St. Elmo Dining Room and Bar – 22 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay

This post is so overdue, but finally I have the pics so I can show you what we had and tell you about this Byron Bay restaurant.

First of all, I have to say I had my first Espresso Martini here and OMG was it amazing!  Creamy on top and with a big strong hit of sweet caffeine.  I was tired and needed something alcoholic but with a hit and wasn’t red bull and vodka, so this was the beverage of choice.  The drinks menu is impressive so if you have time, stay longer and sample the many cocktails and wines.

This is the Espresso Martini x 2, by the end of the night I think it was x4!  And the Pimms Cup which is Pimms, mint, orange, cucumber topped with lemonade and dry.  Had a sip of this and it was faaresh and zingy!

The menu is tapas style, so we order a heap of dishes, the special of the day was roasted pork belly!!!  They must’ve heard I was coming to town!

First up was the cured meats. 

This is the Morcon Picante - Spanish style salami with guindillas, which are chilli peppers/capsicums.  I loved the big meaty bits and how there wasn't much fat to it.  With some fresh bread, olive oil and a bit of the peppers it was really a great way to ease into the meal. 7/10

Sorry about the blurry pic here, it was on the other end of the table. . .  This is the Jamon Serrano,  Spanish ham with tomato bread.  If I recall correctly this was like a mild proscuitto.  This is why I should write these reviews very soon after it was devoured. Pretty ordinary, 5.5/10.

Impressive photo below of the Ensalada De Lechuga Romana also known as the salad  of baby cos with white anchovies, crisp capers, boiled egg, croutons and guindilla dressing.  I love the fleshiness of the anchovies and the dressing was pretty tasty too.  7/10.

This is another salad we had, and for the life of me I can't remember what it was, and it isn't on the menu anymore.  I think it was goats cheese, beetroot, orange and rocket?  It was an interesting mix for a posh salad. 6/10, I'm not a huge leaf fan.

This was the special of roast pork belly with chickpeas, broccolini and roast potatoes.  We got two of these plates of soft, salty, fall apart pork meat goodness but I still somehow managed to miss out on the crackling to my great disappointment!!!  The servings were rather small despite being full of flavour, so I give this daily special a score of 7.5/10, maybe more or less if I had some of the crackling. . .

 

Below is the Carrillera De Vaca, slow cooked beef cheeks in caramelised red wine with cauliflower puree, fried bread crumbs and thyme.  This cut of meat is starting to make it's way higher and higher on my list of dishes to order when on a menu and getting closer to pork belly.  When cooked correctly with an abundance of flavour and textures it is awesome.  This in particular had so many levels of flavour, the crunchy bits of bread crumbs and thyme were so good in amongst the rich red wine sauce and the shreds of soft beef.  This was the highlight of the night.  8.5/10.

 

Chorizo con judias negras y pimiento de piquillo - which basically is pan fried chorizo with piquillo peppers, black beans, cider and almonds.  The chorizo wasn't very salty which is a good thing, I hate chorizo when it's too salty you can't taste anything else.  The black beans made this a more substantial dish.  The piquillo pepper is from northern Spain and tastes more like capsicum rather than a chilli.  7/10.

 

We had to have a seafood dish so we had this, mussels and clams with some type of aioli on top.   It's the first time I've had mussels with aioli.  Usually it's on the side with my pomme frites.   It was good though, the creaminess of it went well with the seafood creaminess of the plump orange sea morsels.  The clams are harder to get out and not as satisfying as the mussels.  7/10.

 

After a few drinks each and the assortment of Spanish inspired dishes we were too full for dessert.

St. Elmo Dining Room and Bar is a nicely decked out space with the feature bar,  moody lighting and dark wood tones dark enough for romantic dates yet light enough to be able to see what you are eating.  I would recommend this place for a nice evening out in Byron, although I think it's a bit overpriced for what the food was in comparison to Sydney restaurants, but hey we were away for the weekend.

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Paisley - I love it!

