m quite fond of rissoles so yesterday when Bron pointed out rissoles in the Elite Meats display I jumped at the chance to buy some. When speaking with one of the butchers he said there were made in-house and like everything in the shop all the produce is organic and free-range. The rissoles were made from chicken mince and cheese and vegetables and then coated in fresh bread crumbs. All that was needed was some shaping and then a shallow pan fry.

Yesterday’s meat acquisition

I got six rissoles. Four for me and two for Bron.

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Chicken rissoles ready for the fry pan

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Chicken rissoles plated up

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The rissoles tasted pretty good. I’d happily recommend them to anyone living in Canberra and is venturing to Kippax Fair in Holt.

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My prize meat tray | Thank you @2CC and Elite Meats | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
My Easter | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Rockpool on George | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Daily Recipe : Rissoles (fooddelicious21.wordpress.com)
Rissoles (hopefulau.wordpress.com)
Chicken Mac and Cheese & Chicken Mac and Cheese Recipe | Pottery Barn (potterybarn.com)

My prize meat tray | Thank you @2CC and Elite Meats | #bestblogs13

10 Replies

A month or so ago Radio Station @2CC in Canberra was running a “best of” Canberra competition.

2CC is a talkback station with a fairly balanced political position. It takes programming from Sydney and Melbourne which is mostly just right of centre and it has two local announcers/broadcasters for the breakfast (Mark Parton) and afternoon (Mike Welsh) drive programs who balance each other out.

Mark Parton does breakfast on 2CC

Welshy does the drive show on 2CC

These images were taken from the 2CC website (see below)

On the day I won the meat, the “best of” topic was public art. Canberra has a significant recent history in terms of the public debate on public art. There are a good many residents who think the ACT Government has wasted vast amounts of tax payers money on what many regard as monstrosities and hideous insights into warped imaginations.

I’ve always thought a city, especially a national capital should be replete with public art. I really like the public art in Canberra and my favourite is the Owl Statue on the T-junction of Belconnen Way and Benjamin Way.

Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/GX9Q4

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The Owl Statue

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Okay enough images of Mr Owl

Here is the meat I acquired this morning

Bron and I went to Elite Meats in Kippax Fair in Holt and looked over the butcher’s shop. The butcher who looked after us was very friendly and very helpful. I’m pretty sure I’ll go back there to buy more meat. Over time I’m bound to post images from this selection of meat

Thank you 2CC and Elite Meats for the meat tray.

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Please consider voting for me

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Elite Meats is at Shop 12 Kippax Fair http://www.kippaxfair.com.au/Page1_storemap.html
http://www.kippaxfair.com.au/Page2_storeinfo.html#MeatCentre
http://www.kippaxfair.com.au/index.html
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/rChyl

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Radio station 2CC http://www.2cc.net.au/
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/2xTdz

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My week in Instagram and I won $50 of meat. Shout out @2CC and Elite Meats Canberra (garydavidlum.com)
My Easter | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Rockpool on George | #ManFlu | #bestblogs13 (garydavidlum.com)
Third Time Lucky…….#bestblogs13 (duffythewriter.wordpress.com)
Thai to die for | The best Canberra restaurant experience in some time (garydavidlum.com)

Dining at Morks Restaurant | #bestblogs13 | Shout out @In_The_Taratory

18 Replies

Before I describe last night’s meal I wanted to thank Tara from In The Taratory for suggesting I enter the Best Blogs 2013 Competition. I hope you don’t mind my shameless self promotion here

I hope you don’t mind if I ask you to please vote for me.

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Last night Bron and I went to Morks again for dinner. Our plan is to eat our way through the menu. This may take some many months but that’s the plan

Having enjoyed the Tasting Menu from a couple of weeks ago we were keen to try some of the dishes we saw coming from the kitchen that night.

Special treat

Shortly after we arrived Benn brought out a special little taster of Roti with a red curry. This was delicious. Both Bron and I have been suffering from being a little unwell and these really helped us feel much better. I decided I would place one whole in my mouth and gently masticate. The flavour sensation was fantastic. The favour development was slow but strong and peaked nicely. This little taster doesn’t seem to appear on the menu at the moment but it was really good.

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Angel Prawns

I get the feeling the Angel prawns are a signature entrée for Morks. They are made in a clay pot similar to the ones used by Hanuman in Darwin for their signature oyster dish The prawns were served hot and they were nicely cooked. They were a good size and this was an entrée that you wouldn’t just gobble down, rather it needed to be savoured prawn by prawn.

