Simon Food Favourites: Canberra

Showing posts with label Canberra. Show all posts

24 October 2009

Portia's Place: Chinese, Kingston, Canberra (3 Oct 2009)

11 Kennedy Street, Kingston ACT 2604

http://www.portiasplace.com.au

Canberra's Duck Pancakes Place

While visiting Canberra for a friends wedding I was recommended to try Portia's Place by some local foodies at the wedding (thanks Drew/Amanda). Without a booking we were very lucky to get the last table when popping in for dinner. The Crispy Fried Duck Pancakes is one of their popular signature dishes which is prepared at the table with quick and expert dissecting. The duck was certainly crispy while meat still tender. I would have loved a bit of shallot and fresh chilli in the pancake as well to give it a bit of an extra taste kick like BBQ King do. Another signature dish is the King Island Fillet Steak with black pepper sauce which apparently is also Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's favourite dish which he always orders when dining — it certainly delivered on flavour and meat juiciness. The Crispy Boneless Lamb Ribs with spicy shantung sauce was an alternative to the shantung chicken and it looked like an absolute winner although the floury coating of the dish certainly made it heavier than expected and I couldn't eat as much as I wanted to — the flavours were delicious. The Dry Fried Prawns with five spice salt were a decent size and tasty and the Debal Chicken was also good and worth ordering.

The staff were friendly and welcoming and if you're lucky you might find the owner Portia Yeung serving you up your duck pancakes. I'll definitely be keeping this place in mind when I'm visiting Canberra again. Their menu specials change from time to time so there's probably always something new to try.

Crispy fried duck with Chinese pancakes $29.80 for 6 serves

[Signature dish]

Duck pancakes prepared and served at table

Left over crispy duck bone pieces full of crunchy nibble goodness

Debal Chicken: A Nonya style revised version of devil's chicken. Recipe originated in Sarawak. Made with shrimps, scallops, hot chilli and tarmarind paste $23.80

Dry fried prawns with five spice salt (with batter) $28.80

King Island fillet steak with black pepper sauce in claypot $30.80

[Signature dish]

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Crispy boneless lamb ribs with spicy shantung sauce $27.80

Complimentary peanuts

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18 October 2009

Silo Bakery: Sandwich and Pastry, Kingston, Canberra (2 Oct 2009)

36 Giles Street, Kingston ACT 2604

http://www.silobakery.com.au

Loving the bread and cakes

I think if I lived in Canberra I would be tempted to visit this place at least once a week if not more. I've now been 2 days in a row and today is for a quick lunch takeaway before heading off to a friends wedding up at Hall. I grab one of the Roast Beef Sandwiches (unfortunately not many choices left) which looks rather thin and plain and my expectations are that it'll be very dry. I was very surprised to discover the bread was actually very tasty and moist and ended up being quite a nice sandwich. The Rhubarb Danish was excellent — beautifully flaky pastry complimented with moist rhubarb and custard — I've yet to find anything of similar quality in Sydney.

Visits to Silo Bakery:

• 2 Oct 2009 - Roast Beef Sandwich, Rhubarb Danish

• 1 Oct 2009 - Treviso Pizza, Blackcurrant Tart, Cappuccino

Roast beef sandwich $8

Rhubarb danish $3.50
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

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Cream: Cafe and Bar, Civic, Canberra (1 Oct 2009)

Shop FG10 Bunda Street, Civic ACT 2601
http://www.creamcafebar.com.au

Decor good but meals just OK

While visiting Canberra I noticed the Civic area has undergone a bit of renovation since my last visit a few years ago. There's plenty of new dining options now which are attracting many diners to the area and seems to be the touristy part of town, a bit like the King Street Wharf and Cockle Bay Wharf of Sydney without the water views. The Cream Cafe and Bar looked promising with it's sleek decor and had available seating for our hungry table of 5 without waiting. The meals were reasonably priced although in terms of flavour we found them a little disappointing to what we were expecting. It filled the stomach anyway and perhaps it's more a place for drinks and a coffee and cake?

Duck Risotto: Duck braised in master stock with shallots, chilli, choy sum and shiitake mushrooms $21

Jambalaya: New orleans inspired rice dish with prawns, fish, calamari, mussels, chorizo, tomato and chilli $21

Chicken Risotto: Tender chicken, black olives, roast red pepper, hickory smoked tomato, basil and parsley $21

Linguini with prawns, fish, calamari, mussels, garlic, chilli and fresh herbs $21

Bill

Kapuka Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2009 $36 bottle

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Silo Bakery: Pizza and Cake, Kingston, Canberra (1 Oct 2009)

36 Giles Street, Kingston ACT 2604

http://www.silobakery.com.au

Taste bud treats

I've lost count of how many people have recommended Silo Bakery when you mention your going to Canberra — it seems to have quite a reputation for good food. I've visited once before many years ago and I actually wasn't that impressed with the cake I tried and wondered what all the fuss was about but was determined to give it another go. Upon arriving at 2.45 pm I soon realised the lunch menu had just finished at 2.30 pm but the kitchen were willing to cook me a pizza and I'm so glad they did. I wasn't expecting much but this pizza was so yummy and packed with so much flavour. Even though it was quite large and filling I was determined to try one of their cakes as well and the Blackcurrant, Mint and Cabernet Tart looked the most appealing — it was delicious and light enough to finish it all (just) — I can recommend both of these. The cappuccino was also good and not bitter, although a little luke warm due to absent-minded staff leaving it waiting at the counter for about 5 minutes after being made — isn't it so frustrating when you just see your coffee sitting there and staff forget about you and go about doing other stuff — perhaps they were all too tired after the lunch service and had other things on their mind before closing up at 4 pm.

Visits to Silo Bakery:

• 2 Oct 2009 - Roast Beef Sandwich, Rhubarb Danish

• 1 Oct 2009 - Treviso Pizza, Blackcurrant Tart, Cappuccino