There are so many things that I love and never get sick of in the world of fashion.  One of those things is paisley. Paisley prints never go out.  Each season designers create new takes on the age old motif.  Here are some cool images from my many folders of research. 

Jill Sander

Stella McCartney

Etro

Simple paisley

Simple & chic

J Crew

Mara Hoffman

Lee Central Park Chinese Restaurant - Unit 18A - 20A, 4 Central Ave, Thornleigh

It’s my Grandpa Lee's 93rd birthday and we are eating out at his favourite restaurant, the name is just a coincidence. I think I mentioned this in one of my previous posts, but Lee Central Park Chinese is one of those restaurants we have been going to for an easy 10 years. It’s close to where my Grandpa lives and where I grew up. When you’re onto a good thing why change right? I used to be so sick of this place but as I ashamedly say, I go back home less often than I should, so now I look forward to making the trek over the bridge for some good old Chinese fare. Although I’m thinking next family get together I need to take everyone to the newly opened Mr. Wong. Which funnily enough is my other grandpa’s name! 

Anyway after all these years I’m going to actually think about what I am eating and try to write about the dishes (that I have eaten so many times before) constructively and try and convince some readers to try this Chinese institution in the Hills. 

Ok, so I’m writing the rest of this later in the week. Do you know that at most proper Chinese restaurants you get a free starter soup? What we had was a clear soup of pork bones with carrot. Apparently very nourishing. I love this soup. It’s so simple and tasty with the soft carrot and bits of fall off the bone pork meat. (Sorry bad photo, I forgot to take it at the start). I don’t know how such good flavour gets into this slightly cloudy liquid of goodness. Must find this out from my mum. 

For some reason we decided to order another soup . . . oh, it was a freezing cold night, that’s why my dad wanted it I guess. Glad he did, as it was a yummy brown thick liquid, which consisted of shredded duck meat, dried scallops, bamboo shoots, tiny strips of black fungus for some crunch and shitake mushrooms. It’s the “non” shark fin version of shark fin soup. I love this soup with red vinegar. It’s the best! You need the sharpness to cut through the salty thickness of it all. Seriously if you haven’t had shark fin soup and the thought of it repulses you then you need to try this duck one instead. It’s delish and a 3rd of the price. I rate it 8.5/10

As always we order a whole heap of dishes to share. I don’t get people who go to Chinese and Thai restaurants and only order 1 dish to themselves! It’s crazy. The idea is to share people! Although I understand there are food conditions. Anyway we order the following. . . .

Battered pork ribs stir-fried in plum sauce (the non Western version of sweet and sour pork) – Love this as the bones in the ribs make it a tastier version of just pork chunks. Sweet but salty and the chunks of capsicum and pineapple give it some crunch and a feeling of a little healthiness in there. 7/10

Tofu hotpot with cabbage – Subtle flavour of oyster sauce and garlic. I like the big chunks of cabbage and the fried tofu that have gone all soft from the cooking in the mini clay pot. This tastes better with chilli sauce. 6.5/10 

Wasabi beef – A kind of new addition to the Chinese menu. New as in 5 years ago it appeared on menus after eating Chinese my whole life. Thanks Japan. This version was a good version, salty and the right amount of hotness from the wasabi. Also the meat was soft and not chewy at all, which it can be at other places. 8/10.

Stir-fry of sugar snap peas and scallops in XO sauce – Love the freshness of the peas, totally cooked perfectly and the scallops were pretty juicy too. Only thing wrong, there wasn’t enough hit of the XO sauce. I added chilli sauce. 8/10 

Braised barramundi with re-hydrated tofu sheets and pickled cabbage – This is a dish you have to try. It’s a whole barra steamed with a black bean sauce. In this sauce is the tofu sheets which is a weird texture to describe. I suppose it’s like a slightly chewy piece of rice noodle, but it’s tofu. I don’t know you got to try it. This along with the sweet salty cabbage is great; oh I shouldn’t forget the fish. You’d think the sauce and all the other elements would over power the fish, but all the flavours and textures work so well. This version is great, but there is another version with bitter melon that I love too. 8.5/10

Honey prawns – Ok, so I admit Asians do order the Western dishes too. And I admit this was my choice for the dinner. I was craving some sweetness and I know that Lee Central do good honey prawns. The batter is light and crunchy coated lightly in the sticky honey and the prawns are a good size. 8/10.