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Angel Prawn (closeup)

Eight sublime, sizzling king prawns coated in a kaffir lime leaf and coconut based sauce, served in an earthenware dish

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Belly pork

Braised pork belly with crackling, English spinach, boiled quail eggs served with five spice pork reduction, chilli and garlic relish and rice fried with basil and chilli

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John Dory

John Dory fillet with kaffir lime leaf based curry served with steamed wombok and rice

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My plate

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Lychee sorbet (sorry, out of focus)

Lychee sorbet to cleanse our palette

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It was a good night and again the service was fantastic. If you’re a local from Canberra and an IG lover please follow Morks at @morksrestaurant My pick of the night was the John Dory. I liked it the first time I tried it as part of the Tasting Menu and enjoyed it as much last night. The pork belly was really good, but I think its flavours were a little to subtle after the intensity of the John Dory. If I did the meal again, I’d start with the pork and then the fish.

Bron and I are already thinking about booking a table in a couple of weeks and what we’ll eat

Follow me on instagram
Like my Facebook page

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Morks http://morks.com.au/
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/S1itU

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Thai to die for | The best Canberra restaurant experience in some time (garydavidlum.com)
Pho Viet Review 2 | The Aldi Expressi Coffee Machine | Back with Bron | My week in Instagram (garydavidlum.com)
Hau’s Recipe: Steamed Garlic Prawns (poptasterecipes.wordpress.com)
Canberra 100: A Very Big Day (bellsknits.com)

Thai to die for | The best Canberra restaurant experience in some time | Morks of Florey

17 Replies

On Wednesday evening Bron and I ate dinner at Morks in Florey. When Bron mentioned Morks and said it was Thai I wondered why it was named Morks. It didn’t sound Thai but what would I know. Bron had found Morks on-line (TripAdvisor.com) when searching for a good place to eat locally. She’d also heard recommendations from work friends.

Florey is in the northern suburbs of Canberra in the town of Belconnen. I didn’t realise until speaking with a friend at work that the rent at the Florey shops is pretty high and the move of Morks to the Kingston Foreshore in August this year will be economically wise.

Morks

It will be interesting to see the new shop front presentation in Kingston. As you walk out of the restaurant you are confronted by a Dominos pizza sign which immediately makes you feel happy you’ve had a fantastic meal in Morks

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Tasting menu

Sorry about this poorly focused shot, it gives you an idea of the tasting menu. As soon as I saw this I wanted it. Then I looked at the rest of the menu and wanted that as well. Bron and I have agreed we will return to eat through the menu. Tasting menus are fantastic to get an idea of the style and tastes of a restaurant. This tasting menu had us wanting to try everything. We’ve had degustation meals before which we’ve always enjoyed but this one just looked so balanced.

Mork’s menu PDF

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Scallop and pig

Okay, so it doesn’t sound that great unless you’re an offal lover like me and @DrOffal http://droffal.wordpress.com/ The scallop and the pig’s ear were beautifully cooked. The chilli relish and grilled spring onion gave the flesh amazing heat and taste. The taste is amazing. I loved everything about this dish. The scallops were soft with a beautifully caramelised surface.

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Eggplant

I love the way the tasting menu alternates between a meat-based dish and a vegetarian offering. This eggplant was delightful. I loved the fried shallot. It had a wonderful smoky flavour and the coriander sauce was a great accompaniment.

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John Dory

For both Bron and I this was the surprise dish of the night. I’ve been a long time fan of John Dory. I don’t think Bron has tried it before. It was cooked with a crispy crusty coating and the flesh was delicate and tender. The Kaffir lime curry was superb. Words cannot describe the sauce and the lovely wombok surprise hidden in the fish. I wanted a spoon and had to make do by applying the back of my fork to the sauce and quickly licking the sauce from it and repeating the process. I seriously was wanting to lick the plate and mentioned this to Bron. I asked her to distract the other customers somehow while I applied my tongue to the plate. She declined When Benn took our plates we mentioned how much we loved the sauce and he jokingly offered to get us more.

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Lychee sorbet

This sorbet did exactly as it was meant to. It refreshed our palates. On putting a spoonful in my mouth I was transported to my childhood in Brisbane. My grandparents and my grandfather’s brothers all lived together and raised me when I was very young. There was a farm just outside of Brisbane and the owners grew lychees with small seeds. I remember going there once a year and getting large wooden boxes of lychees and spending days eating lychees. We also grew a tree in our back yard and it was right up to when my parents sold the house a few years ago that we were still enjoying lychees from that tree. Thank you Morks for reviving olfactory memories.

