Kingsleys: Launch of Grasslands Premium Beef, Woolloomooloo (17 Aug 2011)

Restaurant 10/6, Cowper Wharf Road, Woolloomooloo NSW 2011
http://www.kingsleys.com.au

Grass fed push at Kingsleys

“Grasslands is the newest premium beef product from Cargill Beef Australia, it is produced naturally is free range and targeted to health and environmentally-conscious consumers and is exclusive to Kingsleys & Chophouse”

Thanks to Sarah Yule from Pacific Restaurant Group for inviting me as a guest to the launch dinner ($79 per person) of the new Grasslands beef. There was no shortage of protein being served starting with Grasslands bresaola which was good. The Slow cooked shin had a nice chilli kick in it and I've been a fan of Chef Lars's steak tartare before which is spiced just right and served with crispy sourdough crostini. Cape Mentelle matched the courses with their Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet Merlot. The shiraz wasn't so appealing on the nose for me for some reason but I enjoyed the taste. Hardcore meat lovers were treated with shared plates of Slow roasted tenderloin with chimmichurri and 800g rib on the bone with habanero mustard. My preference was the rib on the bone which had more flavour although the tenderloin was more tender — combine the two and you've got yourself a clear winner. Well-sized Steakhouse chips provided the carbs and the Iceberg salad, radish & blue cheese has been one of my favourites at Kingsleys each time I've visited. Dessert came in the form of a Cheese platter with fig roulade & fruit spelt crisps just to add that final topping of protein for the night. I had the opportunity to chat with some of the beef producers and learn a thing or two about all the different companies involved in the process of getting the meat from farm to plate including John Andrews from Haverick Meats who provides value adding and portion control amongst other things.

Other visits to Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse:
• 17 Aug 2011 – Grasslands Launch

• 4 Dec 2010 - Alaskan King Crab, Singapore Chilli Crab, Iceberg Salad, Aged Rump, Caesar Salad, Butterscotch Pudding

• 9 Nov 2010 - Bloggers Dinner: Alaksan King Crab, Steak Tartare, Baby Octopus, Beef Wellington, Burrata Mozzarella Salad, Iceberg Salad, Creme Brulee

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Cattle are pasture fed, Seems to have good flavour, Kingsleys know how to cook it well

CONS: You'll only find Grasslands at Kingsleys and Chophouse — although perhaps that's not a bad thing, Not for vegetarians

MUST TRY: Rib on the bone, Iceberg salad, Steak tartare

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http://www.steak.com.au

2010 Cape Mentelle ‘Brooks’ Chardonnay

Grasslands bresaola with tamar valley truffle, soft herbs, olive oil

Steak tartare with truffle aioli, quail egg, sourdough crostini

Slow cooked shin glazed tataki style

2009 Cape Mentelle Shiraz

800g rib on the bone with chimmichurri

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Slow roasted tenderloin with habanero mustard

Habanero mustard and chimmichurri

Iceberg salad, radish & blue cheese

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Steakhouse chips

Green beans & almonds

Cheese platter with fig roulade & fruit spelt crisps

2008 Cape Mentelle Trinders Cabernet Merlot

John Andrews from Haverick Meats, Connaugh Sheehan from MLA Meat & Livestock Australia

Chef Lars Svensson (left) and farmer (right)

Andrew Negline of Cargill Beef Australia (left), Steve Sykes beef producer (right)

Beef producers

Meat on a bone — gotta be happy with that

Crabs and steak


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Eat Drink Blog Conference 2011: Uniting bloggers from around Australia, Sydney (5 Nov 2011)

http://eatdrinkblog.org

http://twitter.com/#!/eatdrinkblogau

Blogging community unite again

From all accounts it seems the Eat Drink Blog Conference, now in its second year, was a huge success in the eyes of the attendees I spoke to. The Twitter hastag #eatdrinkblog2011 also reached an Australian trending status when I logged in during the afternoon which was good to see. Due to another event I was unable to apply to attend the conference but I managed to drop by after the dinner at Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse to meet a few familiar and friendly faces venturing off to the Woolloomooloo Bay Hotel for some post conference drinks. It was also nice to meet some new blogger faces that had travelled interstate to attend the event. I look forward to seeing video footage and blog posts of what happened at the conference including seminars on Legal, SEO, Monetising and Ethics. I hope the event was inspirational to all that were lucky enough to attend.