Snow pea sprouts with shitake and abalone mushrooms – We always have to have a vege dish. This kind of braised vege is with a garlic and oyster sauce of course and slightly thick from the corn-flour addition which Asian food is so known for. Some chefs are pretty heavy handed with this which totally turns me off, but that’s another story. The mushrooms on top are a good addition and add more flavour to the sauce. The abalone mushrooms have a very strong flavour and are quite chewy, just like abalone! 6.5/10

White fungus sweet soup – This is free too, but we were still all a bit disappointed when this big bowl came out. We were all hoping for red bean soup dessert. Oh well. It’s a pretty sweet clear soup with chunks of clear jelly-fish like fungus. Again this sweet “soup” has good health properties. This one is supposedly good for cleansing the liver. I so need a liver detox but I only eat 3 mouthfuls, I just don’t like it. 4/10

For my Grandpa's birthday we specially ordered the Longevity buns.   They are meant to be peaches which traditionally represent immortality and long life.  They are bouncy fluffy balls of dough, tastes like the BBQ pork buns from yum-cha but with a lotus sweet bean paste in the middle. I was so full, but I had to eat it to be polite.  

Not sure how many people who read this will go to Thornleigh. But if you’re going to be in the area give it a go. It is a good reliable Chinese restaurant at reasonable prices.  Mains from $17 up to $100 for the market price of seafood by the kilo.  It’s good that the owners know how to be hospitable to both the traditional Chinese customers and numerous tables of Westerners too who are enjoying themselves, which is great to see.

Chiswick Restaurant – 65 Ocean Street, Woollahra

A few weeks ago I finally went to my favourite Aussie chef’s latest restaurant Chiswick.  Matt Moran co owns this with Peter Sullivan who, for those who don’t know owns the renowned Aria in Sydney and in Brisbane as well.

After watching Matt on Masterchef over the weeks I made a booking to go to lunch at Chiswick with my sister.

The tables are quite close together and so you can hear the next table’s conversation quite clearly but I don’t think the 60-year-old wannabe foodie sitting next to us knew that.  From the moment she asked for her chair to be swapped to a padded chair from a wooden slat chair I knew she was going to be painful!  Lucky I wasn’t one of the waiters, who by the way were tolerant of her as they should be and in general were attentive and what waiters should be.

The menu is designed for sharing and so to start off with I had to have the crisp buttermilk chicken with cabbage and harissa mayonnaise.  When this came out the painful lady commented to her partner, “oh my that is not a very appetizing dish, it looks burnt and not refined.  It’s not like Aria at all . . .” blah blah blah.  She gave me the total shits and I wanted to say something but I held my tongue.  Does she not know we are not in Aria we are in Chiswick, it’s a totally different concept you idiot!   

Trying not to think of what I would say back to her I loudly enjoyed my delicious chicken.  There were four generous pieces which were all crispy, very juicy and tender inside.  The crunchy cabbage was a good intermission between the pieces of chicken and the creaminess of the harissa mayonnaise.  I’ve never had this before; the mild spiciness along with the smokiness was so good with the chicken.  I rate this dish 9/10.  Take that old lady!  You will never know what you missed and dissed on!

For main we shared the orecchiette with spanner crab, snow peas and chilli and the roasted snapper fillet, celeriac, walnuts and bois boudran sauce with a side of steamed broccoli (from the garden) with garlic and chilli.   Oh which reminds me to share another quote from the offending lady when she was perusing the menu “Oh I don’t like broccoli I only like broccolini. ” Rolling my eyes big time!!!