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Cauliflower

Bron mentioned she needs to do more with cauliflower after tasting this dish. The cauliflower was coated in a crumb and cooked just right. All too often we over or undercook cauliflower. I want to know how these fritters were cooked. I could eat this all day. It’s a vegetable right? It must be good for me and more must be better for me.

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Prawn

I’ve been watching MasterChef Australia the Professionals and admiring Marco Pierre White. His common refrain when served one of something is why wasn’t there two. This prawn and pea open wonton dish (it says prawns [plural] on the menu Mork) was delightful and I wanted a second prawn http://www.marcopierrewhite.org/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Pierre_White

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Pork rib

I assumed when we sat down and decided on the tasting Menu that this would be the dish of the night. It almost made it. The John Dory pipped it for me. That said, this was a great dish. The flesh fell from the bones and melted in my mouth. We got some rice to soak up the sauce which was so nice. The sauce was a perfect consistency, not too thick not too thin. It was soy salty and soy sweet.

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Coconut

This dainty dessert was just right. Coconut and passionfruit together. A party time of happiness in my mouth. The ice cream was complemented nicely with the warm sticky sweet rice it was served on.

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We got home to my place and I still had macarons that Bron had given me.

Rose water and vanilla macarons

These were lovely with a cup of peppermint tea.

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The Tasting Menu cost $130 for both of us. The restaurant is BYO and doesn’t sell alcohol. This suited us well. I cannot say in words just how much we both enjoyed this dining experience. We’ve both eaten well in Canberra and have had many dining experiences, but this rates amongst the top of any resturant we’ve eaten in in Canberra. The service was perfectly paced. We were never ignored and plates weren’t removed in haste. The team were friendly and they all looked like they worked well together. There was a familiarity amongst them that was clear to the entire restaurant. It was nice to see Adul out and about from the kitchen. Benn was friendly and helpful when he could see I was posting images to Instagram he told us the Instagram handle for the restaurant and the blog address.

Morks is so worthwhile, I’d say if you live in Canberra and if you like food, you should eat here. I know we will be going back again (and again and again).

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Morks http://morks.com.au/
Google map http://goo.gl/maps/AO0WX

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Morks Dining Menu http://morks.com.au/index.php/menus/main
http://morks.com.au/templates/wa_theme/images/mork_menu.pdf

Meet the team at http://morks.com.au/index.php/team I am assuming Benn maintains the social accounts.
You can follow Morks on instagram at morksrestaurant facebook and Tumblr

My weekend in Brisbane

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I love my visits to see my kids and also my parents. The weather has recently turned sour in Canberra and Brisbane is maintaining its warm and wet weather. It rained most of the time I was in Brisbane. It was lovely. Driving in the rain is not something that worries me. It seems to cause Canberra drivers to panic a little. On Thursday afternoon Radio Station | @2CC reported nearly ten road incidents that afternoon. I suppose it’s what you get used to. I loved driving in Darwin and Katherine in the wet season. That said Canberra drivers are expert at driving in fog. Fog freaks out a lot of drivers from other places. Canberra is so fog laden in winter you get used to it.

Miss11 turns 12 this week so this visit was well timed. I had already bought her a new Wii U game and she wanted some books. Miss11 is an avid reader so part of the weekend was going to be devoted to buying books. Becoming 12 also means she becomes eligible (at least in our family) to have a mobile telephone. It had been worked out by Miss17, Miss15 and Miss11 that Miss11 would get Miss15′s old fashioned Nokia and Miss15 would get a new smartphone for her 16th birthday. So this weekend was also about telephone buying for Miss15.

The weekend started well. I left work and Bron also came to the airport to spend some time with me before I left Canberra.

Canberra Qantas Business Lounge

Liquorice all sorts and jaffas shared with some soda water with Bron.

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The flight into Brisbane was uneventful and as usual the landing was delayed because BNE is in such poor shape with its runways that only one was working. This is a constant problem to the extent I never believe the arrival time and always assume I’ll be between 30 and 60 minutes late. I picked up a hire car, a Toyota Yaris, and drove to my parents. I love that modern cars can all connect seamlessly through Bluetooth to my iPhone. It was good to drive to my parent’s place with my tunes.

As well as a birthday gift for Miss11 I also had a bag full of chocolate for all the girls (including Mum). I had recently spent some time in Adelaide and bought up big at Haigh’s and menz. I also bought Mum some Almond Roca from Costco. She loves Almond Roca.