The conference comes to a close

The Hungry Duck, Cupcakiedolly and Green Cilantro

Happy conference bloggers after a long day, Sugarpuffi (right)

Post conference drinks at Woolloomooloo Bay Hotel

Michael Gall (right) from My Aching Head talking politics

Perth bloggers Food Endeavors of the Blue Apocalypse (left) and The Kitchen Crusader (centre) meet Canberra blogger (right) meet Zoolander

Misslollylovesfood.com (left) and Tammi Jonas (right) from Tammi Tasting Terroir

Sandra (left) from The $120 Food Challenge in good company with Lauren (right) from Corridor Kitchen

Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse: Singapore Chilli Crab, Woolloomooloo (4 Dec 2010)

Restaurant 10/6, Cowper Wharf Road, Woolloomooloo NSW 2011
http://www.kingsleys.com.au

Eating crab is a messy business

Using a $200 gift voucher I received from the Pacific Restaurant Group for helping out at a Managers Creative Day on 23 August 2010 comes in handy for a family lunch at Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse. The weekend special of a glass of Louis Roederer NV ($17) seems a nice way to start although its elegance is soon overshadowed by how messy the complimentary crusty bread was to cut leaving exploding crumbs all over the table — I’m suspecting this is why many restaurants serve it pre sliced. A good selection of table pleasing entrees included a nicely presented Yellow fin tuna sashimi, nicely flavoured Hervey Bay scallop on half shell ($5.50 each) and the Steak tartare ($17.90) which I’d previously enjoyed with surprise. My mum was against trying the raw meat assuming she’d hate it but after much coaxing finally tried a tiny bit and announced she actually didn’t mind it and thought it was quite nice. A reasonably priced 2010 Totara Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough ($34) seemed good value at such a nice water view restaurant. The Alaskan King Crab legs ($59.90 600g) was on my must have order which possessed decent chunks of sweet crab meat easily accessed through its softish shell.

For mains an Aged rump 120 day grain-fed, Riverine Premium Beef ($26.90 300g) of marble score 2+ was sliced up for easy sharing and cooked nicely to our medium-rare request. Similar to Mad Cow steaks seem to be served as is with no sides — quality meat but at a price. The main drawcard for the visit was to try the QLD Mud crab in Singapore Chilli sauce ($69.50 1-1.2kg) which is at a set price so you know what you’ll be hit up for. My brother refuses to eat crab these days because it’s so messy and involves a frustrating amount of time in finding the meat with usually little gain. The rest of the family still persevere in enjoying the chilli sauce which isn’t too hot and full of flavour with some decent chunks of meat to be found. Unfortunately we were also left with very messy hands that lingered with crab smell well after the meal — one of the downsides of crab eating.

For sides the Steakhouse chips ($6.90) included some ridiculously sized pieces which went nicely dipped into the crab chilli sauce. The Caesar salad, anchovy, sourdough croutons ($9.90) had a nice dressing although I missed having some bacon and egg in it. For a really well flavoured dressing I’m a big fan of the Iceberg salad, radish and blue cheese ($11.90). Most of the sides seemed quite reasonably priced including the Green beans, almonds ($7.90) and Kipflers, spinach and chorizo ($9.90). For a cheap lunch I reckon just ordering all the sides to share like tapas would do the trick. Mocha ($4.50), Cappuccino ($4.50) and Long Black ($4.50) weren’t too bitter and we ended on a sweet note of Cheesecake ($13.90) which I would have preferred more base and a warmly served Butterscotch Pudding ($13.90) which was more to my liking that came with a decent amount of ice cream on top.

Other visits to Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse:
• 17 Aug 2011 – Grasslands Launch

• 4 Dec 2010 - Alaskan King Crab, Singapore Chilli Crab, Iceberg Salad, Aged Rump, Caesar Salad, Butterscotch Pudding

• 9 Nov 2010 - Bloggers Dinner: Alaksan King Crab, Steak Tartare, Baby Octopus, Beef Wellington, Burrata Mozzarella Salad, Iceberg Salad, Creme Brulee

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Water views, Quality ingredients, Nicely presented dishes, Nice decor, Set price for Mud Crab

CONS: Surcharge fee for use of credit card, Depending on what you order could be considered expensive, Crusty bread was very messy to cut

MUST TRY: Yellow fin tuna sashimi, Hervey Bay Scallops, Steak Tartare, Alaskan King Crab, Iceberg salad

WORTH TRYING: Singapore Chilli Crab if you don't mind the mess

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Louis Roederer NV ($17)

Complimentary bread — although was very crunchy and messy to cut

Yellow fin tuna sashimi with daikon and apple ($20.90)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Hervey Bay scallop on half shell ($5.50 each)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Steak tartare with truffle aioli and sourdough crostini ($17.90)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

2010 Totara Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough ($34)

Alaskan King Crab legs served chilled ($59.90 600g)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Aged rump 120 day grain-fed, Riverine Premium Beef marble score 2+ ($26.90 300g)

QLD Mud crab in Singapore Chilli sauce ($69.50 1-1.2kg)

Steakhouse chips ($6.90) — look at the size of this chip!

Caesar salad, anchovy, sourdough croutons ($9.90) — although can you really have a caesar salad without bacon and egg?

Iceberg salad, radish and blue cheese ($11.90)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Green beans, almonds ($7.90)

Kipflers, spinach and chorizo ($9.90)

Mocha ($4.50)

Cappuccino ($4.50)

Long Black ($4.50) — with a requested side of milk

Cheesecake ($13.90)

Butterscotch Pudding ($13.90)

Bill for 5 people $370.30 minus $200 voucher = $170.30

Messy hands from eating crab

Weekend drink special menu

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