Anyway. . .  as soon as the orrechiette came closer and closer and landed on our table the aroma was amazing, the waft of garlic, the light sprinkling of parmesan, just gorgeous.  It looked so pretty as well!  I was also very happy to see actual chunks of the spanner crab and not just little shreds of meat.  It tasted like a fresh spring day in southern Italy.  The crunch of the snow peas and the saltiness from the crab with the orecchiette was the almost perfect mouthful of pasta I have ever eaten.  9/10.

The snapper didn’t have quite as much aroma but looked more impressive!  The bois boudran sauce which (I had to look this up) in a nutshell is made up of vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, tobasco, chives, tarragon, shallots was a strong thick sauce but you can still taste the snapper perfectly.   The side accompaniment of celeriac and walnuts combo had a soggy but soggy in a good way texture with some crunch and I’m not sure what the dressing was but it was slightly creamy and with the walnuts was a really unique taste.  It has left me craving celeriac and wanting that salad again, and yes with the edible flowers too. 8.5/10

We were much too full to have dessert, bummer.  

The old couple next to us didn’t have dessert either and left in a hurry “ it’s too loud in here, lets have a coffee somewhere quieter.”  Good riddance!

I will definitely be back as I really want to order the Moran family grass fed beef and the roasted lamb.  I saw the lamb go to a number of tables on a big wooden platter and that looked so hearty!  

As I took in the atmosphere sans old hag, I can say that the beautiful interiors of Chiswick looks like a dining room from the Hamptons with the perfect green lawn out front, and a back view to the luscious vege and herb garden.  It was a bit loud and cramped but I guess that’s what creates the buzz and the family get together craziness vibe, amped up with the mmm’s and aaah’s of the delicious tasting produce that Matt and his team put out.  I totally recommend this place for some top quality nosh in a classy yet comfortable environment that is if you don’t get sat next to the lady I sat next to!

Chinese 5 Spice Braised Pork Spare Ribs Recipe

What is your favourite meat?  Mine is, can't say it fast enough, PORK!  I love bacon.  I love prosciutto.  I loved pulled pork.  I love Chinese roast and BBQ pork!  I love pork belly in every kind of way!  Here is a super easy recipe for braised pork ribs/belly.  I find spare ribs are easier as it is already cut up for you at the supermarket but nevertheless you can by all means use a big slab of pork belly.

Ok, so this is what you need for a serving for 4.  In this case for 2 hungry people:

1. 750-900 gms of pork spare ribs or pork belly
2. 1 whole garlic bulb, medium (separate the cloves, give it a squash so the flavour oozes out and throw in with skin on)
3. 12 dried Shitake mushrooms
4. 4-6 eggs (up to you how many)
5.  6 tbspns of dark soy sauce
6. 4 cubes of palm sugar
7. 1.5 sticks of cinnamon
8. 3 star anise
9. 8 cloves
10. 1 large tspn of Chinese 5 spice powder
11. dash of white pepper
12.  water to cover meat
13. Shallots for garnish

Method:

1. Re-hydrate the mushrooms in hot water for about 15 mins, squeeze the water out and trim stems off.  You can pour a bit of the water into the pot at step 4 for extra flavour.
2. Boil your eggs to about 80% hard boiled (bring eggs to boil for 2 minutes, then take off the heat with lid on and let sit for a further 7 mins
3. Caramelise the pork  
4. In a nice big pot (I like my clay pot) add all the above ingredients, except the eggs in with the pork and cover with water
5.  Bring to boil and then turn down to a simmer for about 1.5 hrs
6. When the meat has softened about 90% add the peeled eggs.  Have a taste and if it is to sweet add some soy, if  too salty add some more palm sugar.  Simmer for another 15 minutes or until the pork is super soft.
7. Garnish with shallots
8. Serve with steamed rice & steamed gai lan (Chinese broccoli)

Pretty easy recipe that looks impressive and also tastes like a Chinese festival of flavours is dancing in your mouth.  The pork is so tender and most of the fat has melted into the yummy sauce so no cutting off the fat and leaving it to the side people!  Eat it and enjoy it!