We watched a movie and slept well.

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We woke up to another day of clouds and rain. I heard from Bron that Canberra was cold with 40 km/h winds. I felt for her but I was feeling pretty good. My skin was moist and I could walk around in shorts and a T-shirt.

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My type of weather

I love overcast rainy warm days

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Breakfast at my parents’ place on a Saturday

Peanut paste and strawberry jam

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Shopping for Miss11′s 12th birthday this week

I loved these books when I was in primary school. I know the words have been modified to make them politically correct. I understand why but I am disappointed. I would hope kids are smart enough to distinguish between modern language and old language and want to learn what it means. I only ever read one novel at primary school and one novel at high school. I loved short stories like these though.

Miss11 also got two other books.

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Plastic shopping bags

Queensland is yet to introduce legislation banning plastic shopping bags. In Darwin and Canberra before legislation was introduced to ban their use, I would use them to line bins at work and in my bathroom. I found them very useful for multiple uses rather than single use. I still use plastic bags to lin bins, I just buy them now.

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Lunch with Mum and Dad

Mum had some lamb meatballs which she cut up and with some Havarti cheese she made toasties. These were magnificent. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havarti

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After lunch fruit

This is my first sugar plum. It was nice.

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After picking up Miss11 and Miss15 from gymnastics training they needed something to eat. On Saturdays they train from 1100 to 1500 so lunch is difficult. An afternoon snack is always necessary. Usually they have fruit or a sandwich. With me today though they asked for a treat.

They had this white chocolate mocha frappuccino with cream and some coconut loaf.

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Someone couldn’t get my name correct

I don’t mumble. I speak clearly. I also speak with an Australian accent. The person behind the counter didn’t have English as his first language. For a second I wondered if there was a “Gally” waiting but then realised it was for me.

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Dinner preparation

Tonight I promised my daughters I’d cook dinner. They like it when I cook for them. I made salmon and salad. They love salmon. Yes that is a tomato vine in one of the salmon containers. I used it to impart a little flavour when cooking the salmon. As you can see there was a lot of beetroot. We all like beetroot.

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This was my plate

We all like lots of feta. Everyone liked the lemon zest too.

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Miss11 becomes Miss12 this week.

Yes, she is gorgeous.

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Dessert

Mum made the cake and we bought some Weis’ sorbet to go with it.

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The rain continues

The constant rain has been a feature of the weekend. It’s been warm and it’s been moist. It’s been good.

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Breakfast preparation

My job was setting the table while Mum, Dad and Miss17 cooked.

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My Mum’s Sunday breakfast

A big pikelet with bacon, maple syrup and whipped cream

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A snack before leaving Brisbane

I know I didn’t need it but I do like cheese.

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The snack on QF957 from Brisbane to Canberra

I love salted caramel

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Dinner tonight

This is a beef hamburger with spinach leaves, coriander (cilantro), grated carrot, sliced beetroot, tomatoes, sesame seeds and Havarti cheese.

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It’s been a good weekend. I enjoy them with my daughters. When I leave Brisbane there is always a touch of sadness. I hope I get to see them again soon.

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Weis’ is a well known name in Queensland. As a kid we would crave Weis’ bars.

I don’t think any person from South East Queensland of my age could not have heard of a Weis’ bar. They were and are amazing.

The sorbet tubs are a relatively new addition http://www.weis.com.au/#/products/sorbet-tubs and extraordinarily good.

My week in Instagram and I won $50 of meat. Shout out @2CC and Elite Meats Canberra (garydavidlum.com)
Pho Viet Review 2 | The Aldi Expressi Coffee Machine | Back with Bron | My week in Instagram (garydavidlum.com)

My week in Instagram and I won $50 of meat. Shout out @2CC and Elite Meats Canberra

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It’s been a good week. I won a $50 gift voucher from Elite Meats Canberra

Radio station 2CC (Capital Radio Talking Canberra) has been running a “best of Canberra” competition for the last few weeks. This Tuesday they ran a “best public art in Canberra” competition. I nominated The Owl Statue on the T-Junction of Benjamin Way and Belconnen Way at Google Maps

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I have posted to instagram numerous images of the Owl Statue

He is meant to be a Powerful owl and the connection with Canberra relates to the collective noun for owls, viz., a parliament of owls which fits given Australia’s parliament meets in Canberra.

Thank you 2CC and Elite Meats Canberra

Chicken and salad

More chicken and salad

I bought one of these coffee makers for work.

An iced coffee banana smoothie for breakfast

My first brew

A Lindt cafe salted caramel macaron

A salmon and capers quiche

Raspberry and blueberry slushie

Chicken and salad

Clouds near sunset over Lake Ginninderra

More clouds

Mmm…chocolate covered ginger from Haigh’s chocolates

Breakfast at the airport on Wednesday on my way to a meeting in Melbourne

A work mate’s birthday cupcakes

My morning tea

Chocolate noodle spider

This morning’s Mavi breakfast wrap

Ruchi Belconnen Southern Indian dining for a #CBRTweetUp Shout out @Sister_Ratched (garydavidlum.com)
Dear Canberra (a love letter, of sorts) (inthetaratory.wordpress.com)
{Wordless Wednesday} Canberra Sleeps As The Sun Rises. (mumchic.com)
A Love Letter (inexplicablewanderlust.com)
Malamay in the Burbury Hotel (inthetaratory.wordpress.com)

Ruchi Belconnen Southern Indian dining for a #CBRTweetUp Shout out @Sister_Ratched

13 Replies

Last year I blogged a couple of times about the food at Ramas in Pearce. I have enjoyed the food there and the company on the occasions we dined there helped make the evenings memorable. After blogging about Ramas a Canberra Twitter friend, viz., Jude @Sister_Ratched commented (via Twitter and on my blog) that she thought there were better places in Canberra and Sydney for Indian cuisine. She suggested she could introduce me to such places. I was very happy to be introduced to new dining experiences.
Jude is lovely, she avidly comments on my blog and given the amount of food I post on Twitter and Instagram, Jude has shared her thoughts. At times this has been a concern for the quantity and quality of food I would post. I believe in some ways, the recent changes in my diet have been influenced by Jude’s comments about cholesterol, the importance of fresh ethically harvested produce and the health benefits of salad Jude is a Registered Nurse and currently practises in gastroenterology. I respect her opinion.

On Friday night Jude organised a Canberra Tweetup. I regret not taking names and Twitter handles because I’ll offend some new friends if I don’t mention them. Suffice to say this is not the last #CBRTweetUp I will attend. It was a most enjoyable evening and it really is great to meet tweeps in real life and get to get to know them a little better. One of my favourite Canberra bloggers was also there. T1 from InTheTaratory fame. T1 has been prolific recently on Twitter as part of the #LikeCanberra campaign for the Centennial celebrations of the Australia’s capital city.

We all met at Ruchi Belconnen. Ruchi specialises in Southern Indian cuisine. Jude recommended I try a Thali. A Thali is a tasting plate made up of a selection of various dishes. The food is served in small bowls on a round tray. In the middle there was bread and plus a piece of flesh (fish in my case). I asked for the Ruchi Special Non‐Vegetarian Thali for $24.50. This consisted of Chapatti, channa curry, Kerala chicken, beef vindaloo, pickles, thayir pachadi, rasam, and boiled rice. When the food was being served I heard the waiter say “special non-vegetarian Thali” and I assumed it was mine. It turned out not to be what I asked for but it was a Mysore Maharajah Non-Vegetarian Thali which consisted of Meen porichadu, chapathi, boiled rice, sambar, Mysore chilli chicken, daal, lamb korma, rasam, thayir pachadi, pickles, and a coconut dessert. This dish was considerably hotter in terms of spices than what I was expecting. It was not at all unpleasant, on the contrary it was delightful. I really enjoyed this tasting plate of Southern Indian delights. The company was great and in the end it was not a late evening but it was certainly a very enjoyable one. The next #CBRTweetUp is being organised. I’m looking forward to it.

Mysore Maharajah Non-Vegetarian Thali

The menu can be downloaded from http://www.outincanberra.com.au/files/client-menus/Ruchi-Menu-August-2012-Dine-in-menu.pdf

I would definitely recommend Ruchi Belconnen. I’ll be returning.

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Friday was made even better with a Mavi Breakfast wrap which meant I didn’t need lunch.

A beautiful tongue of bacon.

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This afternoon. I enjoyed a pastry treat from Ricardo’s Cafe at the Jamison Plaza.

This is the Peanut Butter. It contains a very subtle peanut paste flavoured mousse with a heart of caramel resting on a delicate chocolate crumb biscuit base. It was lovely.

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Ruchi

Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/JB0q2

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http://www.outincanberra.com.au/ruchibelconnen

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Ramas
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/aE655

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